June 29, 2007 - Issue #13
Local News | Opinion/Editorials | Letters to the Editor
Local News
Father Al Giebel leaves behind a lasting legacy for Alaska’s Catholics
New York native died in his home at age 60
Father Al Giebel, long-time priest in the Archdiocese of Anchorage, died June 17 at his home in Anchorage.
The 60-year-old priest had been in ill health for some time, but was assisting as needed with Masses at local parishes and Blessed Sacrament Monastery at the time of his death.
Father Giebel was a New York City native, born in the Glendale neighborhood of Queens and educated in Catholic schools in Queens, Brooklyn and Long Island from childhood through seminary. He was ordained for the Diocese of Brooklyn in 1972.
Friends and former parishioners recall how Father Giebel brought Brooklyn into his Alaska ministry, both with the hint of an accent he never quite lost and with tales of his German-American background and his father, who was a New York City policeman.
He often drew from his youth in preaching and was known for short, pithy, pull-no-punches homilies.
"He would tell stories of his younger days, and connect them to the Gospel," said Rob McMorrow, youth minister at St. Benedict Church. "His delivery was very good and people liked to sit and listen."
"Short and to the point," echoes Franciscan Sister Camilla Menting, who was hired by Father Giebel to serve at St. Andrew Parish in Eagle River.
Father Giebel came to Alaska in 1975 and spent a year getting to know the archdiocese by working in parishes in Dillingham, Cordova, Palmer and at St. Patrick Church in Anchorage.
He left his mark on two large parishes, St. Andrew in Eagle River, where he was pastor from 1976-1989, and St. Benedict in Anchorage, which he pastored from 1989-2006. He was incardinated (attached to the Archdiocese of Anchorage) in 1977 by Archbishop Francis T. Hurley, now retired.
Young people were a particular focus of Father Giebel’s ministry.
St. Benedict parishioner Jamilia George recalls the help he gave her when she raised two children in the parish as a single mother.
"Losing Father Giebel is like losing a member of my family," said George, who had to pause for tears as she spoke the day after the priest’s death.
Two weeks before his death, Father Giebel visited her home and was "surrounded by fifteen kids."
"He would always say, ‘pray for the youth, pray for the youth,’" she said. "And he didn’t mince words. If you were walking down the wrong road, he got your attention."
George’s son, Daniel, a junior at Gonzaga University in Spokane, credits Father Giebel with having "a really large role in the formation of my faith. He was someone I could talk to. He’s the reason I joined the Knights of Columbus."
As a student at Lumen Christi High School, Daniel remembers Father Giebel’s "confessional style."
Students at the school had to go into the confessional every month or so – but not necessarily to receive the sacrament. They could go behind the screen, or face to face, and all they needed to do was say hello and have a chat. No one was ever pressured to make a confession, but it was a chance each student had to communicate with Father Giebel.
"He really related well to kids," Daniel added. "I’ve spoken to a lot of former students and they are really sad."
Daniel recalls Father Giebel’s generosity – if a college freshman away from the parish was lonely and couldn’t afford to get home for Thanksgiving, Father Giebel would buy a ticket, and was even known to meet someone at the airport so they could surprise their parents.
One of Father Giebel’s biggest accomplishments at St. Benedict’s was the construction of an education center, which became the site of Lumen Christi High School. Later, the priest oversaw the construction of a gymnasium for the school.
Father Giebel was the consummate parish priest. Part of his German heritage included a love for German cooking – and cooking in general. In October, his parishes would host an Oktoberfest and the pastor would serve as chief chef.
"He loved to put on meals for the parish," said McMorrow. "He’d hire a band and start the kraut cooking days beforehand – he did it very authentically."
As "collaboration" became a buzzword in the Catholic Church, Father Giebel remained a pastor with a reputation for control.
"He was a strong-willed man, a strong-willed pastor," said McMorrow. "The parish was pretty much what he wanted it to be."
But he was also very generous and very kind, McMorrow added.
"He loved my five-year-old daughter and when we’d get to church early, she’d sit on his lap before Mass."
Archbishop Roger Schwietz was out-of-state when Father Giebel died, but returned for his funeral Mass, which was celebrated by Archbishop Hurley. Father Giebel’s sister Christine also attended from New York.
Archbishop Schwietz issued the following statement: "I join with my brother priests as well as the people of the Archdiocese of Anchorage in mourning the loss of Father Al Giebel. I thank God for his many years of pastoral service to our people, especially to our youth in Catholic education. In particular, I am grateful to Father Giebel for having given Lumen Christi Catholic School a home and support at an important moment in its history. May he rest in peace."
Visitation was held June 21 at St. Benedict Parish with a funeral Mass June 22 at St. Andrew. Burial was in Angelus Memorial Park.
Alaska refugees grasp the true meaning of freedom
Uzbekistan family grateful for Catholic outreach
Uzbekistan refugee Abdurafik Ishmatov and his family have a new life in Alaska and the sweetest part is freedom.
The theme of this year’s World Refugee Day is "A new home, a new life."
Ishmatov paid almost everything for his new life of freedom — risking serious bodily harm and threats to his family — all for the cause of democracy in his homeland of Uzbekistan.
His journey and fight came to a climax back in 2004, when he was attacked by former KGB officers while covering a story for an underground democratic paper. Several Uzbek secret service officers brutally assaulted Ishmatov and his colleagues, leaving them with shattered limbs and basically for dead on the side of the road. They managed to get themselves temporarily patched up, before living a life on the run.
Ishmatov secured refugee status in Moscow but had to leave behind his wife, daughter and mother to do so. After the Andijan uprising a year later in Southern Uzbekistan, his wife, daughter and mother fled to Moscow as well. The United States Embassy there granted them refugee status, and took them to Alaska, under the care of Catholic Social Services.
Ishmatov and his family are among the more than 500 refugees helped by CSS since November of 2003, according to Dr. Karen Ferguson, Coordinator of Refugees for the State of Alaska and program director for the refugee program with Catholic Social Services.
CSS is the social justice arm of the church in Anchorage, putting to action what the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops called for in their letter, "Welcoming the Stranger Among Us." In that document, bishops called the church to work "for the respect of human dignity of all, especially those who find themselves in desperate circumstances."
CSS helps find new homes for people like Ishmatov and assists them in the transition by helping them learn the language and find a job. After being in the country for just 10 months, Ishmatov and his wife Gulnora Kiyamova can now understand and even speak some English. Kiyamova was a pediatrician back in Uzbekistan and is already a certified nurse’s assistant at an assisted living home in Anchorage.
Ferguson says accomplishments like these are huge, and that is why it is so important to recognize them on World Refugee Day, held this year on June 20.
"It’s a chance to mark and celebrate and cheer people on in their task towards resettlement," Ferguson said.
She added that it is also important to raise awareness about the numbers of refugees still out there.
"For every person we resettle, the number is more than ten-fold of people waiting to be resettled," Ferguson said.
She noted that the United Nations lists about 12 million refugees waiting for resettlement.
That number includes thousands more Uzbekistanis according to the organization Human Rights Watch. The Uzbekistan Government is still considered to be a major violator of human rights, known for brutality and torture of political prisoners. The ruling party there squashes opposing political parties.
So how can the average Alaskan help?
"Realize that our community is an ambassador for these people," Ferguson said, adding that in addition to resources donated, CSS is always looking for volunteers to help tutor refugees in English. She said the gratitude of their clients is overwhelming for all the help they receive.
During his interview with the Anchor, Ishmatov expressed gratitude to CSS and to the Anchorage community for all their help.
According to the CSS Web site, even if people do not have the time to volunteer, it is important to maintain a sense of solidarity with all refugees worldwide.
"Pray for the safety and success of all refugees still out there", Ferguson said.
Pope Benedict the XVI stressed the importance of helping and praying for displaced people during an Angelus at the 2005 World Refugee Day. In that address, the pontiff reminded the faithful that the Holy Family themselves were refugees.
"Entrust men, women and children who live as refugees to the maternal protection of the most Holy Mary — who tasted the bitterness of exile together with her spouse Joseph and the baby Jesus during their flight into Egypt," he said.
For more information on how to volunteer or helping out with refugees in Alaska, log onto Catholic Social Service’s Website at www.cssalaska.org.
Filipino archbishop shares with Alaskans
Archbishop Orlando Quevedo, from the Archdiocese of Cotabato City in the Philippines, made a rare visit to Alaska this month. Part of his visit included a June 18 meeting with members of the Global Solidarity Partnership committee at the Pastoral Center in Anchorage.
The Global Solidarity Partnership is a unique relationship between the archdioceses of Anchorage and Cotabato. The multi-faceted agreement includes a sharing of resources between the two archdioceses. But even more importantly, according to the group, is the chance to live the universality of the church through a rich spiritual bond that includes prayer and shared discussion of challenges Catholics face in both Alaska and the Philippines.
Archbishop Quevedo shared the latest news from the Archdiocese of Cotabato, including some of the challenges the church faced in a recent major political campaign.
Filipinos vote in democratic elections. And similar to the U.S., votes are often more about popularity contests than decisions based on the candidate who best defends Catholic values.
"Many times these candidates have no other skills, other than being a popular basketball player — they have no political experience or knowledge," the archbishop said.
To help protect religious freedom and to help Catholics make informed decisions, the archdiocese of Cotabato held classes to educate Catholics about their responsibilities to choose a candidate that will work for social justice and values congruent with Catholic teaching. Archbishop Quevedo stressed that these classes focused on the democratic process and the importance of staying informed, rather than endorsing a particular candidate.
"Our democracy (in the Philippines) is of the undisciplined kind," the archbishop told the group, stressing that education is a crucial component to help better the situation. Ecumenism is also a major priority for the archbishop because of the widespread growth of the Islamic faith. Archbishop Quevedo and other bishops from the Mindanao region of the Philippines are engaged in major inter-religious dialogue with Muslim leaders.
"The bishops and the church in the Philippines believe that through this dialogue they can achieve lasting peace in both the life and culture in the Mindanao region, " said Father Ben Torreto, one of the Filipino priests on loan from Cotabato.
Archbishop Quevedo concluded his talk by sharing the successes of a number of ministries in Cotabato, especially the overwhelming response of lay volunteers to join ministries. He also said he was pleased to ordain two new priests to his archdiocese in the last year, and also celebrate his own fiftieth anniversary of religious profession with the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the same religious order as Anchorage Archbishop Roger Schwietz.
The next big event for the partnership is a pilgrimage from Anchorage to Cotabato in the fall that will coincide with the week of peace celebration in the Mindanao region of the Philippines. The trip will offer Alaskans the chance to serve as ambassadors to the Philippines, while praying for peace.To find out more about the Global Solidarity Partnership, contact Father Ben Torreto at bentorreto@yahoo.com, or Margaret Menting at mmmkenai@gci.net.
Changes afoot for Catholics in the Mat-Su Valley
New priests, a new school and a new collaborative approach to faith formation and religious education are all on the horizon for Catholics in the Mat-Su area.
"It’s really an exciting time in the valley," Anchorage Archbishop Roger Schwietz told the Anchor recently. "The valley is growing in population and need and we have a talented and qualified staff on hand to be of service."
Last month, the archbishop announced several new priestly assignments, including changes at Sacred Heart Church in Wasilla and Our Lady of the Lake Mission in Big Lake.
For starters, Our Lady of the Lake is welcoming its first-ever resident priest, Father James Oberle, from the Society of Saint Sulpice.
In a recent letter to valley parishes, Archbishop Schwietz thanked Big Lake’s longtime parish administrator Kathy Bishop for her many years assisting the parish in the absence of a priest. He praised her "generous and effective leadership" and also expressed gratitude for Bishop’s willingness to continue serving parishes in the Mat-Su in a capacity that will be determined once the new pastors settle in.
Father Oberle, 60, will begin pastoral duties at Big Lake in July. He received permission from his community in San Antonio, Texas to work in Alaska for at least three years but said he hopes to extend that by a dozen more or so.
Father Oberle visited Alaska several times over the years to assist with Masses. He was last up in April to help celebrate Holy Week.
Most recently, he worked as vice president at Assumption Seminary in San Antonio, where he oversaw seminarian formation, faculty development and administrative affairs. He also taught theology at Saint Mary’s University and at the Oblate School of Theology.
Father Oberle said his order was founded in 1641 to implement the teachings of the Council of Trent. Over the years, much of his own ministry has focused on priestly and diaconate formation.
In addition to his work at Big Lake, Father Oberle expects to work in other areas as well.
"It is my understanding that (Archbishop Schwietz) expects that I will assist with the diaconal and priestly formation programs," he said in an email to the Anchor, The specifics, however, have, not yet finalized.
In his letter, Archbishop Schwietz said one major task for Father Oberle is to help move Our Lady of the Lake from its current mission status under Sacred Heart Church, to an official parish.
Father Oberle said his first task, however, is to meet and listen to his new parishioners.
"Then I must give them my heart," he said. "Together we will grow and develop into the Body of Christ."
Archbishop Schwietz also announced that incoming priest Father Bill Fournier will step in for Father Kaspar Mallavarapu as the new pastor at Sacred Heart Church in Wasilla.
Father Fournier, age 60, plans to work in Alaska for at least five years and possibly longer.
Currently, he pastors a church in Duluth, Minnesota. He worked for many years under Archbishop Schwietz when he was the bishop of Duluth.
Father Fournier said he loves Alaska and has helped celebrate various Masses in the state since 1996. He introduced himself to the Sacred Heart community a few weeks ago and plans to return in August to begin full time ministry there.
In his letter, Archbishop Schwietz expressed gratitude to outgoing Father Kaspar for his "dedicated and generous service" at Sacred Heart over the past seven years.
Calling him a "true missionary," the archbishop praised Father Kaspar for fostering better relations with Christians of the Eastern liturgical traditions by "graciously welcoming" Byzantine Rite Catholics and Orthodox Christians to use the old Sacred Heart Church building.
Father Kaspar will move to Anchorage to assist Father Tom Lilly at Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Church. He will also help at Our Lady of the Snows in Girdwood.
Archbishop Schwietz recognized the sorrow in Father Kaspar’s parting but sees the sadness as a sign of the positive and lasting impact he had on the Wasilla parish.
"He leaves big shoes to fill," the archbishop said.
For his part, Father Fournier brings his own unique talents to the growing Wasilla parish, which will help support a new Catholic school just down the street.
For the past two years, Father Fournier pastored St. John the Evangelist Church in Duluth, which is also tied to a Catholic grade school.
Father Fournier taught sixth grade religion classes there and said he wants to continue teaching students at Our Lady of the Valley Catholic School, which is set to open in August.
"I would definitely want to keep my hand in that," he told the Anchor. "I would want to teach the upper grades at least once a week."
Father Fournier also worked in youth ministry and as Newman chaplain at the University of Minnesota.
He said he looks forward to working with the other Mat-Su priests to foster cooperation between the Sacred Heart Church, St. Michael Church in Palmer and Our Lady of the Lake Mission.
Archbishop Schwietz said he wants to see greater collaboration between the three Mat-Su churches. This includes a joint effort to support the new school but it could also entail cooperation in some parish faith formation programs and religious education. Youth and young adult ministry, confirmation and the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults are other areas of possible collaboration, the archbishop said.
As Mat-Su priests settle into their new roles and pool some of their resources, Archbishop Schwietz said he looks forward to the ministries that will develop.
"We are very fortunate to get these new resources for our archdiocese," he said.
Anchorage teens brave bugs, heat and rubble to help in New Orleans
Part of school vacation spent rebuilding neighborhoods
Fending off cockroaches, sifting through ruined household debris and tearing down moldy green walls in the heat and humidity of a New Orleans’ summer might not sound like a typical break from school.
That, however, was part of summer vacation for several teens from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Anchorage.
Sound like fun? It was for 16-year-old Carol Franks, who said, "If someone said we’re going off again tomorrow, I’d be there."
And for Christine Pochop, also 16: "It was a blast."
The four teenagers – all girls – went on mission in early June from St. Elizabeth to take part in a Catholic Heart Work Camp that helps clean out houses which are still in disrepair nearly two years after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.
Pochop had previously attended a Catholic Heart Work Camp when she belonged to a parish in Missouri. When St. Elizabeth’s pastor, Father Tom Lilly, said the mission trip was on, she jumped at the chance to go again.
"I thought, here’s a way I can help," she said.
Pochop said there were about 75 young people at the camp, including kids from Colorado, Washington, D. C., and Pennsylvania. The group divided into five crews to tackle the work.
"We gutted houses, tore out the walls down to the frames and the ceilings down to the boards," said Pochop, who was placed in a work crew without any of her Anchorage chums.
"I was forced to say, ‘Hey, I’m Christine.’ It makes you open up and gets you out of your box."
This was real work – hard hats and hammers were accompanied by "nice thick gloves, goggles and masks so that we didn’t breathe the mold into our lungs," said Franks. And they saw real progress: several of the houses were completely gutted by the time the crews finished.
The camps have a decidedly spiritual overtone – the 75 campers gathered for Mass each morning before an early breakfast, and each work crew had a "prayer share leader" who would lead them in a prayer during the work day, as Pochop explained, "to bless the house and pray that the homeowners got in and out safely."
The spiritual impact of the mission was evident when Alayna Mackey, 16, spoke to the congregation at St. Elizabeth’s after the group’s return.
Mackey talked about being "called by God" to help in New Orleans. It was powerful, she said, to meet the people who lived in the house she was assigned to.
"‘Someone’s finally come to help,’" she remembers them saying.
Franks, too, said she "found herself" as a religious person during the experience.
"I felt in touch with my religion. I feel closer to God through the work we did."
Pochop said it made her look again at her material possessions, when compared to the people she encountered who had no shelter other than a temporary trailer parked in front of a devastated house.
"It made me change a lot," she said, including a commitment she’s already made to work with Habitat for Humanity on housing in Anchorage this summer.
Katey Barnes, who was out of state and unavailable to speak with the Anchor, was the fourth teen on the trip. Accompanying the group were Barnes’ mother, Mary Frances, Mackey’s mother, Kathy, and Father Ben Torreto, the pastoral associate at St. Elizabeth who is on loan from Cotabato in the Philippines.
Father Torreto offered Mass for the camp, and with Barnes and Mackey, served as a group leader for the crews.
Catholic Heart Work Camp sends hundreds of students out to dozens of sites each summer to work and pray for those in need.
Pochop’s previous experience with the group was in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where she helped out with kids in a bilingual day care.
Compared to that, she said the trip to New Orleans was "a reality check. It was emotionally and physically exhausting," and after a week of sleeping on the floor of a Catholic school she was thrilled to see "my own bed."
For more information on Catholic Heart Work Camp, visit www.heartworkcamp.com.
Alaska seminarian considers a different kind of fishing
Summer ministry helps seminarian discern vocation
In some ways Patrick Brosamer fits the popular description of an Alaskan. Give him a fishing pole and he rises to the challenge, happy to battle the elements and other fishermen to land a 40-pound king.
While raised in Alaska, he’s a bit atypical, however, when faced with another kind of king. He is casting his net out deep to answer the gospel call to become a fisher of men by discerning a possible priestly vocation.
The 32-year old is back in Alaska for the summer after finishing up his first year of pre-theology studies at the Saint Paul Seminary School of Divinity, in Minnesota.
Brosamer just finished a two-week stint at Holy Family Cathedral in Anchorage, which is part of a whirlwind tour set up by Father Tom Lilly to get a taste of priestly life in Alaska. His first summer as a seminarian includes visits to parishes in Dillingham, Kodiak, Valdez and elsewhere.
"The idea is to observe and see how parishes operate here in the state and to keep a journal of it," Brosamer said.
Brosamer welcomes the chance to see the larger archdiocese.
"I want to move around, so I wouldn’t mind going out on the road circuit as a priest," he added.
Brosamer told the Anchor that his ongoing journey, both in seminary and in the parishes, is fulfilling. He did, however, list several challenges — especially living as a public figure.
"I went to all seven masses at the cathedral (last weekend) and got trotted around like a show horse, with everyone clapping."
While he said that was a bit embarrassing he was quick to express thanks for everyone’s support, especially as he weighs his decision to study for the priesthood.
He felt the call even before his tenth birthday. The first inkling to the priesthood came when a nun encouraged him to consider the vocation. That invitation stuck with him — but it wasn’t until his thirties that he finally pursued the priesthood.
"God probably knew it was going to take about 20 years for me to answer the call," he said.
Before his priestly studies, Brosamer pursued a love for history and earned an undergraduate degree in history from Gonzaga University. He then got a masters in history from Temple University. He planned to teach at a university level but realized that God might have other plans when he wasn’t accepted into a doctoral program.
He returned to Alaska and worked at Lowe’s Home Improvement, selling doors and windows because it "paid the bills and allowed me to have the time to pursue typical Alaskan stuff."
But deep down he knew something was missing. The pivotal moment came when Pope John Paul II died.
"I asked for his intercession and then really felt the pull to become a priest," Brosamer said.
When he finally announced his decision, he experienced nothing but support, even from his non-Catholic friends. His mother in particular said she was not surprised and told Brosamer that she prayed the rosary every day for the past twenty-five years for his vocation.
"I am convinced God hears the prayers of mothers before anyone else," Brosamer said, while noting how crucial it is for parents to encourage their children’s vocations.
So what advice does he offer those considering a possible religious or priestly vocation?"Pray for God’s will. Don’t fear where he will lead you, he won’t lead you in the wrong direction."
Internationally acclaimed Catholic documentary to show in Anchorage
Filmmaker says monks revealed a new side of Catholic faith
WASHINGTON (CNS) — If you accept the maxim that the Catholic Church thinks in terms of centuries, then documentary filmmaker Philip Groning’s dealings with a Carthusian monastery in France moved at lightning speed.
Groning first approached the monks in 1984 with the idea of filming a documentary about their life in community. He got a reply saying the request had come "too early," and that perhaps in "10 or 13 years" the monastery would be ready. Eventually, 16 years would pass before Groning got word that the monks were ready to discuss the possibility. "The question I asked myself was, ‘Does this project still fit in with my life?’" Groning told Catholic News Service earlier this year in a telephone interview. "I reread the outline from 1984 and I thought, ‘This is a fantastic outline.’"
Groning said he was born and raised Catholic, but that he "had a big problem with that when I was growing up. One of the reasons I made the film was to understand where I came from and get reattached to the religion that I left. And in a certain way, I did."
Asked to explain, Groning said his Catholic upbringing in the 1960s was "very much about guilt and sin and confession. In the monastery, very much of the other side showed."It’s all about divine grace, divine providence, about completely trusting God, completely trusting that God will lead you, " Groning said. "This is a side of Catholicism I had not lived when I was a child. The religion was not as dark as I had thought. ... Being a Christian is a joyful thing."
Groning adopted the lifestyle of the Carthusians. They take a vow of near-total silence — hence the film’s title — at their monastery in the French Alps, Le Grande Chartreuse. He filmed there for six months over three separate trips. He was his film ‘s director, writer, producer, executive producer, cinematographer, sound editor and composer, although most of the music is Latin chant sung by the monks.
Despite the vow of silence, "Into Great Silence" is hardly a silent movie. The ringing of bells, the shuffling of feet, even the ambient sounds of nature all can be heard with great clarity. "When it’s so quiet, you hear sounds you don’t usually hear. ... You don’t hear the water dripping that way, or if you do you couldn‘t record it," Groning told CNS. "In the monastery you can hear every event separately."
The absence of words also means there are few characters to follow in the 169-minute movie. The few who are distinct are two novices, one of whom is from Africa, who are welcomed into the monastery — the ritual, with words in French, is included — and an elderly blind monk interviewed near the movie’s end who speaks about life, the end of life and his own life.
Groning said it was "a very deliberate choice" on his part not to focus on anyone in particular. "It’s clear that if you follow one person along, you don’t drift into the plot." "Into Great Silence" has proven quite popular in France. It premiere Feb. 28 in New York City. The film has since fanned out throughout the country. It will show in Anchorage July 11-12 at the Bear Tooth Theater and Pub. "Out of the revenues I have for the film, half of the revenues will be going to charity," Groning said. "If people crowd to see this film as they did in France, they go not because they love the film (but because) they love the life of the monks." To keep all the money for himself, therefore, "would go completely against the lives and the morals of the Carthusian order," he added. "I think it ‘s important for viewers to know the monastery is not a monastery as a dark and encumbered place," Groning said. "That’s not true. It’s a place of great inner liberty, great inner strength. They are not hiding. They are not suppressed. They are not getting away from the world. ... I am glad that people get that (message) out of the film."
News & Notes
Spanish speaking priest checking out Alaska ministry
Father Damian Vargas, A 37-year-old Spanish speaking priest from the Diocese of Loja, Ecuador is in Alaska for the summer to discern whether to stay and minister to the Spanish speaking Catholics in the Anchorage Archdiocese for the next four years.
Father Leo Walsh, who oversees priests throughout the Anchorage Archdiocese, told the Anchor that Father Vargas will be in Alaska for the next two months to check out his new surroundings. If all goes well, Father Vargas will head home after two months, get his belongings and come back up for the next four years, Father Walsh said.
Father Vargas arrived in Anchorage on June 15. He would take over the Spanish ministry that Dominican Father Paul Scanlon worked in for the past six years. Father Scanlon recently took another assignment, June 2, in San Francisco. His departure has left a large void for Spanish speaking Catholics.
Father Vargas’ ministry would include celebrating Spanish-language Masses at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, Holy Family Cathedral and St. Mary Church in Kodiak.
Mat-Su school still enrolling kids
More than 50 children have already enrolled in Our Lady of the Valley Catholic School in Wasilla but applications are still being accepted. The school, which opens in August, is meant to serve pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. For information about the school, visit their Web site at www.archdioceseofanchorage.org/OLV.htm or call Sister Ann Fallon at (907) 297-7790.
Annulment presentation in Spanish
Fr. Rogelio Ayala, a priest and a canon lawyer from Guadalajara, Mexico, will give a presentation on annulments in Spanish on July 1, 3:30 p.m., at Holy Family Cathedral. There will be Spanish language annulment petition forms available at the meeting.
Summer volunteer opportunities
Remember to visit the Catholic Social Services website at cssalaska.org for volunteer and donation opportunities.
Vocation Discernment Day nears
The Daughters of Charity are sponsoring a vocation discernment day July 14 for single women between the ages of 18-45. For more information please contact Sister Kathleen Powers at (907) 333-5283.
Columns
Father Alfred Giebel left an eternal mark in Anchorage
What is the measure of a man? For many in Alaska it may be considered by the number of toys in the driveway or money in bank account. We Catholics know that these things bring enjoyment in themselves but without life in the church they are for naught. These reflections came to mind when I heard of Father Alfred Giebel passing.
Father Giebel was our pastor for 11 years in Anchorage prior to our move to Chugiak. He baptized four of our eight children, catechized the faithful, and was a dedicated pastor to the flock entrusted to him.
Even though I didn’t seen him as often as I would have liked since our move more than six years ago, he was still there for us. He even took time, while moving out of the rectory at St. Benedicts, to see my son and me when my son was home on leave from his tour in Iraq last March. It was like no time had passed. He was interested in our son’s stories of how things were in the war zone. He mentioned how hard it would be if something were to happen to any of the soldiers he personally knew.
I often referred to him as the no nonsense priest. He spoke straight up and was well respected by young people because of his tough love. This is just a touch of his influence on our family.
To my knowledge he was the first pastor in Anchorage who welcomed the Catholic home schooling group to meet in St. Benedict’s hall more than 19 years ago. Often he took the opportunity to highlight the accomplishments of children even in his homilies. He supported our home school undertakings, made sure the children were prepared for the sacraments and administered them. He was a man’s man and a pastor for his people.
Many of the vocations that came out of the archdioceses were a direct result of his influence, including our daughter Rhia Ann, now Sr. Mary Rose P.C.P.A.
His influence wasn’t necessarily in the earth-shattering moments but more the little things that spoke volumes. My late father once commented on one of his visits here, that it was so nice to see the priest in his cassock. He wore it so naturally that I took it for granted.
Father Giebel rarely took vacations. I can only remember one in the 11 years that we were parishioners at St. Benedicts. To put it simply, he preferred to be available for his parishioners and if you needed him he was there.
On the occasions you felt he was in error and argued your point he would admit his fault. He had a number of close friends he could count on for advice.
The salvation of the soul was his mission and his straight forward approach often made me think of Jesus overturning the money tables in the temple. Yes, he will be missed by our family and by many others.
What is the measure of a man’s worth? I believe it will be measured by those souls we take to heaven with us. May his soul and the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.
The writer lives in Chugiak and now attends St. Andrew Church in Eagle River.
God actually speaks out loud during every Mass celebration
Now that we are gathered as the body of Christ, we take a seat and prepare to hear the word of God proclaimed. We believe that the word of God has power to make real what it says. The powerful proclamation of the Scriptures is truly an encounter with Christ. The challenge for the lector is to complete the cycle of the word going forth from the heart of God, into the heart of the inspired author, and from the heart of the inspired author, into the heart of the lector and finally from the heart of the lector, into the hearts of the sacred assembly. It is a ministry that must be guided by much prayer and preparation.
Since the Second Vatican Council, the Lectionary used during the Mass attempts to provide a much richer and broader experience of Scripture than was used before. If you go to Mass every Sunday, in three years you hear the bulk of the Hebrew Scriptures, a good number of the Psalms and the entire New Testament. If you go to mass every day, you get the same experience in two years.
As is typical of the Mass, the pattern includes proclamation and response. The word of God is proclaimed and we respond as people of faith. In the first and second readings we see how the people of God grew in relationship with God and struggled with issues of faith. In both cases, their proclamation is punctuated with "The word of the Lord." We respond, "Thanks be to God."
Some folks wonder why we switched a few years back from "This is the word of the Lord." to the more simple, "The word of the Lord." There are a couple of reasons. The first is that it is a more exact translation of the Latin "Verbum Domini." The second is that it recaptures the linguistic parallel to the reception of the Eucharist. When we receive the body and blood of Christ, the minister simply says, "The body of Christ" and "The blood of Christ". To say, "The Word of the Lord" expresses the unbreakable connection between what is proclaimed and what is received.
The Gospel reading contains the words of Christ. Out of respect, we stand. The "Alleluia" that great cry of praise is to be shouted or sung. Once the gospel is proclaimed, we respond, "Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ."
A homily is a short sermon, usually 8-15 minutes in which the word of God is broadened into the everyday experience of the assembly. Here we learn that the truths in Scripture are not just pious musing of a bygone era, but real meat and potatoes for daily living.
The creed and the general intercessions conclude the Liturgy of the Word. It is interesting to note that the Nicene Creed answers the question, "In whom do we believe?"
In the general intercessions, we typically pray for the church, the world, the specific needs of the local community and for our beloved dead.
Thus, having shared our stories and made our faith and our needs known to God, we prepare to enter more deeply into the mystery that is God in the Liturgy of the Eucharist.We save that for next time.
We don’t have much control over life, so enjoy the journey
Son of a Dutch Reformed Church pastor, he failed to qualify in his own desire to become a pastor. Rejected as a missionary, he turned to art as a last choice at age 27 and lived only ten more years to create some of the most beautiful art the world has ever known. His name was Vincent Van Gogh.
So, what are we doing with our years, our time? How many years do we expect to have to express our own creative spirit?
Once, I happened to have the good fortune to stand in a Dutch museum and look on Vincent’s paintings of yellow tulips and night skies with whirling stars. I said to myself then: "Vincent you made the right choice. We are all the richer for it. Besides, you would probably never have been a happy preacher anyway."
All that brings to mind the mysterious manner in which each of us, like Vincent, ends up doing what we do best in life. Sister John Chittister, the Benedictine nun who writes wonderful words from her Pennsylvania monastery, once made this observation: "Most of life is a fluke. It’s not as rational, as strategized, as planned as we love to think it is. As John Lennon was fond of saying. `Life is what happens while you are making other plans.’"
I think it is true: Life is, indeed, what happens when we are trying to figure out what to do next.
Chance, of course, is something most of us are not comfortable with. We long security and can’t stand the possibility that some plans may fail and some jobs may turn out to be an embarrassing mistake. And there we are without a future! Control and certainty make life bearable...at least we imagine it so. Of course, control and certainty can also make life pretty dull.
Is there not something to be said, therefore, about the beauty of chance, of living in the gaps, living with the unpredictable, of being surprised by surprises? Could we not just let life happen as it happens? Actually, we are not very much in control of life anyway.
These scattered thoughts came to me as I read the Gospel for the forthcoming liturgy for the 14th Sunday in the church calendar, the familiar story of how Jesus casually picked 72 people and sent them out in pairs to preach good news, never being concerned about walking staffs, sandals and traveling bags. "Just go from house to house and wish them peace," says Jesus. "Don’t worry about the dinner menu. Eat what they serve you. Here’s your homily: The reign of God is among you.’ That’s it!
I have often wondered what those pairs of 72 thought about before heading out without any training? Did they worry about whether their jobs would be waiting for them when they returned? There is no evidence in the Gospel for it.
All I can assume therefore is that these 72 are a classic example, a metaphor of what life could be like if one is willing to take the chance of trying something new without the assurance of knowing how it will turn out. Sure, it sounds crazy because we always have to "cover our bases" right? Well, yes in some major life decisions, but that still leaves open the possibility of a "jillion" other interesting options out there just waiting to be tried. Hey, we might even turn out to be another Van Gogh! Wouldn’t that be interesting?
The writer is archdiocesan director of Pastoral Education. He also serves as canonical pastor and coordinator of parishes without resident pastors.
Holiness is wrapped in many garbs
"The joys and hopes, the grief and sorrows of the people of this age, especially of those who are poor or downtrodden in any way, are the joys and hopes, the grief and sorrows of the followers of Christ as well."
Outside of Scripture, I find few words of faith as beautiful as those opening lines from Gaudium et Spes. This document was Vatican Council II’s exploration of the Church and the modern world. Throw open the windows, engage the world, reach out to humankind.
Like Christ, go to the table with sinners and bring Christ with you there.
When he was interviewed about Gaudium et Spes in 2003 near the document’s 40th anniversary, the Catholic writer George Weigel summed it up well for me when he said the text "teaches that the fulfillment of our lives is found in self-giving, not self-assertion – it is the Church’s response to the selfishness and solipsism of so much of modern culture."
I like Weigel’s juxtaposition of those words – self-assertion versus self-giving. When I think of self-assertion, I think of the self-obsessed and the self-righteous. Some Pharisees who tried to trip up Christ seem very self-assertive to me – selfish, defending their fortress-world from this Jesus who was reaching out.
Those who are self-giving, on the other hand, make me feel enriched and positive.
I think of the spiritual directors who have sat through my tears and the priests who have listened to my sins. I think of my godmother who shared her faith with me, the Lutheran pastor who counseled and befriended me.
I remember Dorothy Day, Mother Teresa, Thomas Merton, Oscar Romero, Henry Nouwen, — people who got their hands dirty in the work of Jesus. And Dietrich Bonhoeffer and the writer Kathleen Norris ("Amazing Grace," "The Cloister Walk") who taught me that even though my Church is a repository of truth, there’s truth aplenty to be found out there in the modern world. And Jesuit Gary Smith, whose "Radical Compassion: Finding Christ in the Heart of the Poor" constantly challenges me to reach beyond my comfort level.
It was the great Irish writer James Joyce who astutely observed of the Catholic Church, "Here comes everybody." And my dear friend Sister Arlene Boyd always added: "It’s a big umbrella."
In Anchorage, it pains me to see a tendency to want to move back into a fortress- against-the-modern-world mentality, to push some from under the umbrella.
Recently, an editorial in the Catholic Anchor seemed to pit those religious who wear traditional garb against those who don’t. Before I read the editorial, I heard of two occasions in Anchorage where religious sisters with many years of faithful service were chastised for not wearing habits. In one case it was suggested that those who do are "holy," — as if those who don’t, aren’t.
Our modern world is full of joy, hope, and much grief and sorrow. Look around the archdiocese and the world and you can see the needs we must address to serve the people of this age.
Doesn’t Christ have more urgent things for us to do than judging someone’s holiness by the clothing they wear, or honoring people for how they look rather than the values by which they live?
The popular Catholic writer Kathy Coffey wrote, "The church is at its best when we are like family: when we lose sight of that, we become legalistic, antiseptic and cold."
I love the church in Anchorage because it’s mostly a warm and open family, a community, and I think we should endeavor to keep it that way.
The writer is a freelance writer, preschool teacher and mother of three. She lives in Anchorage.
Satan is no Easter Bunny
St. Padre Pio, St. Anthony of the Desert and St. Paul of the Cross are all familiar with Satan. Demonic spirits physically beat, tortured and flogged them. For the majority of Sunday churchgoers, however, demons are as real as the Easter Bunny.
Either these saints were creative psychotics or God was allowing them to experience the reality of evil — to be authentic witnesses to the power of the devil, and the divine authority and power of Jesus Christ.
Have we become so science-centric that we ignore the impact of our own sinfulness?
Today I pose this question: Whose footsteps are we following?
We live in a culture that glorifies sin and worships idols. Our Catholic teaching says Satan was thrown out of heaven because of his pride. Are we following Satan’s path? Today we often believe in what we see, not what we cannot. If we examine the life of St. Padre Pio, the famous stigmatic from Italy, we would be foolish to claim that the "unseen" is not as real and active as the "seen".
Our culture often taps into the seven deadly sins — lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy and pride — to continually attract, seduce and manipulate our generation. We were not, however, created to be founded on sin, but on God alone.
Despite this basic reality, many of us learn to rationalize sin, neglect the importance of the sacrament of confession, and miss true friendship with God simply because our priorities have shifted. God really wants to have a friendship with us. By negating this relationship, we negate God.
Father Gabriel Amorth, a chief exorcist in Rome states that Satan," the father of lies," has pulled off the greatest deception by fooling us into believing he doesn’t exist. Consequently, we may rationalize, if Satan doesn’t exist, there is no such thing as hell and therefore who cares about sin.
Interestingly enough, if we investigate further into the lives of the children of Fatima, Lourdes, and Medjugorje, we realize that hell and evil do exist. In Fatima, 1917, three shepherd children were shown the reality and existence of hell.
In Medjugorje, the Virgin Mary, showed similar visions of hell to the six children she has appeared too since 1981. Mary’s daily appearances and monthly messages have drawn millions to Medjugorje, converting and spiritually renewing faith and trust in the power of prayer and in Jesus and Mary. Her messages remain consistent, "pray the rosary, read scripture, fast and convert."
On May 25, 1987 Mary’s message at Medjugorje did not ignore the reality of Satan and sin.
"Dear children, you are ready to commit sin, and to put yourselves in the hand of Satan without reflecting, she said. "I call on each one of you to consciously decide for God and against Satan. I am your Mother and, therefore, I want to lead you all to perfect holiness."
Conversion does not happen one day, "Amen, I believe! I’m saved". True conversion, is one day at a time, every moment, surrendering from our pride and simply saying, "Jesus, I trust in you."
God’s tremendous mercy and love for us is greater than any sin we’ve committed. He desires to breathe his love and life in us and sacrificed his only son for our sins. Our greatest temptation may be to think that we are not worthy to follow Christ. This is just another lie from Satan. No sin should turn us from the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Like a shepherd to his lost sheep, God always waits with open arms, to accept us back into his family.
The writer works at Holy Spirit Center in the Anchorage Archdiocese.
Editorial
An absurd fate
This latest fracas about whether to use frozen human embryos for scientific experiments misses the heart of the issue once again.
On June 20, President George W. Bush vetoed Congress’s latest attempt to force taxpayers to fund research that destroys embryos in the name of science. While many Catholic and evangelical leaders praised the president’s actions, the commander and chief missed a golden opportunity to address the fundamental question.
Do fertility clinics have the right to create surplus human embryos in test-tubes and then freeze them for parents who may or may not ever decide to "use" them?
Over the past 30 years, these clinics have tapped into the popular belief that people have a fundamental right to bare children no matter the means necessary to produce them.
In vitro fertilization has become one of the most popular methods to help infertile couples conceive children.
The process involves harvesting a woman’s eggs and fertilizing a number of them with sperm in a laboratory. One or more of the embryos is then returned to the woman’s body in hopes that a previously infertile couple will manage to conceive a child.
In the interest of success, fertility clinics urge couples to create multiple embryos, which are frozen for later use. There are now many hundreds of thousands of these so-called "spare" human embryos.
This is the fundamental problem.
The Catholic Church teaches that children are a gift from God, not a political right.
Before becoming Pope Benedict XVI, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger oversaw the development of "Donum Vitae," a 1987 Vatican document that addressed, among other things, the generation of human embryos and the respect they deserve.
The document says that human embryos are human beings with fundamental human rights. One of those rights is to be conceived within the marriage union of a man and woman. For a scientist to create human life in a test-tube — or to create "spare" human lives — is a violation of the embryo’s human rights, the document states.
The basic point goes like this:
If a human person enters the world at their conception, then all the fundamental rights of that person also begin at the first moment of their life. Unlike Petri-dish molds and test-tube cultures, human embryos must be treated with the dignity inherent in human life that is created in the image of God.
According to "Donum Vitae" that means humans have the right to be conceived as the result of the loving sexual embrace of a married man and woman. Sometimes God blesses this union with the procreation of another soul. This new person is a "supreme gift," the document says but not a right.
When God does not grant this gift, couples do not have the right to take human life into their own hands by creating it in a science lab.
To return to "Donum Vitae," the child is never an "object to which one has a right, nor can he be considered as an object of ownership…" Without that foundation, human dignity will inevitably suffer.
Now that these smallest and most vulnerable human beings already exist, we are in a terrible situation and there are no easy solutions.
The chance that hundreds of thousands of women will adopt and choose to implant even a fraction of these embryos in their womb is scant. The option, to thaw and throw them away like surplus tissue, however, is a grave injustice to human life.
Many legislators in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives decided that the best solution is use taxpayer dollars to thaw the embryos, develop them for a few days and then kill them to harvest their stem cells for scientific research. This was the preferred option for Alaska’s Sen. Ted Stevens, Sen. Lisa Murkowski and Rep. Don Young.
The Catholic Church soundly condemns this choice.
"Donum Vitae" states that experimentation on human embryos for the sake of scientific research or for the good of others is illicit.
"Every human being is to be respected for himself, and cannot be reduced in worth to a pure and simple instrument for the advantage of others," the document states.
Last summer, Catholic moral theologians and ethicists from around the country gathered in Dallas to debate whether it is okay for women to adopt frozen embryos, implant them in their womb, and carry them to term. Faithful Catholics disagree on this matter and the Vatican has not definitively spoken.
While politicians battle over whether to publicly fund experimentation that kills unborn human life, it is important to note that a humane solution for frozen human embryos can only arise if civic and religious leaders return to basic universal principles and affirm that no one has a right to destroy or create another person.
Unfortunately, many well intentioned people oppose the killing of frozen embryos without ever addressing the illicit practice that artificially creates so many unwanted human lives to begin with.
And that’s only the tip of the iceberg
Hundreds of millions of dollars are already funneled to universities and private researchers in this country so that they can experiment on human embryos. The president’s recent veto only addresses the use of federal funds but it does not keep states like California and others from using their own resources to pay for research on human embryos. If it is a heinous violation of human life to use federal funds to kill human embryos, then presumably it is no less heinous to allow state or privately funded research to continue.
Letters to the Editor
Scouting programs inform and deepen Catholic faith
I love the Boy Scouts. I became involved as a kid and I joined again as an adult, serving St. Andrew Troop 229 as a charter organization representative, chaplain, and assistant scoutmaster.
Scouting helped change my attitude about the dead of winter. I now look forward to camping trips in the snow and cold. But I also love the scouts because of the rich mentoring I received as a boy.
Scout training helped me aid an injured soldier when I was an infantryman in the 1/325 82nd Airborne Division, but even more valuable than that is the National Catholic Committee on Scouting’s Ad Altare Dei religious emblem curriculum, which helps parents mentor their children in the values of the sacrament of matrimony. The program included instruction on the other sacraments as well. My son and I had the best conversations at our kitchen table about marriage – my experiences and the Catholic vision.
I’ve directed religious education programs for both parish and dioceses since 1991 and have yet to find a faith formation program help me do this. Moreover, when my son completed his Ad Altare Dei last month, he got to shake Archbishop Roger Schwietz’s hand in recognition for his achievement at an annual Mass and ceremony.I encourage people to learn more about religious emblem programs for scouts at the National Catholic Committee on Scouting webpage: http://www.nccs-bsa.org/index.php. For more information about the local emblem program, contact Chuck Kaucic, chairman of the Archdiocese of Anchorage Catholic Committee on Scouting, at cic2050@mtaonline.net or (907) 745-2554. ACCOS is a church committee of concerned Catholic lay people and clergy who use scouting programs for youth ministry to young Catholics. One of ACCOS’ goals is to establish a committee representative and a religious emblem counselor in each parish.
Eagle River
Opinions of climate scientists are influenced by grant money
In the June 15 edition of the Catholic Anchor, Archbishop Roger Schwietz wrote that "…almost all climate scientists have come to agree that human activity is a primary cause for global warming…" It would have been better to say that "almost all climate scientists who depend on grant money for their existence, have come to agree that human activity is a primary cause for global warming."If these scientists don’t echo today’s liberal party line, grants will be withheld and they will starve. In the 1970’s global scientists frightened us with the claim that human activity was causing the globe to cool and that we were all going to freeze. Neither alarm is accurate. Human activity has insignificant effect on climate. The globe has been warming and cooling ever since God created it and will continue doing so.
Anchorage
Don’t blame secular media for the sex-abuse mess
I am offended by the paid advertisement, "Is It Fair That the Innocent Pay for the Guilty," by Tradition, Family and Property (TFP). TFP wants readers to sit back and blame "the moral rot of our hypersexualized culture" for the sexual abuse of minors by clergy and religious. In reality it was the moral rot of church leaders who, when confronted with abusers within their ranks, chose to protect church image instead of protecting innocent victims. Their two page ads won’t change that ugly fact.TFP uses the terms "culture wars" and "secularist media" to couch its opposition to lifting or extending civil statutes of limitations regarding sexual abuse of minors by clergy and religious. TFP acts like it’s the fault of lawyers and psychologists that our leaders betrayed us, and whines about "persecution" and "pillaging" church coffers as though the representatives of the abused are some sort of modern day infidels. It is time for TFP to admit that our own hierarchy – not some liberal media conspiracy – got us into this mess.
Anchorage