And miles to go

by Bishop John C. Nienstedt

Welcome back to The Prairie Catholic! As you know, our diocesan newspaper is a monthly publication (except for July and August). What you might not know is that it is produced "in house" by the Diocesan Communications Department and paid for in part by an annual grant from the United States Bishops' Conference Committee for Home Missions, (the financial assistance comes from the national collection of the same name,) and the United States Bishops' Catholic Communication Campaign. Both of these national appeals are held annually in parishes throughout the Diocese of New Ulm. One of the advantages of a Diocesan Annual Appeal would be to give more financial security to the paper and perhaps even expand the number of issues.

In any event, I wish to devote my column this month to the positive merits of our Catholic Schools. But before doing so, I feel compelled to say a word about the role our Catholic faith plays in preparing us for the forthcoming national elections in November. Last June in Denver, the U.S. Bishops made a statement on the responsibility of a Catholic politician to defend human life in the womb. I highly recommend that the statement be read carefully and in a prayerful mode. (See Catholics in Political Life, page 4). A Catholic politician must be able to reconcile his or her political stands with the tenets of our Catholic faith. Not to do so demonstrates a lack of moral integrity.

The question also arises about the responsibility that voters have at the polls. On this topic, I would begin by pointing out that neither major party represents a consistent pattern of agreement with Catholic teaching. Abortion and the use of embryonic stem cells are gravely serious, social moral questions, but so are questions of war and peace, human rights, economic justice and the poor, education and health care, religious freedom and the well-being of family life.

The Catholic Church does not endorse individual candidates, but she does raise these issues for which candidates must take responsibility. For the voter, choosing the best candidate involves a process of discernment, even when it is a matter of choosing between imperfect candidates.

How does one make such a discernment? One way is to sit down with a piece of paper and list arguments pro and con in separate columns for each candidate. Then write down the reasons under "pro" that would speak to the positive virtues of the man’s positions and under "con" those that would be negative. After that, go through the lists and identify the more serious reasons, since not all will bear the same moral weight. This process could take a couple of days. Once it is done, you should pray over the results with an open heart, bent only on doing God’s will and not your own personal preference or bias.

I believe this method is supported by a recent statement by Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith:

"A Catholic would be guilty of formal cooperation in evil, and so unworthy to present himself for Holy Communion, if he were to deliberately vote for a candidate precisely because of the candidate’s permissive stand on abortion and/or euthanasia. When a Catholic does not share a candidate’s stand in favor of abortion and/or euthanasia, but votes for that candidate for other reasons, it is considered remote material cooperation, which can be permitted in the presence of proportionate reasons."

One day each of us is to stand before God to answer why we made the moral decisions we did while on earth. This method, which was devised by St. Ignatius of Loyola, is a way of helping you to prepare for that "Day of Judgment."

Now, about our Catholic Schools, I believe four points need to be made:

1) Catholic Schools are meant to be faith-based communities. They are not alternative, private schools distinct from public schools. They are an extension of the faith community of the parish with which they must be readily identified. The parish, as a local Church, is obligated by its mission to preach and teach the faith handed down from Christ through the apostles and to pass that faith onto the next generation. A Catholic School, then, is a means by which the believing, worshipping community realizes one of the essential goals for which it exists.

As we continue to implement our Diocesan Plan for Parishes with the development of Area Faith Communities, I hope that we will expand the sponsorship of our Catholic Schools to these larger groupings. Every Catholic in the Diocese has an investment in the success of these schools and should feel responsible for their well-being. The existence of a Diocesan Annual Appeal would also help us build an endowment to support scholarships for Catholic School teachers and students.

2) The religious identity of a Catholic School ought not to be based simply on its periods of religious instruction. A Catholic school is to be a community of faith, allowing for an atmosphere wherein the faith is both learned and lived. This means that every employee from the gym teacher to the math instructor to the cook in the lunchroom has a role in contributing to the Catholic mission of that school. The total curriculum must be Catholic, rooted in the truths of our faith and reflecting a reverence for the sacred. On their part, the families of Catholic students must participate in weekend liturgies, in parish sponsored activities and with the financial stewardship of the parish.

3) The specific mission of a Catholic School is one of pre-evangelization. They are what I like to call, "Catechetical Communities," wherein a post-baptismal Catechumenate takes place. The Catechumenate must open one up to the truths contained in the Catechism and to a living encounter with the person of Jesus through personal and community prayer. This is not the arena for speculative theology, much less for teachings opposed to the Catholic faith. It is an appropriate forum, however, for the development of a new apologetics, assisting the student to speak intelligently and coherently about matters of the faith. I also believe that we can do more by way of parish rites celebrated during weekend liturgies to mark one’s progression in the faith as we do with the Rite of Election and the Scrutinies of the RCIA.

4) I am aware that not all Catholic parents will decide, for various reasons, to send their children to a Catholic school, but I believe all Catholic parents should seriously consider the option. In a highly secular society that functions without any reference to God, a Catholic School, that is truly Catholic, can provide the spiritual dimension of a young person’s development as well as the maturing of his or her moral conscience for discerning the good and acting upon it. Given the fractured condition of family life in today’s society, a Catholic School serves as a great asset to parents seeking to fulfill their mandate as "primary teachers of the faith."

But again, to succeed at this, Catholic Schools must be Catholic. I am only too aware how often Catholic universities and colleges have failed at this task. Instead of promoting the mission of the Church, they seriously undermine it in the name of academic freedom. As my old pastor used to say, "Better that a Catholic attends a secular college where he knows his faith will be tested, than to have his faith taken away by a college that is Catholic in name only."

I am proud that we have 18 Catholic elementary and 3 Catholic high schools in this Diocese. I am grateful to those who attend and support them. Despite the serious pressures being placed upon them, I am committed to their success and the important contribution they are making for the future of our Church.

God love you!

September 2004

Falta Mucho por Recorrer

Por el obispo John C. Nienstedt

"Quiero dedicar mi columna al principio de este año escolar al valor y mérito de nuestras escuelas Católicas. Creo que necesite enfatizar cuatro puntos:

1) Escuelas Católicas deben ser comunidades basada en la fe. No son escuelas privadas, alternativas distintas de las escuelas públicas. Son una extensión de la fe de la comunidad de la parroquia con que tiene que ser identificadas. La parroquia, como Iglesia local, por su misión tiene la obligación de predicar y enseñar la fe que recibieron de Cristo por los apóstoles y pasar esa misma fe a la siguiente generación. Pues, una escuela Católica es un medio en que la comunidad creyente y venerante realiza una de sus metas esenciales para que exista.

En el proceso de implementar nuestra Plan Diocesana para Parroquias y el desarrollo de Comunidades de Fe del Área, espero que ampliemos nuestro patrocinio de nuestras escuelas Católicas a estos grupos más grandes. Cada Católico en la diócesis tiene interés en el éxito de estas escuelas, y deben tomar responsabilidad por su bienestar. La existencia de una Solicitación Diocesana Anual nos ayudara construir una fundación para becas por los maestros y alumnos de escuelas Católicas.

2) La identidad de una escuela Católica no sea basada simplemente en sus periodos de instrucción religiosa. Una escuela Católica debe ser una comunidad de fe que cree una ambiente en que aprenda y viva la fe. Esta significa que cada empleado desde el maestro de educación física hasta el profesor de matemáticas hasta la cocinera en el comedor tiene un papel en la misión Católica de esa escuela. La currículo en todo tiene que ser Católico con sus raíces en las verdades de nuestra fe y reflejar una reverencia por lo sagrado.

3) La misión específica de una escuela Católica es pre-evangelización. Son, quiero decir, "comunidades catequeticas," donde hacen la catequesis post-bautismal. El catecumenado debe abrirse a las verdades contenido en el Catecismo y a un encuentro vivo con la persona de Jesús por medio de oración personal y comunal. Este no es el campo por teología especulativa, y menos por enseñanzas opuestas a la fe Católica. Es el foro propio por el desarrollo de una apologética nueva para asistir el alumno hablar inteligentemente y en una manera coherente de la fe. También creo que podemos hacer mas con ritos parroquiales que celebren durante las liturgias del fin de semana para observar el progreso en la fe. Estos ritos pueden ser semejantes al Rito de Elección y los Escrutinios del Rito de Iniciación Cristiana para los Adultos (RICA).

4) Estoy consciente que por varias razones no todos los padres Católicos van a elegir a mandar a sus hijos a una escuela Católica, pero creo que todos los padres Católicos deben considerar la opción cuidadosamente. En una sociedad sumamente seglar que funcione sin referencia a Dios, una escuela Católica, que es verdaderamente Católico, puede proveer una dimensión espiritual en el desarrollo de un joven y también madurar su conciencia moral para discernir el bien y hacerlo. Con la condición fracturada de la familia en la sociedad de hoy, una escuela Católica sirve como un gran recurso por los padres tratando de cumplir con el mandato de ser "los primeros maestros de la fe." Pero otra vez, para lograr éxito en esta misión, las escuelas Católicas tienen que ser Católicas. Estoy bien conciente de las muchas veces en que las universidades Católicas han fallado en este trabajo. En lugar de promover la misión de la Iglesia, ellas la socavan seriamente en el nombre de libertad académica. Como siempre decía un pastor mío, "Es mejor por un Católico asistir a una universidad seglar donde sabe que va encontrar pruebas de fe, que tener su fe robado por una universidad que es Católica solamente por su nombre.

Estoy orgulloso de las 17 escuelas primarias Católicas y 3 escuelas preparatorias Católicas en esta diócesis. Aunque ellos sufren serias presiones y dificultades, estoy comprometido a su éxito y la contribución importante que hacen all futuro de nuestra Iglesia.

¡Que Dios los ame!