Vol. 9, No. 47
May 14, 2012

A step toward protecting religious liberty
Last Friday, Gov. Jan Brewer signed into law an important bill that will protect religious organizations from being forced by the government to violate their consciences and provide abortifacients and contraceptives. The Bishops of the Arizona Catholic Conference have released the statement below.
I encourage everyone to look for the complete legislative wrap-up that The Arizona Conference of Catholic Bishops will be sending out sometime this week, just as soon as the Governor finishes acting on the remaining bills before her. For now, please read the Arizona Bishops statement, that went out following the Friday bill signing:

ARIZONA CATHOLIC CONFERENCE BISHOPS’ STATEMENT ON
GOVERNOR’S SIGNING OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTY BILL
The Bishops of the Arizona Catholic Conference are grateful that Governor Jan Brewer has signed HB 2625 into law.

HB 2625 will be very helpful in protecting religious liberty for religiously affiliated employers who have an objection to abortion inducing drugs and contraceptives.

This new law will not preempt the HHS contraceptive mandate, if it is upheld. However, if it is not, religious freedom in Arizona will be better protected.

We also want to especially thank the bill’s sponsor Representative Debbie Lesko, as well as Senator Nancy Barto, for their tremendous effort in shepherding HB 2625 through the legislative process and their unwavering support of religious liberty.

Pomp and Circumstance
Congratulations to the graduating class of 2012.  It is my delight to report that 503 high school seniors will graduate from our six Catholic high schools over the next several days.

Even more amazing is that nearly 100 percent of our graduates are going on to college! That is quite an accomplishment, and one that I am very grateful to our teachers, our parents and our students for achieving.

It will be my joy to celebrate Baccalaureate Masses for each of the high schools, where I will be able to extend my congratulations in person. As our fine graduates prepare for the next phase of their lives, I pray each will retain the firm beliefs and strength of character our schools taught them in preparation for their adult lives.

San Miguel Catholic High School: Baccalaureate Mass: May 17, 7 p.m. at St. Augustine Cathedral. Graduation is Saturday, May 19 at 9 a.m. at the Casino del Sol grand ballroom. San Miguel has 64 graduates, and 62 of those are going on to college. Another big achievement is that the San Miguel seniors earned $821,732 in merit scholarships! The class valedictorian is Jennifer Mendoza, with a grade point average of 4.07,and the class salutatorian is Maria Jimenez, 4.07 GPA.

Lourdes Catholic High School in Nogales: Baccalaureate Mass: May 18, 5:30 p.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes Chapel. Graduation takes place at 7 p.m. at the high school gymnasium. Lourdes High has 22 graduates and all of them will be going on to a community college or university.

St. Augustine Catholic High School, Baccalaureate Mass: Saturday, May 19 at noon at St. Francis de Sales Catholic Church. Graduation on Sunday at 1 p.m. in the St. Augustine High School gymnasium.  All 24 of St. Augustine’s seniors are going on to college, and the list of post secondary schools they will be attending is impressive, including our Arizona universities along with Fordham University, Whittier College, Eastern Oregon University, Southern Utah University, Holy Names University, Santa Fe University of Art Design, Western New Mexico, DeSales University, the University of California at San Diego and the Catholic University of America. The class valedictorian is Serena Campas, a National Hispanic Scholar, who will attend the University of Arizona Honors College to study Philosophy, Politics, Economics, and Law; and the class salutatorian is Jose “Petey” Galvan, also a National Hispanic Scholar, who plans to attend Arizona State University, Barrett Honors’ College.

Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic High School Baccalaureate Mass:  Wednesday, May 23 at 6 p.m. Graduation will take place Friday, May 25 at 6 p.m. in the high school’s gymnasium. The entire graduating class of 23 students is going on to colleges throughout Arizona, and two students will be heading out of state to continue their education. This class can boast that five of its graduates took 10 Advanced Placement tests! Kellen McCoy is class valedictorian with a GPA of 4.1. She will attend the University of Arizona on a full academic scholarship. Lou-Anne Wegrzyniak (pronounced Verdinak), is the salutatorian with a GPA of 3.9.  Lou-Anne was the yearbook publisher and newspaper editor.  Both She and Kellen are members of the National Honor Society.

Yuma Catholic High School Baccalaureate Mass: Friday, May 25 at 4 p.m., at St. John Neumann Catholic Church. Graduation at 6:30 p.m. in the Ricky Gwynn Stadium. Yuma Catholic has 63 graduates, and all have been accepted for entrance to college. The class valedictorian is Margeaux Miller, and Kaitlin Secker is the salutatorian. In addition to high academic standards, the class of 2012 boasts winning the school’s first state football championship. Yuma won the Region V championship in 2011.

Salpointe Catholic High School Baccalaureate Mass: Saturday, May 26 at 9 a.m., at St. Augustine Cathedral. Graduation follows at Tucson Convention Center at 10:30 a.m. Salpointe has 266 graduating seniors, and 100 percent are going on to college at a long list of nearly 200 colleges and universities nationwide. Among the top students are Skyler Milligan-LeCroy and Courtney Amos, both of whom will be graduation speakers.  In addition, the following seniors have received special honors: Greg Gilles is a National Merit Scholar who will be attending the University of Pennsylvania; William Wallace and Iliana Gonzales received a Carmelite Medal, and Madeline Owen received the John Hughes Spirit Award.

Serra Club luncheon
Today the Serra club recognizes the winners of its annual essay contest. The luncheon provides the student winners a chance to read their winning essays based on different topics for each of the three grade divisions.

For the fourth through sixth grade, the topic was, "If you had to pick a saint as your greatest hero, who would it be and why? The topic for the seventh and eighth grade writers was: “How do you show your Catholic faith in your daily life and how might you show it when you are an adult”, and the topic for ninth through 12th graders was: “What can you do when you are an adult to show you are a Catholic?”

The winners for the fourth through sixth grade category were:
First place: Jorge Andres Armenta, Lourdes Catholic School, Nogales
Second place: Kaitlyn Roeder, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic School
Third place: Guillermo Ruiz, Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School.
Fourth place: Rylee Kuglitsh, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic School

The winners for the seventh and eighth grade category were:
First place: Alejandro Castro, St. Ambrose Catholic School
Second place: Valeria Dabdoub, Sacred Heart Catholic School
Third place: Mariajose Moreno, Lourdes Catholic School
Fourth place: Marlene Cabrera, St. John the Evangelist Catholic School.

The winners for the ninth through 12th grade category all came from St. Augustine Catholic High School. They were:
First place: Abigail Kelly
Second place: Ruben Alderete
Third place: Mariela Encinas,
Fourth place: Alana Erchull

Strategic Planning
We will hold our Pastoral Center Directors’ Summit at Most Holy Trinity Parish on Friday, and concentrate on defining and setting goals for the course of our diocesan offices during the next fiscal year.  The summit gives our directors an opportunity to come together for planning in coordination with other departments.

These annual gatherings of all our Pastoral Center directors are an important time to look back and to look ahead. At this year's gathering we will spend time reviewing the feedback about the work of our Pastoral Center gathered by a recent survey filled out by members of our parish and school staffs. Many of the surveys included helpful comments that we will share and discuss with the directors.

As part of our preparation for the Year of Faith this year, we will begin to do some faith sharing among our directors. Three directors will share with the group their own faith journey and talk about the people and experiences that have shaped their faith.

I will introduce the five "i's" which are our goals for this coming year. Those goals are: 1. Implement the Year of Faith 2. Inspire vocations 3. Inform people in the faith 4. Improve communication and the use of technology 5. Increase the sense of stewardship among all in the Diocese. We will discuss these goals and what Diocesan programs may help us make progress toward them.

Each department also will share their department goals as they relate to our Diocesan goals.

I encourage all of our parishes and schools to engage in a process of strategic planning for the year ahead to give direction and focus to your pastoral work in the coming year. Such planning is most beneficial.

Confirmations
This week I will be celebrating confirmations for Corpus Christi Parish in Tucson, and then St. Martin de Porres Parish in Sahuarita, St. Ann Parish in Tubac, St. Therese in Patagonia, Most Holy Nativity Parish in Rio Rico, and Our Lady of the Valley in Green Valley all at Our Lady of the Valley Church; Infant Jesus of Prague in Kearny, and St. Joseph in Hayden at St. Joseph’s Parish, and at Santa Catalina Parish.

 I also will celebrate confirmations for Christina, Erica and Amanda at the Southern Arizona Correctional Release Center, SACRC, here in Tucson. I am especially grateful to participate in these liturgies for inmates – their journey to confirmation is especially inspiring and hopefully their confirmation more firmly anchors them in the knowledge and love of God as they continue to work on transforming their lives. Special thanks to St. Frances Cabrini Parish, which supports the special ministry that takes Eucharist to the SACRC and that also provides for the ministry that gives women in the unit religious education to prepare them to receive the sacraments of Holy Communion and Confirmation. This ministry also includes more than 50 people who participate as “prayer pals” praying for these women.  My thanks also to Father Ron Oakham, pastor of St. Cyril Parish, and the St. Cyril’s community for their support as well.

 Special thanks to Kathy Rhinehart who works at the Pastoral Center for her generous and dedicated work with these women.

CTSO Corporate luncheon
On Thursday I will be attending the annual Catholic Tuition Support Organization’s annual corporate luncheon.  I am grateful for the work of Gracie Quiroz, CTSO Director and her staff, who keep this office on top of managing scholarships and gathering funds for these scholarships all year long.  I am also thankful to our corporate partners for their continued help in providing funds that enable deserving students and their parents the ability to attend the schools of their choice.  The 17 corporate partners give a lasting gift of education to over 1,000 students a year!

Celebrate Padre Kino at a Festival
The Kino Heritage Society and the San Xavier Mission will join with the Tubac Presidio State Historic Park and the Tumacácori National Historical Park in the annual celebration of the Kino Festival.

This year the festival will feature events at San Xavier Mission, Tubac Presidio and Tumacácori during the five festival days - May 16 to 22. For a listing of events, visit the Kino Heritage Society's website at www.padrekino.com.

The Kino Festival celebrates the life of missionary and explorer Father Eusebio Francisco Kino. He worked with Native Americans, teaching them agricultural skills, as well as building missions and first bringing Christianity to Arizona and Sonora. He introduced horses and cattle, as well as European crops and fruit trees. Father Kino's cause for sainthood is currently under consideration by the Catholic Church.

Welcome!
To Father Ray Webb, Director of Pastoral Internships at the University of St. Mary of the Lake, Mundelein Seminary, who will be visiting our two Mundelein students, Marcos Carasco and Albert Miranda, as they continue their service here in our Diocese. Albert is working at St. Monica Parish, and Marco is serving at Sts. Peter and Paul Parish.

When I was at the University of St. Mary of the Lake Seminary for the Seminary Board meeting last week, Cardinal Francis George, O.M.I., Archbishop of Chicago and Chancellor of the seminary, surprised all of us by announcing that he had appointed Father Robert Barron to be the new Rector of the seminary beginning July 1, replacing Msgr. Dennis Lyle.

Father Barron is a professor of Systematic Theology at Mundelein and also is well known for his program “Word on Fire” as well as his recent catechetical DVD series titled “Catholicism” being used in a number of our parishes.

I taught Msgr. Dennis Lyle, who has served as the seminary Rector for six years, in high school and at the major seminary (Yes, I am that old). He will be missed. I pray Father Barron will experience great joy and success in his new ministry.

Meeting for expanding health care opportunities
I will be meeting with Jim Beckman from Carondelet Health Care; Mark Fisher, Chief Executive Officer of Mercy Care Plan; Donna Zazworsky and John Lauer, board members for Catholic Community Services; and Peg Harmon, Chief Operating Officer for Catholic Community Services; and Jane Bakos, who is the new director of St. Elizabeth of Hungary Clinic. Jane, who began her new job April 13, joins St. Elizabeth with career experiences from Danville Children’s Medical Center; Medspa, a private entrepreneurial business; Christus Spohn Health Systems, a Catholic Health System in Texas; and Carondelet, St. Joseph’s Hospital.
We will be holding a brainstorming session about various critical need health care areas in our community that might be addressed through collaboration and combined use of these organizational resources.

Please pray for
The safe return of Isabel Celis and for the continued support of her family members. We also pray for those involved into the investigation that they may be sustained in their work looking for Isabel.

Please also pray for the soul of Father Patrick Hawk, C.Ss.R. who passed away May 8 in St. Louis.  Father Hawk worked at the Redemptorist Renewal Center at Picture Rocks.  The Rosary will be held on Tuesday May 15 and the funeral will be on Wednesday, May 16 in St. Louis.

There will be a Memorial Mass held in Tucson at the Redemptorist Renewal Center on June 10, at 10:00 a.m. In lieu of condolences you are invited to make a donation to the RRC in Fr. Pat’s name. The center plans to name a building after him and possibly a garden also will be created.