Scaring up faith and fun on Halloween

Photo by Mary DeTurris Poust, Chiesa Santa Maria
dell'Orazione e Morte, Via Giulia, Rome

By Mary DeTurris Poust

I've always loved Halloween, and not just for the scary costumes and abundant candy -- although that helps. I love this holiday and holy day for its connection to deeper and darker things, for its reminder that we are not so far separated from the "other side" as we'd sometimes like to believe.

I think my Halloween fascination has a little to do with both nature and nurture. My Celtic roots give me that built-in interest in and connection to my ancestors' traditions. After all, this night was Samhain for the ancient Celts -- the end of the light and the beginning of the dark. It was a Celtic version of New Year's Eve, a time of a thin veil between the living and the dead. It was only later that Christian missionaries helped converts adapt their pagan celebrations to something more fitting their new faith -- All Saints' Day.

Here's a little more background from an article by Anne Neuberger on OSV's parish resource page:

From then on, customs of the two intertwined in ways that were both holy and fun. For example, in medieval days, there was a custom called ‘souling’, in which people went from door to door, singing and asking for a ‘soul cake’, a sweet yeast bun with spices. In exchange, they promised to pray for the deceased family members of the household. Sound a bit like ‘trick-or-treat’? Other aspects of the Celtic festivities evolved until, in the United States and Canada, we have children wearing costumes to ‘frighten’ others and begging for treats. Skeletons and other symbols of death hang in windows of homes and stores near October 31st.

Skeletons and other macabre decorations were in abundance this time of year when I lived in Texas, where the Mexican tradition of Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is celebrated in both secular and spiritual ways. The decorations and traditions are at once an acknowledgment of our mortality and a profession of our faith. We do not cower before death but laugh in its face, celebrating our belief in eternal life in our homes, in our churches, and in cemeteries. How can you not love that? I'm excited that my upstate New York parish will be incorporating Dia de los Muertos into our All Souls' Day Masses this year, with opportunities to place mementos of deceased loved ones on the altar not only on November 2 but throughout the month.

Some people find this season a little too morbid, but there's something so powerful about focusing on the connection between life and death, here and there, dark and light. Plus, who doesn't love putting on a cape and witch hat and hitting the streets with the kids? That's where I'll be in a few hours, accompanied by Little Red Riding Hood, Athena, and a ninja. I don't think we'll scare off any errant souls, but I'm hoping we can scare up a few Kit Kats.

Stop mailing me pious trinkets with your requests for money

By Russell Shaw

“I’m getting more and more ticked off about this stuff,” I said. “How’s that?” my youngest daughter replied.

“Day after day I get these direct mail appeals from religious groups.” I waved that day’s arrivals in the air. “No doubt some of them are good causes, and I assume that they all operate within the law. But the pitch that many of them make really does get under my skin.”

“How’s that?” the daughter asked again.

“Look at these.” I read from a couple of the envelopes. “’Enclosed you will find a medal that touched the saint’s relic.’ ‘Send us money and we’ll send you blessed oil — strictly as gift of course.’

“And this one is the absolute worst — a crucifix. If somebody wants a crucifix and decides to buy one, that’s just fine with me. But sending unsolicited crucifixes through the mail in the hope that pious people will send a few dollars back… What do you think a lot of people do with them?”

“Throw them away, I guess,” the daughter said, making a throwing-away gesture.

“Exactly. But a crucifix is a sacred symbol, a religious object with tremendous spiritual meaning. This whole business makes me sick.”

“Maybe it’s something else to write about,” the daughter suggested helpfully.

I pondered that. “You may be right.”

She was. I expect you’ve gotten the drift of this column by now. Religious groups are entitled to raise money, and to use direct mail if they wish. But sending cheap religious articles — medals, holy pictures, rosaries, statuettes — to people who didn’t ask for them crosses the line into a realm that can reasonably be called sacrilegious.

Here’s a real-life illustration of the human harm this practice can have. I used to know a pious Catholic woman, now deceased, who unfortunately was afflicted with scrupulosity. One form that took was the idea that she had to send money to every single religious group that sent her a piece of direct mail.

And so she did — send them all money, I mean. Now, she was not a wealthy woman, and I imagine she had to strain to come up with even a small check for every outfit that asked. This was a clear case of the religious groups exploiting a good person’s weakness for their own benefit.

The exploitation is even worse when the bait is an unsolicited religious article. In that case the sender counts on the recipient’s respect for religious symbols — more respect, I might add, than the sender shows.

Yes, some people welcome the religious articles they receive this way and are glad to make a donation. So here’s an approach that takes that into account while facing up to the problem I’m talking about.

Instead of sending religious articles indiscriminately to people who’ll want them and people who won’t, tell everyone who gets your mailing that they can receive the rosary or the medal or whatever it is simply by writing back and asking (free-will offerings gladly received of course). If someone objects that this takes guilt out of the picture (am I not obliged to pay for what I get, even if I didn’t ask for it?), I reply: Do you really imagine it’s okay to squeeze money out of simple, pious souls by making them feel guilty?

Religious groups that raise funds this way should stop exploiting people and causing scandal. Recipients should refuse to give in to psychological bullying. And Church authorities should speak up about an obnoxious practice that’s clearly gotten out of hand.

Russell Shaw is an OSV contributing editor.

Honus Wagner goes to bat for sisters

By Mary DeTurris Poust

As the mother of a 13-year-old boy who is fascinated by rare, old (and expensive) baseball cards, I am acquainted with Honus Wagner, the "Flying Dutchman" of baseball fame whose cards now sell for ridiculous amounts of money. I've even been to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown to pay homage to Honus, among many other baseball greats.

So this story about Honus coming to the rescue of the the Baltimore-based School Sisters of Notre Dame caught my eye. Turns out the congregation was bequeathed a rare -- although not mint -- Honus Wagner card by the brother of one of their sisters, and now they've put it up for auction in hopes that Honus can go to bat for their ministries.

Finding soul friends for the spiritual journey

By Mary DeTurris Poust

In this age of Facebook and Twitter, when we can have hundreds, even thousands of "friends," many people still feel isolated or lonely. We may have more virtual friendships than we can count, but nothing that dips below the surface to touch the soul. Spiritual friendship offers something more, the possibility of connecting with true soul mates who journey with us on our path toward God. It's not some newfangled notion, but rather an ancient tradition with scriptural roots.

Interested in learning more? Check out my story, "How to Develop Spiritual Friendships," in the November 7 issue of OSV by clicking HERE.

You can also catch me talking about this topic and my new book, "Walking Together: Discovering the Catholic Tradition of Spiritual Friendship," on the following radio and cable shows:

Thursday, Oct. 28, 8:10 a.m. ET, Son Rise Morning Show, EWTN Global Radio, 740 AM, Cincinnati region
Friday, Oct. 29, 8:30 a.m. ET, Spirit Radio, KVSS 102.7 FM, Omaha/Lincoln region
Friday, Oct. 29, 10:30 a.m., Everyday Faith Live!, Telecare-TV on Cablevision or Verizon FIOS, New York Metro area.

Texas is "ground zero" in death penalty debate

By Mary DeTurris Poust

A potentially problematic arson investigation that led to the conviction and 2004 Texas execution of Cameron Todd Willingham is shining a harsh light on capital punishment in a state where the majority of people, including Catholics, favor the death penalty. Can the case, which involved the brutal deaths of Willingham's three toddler daughters, turn the tide of public opinion?

One Catholic expert in the field says that to change hearts and minds on this issue,

Former OSV editor to head Catholic news agencies

David Scott, who served as editor of Our Sunday Visitor newspaper from 1993 to 2000, has been named editor-in-chief of Catholic News Agency (CNA) and EWTN News, according to a story on CNA.

From the CNA story:

The move is the latest in a growing collaboration between

Letting love find you - UPDATED

By Mary DeTurris Poust

Mike Hayes over at Googling God offers some great food for thought this Thursday morning -- a book review and thoughtful reflection on love and Love all rolled into one. It's the kind of post that not only makes you want to buy the book -- Already There: Letting God Find You by Jesuit Father Mark Mossa -- but also makes you think back on your past and probably even on your right-this-minute. Why do we so often push love away? Why don't we think we deserve to be loved, by God or anyone else?

From Mike's post:

Archbishops Burke, Wuerl to become cardinals

Pope Benedict XVI named 24 new cardinals today, among them two from the United States: Archbishop Raymond L. Burke, head of the Vatican's highest tribunal, the Supreme Court of the Apostolic Signatura, and Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl of Washington, D.C. The pope will formally install the cardinals during a special consistory November 20 at the Vatican.

Remembering the North American Martyrs

By Mary DeTurris Poust

One of my favorite places in upstate New York, just 45 minutes from my home, is the National Shrine of the North American Martyrs, whose feast we celebrate today. Those three crosses in the photo above mark the entrance to the shrine with the names of three martyrs: Jesuit missionaries Isaac Jogues, Rene Goupil and Jean La Lande.

The shrine in Auriesville, which is also the birthplace of Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha, is not just a beautiful location in the Mohawk Valley but a truly sacred spot, steeped in the history and blood of the martyrs who suffered there. You can walk the ravine and read St. Isaac Jogues' own words explaining the prolonged torture and terrifying death

IVF and Tuskegee-type experiments not so different

By Russell Shaw

Very different public reactions greeted recent news items concerning two notable events in the biomedical sector, yet a troubling question remains front and center about both: although one was praised and the other condemned, do both in fact reflect much the same ethical perversity?

One was the announcement that Robert G. Edwards, a British biologist, had been awarded the Nobel Prize in medicine for developing the in vitro technique of artificial human fertilization. On the face of it there is something a bit odd about awarding the prize for what was, after all, no more than an advance in technical know-how, but that’s the Nobel people’s call.

The other item recounted that American researchers back in the 1940s deliberately infected almost 700 Guatemalan prisoners with syphilis and gonorrhea without their knowledge or consent. The aim of this grotesque experiment was to test the efficacy of the then-new wonder drug penicillin.

Pope to seminarians: "The world needs priests...until the end of time"

Posted by Mary DeTurris Poust

Reflecting on his own decision to become at priest during a difficult time in history, Pope Benedict XVI offered encouragement to seminarians around the world in a letter released today, telling the future priests not to let difficult issues -- even the sexual abuse crisis -- discredit their mission or deter them from pursuing their vocations.

Here's the very personal opening of the pope's letter:

When in December 1944 I was drafted for military service, the company commander asked each of us what we planned to do in the future. I answered that I wanted to become a Catholic priest. The lieutenant replied: "Then you ought to look for something else. In the new Germany priests are no longer needed."

(Practicing vs non) Catholic Americans on same-sex marriage

I dug a little deeper into a recent survey release by the Pew Research Center that reported on Americans' growing approval of same-sex marriage. It said today more Catholics favor than oppose (46 percent to 42 percent) same-sex marriage, a flip in numbers from a 2008-2009 survey.

But I was particularly interested in the difference in view between Catholics who attend Mass every Sunday and those who don't. Unfortunately, the survey release only compared those groups among white Catholics.

So I asked Pew for practicing vs. non-practicing numbers among all Catholic Americans, not just whites. Here's what Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life senior researcher Greg Smith came up with for me:

Indian-rite Catholics get new U.S. home UPDATED

Photo courtesy of Long Island Catholic

By Mary DeTurris Poust

Indian Catholics in the Syro-Malankara Catholic Church will now have their own "home" in the United States. Pope Benedict XVI has established a new "exarchate" or diocese for this branch of the Eastern Catholic Church, whose world headquarters are in Kerala, India. Based on Long Island, within the boundaries of the Rockville Centre Diocese, the U.S. exarchate will be headed by Bishop Thomas Mar Eusebius and will provide pastoral care to the 10,000 Syro-Malankara Catholics living in this country, mainly in New York, Philadelphia and Chicago.

I wasn't really familiar with this Eastern branch of Catholicism until I read this story

A conversation with the archbishop

This falls under the category of shameless self-promotion:

You can tune into my conversation with Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York on the Catholic Channel (Sirius 159 and XM 117) today at 1 p.m. EST. We'll be talking about my newest book, "Walking Together: Discovering the Catholic Tradition of Spiritual Friendship" (Ave Maria Press).

The show will be repeated at 6 a.m. and 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, and at 9 a.m and 6 p.m. ET on Sunday.

Phillies' hitter keeps baseball in perspective

By Mary DeTurris Poust

It's that time of year, the season when baseball dominates the conversation and the TV screen. At least at our house. I live with two die-hard Yankee fans, a challenge for someone raised to be a die-hard Mets fan. I've learned to love the Yankees (marriage is about compromises, right?), but when push comes to shove in any Subway Series, I always revert to my roots. That long preface, then, should give some indication of just how good the story I'm about to post must be. After all, no self-respecting Mets fan is going to promote the Phillies, but this Philadelphia story goes way beyond baseball.

Catholic communicators cannot become 'voice of our master'

Disagreement among Catholics is good, even necessary for true community to exist. That's according to one report coming out of a meeting of the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Social Communications, held in Rome Oct. 4-7 to discuss Catholic print media and the impact of the Internet and social networking. The gathering brought together 204 delegates from 85 countries.

Helen Osman, secretary of communications for the USCCB, posted her report on the event at the USCCB Media Blog. Here's a snippet:

"Catholic journalists and communication professionals also noted, both in the formal presentations and in reports from the small group discussion, that they are fettered in their work by bosses who fail to understand the implications of not reporting both the good and the bad news.

Stop the killing in Sudan before it starts

The situation in Sudan is headed for disaster if the international community does not take notice and do something to head off the violence that could erupt as the result of a January referendum to determine whether the south will secede from Sudan and become independent. Any outcome could trigger violence -- civil war, tribal clashes, or outright genocide, on a scale larger than the genocide in Rwanda that horrified the world.

The worldwide community needs to act now to ensure a free and fair election come January 9. Without the international spotlight shining on Sudan, voter fraud could very well rob the Sudanese people of their right to self-determination.

The tag line in the above video clip says it all: "Never again starts now." Watch the clip from Catholic Relief Services and the USCCB's "Catholics Confront Global Poverty" effort. And then, as the video suggests, pray, learn advocate, give.

To learn more, visit the CRS website by clicking HERE.

Muslim center controversy harkens back to protests of New York's oldest Catholic parish

By Mary DeTurris Poust

Well, they say history repeats itself. If you want proof, just check out this great story in The New York Times today that lays out the incredible parallels between the controversy over Park51, the proposed Muslim center and mosque that would be built near Ground Zero, and St. Peter's Catholic Church, which sits just two blocks from the Park51 site and is celebrating the 225th anniversary of the laying of its cornerstone this year.

The arguments against the church then are eerily similar to

This Glee episode really was a loser

By Mary DeTurris Poust

Well, it looks like I'm the rare Glee fan who was not blown away by the hit Fox show's take on religion this week. Others are talking about how inspiring it was, and, to be sure, there were flickering moments of inspiration, but I couldn't see those sparks through the dark, hazy clouds of stereotype. Let's see, we started off the hour with Billy Joel's "Only the Good Die Young." Really? "You Catholic girls start much too late?...You didn't count on me when you were counting on your Rosary?" Really? You lost me at "Virginia."

Everyone seems to be falling over themselves to point out that this was such a deep and touchy-feely look at religion. No it wasn't. It was more of the same. Excuse me if I don't get all warm and fuzzy when

This is what it means to be pro-life

Bell Family

By Mary DeTurris Poust

Some people make a lasting impression. Chris Bell is one of those people -- and for all the right reasons. I met Chris back in the 1980s, when I was a young reporter for Catholic New York newspaper. After working with homeless runaways in Times Square, Chris -- along with Father Benedict Groeschel, CFR -- went on to found Good Counsel Homes, a network of shelters for pregnant women who have nowhere else to turn. One morning my editor sent me to the Spring Valley, N.Y., residence to visit with some of the moms and children and to see how Good Counsel helps mothers facing crisis pregnancies get the education and skills they need to create a stable life for themselves and their children when they're ready to move on from the residences.

I was impressed with the home, but, even more so, I was impressed with Chris, who was living proof that some people are willing to walk the walk, even when it's a very difficult road. So when I saw that Fathers For Good, an initiative of the Knights of Columbus, was featuring Chris and his wife, Joan Andrews Bell, another pioneering pro-life activist, I knew I had to share it with you. Not only because they're an inspiring pro-life couple, but because this is Respect Life Month, and yesterday was Respect Life Sunday.

Here's a quote from Chris about his work:

"Good Counsel is a family for abandoned single mothers before, during and after the birth of their baby. Good Counsel helps a mom take the next good step educationally, puts her on a vocational track and moves her toward self-sufficiency. Since 1985, Good Counsel has had more than 5,600 mothers and babies in our homes offering more than 520,000 nights of shelter and days of loving support.

"We've seen about 800 babies born to moms in our homes."

Those are some amazing numbers -- 800 babies born to moms who might otherwise have picked abortion. But Chris and Joan's pro-life commitment isn't just a Christian mission; it's a personal vocation as well. They have seven children -- six of them adopted and with special needs. Want to be inspired? Read more by clicking HERE to go to the Fathers for Good interview. To learn more about Good Counsel Homes, click HERE.

Want school reform? Start in the home

By Russell Shaw

By implication at least, school reform was a central issue in the recent District of Columbia Democratic primary election in which an incumbent mayor known for naming and supporting a reform-minded school chancellor sought reelection. Moreover—and also by implication—school reform went down to defeat along with the mayor, as voters backed his challenger. (Outlanders need to understand that in this overwhelmingly Democratic capital city, the Democratic primary usually is the only election that counts.)

This is not to say that in a straight-up for or against vote on reform, school reform would have lost. Personalities and peripheral issues decided the outcome in Washington. In truth, reforming the nation’s schools is one issue that—in principle—just about everyone supports.

What rational person can say no to providing better teachers, better curricula, better facilities, better whatever-it-takes to kids in public schools? As a longtime supporter of church-related and other nonpublic schools, I wish these generous sentiments also extended to their students. But we can leave that for another day.

That said, I’m obliged to add that much of the agitation for upgrading schools misses the point. The deficiencies of public schools are undoubtedly real, and billions of dollars over the years have been spent on correcting them. But the results are rather less than overwhelmingly impressive. Even though it isn’t popu

lar to say so, the unavoidable conclusion is that the roots of the problem of poor student performance, as well as the solution, lie elsewhere than the schools.

Specifically, they lie in homes and in culture.

As to culture, what should one realistically expect of students deeply immersed in a sensate visual environment whose primary goal is instant gratification without significant effort? “Studies” now and then purport to show that frittering away time on addictive TV viewing and constant involvement in social media does no harm, but such findings are a counter-intuitive joke.

Add to the media-saturated lifestyle of many young people a culture that scorns learning and learners, and you have a formula that virtually guarantees educational failure before kids get anywhere near the classroom.

As to the home, it’s been said for centuries that parents are the first educators—not just first in time but first in importance. Who can doubt it? How parents deal with a child—do they, for example, regularly read to him?—communicates not simply information but basic attitudes toward the learning process itself.

Notice that word “parents.” Some single parents labor heroically for their children’s educational success, and some succeed. So for that matter do some gritty and determined kids who, giving the lie to social determinism, overcome obstacles and battle their way to the top pretty much on their own.

But in this matter of education as in so many others, the single parent and the self-motivated learner have the cards stacked heavily against them from the start.

They’re not alone. Those cards also are stacked against the schools when they are faced with kids formed by chaotic, dysfunctional homes and a cultural environment in which learning is held in contempt. Which is why, in the end, school reform that’s focused only on schools can have only very limited positive results.

Americans are schizoid about these things. We want kids to learn, yet we refuse to face up to, much less try to correct, the circumstances—dysfunctional home life coupled with a decadent popular culture—that send many kids off to school programmed for failure. But for reform to work, here is where reform has to begin.

Russell Shaw is an OSV Newsweekly contributing editor.

Staring into the face of St. Francis

By Mary DeTurris Poust

I have this urge, this longing to go to Assisi, so when I went to Italy last month, I fully intended to skip out on my classes for a day and high-tail it up to Assisi on the express train. But it turned out that my program was so good I didn't want to miss a day, and I realized that a rushed day trip to Assisi was not what I was longing for. When I finally get there -- and now I have a reason to go back to Italy -- I want it to be a real spiritual pilgrimage, a rich and slow experience of Francis and Clare's city.

What I didn't know when I went to Rome, however, was that I would get my St. Francis moment in an unexpected place -- the Monastery of St. Benedict in Subiaco. During a day trip to the beautiful monastery clinging to a cliff on the very sight where St. Benedict lived as a hermit in a cave for three years, we viewed the above fresco of St. Francis of Assisi, who visited there in 1223, according to monastery records. The image is the only known painting to be done by someone who saw St. Francis alive. They know that because Francis does not have a halo, signifying that he was still alive when the fresco was painted, and he does not have the stigmata, which he received in 1224.


Although everything about the monastery, and the Monastery of St. Scholastica just down the hill, was awesome, it was this portrait of St. Francis that brought me to tears. I had to go back a second time to stand before it for just a few more minutes. To know that I was looking at the face of St. Francis was so powerful, to walk where St. Francis and St. Benedict once walked was humbling. I may not have gotten my trip to Assisi, but Francis managed to enter into my visit and make his mark nonetheless. Not surprising when you consider this saint's staying-power and his beloved status among Catholics and non-Catholics alike.

So we can celebrate St. Francis today with moments of peace, moments of prayer, and maybe some obligatory doting on an animal or two. But it's good to remember that the real man, the one without the halo, was not a saccharine saint but a fierce defender of the faith and powerful promoter of peace and justice. These many years later, he still shows us the way, even if we can't get to Assisi to walk in his footsteps.

For more on St. Francis, read my column, "A Saint for All Seasons," over at Not Strictly Spiritual.

Top 10 OSV Newsweekly stories in September

Is it really October already?

Here are the 10 OSV Newsweekly stories that attracted the most traffic in September. Happy reading if you missed them the first time around.

1. Seminarians endure criticisms in wake of sex abuse scandal.

2. Parish music ministers prepare for major Roman missal changes.

3. Religious and priests donate bodies for Alzheimer's research.

4. OSV's 2010 Catholic Guide to the Internet.

5. With historic visit, pope to challenge indifferent, agnostic Brits.

6. Clerical sex abuse victim tells why he reconciled with the Church after eight decades.

7. New Franciscan friars follow in St. Francis' (bare) footsteps.

8. Erlandson: What if Florida preacher framed Quran-burning as artistic expression?

9. Pope charms, challenges secular Great Britain.

10. Catholics may be sick of sex abuse stories, but they cannot be ignored.

Who's to blame for Church's 'communication problem'

One of my colleagues at the "Church Up Close" seminar in Rome, sponsored in part by OSV, has written a thought-provoking commentary on the Church's "communication problem," its tendency -- at times -- to appear tone deaf to the world around it. His column in The Catholic Northwest Progress is worth a read. Share your reaction in the comment section. I'll get you started:

By Kevin Birnbaum

The “mainstream media” is out to get the Catholic Church.

This seems to have become a common sentiment among many Catholics in recent years, as the church has gone through round after round of bad press.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue recently accused The New York Times of trying to “manipulate public opinion against the Catholic Church.” A well-known Catholic apologist referred on his blog to “The New York Times and like-minded organs of modern-day antipathy toward the Catholic Church.” One popular priest blogger bluntly calls The Times “Hell’s Bible.”

A different perspective
For loyal Catholics, the temptation to blame the media for the church’s bad press can certainly be attractive — and many a poorly researched, apparently biased article makes it seem reasonable.

But a different perspective emerged at a recent weeklong seminar for journalists in Rome entitled The Church Up Close. Speakers included cardinals, Vatican officials and prominent Catholic journalists, and a recurring theme was the frank admission that the church is pretty bad at communicating, especially in the age of the Internet and 24-hour news.

During one session Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the high-profile director of the Holy See Press Office, candidly told attendees, “We have to grow in the direction of transparency and communication.”

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