Assaults on Human Dignity

Southwest Kansas Go, Proclaim the Good News of Jesus with Great Joy! CNewspaper of the Catholic Diocese atholicof Dodge City www.dcdiocese.org/registerwww.dcdiocese.org/register Vol.Vol. L,L, No.No. 11 •• Sunday,Sunday, MarchMarch 8,8, 20152015 Willy’s Story In the Spirit of Lent Assaults on The homeless human dignity man buried in n a previous column, I Iwrote about Mr. Maxwell, the Vatican an impoverished elderly man to whom I delivered Meals on By Angela ambrOgeTTi Wheels while I was a student Catholic News Agency at Benedictine College. This illy Herteleer, a homeless man was my first step of charity to Wwho lived on the side streets the outside world, giving my outside St. Peter’s Basilica, made small act of love to a precious headlines after his death, when he re- child of God. ceived a special burial in the Vatican’s A constant theme of + Most Rev. John Teutonic Cemetery. The following is Pope St. John Paul II was B. Brungardt an account of his story as told by Msgr. the dignity of the human Bishop of the Amerigo Ciani, a canon of St. Peter’s person. He wrote and spoke Catholic Diocese of Basilica and painter who had become eloquently of our innate dig- Dodge City friends with Willy. nity as sons and daughters of Everyone in the neighborhood our Heavenly Father, created male and female in the outside the Vatican knew Willy Her- image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:27). What teleer. a tragedy we face in continued assaults on human The “Borgo” – as the area that bor- Photo by Elizabeth Frasco dignity in our world today: ders St. Peter’s Square to the north Anthony, Simeon, Augustine, and Nicholas Frasco of Spearville show off the • the atrocities of the so-called Islamic is called – has a small-town-feel. goods they collected on their walk about Spearville. One hour of begging equaled State Alongside the monsignors, sisters, almost 200 cans of food for Manna House in Dodge City. • the horror of human trafficking • the desperate plight of refugees • the shock of domestic violence Brothers go door-to-door to • the pain of abortion, including dismember- ment abortion • the agony of homelessness collect food for needy • the distress of a lack of health care for so pearville -- Anthony, Simeon, Au- neighborhood and beg for non-perish- many people Sgustine, and Nicholas Frasco, sons able items for the poor, kind of like St. • the suffering of the poor of Tony and Elizabeth Frasco, took to Francis of Assisi,” Elizabeth said. • the struggle of those who are addicted the sidewalks recently to collect food for “This idea was effective for a number • the abandonment of the elderly Manna House in Dodge City. of reasons, but the top was the reaching • the persecution of persons because of their “Trying to help children get into the out to those in our neighborhood and religious beliefs, and Lenten spirit, I often use the three pillars giving them a chance to give too. • much other suffering of our many sisters of prayer, fasting, and alms giving,” ex- “Also, our children will get the op- and brothers throughout the world plained Elizabeth. Their Lenten checklist portunity to deliver the cans to the Human dignity is a "value that precedes the included: 1) Prayer: a chaplet of Divine Manna house themselves and see how values of freedom, equality, solidarity, citizenship Willy Herteller Paul Badde/CNA Mercy and three extra Hail Mary’s 2) useful their little bit of effort on a Sat- and justice" and is "the fundamental principle of the Fasting: no desserts or television 3) Alms urday morning can be. democratic state, and the person-centered principle cardinals and Romans that live in the Giving.... “If you are looking for a ‘canned Lent’ on which such a state is founded" writes Giovanni neighborhood, there are many home- “How could they help the poor? My for your children, look no further than Maria Flick in his new In Praise of Dignity. less people. You can see them every husband chimed in about a canned food your own neighborhood.” As we continue our Lenten journey, we ask the morning at Mass at the Pontifical Par- drive the school is having. ... A good idea, Lord how we can help to lift up the dignity of the ish of Sant’Anna, just off the Borgo but I want it to affect them personally.” Editor’s Note: June and July are typi- human person. You can find many ideas at the inside the Vatican walls. Elizabeth and Tony came up with an cally months in which Manna House has national/international level by checking out the Willy was one of them. idea that would serve those in need and the greatest need. Elizabeth encouraged U.S. Bishops’ website: www.usccb.org. His austere appearance, the cross allow the children to take a personal people to consider a “Christmas in June/ Locally, Catholic Social Service, celebrating its around his neck and the pull-cart he interest. July” canned food collection for Manna 50th anniversary this year, has many opportuni- had turned into a piece of luggage “We decided that they could walk the House or your local agency. ties for acts of love: www.catholicsocialservice. to carry everything he owned left an org. Your parish, and our community groups, have imprint. programs to reach out to the least of our brothers He participated in Mass every and sisters. morning. “My medicine is Commu- You are reading the first Catholic! Let’s not sit on the sidelines. Let’s not just com- nion,” he always said. He was always plain, or hope someone else does something. Let’s well-groomed, but didn’t seek much he newspaper for the Catho- March 3, 1966. The new name get involved, both in prayer and in action. Pick a con- conventional medical attention. Tlic Diocese of Dodge City defines both our territory and our cern above and spread the Good News of Jesus! Willy was one of the many men and begins its 50th volume year faith identity. (See “A newspaper In the Gospel for the first Sunday of Lent, Jesus women who live on the side streets under the flagSouthwest Kansas by any other name,” Page 4) said: “This is the time of fulfillment. The king- dom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in around St. Peter’s, men and women Catholic. Contact information remains the gospel.” (Mark 1:15). who live on the margins of the tourist The first issue of the paper, the same, skregister@dcdiocese. Let us put this teaching into practice this Lent, routes, who have friends throughout under the flag,Southwest Kan- org, as does the website, www. especially as we care for our siblings in Christ. Je- the neighborhood. sas Register, was published on dcdiocese.org/register. sus loves them, and us, more than we can ask or Continued on Page 9 imagine! Page 2 March 8, 2015 The Southwest Kansas Catholic Another Way he Source and Summit of Christian life, to a line from David Jones’ epic poem, Anath- making the whole Church other, making the Tthat’s how the Second Vatican Council emata. The poem, all 240 pages of it, is built whole world other. described the Eucharist. That’s good to know as on the Mass, on the Eucharist. And the opening How does this work? In the world of the we go deeper into Lent. line is this: We already and first of all discern Sacraments, very simply. It works as the If that is the case, because that is the case, the him making this thing other. The “him” Jones reverse of the normal thing. In life we eat the Eucharist is also the source and summit of Chris- sees is the priest moving toward the consecra- food, and it becomes us. In the Sacrament, we tian prayer. It is “the” Prayer. It is where Prayer tion of the Mass: toward making the offering eat the sacred food, and we become it. More ac- begins. It is where Prayer ends. It is the ideal of bread and wine “different” from what it was; curately, we become Him, we become different form of Prayer. It is the way we should pray. To toward making this thing other. from what we were, by becoming Christ-mind- deepen your understanding of Prayer is to deepen The Mass, the source and summit of prayer, ed, Christ soul-ed, Christ-body-ed. Digestion is your understanding of what happens before, dur- the highest form of prayer, is about “making the humble beginning of Resurrection. + Most Rev. Ronald ing, and after the celebration of Mass. other.” Making the bread and wine other, mak- Making this thing other: our catechumens and M. Gilmore Bishop Emeritus Let me simplify this by calling your attention ing the priest other, making the people other, our candidates, and ourselves. of Dodge City Marlene Clayton of Ellinwood named diocesan ‘Teacher of the Year’ arlene Clayton, lead teacher at St. Joseph, the oldest Catholic school in the “We include daily classroom prayer and MJoseph Catholic School in Ellinwood, diocese,” she said. “I’ve come to learn in twice-weekly students’ Masses, all of which has been named Teacher of the Year for the time that this really is a ministry. To serve help form a well-rounded student. St. Joseph Diocese of Dodge City. children, and to teach about God is a real School boasts a legacy of high academic “I was really surprised to receive the award, honor for me.” achievement with a focus on God.” and very humbled,” she said.

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