The Spirit Knights of Columbus Scott A

The Spirit Knights of Columbus Scott A. MacDonald Council 8512

V OLUME 3 7 I SSUE 8 A UGUST 2020

COUNCIL OFFICERS The Bodily Assumption of Mary Chaplain ...... Fr. Anh Tran ...... (817) 284-4811 Grand Knight ...... Mike Dellies ...... (817) 656-1492 By Matt Slick Deputy Grand Knight.... Robert Sands...... (817) 988-3376 The Bodily Assumption of Mary is the Roman Catholic teaching Chancellor ...... John Giglio ...... (817) 281-4617 that Mary, the mother of Jesus, was bodily assumed into Recorder ...... Allan Fitzwater ...... (817) 528-8142 heaven. Treasurer ...... Gary Yanowski ...... (817) 656-1142 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all Financial Secretary ...... Mark Krueger ...... (817) 939-1192 stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life Lecturer ...... Juan Valdez ...... (817) 966-8925 was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly Advocate ...... Terry Barnhard ...... (817) 707-6135 glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so Warden ...... Gary Obudzinski ...... (817) 656-3274 that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Guard ...... Paul Cuttica ...... (518) 774-4019 Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death."508 The As- Guard ...... Paul Posluszny ...... (724) 987-3126 sumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in Trustee (3-Year) ...... Ken Kenvin, PGK ...... (817) 595-4104 her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrec- Trustee (2-Year) ...... Jerry Dews, PGK ...... (817) 932-0551 tion of other Christians: Trustee (1-Year) .... Bobby Donahoo, PGK ...... (817) 498-9628 This is a Roman Catholic dogma, which means it is a required INSURANCE and essential teaching that must be believed by all Roman Field Agent ...... Terry Peffers, PGK ...... (817) 690-7924 Catholics. FOURTH DEGREE "the Blessed Virgin Mary's bodily Assumption into heaven -- District 3 Master ...... Pat Conway which surely no faculty of the human mind could know by San Juan Diego Assembly 2857 its own natural powers, as far as the heavenly glorification Faithful Navigator ..... SK Dick Norgaard ...... (817) 656-2529 of the virginal body of the loving Mother of God is con- Comptroller .. SK Ejikeme “EJ” Alozie-Nwagboso cerned--is a truth that has been revealed by God and con- DIOCESE sequently something that must be firmly and faithfully be- Diocesan Rep...... Bruce Mallory ...... (817) 807-2982 lieved by all children of the Church," District Deputy ...... Obie Obregon ...... (817) 528-2393 Some Roman Catholics maintain that Mary physically died and was then assumed bodily into heaven, while others teach that she did not experience death at all. The consensus seems to be that Mary died, but that her body did not see corruption and was instead assumed into heaven. Consider this quote Inside this issue: from the Vatican website which strongly implies that she died.

Calendar 3 Belief in the glorious destiny of the body and soul of the Lord's Mother after her death spread very rapidly from East Birthday News 4 to West." Pro-Life Corner 5 "Regarding the day, year, and manner of Our Lady's death, News You Can Use 8 nothing certain is known." Volunteer Opportunities 13 (Continued on Page 4) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 2

Grand Knight’s Message Brother Knights, As we enter the heart of the summer, the temperatures are warming up. By this time of the year, I usually fee like the heat will never end. A feeling that is reinforced each night when I watch the weather forecast. Hot today, hot tomorrow, hot for weeks. Thankfully, it’s been a little cooler than normal this year. What a nice change. Replacing the heat this year is the COVID pandemic. The despair of endless heat has been replaced with the despair of being stuck in the house or having our out-of-the-home freedoms limited. I think I would rather have the heat. Just like the old saying goes, “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Keep this in mind as we persevere through this unusual time. With the COVID pandemic holding steady and not subsiding, there’s been no word from authorities, and thus the Diocese, about the easing of meeting restrictions. That means we’ll continue to have our business and officers’ meetings via Zoom. The Zoom virtual meetings may not be the best way to conduct business, but one benefit is it keeps us on track and the meetings short and to the point. I’m sure we’ll miss that aspect once we return to face-to-face meetings. The inability to hold on-campus meeting on Church property, and uncertainty of when restrictions will ease, has led to the cancellation of the 2020 Fall Fest. Bummer! Although the Fall Fest is a lot of work, it is my favorite activity we do as a Council. I’m sure some of you share that feeling and are just as disappointed as I am. Nonetheless, we are still planning on holding a garage sale at some point to generate seed money for the next Fall Fest. If we’re fortunate to be able to have one before the end of the calendar year (I have my doubts), we could conceivably have two garage sales before the next Fall Fest. Having two garage sales before the next Fall Fest would allow us some more opportunities for enhancing the 2021Fall Fest (think entertainment or activities). Other ‘usual’ activities are also being or have been affected, such as the cancellation of half of our 2020 Fish Fry Fridays and the monthly sandwich making for the Presbyterian Night Shelter to name a few. Without these activities, it’s hard for us to stay connected with each other. Speaking of not being connected, the restrictions on mass attendance could potentially lead to the loss of some parishioners. There is a real concern that mass attendance post-COVID will be less than before the pandemic began. That would be an unfortunate turn of events. Attendance prior to the pandemic had already begun to diminish. One website I visit reported that for the period 2014 to 2017, an average of 39% of Catholics reported attending church in the past seven days. This is down from an average of 45% from 2005 to 2008 and represents a steep decline from 75% in 1955. That’s a trend in the wrong direction, especially given the hits the Church has taken over the past decade or so. First it was the child abuse scandal, which severely damaged the image of the Catholic Church in general, and the public’s overall perception of parish priests in particular. Both the Church and our priests need our prayers now as much as ever. It was said during a recent Fraternal Benefits Night online presentation, the "Asiatic flu" or "Russian flu" pandemic was ravaging the country during the late 1800s. Also during that time, men were falling away from the Church in search of a sense of belonging. Coincidentally, the late 1800s is when Fr. Michael J. McGivney’s priesthood was at its peak. As you well know, he began the Knights of Columbus to take care of the widows and orphans who otherwise did not have a male figure in their lives to watch over them. Did you also know that the Knights were also created to prevent Catho- lic men from entering secret societies directly opposed to Church teaching? The parallels between the late 1800s and today are striking. God’s plan during the late 1800s was to utilize Fr. McGivney to create an organization where the emphasis is on serving one’s Church, community and family with virtue. What do you think God’s plans are for the Catholic Church during present times? Fr. McGivney was a typical parish priest who answered a call to action. Are you today’s champion for the Catholic Church? Remem- ber, Jesus called ordinary people and sinners to be his Apostles. As Knights of Columbus, we are called to be that champion for our Catholic faith. Faith through our words and deeds is our call to action. Keep strong during these times and pray the Rosary often for the health of our Catholic faith. Vivat Jesus! SK Mike Dellies, Grand Knight

FALL FEST 2020 HAS BEEN CANCELLED Due to the COVID pandemic and the restrictions on gathering, the St. John’s Fall Fest for 2020 has been cancelled. Look for us again next year. T HE S PIRIT P A G E 3 Calendar of Events ALL MEETINGS ARE VIRTUAL UNTIL THE EASING OF COVID-19 MEETING RESTRICTIONS August 2020

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

26 27 28 29 30 31 1

1ST SAT. MASS

2 3 4 5 6 7 8

ZOOM BUSINESS MTG 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

16 17 18 19 20 21 22

ZOOM OFFICER MTG. 23 24 25 26 27 28 29

30 31 1 2 3 4 5

THIS MONTH’S EVENTS UPCOMING EVENTS

1st 1st Saturday Mass SEPTEMBER 2020 OCTOBER 2020 3rd Sandwich Making 3rd Business Meeting 1st Business Meeting 6th Business Meeting 5th 1st Saturday Mass 3rd 1st Saturday Mass 9th Breakfast (tentative) 7th Sandwich Making 5th Sandwich Making 11th Birthday Dinner 8th Birthday Dinner 11th Breakfast (tentative) 20th Officers’ Meeting 13th Breakfast (tentative) 13th Birthday Dinner 26th Chapter Meeting 17th Officers’ Meeting 15th Officers’ Meeting 30th Chapter Meeting 28th Chapter Meeting

T HE S PIRIT P A G E 4 BIRTHDAY

NEWS Council 8512 proudly supports the following seminarian: AUGUST BIRTHDAYS Joseph Hoffschwelle

2 Steven Miller 18 James Werline Michael Marincel

3 Ronnie Hodges 19 Jonathan Knowles Please keep them in your prayers. 3 James Peterson, Jr. 22 Gregory Huebner 3 John Swihart, Jr. 23 John Cherry,III PRAYER LIST 5 Juan Molina 24 Richard Benson Pope Francis I 5 Robert O’Donnell 25 David Tyrone Pope Benedict XVI

9 Justo Juarez 28 Michael Stampfer Bishop Michael Olsen Fr. Jack McKone 11 Marshall Morgan 29 William McMurtray Fr. Ahn Tran 11 Daniel Pagel 29 Richard Toth Seminarians 13 Kenneth Sherrell 30 George Sanchez Unborn Children 16 James Snell Middle Eastern Christians Victim of Domestic Violence BIRTHDAY DINNER MEETINGS ARE Active Military / Veterans TEMPORARILY SUSPENDED... First Responders COVID-19 Victims/Families ...TO BE CONTINUED SOON Oliver Pettit

(“Assumption” from Page 1)

For such a supremely important dogma of the Church that must be believed to be a faithful Christian, one would think that it would be found in God's Inspired Word, the Bible. But, it is not. There isn't a single mention in God's word. The Vatican admits as much: How to Recite the Divine "the New Testament does not explicitly affirm Mary’s Assumption," (General Mercy Chaplet Audience, #3, Pope John Paul II, vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/ The Chaplet of Mercy is recited audiences/1997/documents/hf_jp-ii_aud_02071997_en.html) using ordinary rosary beads of five So, if it isn't in the Bible, where did the Roman Catholic church get this decades. The Chaplet is preceded teaching? by two opening prayers from the Diary of Saint Faustina and fol- Tradition lowed by a closing prayer. For step-by-step instructions on how Because the doctrine of the Assumption of Mary is not found in the Bible, it to recite the Divine Mercy Chap- must be derived from what Roman Catholicism calls Sacred Tradition--the let: oral tradition handed down from the apostles that is equal in authority to the Bible. Unfortunately, the first few hundred years of "tradition" make no https:// mention whatsoever of the bodily assumption of Mary. In fact, we find con- www.thedivinemercy.org/ tradictory evidence in Early Church Tradition. message/devotions/pray-the- chaplet (Continued on Page 14) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 5

Top US pro-life priests: ‘No Catholic can vote for Joe Biden’

Fr. Frank Pavone, Fr. Michael Orsi, and Fr. Stephen Imbarrato agree that even though Biden claims to be Catholic, his abortion and LGBT activism make him un- supportable.

Fri Jul 24, 2020 - 7:29 pm EST July 24, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – As the November presidential election swiftly approaches, Democrat Joe Biden is looking for ways to exploit his association with Catholicism to, in the words of an Associated Press report, “claim the moral high ground” in order to “chip away at Trump’s base by appealing to pockets of conservative faithful.” “Joe Biden is a different kind of foe than Trump has faced before: one who makes faith a central part of his persona — often literally wearing it on his sleeve,” asserted an Associated Press (AP) report published by mainstream me- SHUTTERSTOCK dia outlets across the country. Yet Biden’s faith — which allows him to declare that abortion is an ‘essential healthcare service;” to assert that if elected he will resurrect Obama-era policies that would force the Little Sisters of the Poor to violate their religious beliefs and provide contraceptives and abortifacients to their employees; to personally conduct gay weddings; and to support the overtly marxist Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement that seeks to disrupt the nu- clear family — is completely foreign to vast swaths of Catholics. As the election draws nearer, Biden is racing further and further leftward, creating an evermore distinct contrast with President Trump's strong pro-life, pro-family record. ‘Biden should not even try to receive Communion’ Fr. Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, said Biden’s “failure to protect the unborn puts him not only in conflict with the Catholic faith but with the Christian Gospel, the Founding principles of America, the very meaning of public service, and basic human decency. You can’t kill babies, and you can’t authorize anyone else to do so.” “This leads to the conclusion that a person like this should not even try to receive Communion,” Fr. Pavone told LifeSiteNews. “In fact, he doesn’t want to, because to exclude the unborn is to exclude Christ; so you may want ‘Communion,’ but you don’t want actual union with Jesus.” “Moreover, if one claims to believe the Church in saying the host is the Body of Christ, how can one not believe that same Church when she says the unborn is a person worthy of protection? The latter is easier to understand than the former,” Pavone declared. Biden: ‘Anti-Catholic’

“Joe Biden has already, rightfully so, been refused communion,” said Father Stephen Imbarrato, an activist pro- life Catholic priest, a regular on EWTN, and a member of Red Rose Rescues. Fr. Imbarrato recounted a litany of Biden’s scandalous positions on issues that defy his Catholic faith:

• Joe Biden supports murdering babies up till the day of birth.

• He supports the murder of the elderly, disabled, and medically vulnerable through euthanasia and as- sisted suicide.

(Continued on Page 6) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 6

REMINDER: BUSINESS MEETING LOCATION With the closing of the Formation Center, our monthly business meetings will now be held in the Resource Room in the Church Administration Building, located directly across (west) the church parking lot. The Resource Room is in the south end of the building, as you first enter the double glass doors.

The monthly officers meetings will still be held in the Council office at 4101 Frawley (south end of Outreach Building).

(“Pro-Life” from Page 5)

• He supports any number of sexual disorders and immoral experimentations that attack Catholic marriage and family. He himself has even presided over a same-sex marriage in direct opposition to Church man- date. • His environmental policies are built on the population control principles of abortion and contraception in direct opposition to the teaching of Pope Francis on the environment. • His crime bills in the 1990s, which he still brags about today, included the death penalty and were by many accounts racist. • He even made racist statements during the Senate hearing. Again, he still brags about these even today. • He even admitted that as President he would force (bully) Catholic nuns to pay for contraception and abortion in spite of the fact that the U.S. Supreme Court sided with the conscience and religious freedom of the nuns, 7-2. This is an outright attack on our Catholic faith. • “He is a walking and talking scandal to his Catholic faith and has rightly been refused the Eucharist because he persists in ongoing mortal sin thus separating himself from communion with the Church. He scan- dalizes the Catholic faith in so many ways that objectively he actually seems “anti Catholic” in his beliefs.” “Biden is not living as a Catholic,” Fr. Pavone said in a recent video. U.S. bishops’ scandalous failure to sanction Biden “Joe Biden has stubbornly and contumaciously ignored Church teaching on abortion and Religious Freedom,” observed Fr. Michael Orsi, a priest of the Diocese of Camden, New Jersey, who currently serves as parochial vicar for St. Agnes Parish in Naples, Florida, and a former chaplain of Ave Maria School of Law in Naples. “Accordingly, a 2004 Memorandum from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, signed by Cardinal Ratzinger, states, ‘a politician consistently campaigning and voting for permissive abortion laws’ the politician’s pastor is to inform him that he should not receive Communion,’” noted Fr. Orsi. “The failure on the part of most bishops to enforce the sanction is, in fact, more scandalous than Biden’s positions,” Fr. Orsi told LifeSiteNews. Fr. Imbarrato agrees. “A more concerning potential scandal may be that the U.S. bishops have not forthrightly pro- claimed (Biden’s defiance of his Catholic faith) – what every Catholic knows yet half choose to ignore because the bishops have ignored it and remain silent about it. “The silence of the U.S. bishops about Joe Biden may even a greater scandal than Biden’s idolatry (by which he places his intrinsically evil political agenda before his Catholicism) because a case can be made that he indulges in such scandal and idolatry because of the tacit approval from our shepherds,” Imbarrato told LifeSiteNews. Fr. Orsi offered three possible reasons for the bishops’ silence. “First, perhaps the bishops are still reeling from the priest abuse scandals, and are fearful of stirring the anger of politicians who could inflict more damage if elected,” Orsi suggested. “Secondly, and perhaps even more pernicious than the first, is that many bishops no longer see abortion as the ‘preeminent’ social justice issue,” Orsi said. “They prefer ‘a seamless garment’ approach which places e.g. ‘climate change,’ racism, and capital punishment to be equally important.” “Lastly, about 40 percent of Catholic Charities’ funding comes from federal and state coffers,” Orsi explained. “The fear of losing this would not only put a further dent into diocesean social outreach but limit the influence of liberal Democrats that inhabit many Church offices.” (Continued on Page 7) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 7

(“Pro-Life” from Page 6) Catholics cannot in good conscience vote for Biden “As for voting, not only can Catholics not vote for Biden in good conscience, but they can’t vote for Democrats, period. And neither can anyone else,” Fr. Pavone told LifeSiteNews. “The devil has made his home among the leadership of the Democratic Party for some time now, and found it a most hospitable environment,” Fr. Orsi wrote in a widely read analysis earlier this year. “It’s time to stop pretending we can be neutral. The Democrat Party has set itself up against the Church, against the unborn, and against America,” said Pavone. “They do not deserve one ounce of power in this country, and anyone who gives it to them shares the guilt of all the evil they do. And that starts with our religious leaders.” Fr. Imbarrato declared simply, unequivocally, “No Catholic can vote for Joe Biden.” Do not risk grave sin by voting for Biden “I encourage every Catholic to read Nos. 2284-2287 on scandal in the Catechism of the Catholic Church and to contact their bishops,” Fr. Imbarrato said. “Denounce Biden’s scandalizing of our Catholic faith and demand the bishops’ end their current scandal of silence,” he urged. “I am also begging Catholics to not risk the grave sin of scandal by supporting this man with their vote. Thus we would be heaping more scandal upon more scandal upon scandal.” “Many people respond to my comments with, ‘what about Trump?’ This is not about Trump. Trump isn't even Catholic. This is a Catholic issue. A Catholic can't vote for Biden whether they feel in good conscience they can or can't vote for Trump,” he added. “Between 45 percent and 48 percent of Catholics voted for Hillary Clinton,” Fr. Imbarrato said. “Four years later, the situation with Biden as a Catholic is much worse and the choice is much clearer insofar as not who any Catholic can vote for, but who every Catholic can't vote for. No Catholic can vote for Joe Biden.” Catholics are not the only ones scandalized by Biden At a recent “Evangelicals for Trump” event in Atlanta, high profile attendees such as Dr. Alveda King, Bishop Harry Jackson, and Ralph Reed “condemned Democrat politicians like Joe Biden who have abandoned religious Americans to satisfy the woke mob.” “President Trump has been a staunch defender of people of faith, and the Evangelical community is fired up and ready to rally behind him in November,” said Pastor Paula White, spiritual adviser to President Trump. “While Joe Biden radically shifts further away from the American values that Christians hold dear, President Trump continues to fight for our religious freedoms and the principles of faith that make our country great.” The Biden campaign is “using a watered-down, progressive version of Christianity that politely declines to share the Gospel and uses broad, generally spiritual terminology,” explained Elizabeth Johnston, better known as “Activist Mommy,” in a blog posting. “Biden may be able to woo some nominally Christian voters over to his side, but he certainly has no intention of governing according to the Word of the Lord,” she added. LifeSiteNews has sought comment from Bishop W. Francis Malooly of the Diocese of Wilmington, Delaware, where Biden resides, but received no response. Kennedy Jr. warns parents about danger of using largely untested COVID vaccines on kids

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. warned against mandatory COVID-19 vaccination in a debate with Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz, pointing out that ‘key parts of testing’ were ‘being skipped’

Fri Jul 24, 2020 - 3:08 pm EST July 24, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Environmental lawyer Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Robert Kennedy Jr. January 25, 2019 warned Americans on Thursday to be cautious about any new coronavirus vac- in Park City, Utah.Rich Fury/Getty cine, pointing out that key parts of testing are being skipped. (Continued on Page 8) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 8

(“Pro-Life” from Page 7)

“The Moderna vaccine, which is the lead candidate, skipped the animal testing altogether,” Kennedy said during an online debate on mandatory vaccinations with renowned Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz. The debate was aired by Valuetainment and moderated by Patrick Bet-David. Kennedy is part of a political family, being the son of Senator Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of President John F. Kennedy. Both were murdered in the 1960s. Another aspect of testing was equally unsatisfying, Kennedy said. The Moderna vaccine was tested “on 45 people. They had a high-dose group of 15 people, a medium-dose group of 15 people, and a low growth group of 15 people.” “In the low-dose group, one of the people was so sick from the vaccine they had to be hospitalized,” he explained. “That’s six percent. In the high-dose group, three people got so sick they had to be hospitalized. That’s twenty percent.” In spite of these significant problems, “they’re going ahead, and making two billion doses of that vaccine.” Another problem with the testing of the coronavirus vaccine is that it’s tested not on “typical Americans,” but a carefully selected group of people who don’t suffer from certain conditions. “They use what they call exclusionary criteria,” Kennedy said. “They are only giving these vaccines in these tests that they’re doing to the healthiest people.” “If you look at their exclusionary idea criteria: You cannot be pregnant, you cannot be overweight, you must have never smoked a cigarette, you must have never vaped, you must have no respiratory problems in your family, you can’t suffer asthma, you can’t have diabetes, you can’t have rheumatoid arthritis or any autoimmune disease. There has to be no history of seizure in the family. These are the people they’re testing the vaccine on.” He asked, “What happens when they give them to the typical American? You know, Sally Six-Pack and Joe Bag of Donuts who’s 50 pounds overweight and has diabetes.” Kennedy stressed several times that “any other medicine … that had that kind of profile in its original phase-one study would be [dead on arrival].” “No medical product in the world would be able to go forward with the profile that Moderna has,” he reiterated. During the course of the debate, Kennedy also talked about the regular vaccines most people take, from Hepati- tis B to the flu shot, emphasizing that no proper testing had ever been done, which is mandatory for any other medication. Vaccines “are the only medical product that does not have to be safety-tested against a placebo,” he explained. In a study involving placebos, one group of people would be injected with the actual vaccine, while another group would be injected with saline solution, which would not have any effect in preventing a particular disease. The people who are part of the study would then be observed to see if there are any differences between the two groups, both regarding the disease vaccinated against, and side effects. As these tests are never done on vaccines, “nobody knows the risk profile of any vaccine that is currently on the schedule. And that means nobody can say with any scientific certainty that that vaccine is averting more injuries and deaths than it’s causing. In fact, it should be the opposite, Kennedy said, with vaccines being tested even more thoroughly than any other medication. “It’s a medical intervention that is being given to perfectly healthy people to prevent somebody else from getting sick,” he pointed out. “And it’s the only medicine that’s given to healthy people … and particularly to children who have a whole lifetime in front of them. So you would expect that we would want that particular intervention to have particularly rigorous guarantees that it’s safe.” (Continued on Page 9) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 9

(“Pro-Life” from Page 8)

Kennedy said “it’s not hypothetical that vaccines cause injury, and that injuries are not rare. The vaccine courts have paid out four billion dollars” over the past three decades, “and the threshold for getting back into a vaccine court and getting a judgment – [the Department of Health and Human Services] admits that fewer than one percent of people who are injured ever even get to court.” He mentioned another reason not to trust blindly any company currently producing vaccines in the United States. Each one of the four vaccine producers “is a convicted serial felon: Glaxo, Sanofi, Pfizer, Merck.” “In the past 10 years, just in the last decade, those companies have paid 35 billion dollars in criminal penalties, damages, fines, for lying to doctors, for defrauding science, for falsifying science, for killing hundreds of thou- sands of Americans knowingly.” “It requires a cognitive dissonance,” Kennedy commented, “for people who understand the criminal corporate cultures of these four companies to believe that they’re doing this in every other product that they have, but they’re not doing it with vaccines.” While Kennedy is often described as being against vaccines altogether, he stressed that he does not oppose vaccines, as such. He accused his critics of “marginalizing me and silencing me” by misrepresenting his actual position. In May, Kennedy signed an appeal created by Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò aimed at raising public awareness among people, governments, scientists, and the media about the serious dangers to individual freedom caused during the spread of Covid-19. The appeal raised concern at one point about a COVID-19 vaccination in relation to human freedom. “We also ask government leaders to ensure that forms of control over people, whether through tracking systems or any other form of location-finding, are rigorously avoided. The fight against Covid-19, however serious, must not be the pretext for supporting the hidden intentions of supranational bodies that have very strong commercial and political interests in this plan. In particular, citizens must be given the opportunity to refuse these restrictions on personal freedom, without any penalty whatsoever being imposed on those who do not wish to use vaccines, contact tracking or any other similar tool.” The appeal made it clear that for Catholics it is “morally unacceptable to develop or use vaccines derived from material from aborted fetuses.” Comments on the YouTube video of the debate between Kennedy and Dershowitz indicated, almost unanimous- ly, that Kennedy had won the debate. Dershowitz conceded many points, arguing, however, that from the point of view of constitutional law, the coronavirus vaccine could be made mandatory. Dershowitz, who has provided legal counsel to and defended people like Donald Trump, Jeffrey Epstein, and Jul- ian Assange, cited a 1905 Supreme Court ruling as precedent. Jacobson v. Massachusetts upheld the authority of states to enforce compulsory vaccination laws. Kennedy clarified that the state government at the time had offered people to either be vaccinated or pay a five dollar fine. Dershowitz’s argument, however, was that based on constitutional law, including this precedent, “the state has the power to literally take you to a doctor’s office and plunge a needle into your arm.” Kennedy said, “I think there’s a big constitutional chasm between, you know, that remedy, which is paying a fine, and actually going in and holding somebody down and forcibly injecting them.” President Trump has already said that the new coronavirus vaccine would not be mandatory, but available for those “who want to get it. Not everyone is going to want to get it.” A LifeSiteNews petition saying no to mandatory vaccinations has garnered more than 650,000 signatures and can still be signed here. The ethical issue of many vaccines being derived from cell lines of aborted babies was not discussed during the debate.

BLOOD DRIVE RESULTS

I hope everyone is doing fine and staying safe. I wanted to thank everyone who helped out with the Blood Drive. It was a great success! It actually surpassed previous summer drives and my expectations. Thank you to Father Jack for announcing the Blood Drive at the end of Mass. I really do think this has a great affect on whether the congregation choose to donate. Although the attendance of Mass has shrunk considerably, the fact that we did better than our normal Summer Blood Drives is pretty amazing. St. Johns Collected 18 pints with 1 defer- ral and 2 more that tried but did not have all the information necessary to donate. Thank you to all and stay safe. Paul Franko T HE S PIRIT P A G E 10

Bishops back school choice funding bill

By Christine Rousselle Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 28, 2020 / 04:30 pm MT (CNA).- The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has offered its support for a new school funding bill, as Catholic schools grapple with the effects of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The School Choice Now Act would provide one-time funding to scholarship-granting organizations, who would be authorized to allocate those funds to parents. The funds could be spent on private school tuition or expenses associated with homeschooling. Parents would be able to pick whatever educational institution they think is best for their child. Catholic schools have endured a “triple whammy” this spring, Jennifer Dan- iels, the associate director for public policy in the USCCB’s secretariat for US Capitol dome with flag. Credit: Catholic education, told CNA on Tuesday. Andrea Izzotti/Shutterstock This “triple whammy” of families losing jobs, the suspension of Masses and their Sunday collections to offset tuition costs, and the cancellation of spring fundraisers. “All of those things had a severe impact on a school’s bottom line budget,” Daniels explained. “We’ve seen thus far that 138 Catholic schools announced permanent closure already. And through some inter- nal surveys we did, we found approximately 10% of schools were still uncertain about their ability to open in the fall.” If that number remained true across Catholic schools, said Daniels, 500 Catholic schools are at risk of not reo- pening. In an email campaign, the USCCB requested that Catholics contact their senators to encourage them to support the bill. “Please join the USCCB in asking the U.S. Senate to include additional relief for Catholic schools in the emer- gency relief package currently being negotiated,” says the campaign “As the Senate prepares its next aid bill, we ask that the next COVID relief package include immediate assis- tance to families through federally-funded scholarships.” The bill is sponsored by Sens. Tim Scott (R-South Carolina) and Lamar Alexander (R-South Carolina). The bill would also provide federal tax credits for those who contribute to scholarship-granting organizations, as well as permit states to “create their own tax credit scholarship program that works for the unique needs of students in their state.” "All parents, regardless of income or circumstance, should be able to decide which school best meets their child’s needs, whether that school is public or private," Alexander, chairman of the Senate education committee said in a statement published July 22. "The School Choice Now Act provides scholarships to students to have the opportunity to return to the private school they attended before the pandemic—and gives other students a new opportunity to attend private school,” he added. Daniels told CNA that she was in favor of the payments to families, rather than direct support to schools, as schools primarily rely on enrollment figures. “We want to give families certainty to re-enroll their children in our schools, and give families the resources they need to make the best decisions for their children,” she said.

(Continued on Page 11) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 11

(“News” from Page 9)

In some states, public schools are either not opening for in-person classes, or are adopting a hybrid model of in- person and online instruction, while private schools are planning on operating as normal. This is prompting some parents to consider switching to private schools or homeschool.

The Diocese of Manchester, which will be having in-person classes in the fall, is even offering a partial scholarship to anyone who transfers to a diocesean school from a non-Catholic school.

Congress needs to move fast on this, said Daniels, as the start of the school year is only a few days away in parts of the country.

“The bishops themselves have been highly engaged. The staff with the USCCB has been highly engaged in trying to get federal help for our Catholic schools for months,” she said.

“We really need Congress to act as quickly and swiftly as possible, in order to get that aid out as quickly as possible to our families.” Portland archbishop decries violence, calls for peaceful efforts against racism

CNA Staff, Jul 27, 2020 / 03:20 pm MT (CNA).- The Archbishop of Portland in Oregon is urging Catholics to learn about and study how to respond to the sin of racism, while at the same time condemning the violence accompanying many of the protests in the city for the past two months. Scene in front of the federal courthouse in downtown Portland July 25, “This all began over the terrible, tragic killing of a man, and initially the out- 2020. Credit: Spencer Platt / Getty Images News. cry against injustice, against racism, was well-placed, and I have been very supportive of the peaceful demonstrations on behalf of justice and against racism,” Archbishop Alexander Sample said in a July 24 video message, referencing the protests sparked by the May 25 killing of George Floyd by Minneapolis police.

“But sadly, that’s not what this is about any more,” he said.

Portland has now surpassed 60 straight days of street protests, often taking the form of crowds of hundreds of people protesting, ostensibly, against racism, police brutality, and fascim. The protests have garnered national and international headlines.

Some of the protests have been accompanied by riots and looting. In addition to extensive property damage in the city’s downtown, there have been occasional incidents of violence within or adjacent to the protests, including shootings and stabbings.

Sample, in his video message, emphasized that as shepherd of the city’s Catholics, it is not his place to “get political” and take sides, despite requests via email and mail for him to speak out for one side or another.

Still, he said, checking the news morning after morning, and seeing every night that there was more destruction has been “depressing” and “embarrassing.”

“Who remembers George Floyd any more? Stop and think about that for a second,” he said.

“We need to speak the truth in love, and not be afraid to speak up. I think the vast majority of people don’t buy into what’s going on right now, especially with the violence and the destruction of property and looting.”

Catholics— and anyone, for that matter— should be outraged at the sin of racism, said Sample, but Catholics must be careful, rational and calm, and should avoid “virtue signaling,” instead putting in the work actually to grow in virtue and to turn to Catholic social teaching in response to racism.

(Continued on Page 12) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 12

(“News” from Page 11)

The Church teaches that every person has a dignity that we, as humans, do not bestow on other humans, but rather comes from God, the archbishop said.

Sample strongly encouraged everyone to read the U.S. bishops’ 2018 letter on racism, “Open Wide Our Hearts,” and instructed Portland’s parishes to organize groups to read, study, and discuss the letter.

Protesters in Portland have at various times fired commercial-grade fireworks at the federal courthouse— the epicenter of the violence— and have thrown rocks, cans, water bottles, and potatoes at federal agents, the AP reported. On July 26, the protestors attempted to burn the courthouse down, police reported.

Police have occasionally used tear gas and pepper spray against protesters. Federal agents garnered criticism last week after videos appeared to show them pulling protestors into unmarked vehicles.

The need to eradicate racism is serious, Sample said, but any violence in the debate must be “unequivocally” rejected as another evil, “piling one evil upon another.”

Sample said he has heard many try to justify the violence, but in contrast, he pointed to Martin Luther King, Jr., as a great example of nonviolent resistance. Sample said King and his followers often suffered violence, but did not repay violence in kind, instead praying for their persecutors as Jesus says to do in the Gospel.

Sample decried what he said appear to be efforts in the U.S. to “erase our past,” as well as to be too quick to judge the past based on our current virtues. Rather we should learn from our mistakes, looking back and ac- knowledging that there are many examples of evil in our past.

So many of our problems today are because society has largely turned away from God, he said.

If more people would realize that they are called to greatness, holiness, virtue, to eternity and to heaven, they would not seek other, worldly ways to fill the void in our hearts, he said. Cardinal Zen: In Vatican II, Catholics hear ‘real voice of the Holy Spirit’

By Ed Condon

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jul 27, 2020 / 11:15 am MT (CNA).- Cardinal Jo- seph Zen, the emeritus Bishop of Hong Kong, has made an impassioned de- fense of the Second Vatican Council, criticizing both “extreme conservatives” and “extreme progressives” for rejecting the authority and authenticity of the conciliar documents.

In both an interview with CNA and an essay published on his own website, Cardinal Zen said that, for decades, Vatican Council II had been misused to Cardinal Joseph Zen. Courtesy Photo . advance “subjective” and “narrow” agendas within the Church.

The cardinal called for a new appreciation of the council documents themselves, and a renewed understanding of what the Church teaches an ecumenical council to be.

“Vatican II happened 50 years ago, but it surely doesn’t belong to the past, its light still leads the Church through the darkness of her journey today,” Zen said in the July 17 essay, in which the cardinal warned against the “danger” of polemical interpretations.

Zen warned against interpretations of Vatican II not “faithful to the documents of the Council, but rather a subjective understanding of it.”

(Continued on Page 13) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 13

(“News” from Page 12)

Both “progressive” and “traditionalist” factions within the Church have advanced in recent criticisms the idea that the Second Vatican Council, which took place from 1962 to 1965, represents a definitive break with previous Church teaching and authority. This interpretation of the Vatican II is often called a “hermeneutic of rup- ture.”

Zen wrote that such interpretations are foreign to the nature of an ecumenical council.

“The extreme conservatives say: The Church after the Vatican II is no more the Catholic Church I received bap- tism in. But you were baptized in a Church which believes in one apostolic Church, led by the Pope and the Bishops as authentic teachers of faith,” Zen wrote in his essay.

“The extreme progressives say: Before the Council nothing was allowed to change, now with Vatican II many changes have been made, so, many things should be allowed to change also in the future.”

Rejecting both characterizations, Zen cited St. John Henry Newman.

"The Church is a living body; it certainly grows and changes, but, as Cardinal John Henry Newman puts it, the development is ‘homogeneous,’ i.e. with the substantial identity not altered. A boy grows into maturity and he is still the same person."

The authentic work of Church reform comes “only by a decision of the legitimate authority, not by an arbitrary choice of anybody, and surely not by undoing the past,” Zen added.

“The Holy Spirit of today doesn’t contradict the Holy Spirit of yesterday.”

In his post, prompted by a series of articles on Vatican Council II by a priest in Hong Kong, Zen argued that many debates about Vatican II misunderstand the Church’s theological understanding of ecumenical councils.

“Let us start from the fundamentals: What are the Ecumenical Councils for? They are not for the creation of a new Church, but for a new self-understanding. The Church was founded by Jesus Christ on the Apostles.”

CNA asked Zen about the position of Catholics who question the legitimacy of the council while claiming to stand within the tradition of the faith.

“The Church’s ‘tradition’ is the living Church, founded on the Apostles,” Zen answered. “The ecumenical councils are the milestones on this journey of the Church through centuries. The first ‘Ecumenical Council’ of Jeru- salem declared: ‘The Holy Spirit and we (the Apostles) have decided…”, it’s not only a question of canon law. Each Ecumenical Council is a ‘Sacrosanctum Concilium’!”

In recent weeks, some Catholic voices have argued that the documents of Vatican II are the cause of erroneous theological positions advanced after the council. They have suggested that Vatican Council II should be in some way repudiated, either by Pope Francis or one of his eventual successors.

Former Vatican ambassador Archbishop Carlo Viganò said in an interview last month that at the Second Vatican Council “hostile forces” caused “the abdication of the Catholic Church” through a “sensational deception.”

“The errors of the post-conciliar period were contained in nuce in the Conciliar Acts,” the archbishop added, accusing the council, and not just its aftermath, of overt error.

Speaking to CNA, Zen rejected the idea that authentic acts of an ecumenical council could contain errors of faith.

“The post-conciliar errors do not belong to the Council, just as heresies do not belong to the Bible,” the cardinal told CNA.

(Continued on Page 14) T HE S PIRIT P A G E 14

(“News” from Page 13)

In his July 17 essay, Zen called for a rediscovery of the texts of council, which he called the true fruits of Vati- can II. “Through those documents you hear the real voice of the Holy Spirit,” he said.

At the same time, the cardinal acknowledged the human politicking which played out around the council, and recalled being a young priest studying in Rome at the time.

“I enjoyed, like other young priests and seminarians in Rome, all the daily hot news and gossips about the Coun- cil; the fierce battles along the stereotype of divide between conservatives and progressives; Council Fathers accusing each other with leaflets flying over Saint Peter’s square…The jokes!” he recalled in his essay.

But Zen stressed that the human participants in the council, and even malevolent spiritual attacks, could not overcome or exclude the agency of the Holy Spirit.

“There is a saying, not far from the truth: an Ecumenical Council starts from human efforts, then comes the devil to make trouble, but at the end the Holy Spirit brings everything to a happy ending.”

The cardinal told CNA that Catholics at all levels need to rediscover and re-appreciate the documents of the council to understand what the Church in the post-conciliar period is called to be.

“The Ecumenical Council concluded with documents,” he said, “then it’s the duty of popes and bishops to make those documents living realities.”

CNA asked Zen if he believes there has been a failure to transmit the teachings of the conciliar documents to ordinary Catholics, and how they could be better brought to the faithful.

Zen said that “the main channel [for transmitting the council’s authentic teaching] is the seminarian formation of the clergy.”

“Unfortunately there are theologians who put themselves above the Council documents, [but] vice versa there are outstanding lay people, docile to the Holy Spirit, who draw out from the documents all the wisdom contained therein.”

Zen said that his recommendation is that all Catholics better familiarize themselves with the context of the council itself, and why it was called.

“I believe it would be very fruitful to read the opening sermon of Vatican II by Pope John XXIII, where he explained the true meaning of 'aggiornamento': facing all the threats of modern civilization the Church must not be afraid, but find the ways apt to show to the world the true face of Jesus, the Redeemer of Man.”

(“Assumption” from Page 4)

The Roman Catholic scholar Michael O'Carroll explains that Epiphanius (4th Century), a Church Father, gives the earliest mention of anything concerning the end of Mary's Life when he says regarding Epiphanius' mention of Mary in A.D. 377, "In a later passage, he [Epiphanius] says that she [Mary] may have died and been buried, or been killed--as a martyr. 'Or she remained alive, since nothing is impossible with God and he can do whatever he desires; for her end no one knows.'" In light of this evidence, it is obvious that the Roman Catholic dogma of the Assumption of Mary has no early at- testation. In fact, the first reasonable mention, according to the Roman Catholic Church, is found in St. John Damascene who lived in the 700's. This is a blatantly obvious historical (not to mention biblical) vacuum concerning Mary's Assumption. Obviously, such a dogma, such an all-important essential of the Christian church, would have been mentioned by at least some of the Church Fathers within the first few centuries. But, it was- n't. Why? Because it wasn't taught, and it is not a true doctrine of Christianity. T HE S PIRIT P A G E 15

• Q: When does a joke turn into a dad joke? A:When it becomes apparent. • Q: What’s ET short for? A: Because he’s only got tiny legs. • I used to work in a shoe recycling shop. It was sole destroying. • My wife told me to stop acting like a flamingo. So I had to put my foot down. • Q: How do you make a Kleenex dance? A: Put some boogie in it! • I don’t play soccer because I enjoy the sport. I’m just doing it for kicks. • Q: What happens when a frog’s car won’t start? A: He needs a jump. If that doesn’t work he has to get it toad. • Q: When is a door not a door? A: When it’s ajar. • Q: Why do seagulls fly over the sea? A: Because if they flew over the bay they’d be bagels. • 3 men are stranded in a boat with 4 cigarettes and no way to light them. So they toss the 4th cigarette over- board, which makes the whole boat a cigarette lighter. • I was going to share a vegetable joke, but it’s corny. • Q: What did the drummer name his twin daughters? A: Anna 1, Anna 2! • The recipe said, “Set the oven to 180 degrees.” But now I can’t open it because the door faces the wall. • Q: What do you call the boss at Old McDonald’s Farm? A: The CIEIO. • Q: Where does the king keep his armies? A: In his sleevies. • Napoleon may not have designed his coat, but he did have a hand in it. • I put all my cash into an origami business. It folded. • My ceiling isn’t the best, but it’s up there.

WE NEED YOUR INPUT In an effort to keep the monthly newsletter pertinent and fresh, we are looking for news, articles, upcoming events, and other items of interest to our membership. If you have something you would like to see in the newsletter, pass that information along to the Spirit editor. Pictures of brother Knights in action will be greatly appreciated, so please send them in. Also, every article submitted will be evaluated for possible submission to the Texas Knight to be included in the next edition. Remember, the DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION: August 24th monthly newsletter can be an effective recruiting tool, so we need to make sure it has up-to-date and useful information.

Scott A. MacDonald Texas Knight KofC Council 8512 The Journal of the Knights of Columbus in Texas http://uknight.org/ S I N C E 1 9 0 2 CouncilSite/index.asp? www.texasknight-news.net CNO=8512 T HE S PIRIT P A G E 16 VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES There are many ways to become active in your Council. Contact one of the committee chairs below to get started. They would love to have you aboard.

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