The 6 1966-201 50th A nniversaryCatholicWitness The Newspaper of the Diocese of Harrisburg September 2, 2016 Vol. 50 No. 16 The Promise of a New Year CHRIS HEISEY, THE CATHOLIC WITNESS First grade students Sophia Than, Francheska Nazario, Naomi Cannon and Marianna Cano recite the Pledge of Allegiance at the morning assembly on the first day of school at Resurrection Catholic School in Lancaster, as first grade teacher Anne Hull stands behind them. Resurrection is celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. See page 10 for the story. Baton Rogue Residents Cling to Church, Community Support in Wake of Flood’s Devastation Diocese of Harrisburg to Take Special Collection Sept. 24-25 By Richard Meek In the aftermath many residential streets Special to The Witness appeared to be mere passes surrounded by mountains of debris. And the stench Water lapped at the heels of Father permeates one’s pores, a smell that even- Michael Galea, steady rain an arduous tually subsides but never leaves. reminder of Mother Nature’s unfinished Schools were closed, many for weeks, business. and businesses were struggling to reopen. With a sadness in his voice, Father Ga- Curfews were enacted in civil parishes lea, pastor at Holy Rosary Church in St. throughout to lessen the threat of looting Amant, estimated that as many as 90 per- in the impacted areas. cent of his parishioners were impacted Some estimates are as high as 100,000 during the recent historic flooding that homes damaged, with thousands fleeing touched nearly every corner of the Dio- to evacuation shelters. The floodwaters cese of Baton Rouge. claimed 13 lives, and many others sur- “It’s going to change the whole dy- vived only after being rescued from their namic of Holy Rosary as a parish as we rooftops, reminiscent of Hurricane Ka- know it,” Father Galea said. “It’s not go- trina 11 years ago. ing to be the same. And we are going to “We were straight up survival mode,” lose quite a bit of people if they choose said Tim Hasenkampf, a Baton Rouge to move away. fireman who lives in Port Vincent and CNS/JONATHAN BACHMAN, REUTERS lost his house because of flooding. “But hopefully with love and compas- A statue of Mary is partially submerged in flood water in Sorrento, La., Aug. 20. sion and a lot of hugs we can become a “It’s been tough,” added Hasenkampf, who along with his friend spent hours in family all over again. That is what is most Coming together as a family, whether it of 28,000 people were impacted, leaving their private boats rescuing people from important for us to be together again.” is a community, church parish or simply some to speculate if the suburban com- their homes in the area. a family dinner, is a munity will be able to recover. According to Joe Ingraham, chief question many are In Livingston Civil Parish, at least 75 financial officer for the diocese, six asking in the wake percent of residents suffered some type churches took on water, including St. Al- of the floods that in of water damage, with most of the de- phonsus in Greenwell Springs, Immacu- some areas dumped struction major. Residents in East Baton late Conception in Denham Springs, St. 20 inches of rain in Rouge Parish, Ascension Parish, and Jean Vianney in Baton Rouge, St. Antho- as many hours. The Tangipahoa Parish were also forced to ny in Darrow, St. Anne in Sorrento and carnage is stunning. dig out. Holy Rosary. Schools at St. Alphonsus In Central, it is es- Much of Zachary was damaged, as the timated 27,000 out wide swath of destruction seems endless. More LOUISIANA FLOOD, page 13 The 2 - Catholic Witness • September 2, 2016 Hispanics Eager for Service of New Auxiliary Bishop of Philadelphia By Matthew Gambino and him in the Hispanic apostolate “because we have a lot to do, a lot to Lou Baldwin accomplish. Together, we will give glory to God.” Following his homily in English, the archbishop’s administra- Special to The Witness tive secretary, Father Thomas Vivano, delivered the same homily in flawless Spanish. A Philadelphia priest who has ministered for most of his 43 years After the rites or episcopal ordination and the Liturgy of the Eu- of priesthood in Hispanic Catholic communities has become the charist that was concelebrated by the retired Archbishop of Phila- Archdiocese of Philadelphia’s newest auxiliary bishop. delphia, Cardinal Justin Rigali, and other bishops including Bishop Archbishop Charles Chaput ordained Bishop Edward M. Deli- Deliman, he walked a friendly path throughout the cathedral’s man, 69, to the episcopacy Thursday afternoon, Aug. 18 in a filled- aisles, shaking hands and smiling broadly as Bishops Perez and to-capacity Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul, Philadelphia. Gainer accompanied him. The approximately 1,500 worshipers included priests who filled He then offered remarks first in Spanish and then in English, about three-quarters of the cathedral’s left side of pews, plus many first acknowledging his mother, Margaret Deliman, his brothers permanent deacons and religious, but mostly lay people of every Michael and Frank and their families. age and walk of life. “I’m very proud of him, he was always excellent in whatever They represented the wide ethnic diversity of parishes served he did,” Margaret Deliman said afterward, conceding she never by Bishop Deliman, parishes punctuated by a strong Hispanic thought her son would someday be a bishop. Catholic presence. Those parishioners formed a loving bond over Michael Deliman, in from Ohio for the ceremony, had a different take. the years with the bishop, who although of Slovak descent speaks “I thought he would have gotten this long ago,” he said. fluent Spanish. The bishop thanked his brother priests, especially the class of His broad pastoral experience spans city and suburban parishes 1973 whom he called “a real collection of personalities, but God including St. Charles Borromeo Parish in Bensalem where Bishop is still good to us. We are instruments in the hands of the Lord.” Deliman remains pastor. Like many parishes, it serves both Eng- lish-speaking and Spanish-speaking parishioners, especially after Thanking all the visitors who traveled to the cathedral for the the predominantly Latino Our Lady of Fatima Parish merged with ordination, he said, “I am truly humbled by the many sacrifices you St. Charles in 2014. have made. To our many religious – and there are many – to our Archbishop Chaput said one of the reasons Bishop Deliman’s deacons to our seminarians, the people of God, my parishioners of name was suggested to Pope Francis as a possible new auxiliary St. Charles Borromeo Parish that now includes the parish of Our bishop was to address the need to better serve the large Hispanic Lady of Fatima, thank you all very much. I love you all. God bless Catholic community in the archdiocese, which is also growing you.” quickly throughout the United States. St. Charles Parish may offer a glimpse into the work Bishop Masses are celebrated in Spanish in 39 Catholic churches among Deliman will soon begin as bishop. The merger two years ago of the 219 parishes in the Philadelphia Archdiocese. The church, ac- primarily Latino Our Lady of Fatima’s community with the mostly cording to 2015 statistics from the archdiocesan Office for Parish Anglo St. Charles parishioners might have become divisive if not Service and Support, is serving 253,176 Hispanic Catholics in a acrimonious, but parishioners say the transition went smoothly. total Catholic population in the archdiocese of 1,438,147. “Where he took us, we followed,” said Ernesto Alvarado. “There Bishop Deliman’s extensive pastoral experience among Hispan- was nothing negative.” ics has earned their admiration, and now his high-level position in Today the Fatima Center manages social outreach and other pro- the archdiocesan administration gives the Hispanic Catholic com- grams geared toward Hispanics in the lower Bucks County area, munity an unprecedented voice at that level. and Our Lady of Fatima Church hosts a Mass in Spanish on Satur- “He is a blessing for us Spanish people,” said St. Charles parish- day evenings at 7 p.m. ioner Ernesto Alvarado, attending the Mass with his wife Carmen SARAH WEBB, CATHOLICPHILLY.COM Fellow parishioner Sarah Roberto said her pastor is “one of and daughter Monica. “We have fulfilled our dream. We always Bishop Ronald Gainer of the Diocese of Harrisburg, the best (gifts) for this diocese” because he has “great leadership wanted to have a representative.” a co-consecrator, lays his hands on Bishop Deliman. skills.” While he is not above delegating some tasks, “he is not Kathia Arango, director of the Office for Hispanic Catholics, The two studied in the same class at St. Charles above the people, he is with the people. He is always ready to help exclaimed, “This is a day the Lord has made! This is an exciting Borromeo Seminary and were ordained the same and give guidance,” Roberto said. Bishop Deliman’s ordination, and his hoped-for advocacy of time and I am looking forward to working with Bishop Deliman. year, 1973. We are blessed.” Hispanic Catholic concerns, “is a blessing,” added Alvarado. Sister Regina Plunkett, I.H.M., worked with Bishop Deliman in Ordinations for bishops or priests are always impressive ceremo- The ordination was unique in that there were noticeably more Hispanic ministry eight years ago at St. Agnes Parish, West Ches- nies, especially in Philadelphia where the church is blessed with children than one usually expects. This was especially due to the ter. “He’s wonderful and this is wonderful for Hispanic Ministry,” Hispanic presence where everything tends to be a family affair.