Catholic Life Ministries

By Lori Fontana

What a day! In just one day, I feel like I encountered the breadth of humanity: young and old, rich and poor, people of all colors and in so many life circumstances. Let me describe.

The day began with seeing our two grandsons off to school. They are bright, curious boys with long, scruffy hair and skinned knees from soccer games and wrestling with each other in the yard. They are loving and sassy, at times cooperative. at other times, sullen and belligerent. Their lives stretch before them, filled with possibilities.

I then headed to the nursing home where my mom lives. She’s 94 and only recently has needed more care. Six months ago, she spent her days playing Scrabble or Bingo, visiting with other residents, attending prayer in the chapel, and even doing her own laundry. Now, she is pretty much confined to her wheelchair, as her legs have now decided they can’t reliably support her. Though physically declining, she is still gracious and caring to others. As we ate lunch with some other residents, she paused between bites to comment to her neighbor, “You look so nice in that red blouse,” and “Try those mashed potatoes; they’re delicious today.”

The other residents at her table were not as aware as she is; some don’t speak at all. But my mom spoke to them with gentleness and kindness. She honored them by greeting them, even when they were unable to respond.

During the meal, I noticed the nursing home staff: the busy nurses who distributed medications and charted medical notes; the aides who cheerfully visited with residents, answering questions, handing someone a drink of water, or helping some residents eat their meal. There were the housekeeping staff members – sweeping, mopping, preparing plates of food, washing dishes. Almost to a person, these were people from the four corners of the earth: Eritrea, Somalia, China, the Philippines, Mexico. They worked with a quiet dignity, showing loving respect to all the residents as well as to each other. Even when a resident was sad or agitated, the atmosphere remained peaceful and caring.

After lunch, I wheeled my mom to the first floor where there is a preschool and nursery. From the hallway, we could look into the “toddler room” through floor-to-ceiling windows. We saw little cherubs of all shapes and colors playing dress-up, cuddling with stuffed animals, painting, climbing, twirling, and at times bumping into each other or grabbing a toy. It was messy and joyful with runny noses and squeals and tears. What energy and zest! These young ones brought smiles to my mom and me, as they do to all who behold them.

From my lovely visit with my mom, I caught a city bus home. The bus riders were people of all colors and dress. There was a lovely African American woman  seated next to me, looking tired but serene, reading a book, perhaps returning home after a day’s work.

Ahead, at the front of the bus, sat a young couple. Their clothing was disheveled; their hair appeared unwashed and uncombed. They carried large bundles and bags and a bulky box of Pampers. While the young man gazed out the window, the young woman leaned forward, seemingly exhausted and trying to sleep. The bus jostled her back and forth, and I worried that she would tumble into the aisle. But she didn’t. I could imagine that the couple was taking respite on the bus, warming themselves and enjoying a few moments of peace.

Behind me was a middle-aged man who, halfway through the bus ride downtown, began to talk loudly as if having a conversation with someone. Gesturing with his hands and shaking his head, he rummaged through a plastic bag on the floor in front of his seat. His loud behavior indicated some mental suffering or illness.

My initial reaction was fear and anxiety. But then my thoughts turned to an awesome truth. This man is a child of God. Yes, he appears to be suffering or perhaps not quite in his right mind. He needs care, far more than I could give. But he is a child of God.

So too the young couple, trying to get a few moments of peace surrounded by their worldly belongings on a bus – they, too, are  children of God. As I thought back over my entire day: my bus companions, exuberant toddlers, the tired elderly folks, my mom, our grandchildren … each is a child of God, God’s beloved.

Life has a way of wearing us down, clouding our true nature. After just a short time of living, we’re not as bright and shiny, carefree and joy-filled as those little two-year-olds. We suffer, we doubt, we fall, we fail, and in the end, we know we will die.

But God wants more for us. God does love each one of us with an unconditional, everlasting love. When I embrace my deepest identity as God’s beloved, then it’s so much easier to open my heart to all my sisters and brothers. I can look beneath life’s tarnish and see that here in the nursing home, here on the bus, here in the nursery, here in my own home, each person is a child of God.

How does that truth make a difference? It means I look upon each person I meet with reverence. I can smile and say hello. In some cases, I’m able to help with a listening ear or directions. In other situations, it may not be wise to approach or speak to the person, but I can look with kindness upon them and say a prayer that they receive the help they need.

One more little story: as I waited at the bus stop that day, a middle-aged woman asked me for money. I replied that I didn’t have cash, but would she like to share my fig cookies? She declined and started to walk away, but then turned back, and we had a short friendly conversation. Rather than drawing back in fear, I had reached out with a humble offer, and we shared a holy moment.

It’s a good reminder: all of us begin life as innocent, pure babies. Then life happens, and we become a bit scuffed and scraped, enduring challenges and disappointments. We are all wounded. But can I rise to the call of our faith? Can I see into the heart of each person and know them as God’s beloved?

By Lori Fontana

The Feast of All Saints (the feast day for ALL of us) and the Feast of All Souls—remembering our loved ones who have gone before us. Two great feast days of our church which provide the occasion to grieve and remember, to celebrate and honor. Every November, we set up an “All Saints / All Souls” altar in our home.

We gather photos of our family members and friends who have died, both recently and long ago. We display the photos on a tabletop with a nice cloth covering, candles, flowers, and other momentos which remind us of our loved ones. Through our faith, we believe that loved ones who have died are still close to us, in the communion of saints. Our November altar brings them near, reminds us to pray for them, prompts us to honor them, helps us to grieve and let go. Perhaps you can create your own home altar for this prayerful month.

HOPE IN THE RESURRECTION

Wisdom 3:1-6 The souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them. They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction. But they are in peace. For if to others, indeed, they seem punished yet is their hope full of immortality; Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed, because God tried them and found them worthy of himself.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, about those who have fallen asleep, so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose, so too will God, through Jesus, bring with him those who have  fallen asleep. Indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord,^* will surely not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself, with a word of command, with the voice of an  archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together^* with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore, console one another with these words.

By Robert Fontana

When I was young (and dumb) and beginning my life in ministry, I was filled with zeal as a Catholic and disciple of Jesus. Zeal led me to do apostolic work at a parish which served a Navajo reservation in New Mexico, and then to the seminary to see if God was calling me to be a priest. After deciding “No” to that question, I joined a Catholic household of students at LSU, hoping to capture the idealism and lifestyle of the first followers of Jesus.

I seemed to be driven by some vague notion that there was a much better way of being church than what my parents’ generation had modeled for me. There must be a way to perfectly imitate Jesus and the saints by willingly renouncing worldly possessions and living in community among the poor and spiritually abandoned. Lori and I were so captivated by this idea that we, with three small children, moved with other families to a poor neighborhood in south Louisiana to create the perfect church.

Guess what happened? 

WE FAILED MISERABLY! We argued endlessly over the rules of community life, could never agree on how to integrate children into such a project, rarely shared in fun, and never learned how to resolve conflict. We tried to create the perfect structure for being the perfect disciples of Jesus without first getting to know one another, discovering how different we were from each other, and learning how to simply get along.

That failure taught us a lot – mostly not what to do. But also it opened my eyes to the illusion of trying to be the “perfect church” because there is no such thing. It did not exist when Jesus was walking with his disciples – they continued to argue about which one was the greatest; and one of them ended up betraying Jesus.

The perfect church did not exist following the giving of the Spirit at Pentecost – the widows of the Greek-speaking members were being left out of the distribution of food and services, and there were intense arguments over how to welcome non-Jews into the community.

The perfect church did not happen during early church history: in the fourth century, after Christianity was legalized, there was basically a civil war between Christians who followed Arius and those who were Orthodox or Catholic. Arius was condemned at the Council of Nicea but that did not prevent violence from breaking out between the two sides.

So, if we cannot work to build the perfect church, can we work to build the church to which the Holy Spirit is guiding us? This is the focus of our upcoming retreat  scheduled for Saturday, October 26^th, with Fr. Dennis Berry, ST, and Sr. Debra Wilson, MSBT (information below).

Perhaps this goal, the church desired by the Holy Spirit, is as elusive as seeking the perfect church. Indeed, how can we discern how the Holy Spirit is guiding God’s people in this particular time of history? This is not an easy task for a church that is global, is situated in a multitude of different languages and cultures, and is rocked by its own internal divisions caused by the clergy sex abuse crisis and tensions between traditionalists, moderates, and progressives.

As we prepare for this retreat, we are mindful of four dimensions of Catholic life that we hold together as we discern how to become the church that the Holy Spirit wants:

1. the New Testament witness of the life and teachings of Jesus and his first followers;

2. the example of the saints; 

3. the theology and pastoral direction of the 2^nd Vatican Council;

4. the leadership of Pope Francis.

We invite everyone to participate in our retreat weekend, but for those who cannot attend in person, let me ask you the following:

When you consider the tensions within the church and society today, which stories from the life of Jesus and which of his teachings and those of the New Testament writers resonate with you, and why?

When you consider the tensions within the church and society, which examples of the saints resonate with you, and why?

When you consider the tensions within the church and society today, what teachings and pastoral directions of the 2^nd Vatican Council (as you understand them) resonate with you, and why?

When you consider the tensions within the church and society today, what from the leadership of Pope Francis resonates with you, and why?

You might take some time for your own retreat and  reflect on these questions. I would love to have you write your responses to me (send to Robert@catholiclifeministries.org).

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If you live in the Pacific Northwest, please join us for this day of prayer and study with two very outstanding presenters. You will not regret the time spent meeting new people, renewing old friendships, praying, learning, sharing in small groups, and concluding with the celebration of the Eucharist.

Place: Assumption Catholic Church, 6201 33rd Ave NE, Seattle, WA 98115. We will conclude with the vigil Mass!

Cost: $30 (single), $50 (couple) Scholarships available. 

Please bring your own brown bag lunch.  Snacks/drinks will be provided.  To register: Email: Robert@catholiclifeministries.org that you wish to participate, and pay the fee at catholiclifeministries.org/donate/ OR bring a check to the retreat, payable to CLM. 

By Lori Fontana

We don’t think it’s gonna happen to us. Mostly, I think we try to not think of IT at all. Aging. Dying. But it’s happening to each one of us. Right now. With every breath, every step, we’re growing older; we’re closer to our death.

This has become a daily reflection for me over the past year, even more so in the past few months. In 2023 – 2024, a dozen of our friends, people very close to us in our life circle, have died. Some had lived long fruitful lives. Others died too soon. Death came from illness or accidents; a few died from old age.

Very recently, a family member’s health has declined rapidly, and I’ve helped to care for her. It’s a beautiful task,  humbling…and hard! From being quite independent 6 months ago, she now pretty much needs constant care – physical help for daily activities and compassionate reassurance throughout the day.

For several days, I tried to manage her care in my home and very quickly realized that I don’t have the strength, skills, or adequately safe environment for that. But her time with us in our home was so precious. We shared laughter,  memories, family stories. We put our heads together to do the newspaper’s daily “Word Jumble.” We watched awe-inspiring and silly animal videos on YouTube – baby seals and brightly colored birds doing their mating dances. We went for short walks, I pushing her wheelchair, to see the fall colors and the rainbow of dahlias still in bloom.

Sometimes there was confusion: “Where am I?” “Why don’t my legs work anymore?” “Why am I so sleepy?” And, “God, why am I still here, on earth?”

These are questions we may all have as we age, if and when we stop to reflect on the reality that we will all die. This is a hard truth, but it’s not bad. It’s the circle of life, and it’s part of God’s plan which leads us to eternal life. Oh, we can choose to face death with fear and resistance or even complete denial. OR we can live our lives and face our death with thanksgiving and perseverance. As my loved one pointed out one morning, “We Christians don’t choose how we’re going to die… but we can choose how we will live each day.” And she so graciously does choose kindness and love each day and shares this with others.

For me, it boils down to two actions of the will – gratitude and trust. What can I thank God for today? Large blessings – I live in a safe, prosperous country (with problems, yes, but a good place overall); I have an abundance and variety of good food; I have a warm bed at night; I have loving family and friends. The list is long. And then there are small graces – morning coffee with cream; the hummingbird outside my window; the  laughter of grandchildren; a good-night kiss from my beloved.

There now is science that proves that a grateful heart contributes to overall happiness and well-being, and even longer life! It’s not hard to foster the habit of   gratitude. Try making a “Gratitude List,” and add to it every day. Or give thanks to God each evening before you sleep – tell God what you are grateful for from the day just lived.

The other habit I’m working at is TRUST. I think it’s a matter of asking, “Do I believe in God or not?” God promises to be always with us (Joshua 1:9); to supply our needs (Philippians 4:19); to give us good gifts (Luke 11: 9-13) and the desires of our hearts (Psalm 37:3-4); to bring good from our trials (Romans 8:28); to not try us beyond our abilities (1 Cor 10:13). Can we act out of these promises, through times both good and difficult?

Where are we headed? What is our future? I think these are worthy reflections for us at any age. If we’re realistic and honest, these questions can guide our living, day-to-day. God doesn’t promise to take away all difficulties and challenges. But God does promises love and grace and to be with us through it all. That can make all the difference. When we trust God’s love and presence, we can have a grateful heart every day of our lives.

By Robert Fontana

Christian marriage is beautiful, wonderful, amazing, and awesome because marriage, when done right, brings about what St. Paul calls the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Gal 5:22-23) And this is true, of course, for secular marriages as well.  I have a bias towards marriage as a Catholic who accepts the Catholic worldview on marriage: a life-long covenant, freely entered, that welcomes children.

But the social research supports what Catholics and other people of faith believe about marriage. Basically, IT’S A GREAT INSTITUTION that needs to be valued, protected, and supported because successful marriages contribute so much good to society. In her book The Case for Marriage (© 2000), University of Chicago sociologist Linda Waite and co-author Maggie Gallagher document evidence from social research around the country regarding the state of marriage in America. What they discovered was that people who are married are happier, wealthier, healthier, have children who are more likely to succeed, and have better sex lives than their fellow American who were co-habiting or single (never married, divorced, or widowed). Yes, contrary to the jokes and the Hollywood image of swinging singles, married people report sex lives which have almost the same frequency as their co-habiting counterparts, more frequency than their single counterparts, and more enjoyable and meaningful than both groups!

Some might say, well Rob, that research is old. Maybe things have changed. We increasingly live in a post-marriage culture. Young people are moving in together and remaining unmarried in greater numbers. They are not having children; instead they get dogs. What does the research say about marriage in the post-pandemic America of today?

Good question. Because Brad Wilcox, professor of sociology and director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia, has completed research on the state of marriage in America… and guess what he found out? The conclusions that Waite and Gallagher wrote in 2000 hold up today in 2024. Wilcox concludes in his book, Get Married, that Americans must, in fact, “save civilization” by embracing marriage and forging strong families!

THERE ARE NO LOSERS WHEN MARRIAGE SUCCEEDS!  Everybody wins!  In fact, contrary to  popular myth, the biggest winners in successful marriages are MEN!! Marriage isn’t a ball and chain holding men down. Marriage is what most men need to mature and become their best selves.

Certainly, women and children thrive when marriage succeeds, but the evidence shows that men especially do. Married men enjoy more physical and mental health, live longer, and report happier and more meaningful lives than their single male counterparts. Single men, as they age, suffer more episodes of depression, struggle with isolation, turn more often to alcohol, drugs, porn, and watching sports to cope, and die younger than their married counterparts.

Christian marriage adds a special purpose to marriage that both enriches married love and spreads its goodness. Christian marriage is all about Jesus and his mission on earth, to announce the good news of the Kingdom of God. Jesus described the Kingdom of God as a “treasure” discovered in a field and a “pearl of great price” for which one is to sell everything to purchase. (Mt 13:44-46)

The “Kingdom of God” is nothing less than the Holy Spirit fully alive and active in creation: working for love to overcome hate, hope to conquer despair, and faith to be victorious over sin and suffering. The Kingdom of God is vast and present in creation and among all people who sincerely seek God and strive to be guided by love. It is most visible in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

Jesus proclaimed the Kingdom of God not simply to get you and me to heaven but to bring heaven to earth. Indeed, he taught us to pray that “thy kingdom come; thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

Christian marriage, as a sacrament of the Church, is a building block for the Kingdom of God on earth. It is a visible and tangible institution that God uses to build strong individuals, families, neighborhoods, schools — the foundation for a good and just society. It is a visible sign of God’s love for humanity and all creation (Ephesians 5:21-33). This doesn’t mean that Christian marriages are problem-free. In fact, Christian marriages have all the problems that every marriage has when two people who are very different from one another try to love one another and their children within the challenges and complexities of everyday life. And it is in the very process of spouses’ working at loving and forgiving one another as disciples of Jesus that God’s kingdom unfolds. It is truly a “treasure hidden in a field.” This is how Lori describes it:

I’m convinced that my marriage, too, is that hidden treasure alluded to in Scripture. My marriage in Christ, a sacrament of life and love, is worth whatever sacrifice is necessary to make it work. It takes all the faith, hope, and love that Jesus has given me to love and serve my spouse and family.  Marriage comes at a great cost – EVERYTHING! The happily-ever-after scenario from the fairy tales is just that; a fairy tale, unless both spouses are willing to risk everything – their egos, independence, self-centeredness, personal hopes and dreams, etc. – to become one in Christ. Thankfully, we have a lifetime to do this because it does take a lifetime for couples to love one another, grow in friendship and trust, work together as a team especially as parents, and forgive one another.

Marriage is the hidden treasure. It demands of us every ounce of energy, every skill at communicating, and every reserve within our hearts to live up to the promise we made in our marriage vows: “to love, to be true, and to honor.”

What is the “hidden treasure” that could be worth such a sacrificial way of life? Peace! In John’s Gospel (14:27, 16:33) we read, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you…I have told you this that you might have peace in me…”

Christian marriage is beautiful. When done right, when we create a pattern of working together as Lori described above, we gain a taste of heaven as described by Paul. We gain the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. (Gal 5:22-23)

(Next article, Christian Marriage is Beautiful…and Hard, Part II.)

by Robert Fontana

Something terrible happened in 1933 Germany. The previous year the Nazi party won enough local elections to become one of the dominant political parties in Germany, with enough political clout to warrant the naming of Adolph Hitler as chancellor of Germany. Hindenburg, the German president, did not want to name Hitler chancellor. He feared Hitler’s aggressive and intimidating tactics. But the old president was persuaded by advisors that Hitler would be restrained by wise counselors. They were wrong. Hitler was not to be restrained. He quickly seized power and made Germany a one-party state.

As terrible as that was, that is not the event I am referring to. No, the event I am referring to is the absorption of 28 regional Protestant Churches into the National Reich Church which fully supported the Nazis and their policies. Pro-Nazi German Christians wanted a “nazified version of Christianity.”  Their leader, Ludwig Müller, was a rabid Nazi and antisemite who was named the first bishop of the National German Church. [1]

Initially the only Christian group who opposed the Nazis and the German National Church were evangelical Lutherans led by Martin Niemöller and Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Niemöller and Bonhoeffer demanded that the church of Christ centered on the Word of God not be co-opted and replaced by the state. This was idolatry of the worst kind. They formed the Confessing Church in opposition to the Protestant National German Church and the Nazi regime, knowing full well of the opposition to come.[2]

The Vatican initially tried to work with the Hitler regime. On July 20, 1933, the Vatican signed an agreement with the German foreign minister which recognized Hitler’s role as chancellor, giving him international legitimacy. With this agreement the Vatican withdrew support for the Catholic political party that had been challenging the National Socialists/Nazis. In return, the Nazi government gave the Catholic Church freedom without government interference to exercise its mission of churches and schools in Germany. This, of course, was a commitment that Hitler did not keep. As Hitler increased the use of violence against his political enemies and enacted antisemitic laws and harassment of Jews, he also pressured Catholic leaders to remain silent.[3]

The Pope refused to be silent. On March 10, 1937, Pope Pius XI issued an encyclical (Mit brennender Sorge/With Deep Anxiety) condemning the Nazi regime’s violation of the 1933 agreement and the neopaganism and worship of the state that had replaced true religion in Germany. Pius defended the dignity of the human person which must be protected by the state: “man as a person possesses rights he holds from God, and which any collectivity must protect against denial, suppression or neglect.” Pius did not explicitly name Hitler and the Nazi regime his encyclical, but he did make a reference to a “mad prophet” leading the people. Mit brennender Sorge was written in German and not Latin. Fearing Nazi censorship, the Vatican smuggled 300,000 copies into Germany. The encyclical was read from the pulpit of every Catholic church on Palm Sunday, March 21, 1937. Hitler was outraged. The next day the Gestapo, the German secret police, raided Catholic churches across Germany to confiscate copies.[4]

As Germany edged closer to war in Europe, all opposition to the Nazis, both Protestant and Catholic, was crushed. The Confessing Church was closed, its seminarians conscripted into the army, and its leaders arrested. Catholic schools and religious institutions were closed, and Catholic leaders, clergy and lay, who spoke out against the Nazis were also arrested.

I see disturbing similarities between the Germany of the 1930’s and the United States in 2024. There is a new fascism in the US led by the former president that has broad support from evangelical Christians. Much like German evangelicals who supported Hitler without question, Christian nationalist support Donald Trump without question.  They see Donald Trump as God’s instrument to return the U.S. to its Christian foundation and conservative values.[5]  

Christian Nationalists are supporting Trump despite the following:

1. Trump has refused to accept the results of the 2020 election and has repeatedly lied to the American public that the election was fraudulent and stolen (even though Trump’s own attorney general told Trump the election was free from fraud.
2. Trump was willing to use violence to overturn the 2020 election. He invited supporters, including violent extremists like the Proud Boys and Oath Keepers, to assemble at the Capitol on January 6 and pressure the Republican congressional delegates and Vice-President Pence to reject the results of the electoral college. (JD Vance stated that had he been Pence, he would have rejected the certification of the electoral college vote giving Biden the win in the 2020 election.)[6]
3. The Justice Department indicted former President Trump on four felony counts for his efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election.[7]
4. A Fulton County, Georgia, grand jury indicted former President Trump and 18 others including his chief of staff Mark Meadows for unlawful efforts to change the outcome of the 2020 election in that state.[8]
5. A Manhattan federal jury found former President Trump guilty of sexually assaulting E. Jean Carroll in a dressing room in a luxury department store.[9]
6. Another Manhattan federal jury found the former president guilty of 34 counts of falsifying business records. This trial featured hush money Trump paid to a porn star, Stormy Daniels, to keep her from going public about their sexual encounter before the 2016 election.

Christian Nationalists proudly proclaim, “Jesus is my savior, Trump is my president.” They see Trump as God’s instrument to “Make America Godly Again.” They pay little attention to Trump’s lies or immoral and criminal behavior. They support Trump right or wrong and will use violence if necessary to reach their goals.[10]

One thing that was present in 1937 but is missing in 2024 is the voice of Catholic leaders publicly naming the lies and threats of the new fascism and condemning them.

• Where is the Catholic bishop who will declare that sexually assaulting women, lying to the nation, and undermining trust in the democratic process and in the judicial system is a grave sin?
• Where is the Catholic bishop who will declare that attempting to overturn a duly elected president by violence and deceit is a mortal sin?
• Where is the Catholic bishop who has the wisdom and courage of Pope Pius XI to write a pastoral letter to the people of his diocese, to be read at all the Masses, naming the lies and threats of the new fascism and condemning them?

This is not taking a partisan position, Democrats over Republicans. This is about spiritual discernment and reading the “signs of the times” of the very real threat that the Christian Nationalists and former president Donald Trump pose to the constitutional government in United States in 2024.

Having the Pope speak out did not stop the Nazis in 1937, but it was the right thing to do. Having the bishops speak out against the current rise of fascism promoted by the former president and his followers may not stop them either, but it is the right thing to do!

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[1] https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/the-german-churches-and-the-nazi-state

[2] Ibid

[3] www.americanmagazine.org/faith/2003/09/01vatican-concordat-hitlers-reich

[4] https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mi_brennender_Sorge

[5] Freedomforum.org

[6] https://www.npr.org/2022/12/23/1145209559/jan-6-committee-final-report#:~:text=After%20roughly%2018%20months%20of%20investigations%2C%20the%20House,Donald%20Trump%20for%20his%20role%20in%20the%20attack.

[7] https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/read-full-the-indictment-against-trump-for-his-efforts-to-overturn-the-2020-election

[8] https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/read-the-full-georgia-indictment-against-trump-and-18-allies

[9] https://www.cnn.com/politics/live-news/e-jean-carroll-trump-trial-verdict-05-09-23/index.html

[10] https://apnews.com/article/trump-christian-evangelicals-conservatives-2024-election-43f25118c133170c77786daf316821c3

Sunrise is about 5:45 these days. I know because the curtain on my east facing window hangs about three inches above the bottom of the window. The morning sky is beautiful, heralding another HOT desert day.

Morning duties begin by 6:30. Unlock the many doors of the house. Fill the giant cooler with ice and water. Turn off night lights, empty garbage cans, restock the bathrooms with TP and clean hand towels. And perhaps most important, brew the morning coffee.

The “casa” is quiet at this early hour except for the chorus of birds singing in the patio. In the background are the sounds of whirring and voices and traffic from the construction site next door. On most days this is the calm before the “storm.”

Before the 8:15 breakfast, the church bells peal, announcing the daily 8:00 Mass at the church next door. Then there is the laughter and padding of little feet, the toys banging and the occasional cries over sharing a toy among the several young children staying here. Very slowly, adults appear in the hallways, tired eyes and tousled hair. All of us wish for a little more sleep.

Each day is structured around meals and chores, and appointments for health issues, school registration, and immigration paperwork. There is family to contact, travel arrangements to make. At 10 every morning there is a YouTube English lesson for young and older to learn the English alphabet and vocabulary for time, money, days of the week, body parts, verbs. English is a difficult language –because there are rules…and, oh, by the way, there are all those exceptions to each rule.

As much as we plan out each day, there are always surprises. In our six weeks here, there have been “field trips” to the nearby shopping center and a water spray park. There have been medical emergencies, clinic and dental visits, a brand-new  baby, and many last-minute grocery runs for cooking oil, avocados, pinto beans, or ice cream. There have been the everyday ailments of scrapes and coughs, headaches and mosquito bites. And we’ve enjoyed the fun of Bingo, a pizza party, a sidewalk chalk art show, a dance, and bi-lingual karaoke on the patio.

There have been many trips to the airport and a couple of walks with guests to the bus station in the middle of the night, though we really discourage those late-night, early-morning departure times. Many of our guests have never traveled by bus or plane. They are anxious because they don’t know what to do on a plane or bus, nor do they completely understand where they are going.

However, there is a wonderful network of people here to help, providing duffle bags and backpacks and food for the journey, and there is even a group of people who greet the departing migrants at the El Paso airport and accompany them through security and all the way to the door of their airplane.

There are planned weekly events to look forward to: a community member comes once a week to help in the kitchen and prepare a delicious meal. Fr Iggy, a Franciscan friar, celebrates Mass with us in our lovely chapel every Wednesday and usually stays for lunch to visit and share his joy and compassion. Sister Guadalupe leads a prayer group twice a week for whomever wants to attend. Participants sing and pray, reflect and share stories of their lives and their faith. Sister concludes her visit with a sweet treat for everyone and a raffle drawing for a prize for one lucky winner. (Robert and Lori pictured below with Sr. Deidra, an immigration lawyer.)

We’ve had ice cream cones and water balloon tosses, cooling off in the sprinkler and watching fireworks in the neighborhood for the 4^th of July. We rounded up lots of coloring books and washable markers for our budding artists PLUS there is an artistic community member who has helped the children (and some of the adults) paint pictures and decorate rocks and mold playdough into imaginative sculptures. We even got some novels in Spanish to make a little library for the teens and adults. And every night after supper, there is a popular movie in the “sala” (community room), dubbed in Spanish.

Life in the shelter, Casa Papa Francisco, is mostly the normal day-to-day life. But there are also the hopes and dreams, the fears and anxieties of our guests, who are desperate for a better life for themselves and their children. In this country, all of us, except for the Native American peoples, have in our family tree ancestors who journeyed to here with these same yearnings, the same hopes for safety, enough food, and the dignity of work with just pay. Can we extend welcome to this new generation of migrants?

By Robert Fontana

There is a saying that “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.” Lori often quotes that verse to me when I make a suggestion to her like, “Why don’t we go to El Paso and work in the shelter for the summer?” But I digress from the story about being attacked by a woman with an icepick. It’s true.

I was working at the Diocese of Yakima late one fall evening. The sun was beginning to set, I was alone at the office when the phone rang. I answered it, and the woman on the line pleaded desperately for help: “I NEED A PRIEST! I NEED SOMEBODY TO HELP!  MY DAUGHTER IS POSSESSED!” I could hear the daughter screaming in the background. Her mother continued, “Can you help? Please! She says she’s in hell. She’s been listening to heavy metal music all day. I don’ know what to do!”  I asked the woman if her daughter had been drinking or doing drugs. “Absolutely not!”  (Of course, that wasn’t true. She had been drinking heavily.)

I took her address and phone number and vowed to get help. I called a local priest and asked for his assistance. “I WOULDN’T TOUCH THAT WITH A 10-FOOT POLE. CALL MENTAL HEALTH.”  I was a little offended by the priest’s response. When someone calls the Church for help, the Church ought to be there for them even though other professionals need to get involved as well. I called the mental health hotline and the dispatcher said he would organize a team to go to the woman’s house, but it would take “an hour or so.” I decided I would go ahead of them and help comfort the mother.

What unfolded can only be described as a scene out of an Alfred Hitchcock movie. The woman and daughter lived in a rural section of Yakima County, at the end of a long gravel road. I stepped out of the car. I kid you not, the wind was blowing, her screen door was slamming open and shut, and a dog howled in the distance. I had the thought, “I might be killed. Maybe this isn’t a good idea.”

I knocked on the door, and the panicked mother let me in, so grateful that I would come to help. “Okay, maybe I won’t die.” She described the events leading up to her daughter current state and led me to the young woman’s room. We entered, and I saw a terrified 17-year-old sitting curled up on her bed with her back against the wall. She was holding a large plastic container of something I assumed was soda.

As I approached her, I had the strong notion to sing Amazing Grace. I was hoping it would be familiar, show to her I was not a threat, and help her to calm down. Her mother was right behind me. I was able to get right up to her when suddenly she leaped at me, brandishing an ice pick in her hand. She slashed and nicked my back. Soda splashed all over me and her and her mom as Mom and I tried frantically to grab the ice pick from her. When I pulled the ice pick away, the girl retreated to her bed, and Mom and I fled to the kitchen.

I called the Mental Health Hotline. “What’s taking you so long?” “We’re on our way.” I told them about the ice pick. The dispatcher said, “Oh, I forgot to tell you to remove all dangerous objects from her room!”

The mental health crisis team eventually arrived, and I handed off the mother and daughter to the professionals. Mom was eternally grateful that I came to her house. It truly helped her calm down. And I learned a valuable lesson. Do not try to do good beyond my expertise. Comforting the mother? I knew what I was doing.   Helping the girl? I was out of my league.

Now what does this story have to do with my asking you to pray for and donate to Catholic Life Ministries? We do work that you believe in and can’t do yourself – marriage enrichment and preparation; spiritual development; service days for the elderly and poor; mental health counseling for individuals, couples, and families. We reach out, take risks, learn from our mistakes and strive on to awaken young and old alike to the great love God has for us in Jesus and the Holy Spirit. It doesn’t stop there, we challenge ourselves and those we serve to return God’s love by loving one another, especially those on the margins, the poor and spiritually abandoned.

We also write about the graces and challenges of living as disciples of Jesus within the contemporary world. We do so, not as experts, but as sinners struggling to be saints within the circumstances and events of our daily life. We are not above criticisms and disagreements, and we welcome both, along with your suggestions/comments.

If you are already a sponsor of CLM, we thank you with grateful hearts, and ask you to renew your commitment. If you are not a sponsor of CLM, we ask you to consider becoming one. Our commitment to you is to do effective ministry and to address difficult topics of integrating faith with life. We aim to “think with the Church,” as one spiritual mentor said, and we add, “and help the Church think!”

To Donate to online go to: https://www.catholiclifeministries.org/donate/

To donate by US Post:

Make checks payable to CLM. Mail to:

Catholic Life Ministries, 1827 NE 58th St. #B, Seattle WA 98105

By Lori Fontana

How bad would it have to be that you would choose to leave your home, your extended family and friends, your country, and perhaps even your children or spouse to travel to a place where you desperately hoped life would be better? How bad?

How bad would it have to get for you to choose to travel thousands of miles – not via plane, train, or bus, but crammed in an open train car, or locked in the windowless trailer of a semi, or walking through thick jungle teeming with poisonous snakes and insects, through hostile cities plagued by corrupt police officials, through barren desert, with no relief from the heat, the tiredness, the hunger and thirst?

These are the “travel” stories we’re hearing here at the border. The people we meet are beautiful and brave. They arrive at our shelter having endured trauma, first in their own communities which are   unstable, at times to the point of collapse, under the weight of high inflation, few jobs, and high- priced and / or scarce food and necessities.

Many have endured physical deprivation and abuse on their journey. They’ve paid their life savings to hire a “coyote” who promises safe passage, but instead they have been mistreated with verbal and physical violence or even left stranded along the way, without food or water.

Some of our migrant guests have been the target of gang violence. They’ve been threatened, extorted, beaten, stabbed. One person who wouldn’t cooperate with the local gang was thrown into a pond of crocodiles. Gang members have threatened to kidnap or kill their children and other family members.

As I see it, and as our guests tell of their own experiences, it becomes apparent that people migrate to our United States of America for two basic reasons: lack of food / work and threat of violence. And I very much believe that if faced with either of these scenarios, I, too, might risk everything to end up in a place where I could find a job and have enough to eat, where I could send my kids to school and to bed each night without worrying that they might be kidnapped or killed.

Our borders, immigration – it is all very complicated; and yet, it’s simple. Native Americans were the first inhabitants of this land from sea to shining sea. And all of the rest of us are immigrants or come from a line of migrants to this country. Being a U.S. citizen is not the result of anything we’ve done – we were just born here! Many don’t see it this way. Loud voices decry migrants of today – they’re taking our jobs, crowding our schools, packing welfare rolls.

But, please, open your eyes. Look around. On an ordinary day in my hometown, someone delivered my newspaper (I still read one!) to my doorstep; someone cut my hair – both recent migrants. I rode the city bus – the driver was from west Africa; I ate some Thai food – the chefs were from Thailand. I passed a shoeshine stand, a laundromat, a nail salon – each of the proprietors was a recent immigrant. Our doctor is from China and our dentist from Korea.

How many “Help Wanted” signs do you see each day? Restaurants, hospitals, construction companies, schools, tech companies, daycares, retail stores, parks departments, farms and grocery stores – all segments of our economy are begging for workers. Where will they come from?

In 1886, in New York Harbor, the Statue of Liberty was dedicated. Did you learn Lady Liberty’s inscription as a school kid?

Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore, send these the homeless tempest-tossed to me. I lift my lamp beside the golden door!     ~Emma Lazarus

In the 1880’s, the tired and poor coming to our “golden door” were O’Malleys and Salvatores, Bukowskis and Ovrelids (like my grampa from Norway), Schmidts and the English counterpart – Smiths. Today it’s Sanchezes and Aguileras, Fouches and Bekeles, Smirnovs and Wangs. People yearning for, and willing to work for, an opportunity at the “American Dream.”

If the Statue of Liberty doesn’t compel you to reflect on immigration in 2024, I hope you will turn to the words of Jesus:

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” Matthew 25:35 – 36

It is clear that our immigration system needs work. In the meanwhile, as Christians we are challenged that migrants are “Jesus” at our door. What part am I called to do? I can’t fix the global problems. But I can welcome the stranger at my door and offer a cup of cold water. This is the mission of Annunciation House.

By Lori and Robert Fontana

The day before we left Seattle I took a walk through my favorite green space, the Ravenna Ravine. I walked slowly, knowing that Lori and I were going to be living in El Paso, a city in the high desert, close to our southern border which is crowded with buildings and has very few trees. I breathed in the cool air, listened to the wind and the birds, and savored the moment. 

We then said our goodbyes to our children and grands, finished packing our car, and left early on the morning of May 29 for our four-day “grueling” drive to El Paso. First stop was Spokane, Washington, to see good friends Mike and Mary who served us a delicious homemade soup for lunch. We continued to Missoula, Montana, to spend the night with George and Mary. We laughed with their son Liam, engaged in world-saving conversations, enjoyed delicious home cooking and a good night’s sleep.  

Then it was off to El Paso, driving through southern Montana and Idaho listening to upbeat tunes from “The Chicks,” Abba, the Beatles and praying with Michael W. Smith, Taize, and the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir. We drove over the Continental Divide twice and saw magnificent scenery in the Rocky Mountains. We hit traffic passing through Salt Lake City just when we were feeling exhausted from driving. AGH!! Spent the night in Provo at a quaint Airbnb and then off again for another ten-hour day of driving (we had a few old bladder pit-stops), an overnight in Albuquerque, and then our final day, a short five hours to El Paso.

Of course, along the way, we had all the coffee, cold water, snacks – kettle-corn for when we were drowsy – and food necessary. We arrived in El Paso late Saturday afternoon and were welcomed with open arms by Ruben Garcia (director of Annunciation House), and other volunteers.

On Sunday we were given a short orientation as to what to expect at the A-House shelters and our forthcoming jobs. Then we were given the rest of the day off to recover from our travels. Whew, we needed that rest. Work began on Sunday.

In contrast, some of the guests we received just this week had very different travel experiences. They did not simply “leave” their homes, friends, and family members, they fled! They fled from Bolivia, and Ecuador, Mexico and Venezuela. Ruben asked us, “Why would a person flee one’s homeland?” He provided the answer: “Fear and Food.” Fear of the local criminal organizations and gangs threatening them with violence, kidnapping their children, and extorting them for money to leave them alone. They also leave because of the poverty they experience and the inability to work and properly feed their children.

The guests who arrived this week came from Ecuador, Venezuela, Bolivia, Mexico, and Guatemala. They arrived here via a combination of flying from their country to another one, e.g. Ecuador to El Salvador, and then boarding a crowded bus to Guatemala. Some must walk through Guatemala; others may take a bus or hire a driver to get to Mexico. Once in Mexico they still have 2,100 miles to travel to get to Juarez which is the sister city to El Paso. Several traveled through the treacherous Darien Gap – dense jungle that connects Colombia and Panama.

Once in Mexico they make their way north, walking, traveling in an open train car packed with dozens of other migrants, and some even in a freight container being pulled by an 18-wheeler truck.  By this time, our guests who are traveling with children have little money, food, or water. They are in hot, cramped quarters. One woman told me that it was so hot in the container in which they were placed, that an older person died from the heat. She told me that the entire trip was very scary, especially for her baby with severe medical challenges.

All of our guests reached the US – Mexico border at Ciudad Juarez. Some spent many days at a shelter in Juarez before presenting themselves at the border to US border patrol asking for asylum which is provided for by US law. Officers take the migrants into custody and do an initial interview to determine if they have a valid reason to seek asylum. If they do, they are given paperwork that gives them legal status for being in the United States.

THIS IS IMPORTANT: MIGRANTS WHO HAVE ASKED FOR ASYLUM AND HAVE BEEN GRANTED PERMISSION TO BE IN THE US AND HAVE TO REPORT AT A FUTURE DATE BEFORE AN IMMIGRATION JUDGE TO REVIEW THEIR CLAIM FOR ASYLUM, ARE HERE LEGALLY.  THEY ARE NOT “ILLEGAL ALIENS.”

Migrants who need assistance to get wherever they want to go in the US are brought to one of the Annunciation House shelter sites in El Paso by US immigration officers. This is not the end of their journey. Here we welcome them, give them cold water, coffee, and food and assist them in contacting their family members and friends in the States who are expected to purchase a ticket for bus, plane or train to get them to their final destinations. Most guests speak Spanish and very little English. Some speak a little Spanish because their primary language is an indigenous one. If necessary, they are welcome to sleep at the shelter until their travel arrangements are completed.

There are occasions when some migrants were injured in their crossing and need long-term medical care. These people stay at the house in which we are working, Casa Vides.

The guests we have received are all extremely grateful to be welcomed and assisted. The most moving time for us has been when they share their difficult journeys with us, and then when we join hands in prayer to bless them as they leave. Their journey has not ended until they have landed in Oakland, Nashville, Tallahassee, Arlington, etc. and are received into the arms of their loved ones.

Why do Ruben Garcia and the hundreds of volunteers who come here year after year do this work of hospitality? It is simple. They (and we) are guided by the words of Jesus who said that when we feed the hungry, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, etc. we feed, welcome and clothe Jesus himself. (Matthew 25: 31-46).

As we reflect on the many journeys that have brought each of us to Casa Vides in El Paso, we’re humbled. There is no comparison, really. We were traveling / journeying as a choice. We had resources: a car, food, money to buy whatever we needed; we knew exactly where we were headed and exactly how much time it would take us. Our migrant sisters and brothers have none of this certainty or security. They set out on a journey in desperation, and they hope they will survive. Our country’s immigration policies need great reform. But meanwhile, we also need those who will welcome the stranger at our door as Jesus commands.