The  Pastoral Center at 111 S. Church Ave will close for all business at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 11.  Email addresses will not be affected, but Diocese personnel may not be able to respond to messages until Tuesday, Oct. 18.
 
Business will resume at the interim Pastoral Center at 64 E. Broadway , Tucson,  AZ, 85701 (the southwestern corner of East Broadway and Scott Ave.) on Tuesday, Oct. 18.
 
The Diocese P.O. Box and all telephone and fax numbers will remain the same.
 
Walking directions from St. Augustine Cathedral.  The new location is approximately two blocks from St. Augustine Cathedral.  From the Cathedral parking lot, walk east to Stone Avenue.  Turn left and walk down Stone past Ochoa Street to Jackson Street.  Cross Stone at Jackson headed east and walk east on Jackson until Scott Avenue.  At Scott Avenue, turn left and walk about 25 feet until the doorway towards Broadway Boulevard until the interium Pastoral Center building appear at your left.
 
Parking:  There is limited metered parking available on Scott Avenue just south of Pastoral Center Offices.
                 Free parking is available at St. Augustine Catherdral
                 Paid parking is available in the parking structure just north of the Cathedral on Stone between Ochoa and Jackson.
 

Parish leaders focus on the joy of forming young Catholics in the faith 

Once a year our parish Directors of Religious Education (DREs) and Directors of Youth Ministry (DYMs) come together within the Diocese of Tucson to share their joys, experiences and challenges and to learn new methods and best practices about catechesis.
Catechesis is the passing on of our Catholic faith to others.  Catechesis includes personal and universal traditions, knowledge of Scripture and the doctrines of the Church. Each person is called to be a catechist — in communities of work and friendship and especially within families. These are joyous opportunities for us, but at times we are unsure or fearful to share our faith. As Pope Francis pointed out in his address at the Meeting of Families in the Phillippines in 2015, “faith does not remove us from the world, but draws us more deeply into it … Each of us, in fact, has a special role in preparing for the coming of God’s kingdom in our world.” Catholics look to diocesan and parish leaders to help gain confidence in boldly sharing the faith with others.
“Our parish leaders need to be inspired, engaged and formed to carry out their roles effectively and to best help the rest of us to carry out our responsibilities as members of the Christian faithful,” said Mike Berger, director of the Diocese’s Office of Catechesis. “August 20 was a great day in the Diocese of Tucson for catechesis. 110 of our Directors of Religious Education and Directors of Youth Ministry from our 78 parishes came together at Our Mother of Sorrows Parish in Tucson for a day of learning, sharing and networking.”
Joe Perdreauville, assistant director of Pastoral Services, who works closely with parish Directors of Youth Ministry, said the Annual DRE Convocation was expanded for the first time this year to include the Directors of Youth Ministry.  This mirrors the work that takes place at the Diocesan level where Berger and Perdreauville work collaboratively to foster formation, catechesis and opportunities to promote the Church’s efforts to increase ministry with and through families.
Perdreauville added that many of the parishes have a similar collaboration between catechists for younger and older youth.  Often, the same person at the parish oversees the faith formation of children and adolescents, working with many volunteer catechists and youth ministers. In other parishes, there is a need to overcome the silos of ministry and work to embrace the whole family and the whole community passing on our faith.
Celebration of Mass
The day began with Mass, an appropriate beginning, noted Perdeauville, “because the sharing of the Word and the Eucharist is the source and summit of all we do… all of our catechetical and ministry efforts must be rooted in our liturgical practices- both at our parishes and in our families.”
Bishop Gerald Kicanas presented the most recent document of Pope Francis, the post-Synodal Apostolic Exhortation, The Joy of Love: Amoris Laetitia. Pope Francis has inspired many in ministry with this document to more fully engage those who are in and around our parishes. We are all called to share God’s love with all in our communities. Bishop Kicanas spoke of the need to be faithful to our dogma, doctrine and Scripture and to be bold in living out our faith in our interactions with others. For more information on Pope Francis’ post-Synodal apostolic exhortation, please see the May 2016 The New Vision or online at: newvisiononline.org/2016/post-synodal-exhortation-understanding-needed-to-renew-marriages-and-family-ties-to-god-and-the-church/
Amoris Laetitia is a lengthy document of 165 pages with almost 400 footnotes. However, it is written in Pope Francis’ language that is allows the reader to understand and connect with what he is sharing. It is available free to all on the Vatican website as a PDF download (w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/apost_exhortations.index.html) in eight languages including English and Spanish.
Throughout the presentation, there were opportunities for our DRE’s and DYM’s to reflect on what was being shared. Most focused on practical applications of Pope Francis’ teaching in our parishes. Teachings that are presented by Pope Francis and Bishop Kicanas are critical moments in the formation of our parish catechetical leaders. It is good for them to hear directly from Bishop Kicanas, the diocesan shepherd and primary teacher of the faith. And both Berger and Perdreauville said convocations foster unity among our parishes and help focus our ministry efforts in alignment with those of our Bishop.
A Response to God’s Call: Vocation Ministry
As all called to proclaim the Gospel throughout our days, people also are called to foster vocations as a response to the Gospel mission. God calls. We respond. How people respond is his or her vocation. Some are called to marriage, some are called to religious life as a consecrated religious brother or sister and some are called to the priesthood. Within each of these vocations, each is called to do their part to foster the Kingdom of God here on earth.
Father Jorge Farias-Saucedo, Diocesan Vocations Director, and Sr. Jeanne Bartholomeaux, S.C., Vicar for Consecrated Religious and Deacon Ed Sheffer of St. Thomas the Apostle Parish spoke with our DRE’s and DYM’s about how the catechists can foster the call to religious and priestly vocations within their parishes and within the family structures of today. Three of the Diocese’s seminarians were present to share how their families and parish community helped them discern their call and gave them courage to accept God’s invitation.
One young woman who is actively discerning her call to consecrated religious life also shared her experiences within her family and faith community in her discernment to pursue this vocation.  Some families struggle with conversations about the possibility of their children dedicating their life to the service of God through the Church. In many families it is never even brought up as an option when discussing their children’s future. The Diocese of Tucson has great resources to help with these conversations. Several resources are on the Diocese of Tucson website – in Vocations and Vicar for Religious.  Download the Prayer for Vocations available on the Diocese of Tucson Vocations webpage (diocesetucson.org/vocations/vocations-prayer.html). Praying this daily or weekly as a family can open the hearts and minds of our children (and all Catholics) to explore what God is calling people to do in our lives.
Dialogue and Networking
The afternoon offered five different opportunities for dialogue through various workshops:
Lydia Lopez of St. John the Evangelist Parish (Tucson) offered a workshop on the Catechetical Standards for Kindergarten through eighth grade religious education programs.  These standards, once approved, will help unify our parish catechetical programs in their objectives, while still allowing for the diversity of our various communities.
Paul Flores of St. Pius X Parish (Tucson) and Jennifer Ratkovich of St. Patrick Parish (Bisbee) and St. Michael the Archangel Mission (Naco) presented an interactive workshop on the role of the Director of Youth Ministry.
Julie Espinoza of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish (Tucson) and Maria Telles of St. Bartholomew Parish (San Manuel) presented a workshop on the role of the Director of Religious Education.
Dr. Rosemary Celaya-Alston, director of the Diocesan Office of Child, Adolescent and Adult Protection, facilitated conversation of pastoral concerns of gender and sexuality in families today.  This workshop in particular was an opportunity for the diocesan offices to gain a deeper understanding of the situations and conversations our DREs and DYMs are having in their communities. The Catholic faith always has called the faithful to affirm the dignity of every person because all people are created through God’s love and in his image.
This discussion on gender and sexuality with others throughout the Diocese, along with Church documents, scientific research studies, and prayer will help diocesan leaders to understand the realities of these families and determine best practices to offer support and resources to families, parishes and individuals.
Laura Stehle of Our Mother of Sorrows Parish (Tucson) presented a workshop on pastoral responses to crisis situations. Crisis can happen anywhere and anytime and it is important for DREs and DYMs to know how to respond.
Patrick Mooney of St. Bridget Parish (Mesa, Diocese of Phoenix) presented a workshop on developing a volunteer team, looking at recruiting quality team members, training them and sustaining them in their roles as volunteers.
Parish Life
This annual convocation allows DREs and DYMs the opportunity to learn and network so that they can be a resource for their parish communities. Organizers of the convocation said they hope these participants now are better prepared and can go back to their parish communities to coordinate faith formation programs and opportunities.  These catechists work in these parish positions (paid or volunteer) because they want to invite and to inspire others to share our faith with children and adolescents.  Thank your parish DREs and DYMs for their response to God’s call.  Meet with them. Learn from them and join them in proclaiming the Gospel message in your community and in your families.
—
Thanks to Joe Perdreauville and Mike Berger for contributing to this story.
The New Vision

Source: http://www.newvisiononline.org/2016/parish-leaders-focus-on-the-joy-of-forming-young-catholics-in-the-faith-more-than-100-directors-of-religious-education-and-directors-of-youth-ministry-attend-day-long-session-at-our-mother-of-sorrows/

Presidio’s Guadalupe Bell rings again after journey home

After years out of the public eye, a former inhabitant of St. Augustine Cathedral in Tucson has returned home.
She’s showing her age a little, not as radiant as she once was but still beautiful. Her voice, however, still rings out loud and true, even after more than two centuries.
The guest of honor at a Mass for a Feast Day Celebration for the Cathedral’s namesake on Aug. 27 was none other than the Guadalupe Bell. Cast in 1807, the bronze bell hung at the chapel of the Presidio San Agustin del Tucson until about 1860, when the chapel fell into disrepair, historians say.
The bell was reportedly used at the first San Agustin Church and later moved to the Cathedral where, most recently, it was stored away. Before that, in the early 1990’s, it was the custom for women with a long history of serving the community to ring the bell during a Mass celebrating the Fiesta de San Agustin, the patron saint of Tucson and the Cathedral.
Now hanging from a bell carriage created by artist Brian Donahue and commissioned by Bishop Gerald Kicanas, the 250-pound bell was welcomed back by Los Descendientes del Presidio de Tucson. The group is a 501(c)(3) organization “dedicated to the promotion and preservation of the rich heritage of the presidio and the Old Pueblo,” according to its website.
Flanked on either side by two men dressed in Spanish colonial military attire, the bell was blessed by Msgr. Raul Trevizo, V.G., the pastor at St. John the Evangelist Parish and Vicar General for Hispanic Affairs for the Diocese of Tucson. It was then rung by Las Doñas, the group of women who used to ring the bell at the Fiestas, and other members of Los Descendientes.
“This bell reminds people of the history of Tucson and the culture here,” said Laurie Levine, a Cathedral parishioner who rung the bell. “This Mass, celebrating our patron saint, reminds us that we have a rich history in the Catholic community.”
The bell will be placed in the north transept opposite the altar with the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
“It’s called the Guadalupe bell because the soldiers had a great devotion to Nuestra Señora,” said Raul Ramirez, the President of Los Descendientes. “This bell celebrates our history and connects us to the past.”

By VICTOR CALDERON
The New Vision

Source: http://www.newvisiononline.org/2016/presidios-guadalupe-bell-rings-again-after-journey-home/