Vol. 1, No. 43. Wednesday, October 31, 2018
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October 31, 2018
Please note the Diocese of Tucson offices will be closed on Thursday, Nov. 1 in observance of All Saints Day, but will reopen on Friday, Nov. 2.
Welcome
At this time I wish to inform you that I have hired Anne Morales to serve as Chancellor of the Diocese of Tucson.
Anne comes to us with excellent experience and talent. She taught theology at Salpointe High School for seven years, has been a very active youth minister in her parish, and is known to many of our priests. She also is a licensed attorney. While in the role of chancellor she will not replace our current diocesan attorney, I believe her ministerial background and legal skillset will serve the Church very well, especially the pastors of our parishes.
Kathy Rhinehart remains in office until early January of 2019. Anne will not begin her work for us until that time. This message is simply to let you know that a future Chancellor has been hired and in this way it is my hope that we will experience a smooth transition in what is clearly a key role in diocesan leadership.
Violence to people at prayer
Photos by Deacon Clayton Nickel
Eleven candles – one for each of those killed at the Tree of Life Synagogue – were lit at vigil for victims of the shooting held at the Jewish Community Center.
Monday night I joined more than 750 people from the Tucson community and attended a vigil at the Jewish Community Center to remember and to pray for the 11 people murdered by a man who has posted anti-Semitic materials online. These people were killed as they prayed in their temple in Pittsburgh, Penn., during Shabbat services last Saturday morning.The vigil was a beautiful, peaceful gathering of members of our Tucson Jewish community along with people from many religious backgrounds who attended to show support for our brothers and sisters. The service included words from Imam Watheq Alobaid from the Islamic Center of Tucson, Sat Bihr from the Sikh community and others. I also offered a prayer during the vigil.
Every person attending the vigil was invited to write his or her thoughts, prayers, hopes or other sentiments on the back of cards, and throughout the vigil, those cards were read aloud. The sorrow and hopes for more love and compassion were consistent themes of these cards, written by individuals from many backgrounds and faiths. The whole vigil was truly a unifying gathering.
As believers in a loving God, we all are called to compassion and understanding. We all are called to stand against the type of unbridled hate and prejudice that strikes at each of us during these horrible slayings.
We must stand in the way of hate.
US Conference of Catholic Bishops
Fall General Assembly, Baltimore
Nov. 12-14I will be attending the General Assembly mentioned above. As you will read in the press release below, we bishops will be discussing serious topics.
Public sessions of general assembly discussions and votes as well as portions of the day of spiritual discernment will be available via livestream at: http://www.usccb.org/live
News updates, vote totals, texts of addresses and presentations and other materials will be posted to this page: www.usccb.org/meetings as soon as possible.
Those wishing to follow the meeting on social media can use the hashtag #USCCB18 and follow on Twitter (@USCCB) as well as on Facebook (www.facebook.com/usccb) and Instagram (https://instagram.com/usccb).
Our diocesan homepage at diocesetucson.org will be posting stories from the Assembly as they become available.
The topics for the Assembly are important to all of us as practicing Catholics. I encourage you to stay informed.
U.S. Bishops To Meet Nov. 12-14 in Baltimore; Will Address Abuse Crisis and Action Items; Assembly to be Live Streamed, Live Tweeted, Carried Via Satellite
"…The assembly will begin with an address by Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo, archbishop of Galveston-Houston and President of the USCCB and also an address by the Papal Nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Christophe Pierre. The body of bishops will then adjourn to an on-site chapel for a full day of spiritual discernment and prayer. This will be followed by a Mass celebrated Monday evening at the site of the assembly.
During the assembly the bishops will discuss and vote on a series of concrete measures to respond to the abuse crisis, including those approved for the agenda at the September meeting of the Administrative Committee, such as a third-party reporting mechanism, standards of conduct for bishops, and protocols for bishops resigned or removed because of abuse. The bishops will also hear reports from the National Advisory Council and National Review Board.
The assembly will also vote on the Pastoral Letter Against Racism and will also hear a report on the 15th Ordinary Synod of Bishops on Young People, the Faith, and Vocational Discernment. The bishops will also vote on the 2019 budget.
The bishops will also vote for a Conference Treasurer-elect, new chairmen of the Committee on Catholic Education, and new chairmen-elect of the following five USCCB committees: Committee on Clergy, Consecrated Life, and Vocations, Committee on Divine Worship, Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life, and Youth, and the Committee on Migration.
There will also be a voice vote on the cause for canonization for Sr. Thea Bowman, FSPA.
Please remember
La Salette Father Henry Dauphinais, who served here in our diocese along the International Border with Mexico in Douglas/Pirtleville, and who also served in Cochise County, passed away on Oct. 26. He was 90 years old.
Father Henry also volunteered his services with the Department of Corrections, mostly in the county jail until 1993, and was later chaplain at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Tucson.
He is survived by sisters, Cecile Jantz in Maryland and Lorraine Roy in South Carolina.
Fiesta!
I will be celebrating the 5 p.m Mass at St. Martin de Porres on Saturday, Nov. 3. This is the weekend for the parish's fiesta, so I am looking to my visit.
Men's Conference
Saturday, Nov. 3
8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish
Registration required: https://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/eventReg?oeidk=a07efefbvol031598fa&oseq=&c=&ch=
Join men from all over the Diocese of Tucson to take up your call. We need to strengthen each other as we fight to live out our Gospel call to spread the Good News.
Keynote speakers this year are Greg Wasinski & Jesse Romero.
Tickets are $45 per person. And $10 per High School Youth. Registration includes keynote presentations, Sacrament of Reconciliation, panel discussion, lunch and Mass with Bishop Weisenburger.
Caregivers Mass
I will be celebrating Mass at St. Augustine Cathedral at noon on Sunday (Nov. 4) for those who work for Carondelet Health Care at physician offices or at St. Joseph's, St. Mary's or Holy Cross hospitals.
Catholic Rural Life
I will be in St. Paul, Minn., Nov.6 and Nov. 7, for the Catholic Rural Life Board of Directors meeting. Catholic Rural Life is a national organization working on behalf of the church in the American countryside.
As the website states, "Since 1923, we have been applying the teachings of Jesus Christ for the social, economic, and spiritual development of rural America, strengthening and sustaining the Church in the countryside by educating and inspiring leaders and advocating on their behalf."
All Souls Day: Friday, Nov. 2
Pilgrimage to Mission San Xavier Del Bac
Saturday, Nov. 3
There are several starting points for this pilgrimage. For more information please visit