UPDATED - Archbishop Gregory to lawmakers: Don't give up hope, even if 40 days of lawmaking seems like 40 years lost in the desert

Catholics who attended the annual Catholic Day at the Capital on Tuesday, Jan. 29, buttonholed their representatives about public policy issues important to the church. 

First up for the day was a briefing on legislative bills from leaders of the Georgia Catholic Conference and the Atlanta Archdiocese. The group then watched the opening of the House of Representatives . Later, the participants shared their viewpoints with lawmakers. 

Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory was the chaplain of the day. His remarks to open the day's session are below. (The early sounds are the Georgia House of Representatives coming to order, starting with a chiming bell and then attendance to ensure there was a quorum of members.)

Catholic Day at the Capital: Archb. Wilton D. Gregory's opening reflection at the Georgia Statehouse by Andrew.Nelson

A slideshow of participants is in the works.

Some thoughts from the participants.






We'll be talking with the Georgia Catholic Conference leaders for our  Feb. 14 edition to learn about their legislative priorities.


 -Andrew

50 Years later, here they are, Earl and Barbara Beck

50 Years of Marriage Begins with Mutual Dislike by GeorgiaBulletin




Please listen to Barbara Beck tell how her marriage of 50 years to her husband, Earl, began with mutual dislike. It's a great story.

You can read my article in the Georgia Bulletin about the annual Mass honoring couples in 2011 who celebrate their 50th and 60th wedding anniversaries. The story appears in the Oct. 13 issue.


On a side note, my own parents - who marked in September the 45th anniversary of their wedding - were set up by their parents. My dad's mother worked at Syracuse University as did my mom. My grandmother suggested my dad take out her co-worker and the rest is history (Although, as my father tells it, at the proposal, my mom tried to talk him out of it. My mom is mum on the subject.)  Anyhoo. I wonder if it was common for parents to play the matchmaker back in the day. How'd your parents meet?


-Andrew

Pretty Good Mission Statement

The great thing about the Web is how way leads on to way. You can forget where the trail started. That's how I stumbled on this essay at a publication called Ekklesia: A New Way of Thinking.

As someone who has hung out with the Religion Newswriters Association (RNA) types for a half century, I’d argue that the problem results not from villainy or bias so much as from the nature of things, and have come up with a formula: if religion is covered as news, the bad stuff will predominate; if it appears as features, the good side gets a chance to show.

News waits for someone to embezzle or kill or seduce another in the name of God. Features allow for creative reporters to get up close to believing and behaving people who use their imagination, faith, energy, and communal spirit to serve others.

(To read the full note at "Bad news and good news in religion reporting.")

The author uses a story in the New York Times to point out how these feature stories tell another side to religious infighting. Here it is: Kim Severson, 'For Some, Helping With Disaster Relief Is Not Just Aid, It’s a Calling,'

That's the goal at the Georgia Bulletin's story telling

What do you think? How do you think we are doing?

Ordination at Holy Spirit Monastery

I had the good fortune to spend some time at the Holy Spirit Monastery recently. The assignment was to write about the ordination of a monk.

CONYERS - With prayers and ancient rituals, the monks at Holy Spirit Monastery and friends celebrated the ordination of Brother Augustine Myslinski to the priesthood.
Friends and colleagues crowded the abbey church Saturday, April 30, as streaming light from the stained glass windows made the stone glow blue.

A long faith journey for now Father Augustine Myslinksi came to an end when he kneeled in front of Auxiliary Bishop Luis R. Zarama and the bishop in silent prayer laid his hands on the monk’s head. During that moment, the church teaches that a man receives the Holy Spirit to serve as a priest.

“May God who has begun the good work in you bring it to fulfillment,” said the bishop.

Read the rest of the story and in next week's edition of the Georgia Bulletin. Below is the video of the procession at the end of Mass:

Award Winners Announced

The Office of Black Catholic Ministry recently announced the winners for the January celebration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

And here they are:

A crayon drawing of a dove with its open wings hovering over people of many colors was the first place winner in the Fourth Annual Chancery’s Choice Poster Contest in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Workers in the archdiocesan downtown office judged the entries. The theme for this year’s January celebration is “Your Kindness Should Be Known to All.”

The 1st Place prize went to Gilliane Conklin, who attends St. Catherine of Siena School, Kennesaw. Olivia House, a student at St. Thomas More School, Decatur, earned 2nd place and Carmela Pagsisihan, Our Lady of Victory School, Tyrone, took home 3rd place.

The winners will be recognized during the Youth Celebration on Sunday, Jan. 16, at St. Peter Claver Regional Catholic School, Decatur.

A sneak peek at stories in July 8th edition

Rev. Mr. Llane Briese, Thang Pham, Carlos Vargas, Thomas Zahuta, Michael Silloway and Mario Lopez, from left, prostrate themselves on the altar during a moment of prayer for the candidates. Photo by Michael Alexander. (More photos here.)

The Georgia Bulletin will be showing up in your mail box in the next couple of days.

Here's some of the stories you can look forward to reading:

Ordination of six new priests:

ATLANTA—Linda Koerner remembers when a young Llane Briese started coming to the youth group at St. John Neumann Church in Lilburn just a few years ago. From the very beginning, she recognized something special in the teen, so it came as no surprise when she heard he was discerning a vocation to the priesthood.
Koerner and her husband, Greg, came to the ordination Mass at the Cathedral of Christ the King on June 26, a celebration that welcomed six new priests into the Archdiocese of Atlanta. “It has been a privilege to watch him grow,” said Koerner as she waited for the Mass to begin. “Llane loves life … and embraces everything in the Catholic faith.”
Along with Rev. Mr. Briese, five other transitional deacons—Mario A. López, Thang Minh Pham, Michael R. Silloway, Carlos E. Vargas and Thomas Zahuta—processed into the Cathedral on the warm Saturday morning to the delight of their teary-eyed families and friends. Smiles quickly appeared on the candidates’ faces as they processed in amidst camera flashes.

Sudanese Catholics celebrate with three bishops from their homeland

STONE MOUNTAIN—Sitting in colorful plastic seats in an indoor basketball court were members of the Lost Boys, the group of then youngsters who walked for hundreds of miles to escape war, minefields and violence that destroyed their Sudanese villages.
Now, the group is entering their 30s. They’ve landed jobs and made lives for themselves here. Among them were Diadi “Lino” Momo, 31, of Atlanta and Duang “Victor” Deng, 31, of Birmingham, Ala.
Despite the wars that drove them from family and into refugee camps and later into exile, they took it to heart when three visiting Catholic bishops from Sudan urged them and other former refugees to contribute to their homeland’s future.
The peril and promise of Sudan were at the forefront of the minds of the estimated 100 women, men and children, as they gathered on Sunday, June 26, in prayer with the bishops, at Corpus Christi Church.
“There is hope and there is fear,” said Momo, who now works in the shipping business.

Catholic artist Salvador Dali at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta

ATLANTA—What to make of Salvador Dali?
A painter. A sculptor. A photographer. A jeweler. Embraced by the public, but once dismissed by art critics.
The interpretation of the work of the late Spanish Catholic artist continues to evolve, much as his paintings challenged people to look at the world anew.
The High Museum of Art hosts a major exhibit, “Salvador Dali: The Late Work,” opening Aug. 7. It will feature more than 100 pieces of work done by the man after he split with the surrealist movement. The exhibit offers pieces rarely seen in the United States, including “Christ of St. John of the Cross,” which has not been on view here in 50 years.

See photos of the events and other features in the newspaper here and here.

Andrew, reporter