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December 6, 2012

Will you join me on a pilgrimage?

I will be leading a pilgrimage to many Marian apparition sites and many other holy sites. The dates of the pilgrimage are Monday, June 17 – Friday, June 28, 2013. The cost is $2,850 (add approximately $500 for fuel taxes/surcharge). There are detailed itineraries available in the kiosk and more on the website. However, here is a quick overview of where we will go and what we will see.

Fly from Indy to Lisbon
Stop in Santarem where St. Stephen’s is located containing the oldest recorded Eucharistic miracle.
Arrive in Fatima where the Blessed Mother appeared to 3 young children in 1917 – we will stay for 2 nights
Visit Santiago de Compostela, the home of St. James and the end of the “Route of St. James” – stay for 2 nights
Arrive in Avila, the birthplace of St. Teresa – stay for 1 night
On the road to Lourdes we will stop in Segovia and visit the relic of St. John of the Cross – stay for 1 night
Arrive in Lourdes, and walk in the footstep of St. Bernadette and drink the water from the miraculous spring or submerge yourself in the healing baths – stay 2 nights
Depart from Barcelona where we will have a full day to explore this beautiful city – stay 2 nights

If you are interested in joining me on this pilgrimage a $325 commitment will be required to guarantee you a spot on the trip.

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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October 10, 2012

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Tomorrow, October 11, begins the Year of Faith. Pope Benedict XVI has decreed that the Catholic Church will observe the Year of Faith between 11 October 2012 and 24 November 2013. This special time is meant for Catholics throughout the world to focus on, to rediscover and to share the precious gift of Faith entrusted to the Church. Pope Benedict XVI has chosen these dates to reflect very important anniversaries and events in the Church. October 11th is the 5oth anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council (11 October 1962 - 8 December 1965) as well as the 20th anniversary of the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church by Blessed John Paul II. The Year of Faith will close on 24 November 2013, the Solemn Feast of Christ the King throughout the world.

To open the Year of Faith on the anniversary of the Second Vatican Council is important. Even though the Second Vatican Council occurred half a century ago it remains ‘the great grace bestowed on the Church in the twentieth century’ that is ‘ a sure compass by which to take our bearings in the century now beginning,’ Pope Benedict explains. The Holy Father is also convinced that the Second Vatican Council, if interpreted and implemented according to the mind of the Church stretching back to the Apostles,’ can be and can become increasingly powerful for the ever necessary renewal of the Church’. (Porta Fidei, 5). Just for this reason the Year of Faith will be reflection and rediscovery of the riches contained in the texts of Vatican II.

Since The Catechism of the Catholic Church is seen by Pope Benedict as a ‘a precious and indispensable tool. It is one of the most important fruits of the Second Vatican Council’. (Porta Fidei, 11) the anniversary of its publication is very important to mark the opening of the Year of Faith. This is why an important component of the Year of Faith will involve a ‘concerted effort by every Catholic to rediscover and study the fundamental content of the faith that receives its systematic and organic synthesis in the Catechism of the Catholic Church’.

Pope Benedict has the following beautiful expression of his hopes for each one of us as we begin our journey into The Year of Faith.

‘Intent on gathering the signs of the times in the present of history, faith commits every one of us to become a living sign of the presence of the Risen Lord in the world. What the world is in particular need of today is the credible witness of people enlightened in mind and heart by the word of the Lord, and capable of opening the hearts and minds of many to the desire for God and for true life, life without end.’ Porta Fidei, 15

Please visit the website weekly for continuous information on The Year of Faith.

Mary our Mother, and St. Joan of Arc our Patron, pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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July 23, 2012

My Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ,

It is with great pleasure that I announce that I have hired our new Director of Stewardship, Therese Bath. Most of you are familiar with Therese as she is quite active in our parish. Please take a moment to read her introduction.

Mary our Mother, and St. Joan of Arc our Patron, pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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My name is Therese Bath and I feel so blessed to be the new Stewardship Director for our parish. Many of you may know me as the leader of our Liturgy of the Word for Children at 9 o’clock Mass, or through my work with our parish school. For the past five years, I have been an administrator for Sts. Joan of Arc & Patrick School, working with our students, families and faculty. Prior to that, I worked in community services as the Director of Community Development for Area Five Agency on Aging and Community Services, obtaining and managing grants and private funding to help people in need. I have served in many community and state organizations including a term as president of the Indiana Association for Community Economic Development. I am a graduate of DePauw University and have completed additional training through IUK, IUPUI and the IU Center on Philanthropy.

My husband, Tim, and I have been parishioners at St. Joan of Arc throughout our nearly 19 years of marriage. We have four children: Anthony (15), Elizabeth (13), Patrick (10) and Catherine (7).

I have loved being part of our parish school and seeing both children and adults grow in their faith; that is what called me to this new Stewardship position. Our parish has made a commitment to being a place where people can know and serve the Lord. Committing to stewardship – not merely by the creation of this new position but committing the parish to be a community of stewardship and leading parishioners to lifestyles of stewardship – is not simply following the latest fad. It is a response to Christ’s call to each of us to “seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness” (Mt 6:33). If we respond to this call, each of us will serve God through our involvement in our parish and in how we live our lives. Stewardship opens our eyes to how our actions, our service, our very lives can be lived for Christ. For some people, it may mean a deeper involvement in parish life. For others, it may be a greater understanding of how everything they already do serves our Lord. Stewardship promises the greatest of rewards as “all these things shall be given you.” What we are given by God isn’t for our own use. St. Peter tells us, “As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace.” (1Pt 4:10)

I look forward to introducing newcomers to the opportunities our parish offers to grow closer to Christ, but even more to helping all our parishioners recognize the ways they can grow closer to God through their involvement with our many parish ministries.

Therese Bath

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June 1, 2012

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Every time we celebrate Mass, a miracle takes place; the bread and wine are transformed into the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ! Even though this miracle takes place every time we celebrate Mass, many who are in attendance at Mass do not fully understand and appreciate what has actually taken place. On June 10th we will celebrate the Body and Blood of our Lord, also referred to as Corpus Christi, as a reminder of our Lord’s True Presence in the Eucharist. Part of the celebration includes taking Jesus into the streets in the form of the Eucharist. We will have a procession to conclude the 9:00 am Mass. Please take the time to participate in this great celebration.

This Solemnity actually received its main thrust from a vision of St. Juliana. She was known for her love of the Blessed Virgin, the Sacred Passion and especially the Blessed Sacrament. At the age of sixteen she began to experience visions and in one of these she saw the full moon, whose brightness was disfigured by a single dark spot. She described the vision to her superior, but its meaning could not be determined. Finally, after many days of prayer, Juliana heard a heavenly voice render the meaning: That which disturbs Thee is that a feast is wanting to My Church Militant, which I desire to establish. It is the feast of the Most High and Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. At present the celebration of this mystery is only observed on Maundy Thursday, but on that day My sufferings and death are the principal objects of consideration; therefore, I desire another day to be set apart in which it shall be celebrated by the whole of Christendom… (Eucharistic Miracles, J C Cruz)

Three reasons were then given for this request: First, that faith in this Sacrament would be confirmed by this feast when future attacks against its validity would be introduced; second, that the faithful would be strengthened on their way to virtue by a sincere and profound adoration of the Blessed Sacrament; third, that because of this feast and the loving attention given to it, reparation would be made for the irreverence and impiety shown to the Blessed Sacrament. (Eucharistic Miracles, J C Cruz) This feast of Corpus Christi was universally recognized by the Church on September 8, 1264.

On a final note – joining us for the summer is seminarian Matt Spencer, son of St. Boniface parish. Matt just completed Theology I at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Please give him a warm welcome when you see him.

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our patron, pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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March 14, 2012

My Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ,

We adore You, O Christ and we praise You. Because by your Holy Cross, You have redeemed the world.

Are we at risk of losing our First Amendment right of Religious Freedom?

Cardinal George, Archbishop of Chicago in a Lenten letter to his flock posed the question- What are you going to give up this Lent? He reminds his flock that giving up something for Lent, is meant to be a sacrifice, a sacrifice intended to unite us in a spiritual manner to the passion of Jesus Christ. Most times our “giving up of something” is intended for the good of others. For instance, our sacrifice of material things, which allow us to use money saved for our sister parish in Haiti. Cardinal George states, “This year, the Catholic Church in the United States is being told she must “give up” her health care institutions, her universities and many of her social service organizations. This is not a voluntary sacrifice. It is the consequence of the already much discussed Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) regulations now filed and promulgated for implementation beginning August 1 of this year. Freedom of conscience has been in the forefront since the Obama Administration issued a regulation under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act forcing most employers, including religious institutions, to provide coverage for sterilization and contraceptives, including abortion-inducing drugs, even when they violate Church teaching.

“The need to defend citizens’ rights of conscience is the most critical issue before our country right now,” said Bishop William E. Lori of Bridgeport, Connecticut. Bishop Lori chairs the Ad Hoc Committee on Religious Liberty of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). “We will continue our strong defense of conscience rights through all available legal means. Religious freedom is at the heart of democracy and rooted in the dignity of every human person. We will not rest until the protection of conscience rights is restored and the First Amendment is returned to its place of respect in the Bill of Rights.”

Cardinal George further states, “The provision of health care should not demand “giving up” religious liberty. Liberty of religion is more than freedom of worship. Freedom of worship was guaranteed in the Constitution of the former Soviet Union. You could go to church, if you could find one. The Church, however, could do nothing except conduct religious rites in places of worship-no schools, religious publications, health care institutions, organized charity, ministry for justice and the works of mercy that flow naturally from a living faith. All of these were co-opted by the government. We fought a long Cold War to defeat that vision of society.

The strangest accusation in this manipulated public discussion has the bishops not respecting the separation between church and state. The bishops would love to have the separation between church and state we thought we enjoyed just a few months ago, when we were free to run Catholic institutions in conformity with the demands of the Catholic faith, when the government couldn’t tell us which of our ministries are Catholic and which not, when the law protected rather than crushed conscience. The state is making itself into a church. The bishops didn’t begin this dismaying conflict nor choose its timing. We would love to have it ended as quickly as possible. It’s up to the government to stop the attack.

The observance of Lent reminds us that, in the end, we all stand before Christ and give an accounting of our lives. From that perspective, I ask lay Catholics and others of good will to step back and understand what is happening to our country as the Church is despoiled of her institutions and as freedom of conscience and of religion become a memory from a happier past. The suffering being imposed on the Church and on society now is not a voluntary penance. We should both work and pray to be delivered from it.” Because we are at risk of losing our Religious Freedom!

Please continue to learn more and daily visit our website saintjoan.org or visit our U.S. bishops’ website usccb.org and become an advocate for our First Amendment right to Religious Freedom.

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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February 15, 2012

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Therefore, do not continue in ignorance, but try to understand what is the will of the Lord. Ephesians 5:17

Lent is fast approaching! This week we enter into Lent with our Ash Wednesday Masses. Please consider the many Lenten opportunities St. Joan of Arc will be offering.

Forty Lenten Meditations- The Lord has blessed us with the opportunity to meditate on Christian Stewardship through a series of daily meditations written for the 40 days of Lent.
Read our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, short Lenten Message, “We must not remain silent before evil.” Taking a Scriptural passage from the Letter to the Hebrews chapter 10: 24- “Let us be concerned for each other, to stir a response in love and good works.” Our Holy Father is always very insightful in his teaching. His message may be found at the doors of the Church.
Lenten Mission- A mission is a very special time of grace in the life of a parish. This year St. Joan of Arc’s Parish Mission will be February 26-28 and is entitled- “Making Holy Choices” with Fr. James Sullivan and Mrs. Christina Watkins.

These Lenten offerings should provide every parishioner with the opportunity to continue to form their conscience with the truths of our faith. This is tremendously important when we see how poorly the Gospel is represented in the public square in our day. Those who purport to be Catholic while enacting unjust laws and policies shows the catechesis that still needs to take place. In keeping with our Holy Father’s Lenten message, “We must not remain silent before evil” we are provided with even more reason to know the Gospel of Jesus Christ and proclaim it for the glory of God.

Speaking of evil- The Health and Human Service mandate for Catholics still threatens to deprive Americans of their freedom. Archbishop Chaput, when speaking about Religious Freedom has called the right to faith “humanity’s first and most important freedom”. Please God, I pray, we will wake up and understand that this freedom, if stripped away, will lead to the erosion of all other freedoms. The Bishop’s speak of the following principles that are to guide us: First, there is the respect for religious liberty. No government has the right to intrude into the affairs of the Church, much less coerce, the Church faithful individuals to engage in or cooperate in any way with immoral practices. Second, it is the place of the Church, not of government to define its religious identity and ministry. Third, we continue to oppose the underlying policy of a government mandate for purchase or promotion of contraception, sterilization or abortion inducing drugs.

Please make contact with your Congressional representatives, or for more information see our website!

Mary our Mother and St. Joan our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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December 2, 2011

My dear bothers and sisters in Christ,

As we enter into this holy season of Advent, we are reminded that we are in a time of anticipation and preparation. This is also a time of renewal. It is a time to recommit our lives to Christ. We commit our lives to love God with our whole being and to love our neighbor as ourselves. We open our hearts and minds to His ways, so as to consciously live as people awaiting His return!

“Let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God… The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also. –1Jn. 4:7,21 In the book, Advent and Christmas with Fulton J. Sheen, there is a beautiful reflection on “the mystery of love” that I would like to share with you. “Once I surrender the tinsel to have the jewel, then I enter into the mystery of love. I see that I do not love anyone unless he has some goodness in him, or is lovable in some way. But, I see also that God did not love me because I am lovable. I became lovable because God poured some of His goodness and love into me. I then began to apply this charity to my neighbor. If I do not find him lovable, I have to put love into him as God puts love into me, and thereby I provoke the response of love. Now, my personality is restored and I make the great discovery that no one is happy until he loves both God and neighbor.”

How beautiful to know that even in our sinfulness and all that we do that is not pleasing to God, He pours His goodness and love into us, and it is in His goodness to us that we become lovable. When one thinks about this concept, in humility, we understand our nothingness and our dependence on God. We could look at it in a prideful way and say that we are something we are not. It is pride that rejects our dependence on God. Pride leadeth to the fall… may we never fall because we are blinded by pride. May we instead allow God to raise us up as He did our Blessed Mother. In the magnificat, which we find in the first chapter of Luke’s Gospel, Mary even acknowledges this profound reality when she said, “For He has looked upon His handmaid’s lowliness; behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed. (v. 48) He (God) has cast down the mighty from their thrones and has lifted up the lowly. (v.52)”

“For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, training us to … live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.”—Titus 2:11-14 May we truly live this holy season training ourselves to live lives pleasing to God as we await His return in glory!

Please be assured of my fervent prayer (and those of my brother priests) for each member of our parish family as you use this Advent season to prepare for the gift of the Christ child this Christmas.

Mary our Mother and St. Joan our patron, pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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November 2, 2011

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Deus Caritas Est! God is Love! 1Jn. 4:16

The month of November is traditionally dedicated to praying for the Poor Souls in Purgatory. What is purgatory: “The state or condition of the elect (that is, those who have died in sanctifying grace or the friendship of God) still in need of purification before they see God; this purification is altogether different from the punishment of the damned. The faithful are encouraged to pray for the souls in purgatory, especially on the feast of All Souls, November 2″. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2266)

God gives us grace to help us in our journey of faith here on earth. Grace is necessary in order to overcome the temptations and attacks of the devil. God triumphed over sin and death with Jesus’ death and subsequent resurrection from the dead. Jesus merited for us eternal life, but we still have to faithfully live the life God calls us to… Grace helps us to do this more completely. God also gave us a free will because He wants us to freely choose to live for Him. We can not love God unless we are free. Our actions show how much we do or do not love Him.

The sad reality is that we are not perfect and we do fall (sin). When we sin God calls us to repentance (and He freely bestows this forgiveness in the sacrament of Reconciliation) and also to make reparation for those sins. “According to the grace of God given to me, like a wise master builder I laid a foundation, and another is building upon it. But each one must be careful how he builds upon it,… the work of each will come to light, for the Day will disclose it, it will be revealed with fire, and the fire itself will test the quality of each one’s work…. If the work stands that someone built upon the foundation, that person will receive a wage. But if someone’s work is burned up, that one will suffer loss; the person will be saved, but only as through fire.” — 1Cor.3:10-15 If we do not do that penance or reparation now, we will have to do it in purgatory. “Let us strive to do penance in this life. How sweet will be the death of those who have done penance for all their sins and need not go to purgatory.” — St. Teresa of Avila

Mary our Mother and St. Joan our patron, pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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September 16, 2011

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

What is a pilgrimage?

A pilgrimage is sacred travel, travel as a sacrament. You may know the definition of a sacrament: “an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace”. Our travel to historical and scenic sites is the outward part, our drawing closer to God is the inward part. When we return we expect to be transformed or changed from the person we were when we left. Pilgrims return from their journey with a “boon”, something good that will enrich their lives in the everyday world back at home. However, you must know that a pilgrimage is not a vacation – it consists of prayer, penance and fasting. But during a pilgrimage we also have time to build friendships, grow in our faith and truly have fun.

Have you ever journeyed on a pilgrimage? There are several different types that you could have participated in – one a few hours away, one a long distance but in the United States, or you may have gone over seas and visited holy sites. I would like to invite each of you to a pilgrimage in April 2012 to journey to the Holy Land.

Pope John Paul II in his open letter June 30, 1999 on the eve of the two thousandth anniversary of the Incarnation said, “Sacred space is concentrated in the Jerusalem temple where the God of Israel wishes to be honored and in a sense, encountered. The eyes of Israelite pilgrims turn to the Temple and great is their joy when they reach the place where God has made His home.”

“I rejoiced when I heard them say, Let us go to the House of the Lord, and now our feet are standing within your Gates, O Jerusalem.” (Ps. 122:1-2)

He goes on to say that processions of people have gone in search of the footprints of God in that land, rightly called holy. And how his pilgrimage there in 1965 as Karol Wojtyla, indelibly etched in his memory the emotions stirred up by walking on the very stones that Mary walked while carrying Jesus; by standing on the Mount where Jesus gave His life for us; by entering into the lives of the holy people of God. Pope John Paul II concluded, “Even when events in history have disturbed the essentially peaceful nature of pilgrimage, people have come seeking the living memory of Christ, for they are called. We are all called in one way or another.”

Please prayerfully consider joining us to the Holy Land April 15-26, 2012. There are brochures at my corner in the kiosk with the itinerary and pricing. Spots are limited so act now!

Mary our Mother and St. Joan our patron, pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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July 1, 2011

Fr. Ted was recently a guest columnist for the Kokomo Perspective and responded to 5 different questions. Continue reading to see what he had to say!

Q1. How do you believe the current world events line up with scripture?

The WORD of God is a Person—Jesus Christ—not merely a book. Therefore, when we look at the relationship between current events and Scripture, it is essential that we see Jesus as not only the fulfillment of Scripture, but also the Lord of History who continues to act in our lives. Likewise, the same Holy Spirit who inspired the Scriptures continues to speak to us not only through those Scriptures but also through human experience. If we are to encounter Jesus in both of these ways, it is necessary that we develop the habit of theological reflection.

Hearing of all the horrific events in the news, we might be tempted to ask as David did in psalm ten, “Why do you stand afar off, O Lord? Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?” Every generation has struggled with the existence of evil in the world, but upon further reflection, we know that evil is not from God. God has not abandoned us, and God brings all things to the good for those who love Him (cf. Romans 8:28). If that is the case, we must learn to turn to Him in confidence and love when the events of our lives seem to overwhelm us. We must learn to turn to prayer (especially using Scripture) and the Sacraments so as to encounter Christ and to be anchored to Him. With this in mind the pope and bishops gathered at the Second Vatican Council said, “such is the force and power of the Word of God that it can serve the Church as her support and vigor and the children of the Church as strength for their faith, food for the soul, and a pure and lasting font of spiritual life” (Dei Verbum, 21).

The Magisterium, the living teaching office of the Church has the responsibility of directing us so that we might live our lives in light of the deposit of faith (Scripture and Tradition). Through homilies and other means, Mother Church helps us apply that deposit to our lives. As Saint Paul said, “All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16). This includes properly understanding current events.

Looking at the spiritual senses of Scripture (and not just the literal) we are able to make the connection between Scripture and our lives. First, the allegorical sense helps to interpret current events in their relationship to Christ. Second, the moral sense shows us how to act justly and judge current events rightly for our own growth in righteousness. Finally, the anagogical sense helps us see current events from the perspective of eternity and not just from the near-sightedness of our own times and culture. In so doing, we will echo the psalmist, who in looking at the many events of history continually repeats the refrain— “For his steadfast love endures forever.”

Q2. What does the Bible teach about these two important social issues: marriage and the value of life?

Human life is so valuable that the Father sent His own Son to taste death on our behalf (cf. Hebrews 2:9). Likewise, marriage and family are so important to God’s plan that Jesus humbled Himself to be part of the Holy Family in Nazareth. Open your Bible to any page and you’re bound to find passages that speak of life and family; for it’s not just the Gospels that speak of these truths, but all of salvation history.

In seeking to understand God’s plans for life and marriage, it is important to go back to the beginning – to the book of Genesis. In his encyclical, Evangelium Vitae and in his 129-part catechesis on the theology of the body, Blessed John Paul II did just that. Looking at the account of Cain and Able he said, “Every person sincerely open to truth and goodness can, by the light of reason and the hidden action of grace, come to recognize… the sacred value of human life from its very beginning until its end, and can affirm the right of every human being to have this primary good respected to the highest degree. Upon the recognition of this right, every human community and the political community itself are founded” (Evangelium Vitae #2). The family itself is at service to life. Thus, in considering the original unity described in chapters one and two of Genesis and after gathering all the bishops to discuss the family in God’s plan, the pope said, “The Church is deeply convinced that only by the acceptance of the Gospel are the hopes that man legitimately places in marriage and in the family capable of being fulfilled” (Familiaris Consortio #3).

These truths about marriage, family, and the value of life point to an even loftier reality. Divine Revelation tells the story of God’s plan for us to be united as His family and to have life abundantly (cf. John 10:10). The very phrase “Divine Revelation” alludes to God’s intimate relationship with us. It is no accident that the image that God Himself chooses to describe his relationship with His Church is the Bridegroom and His bride (cf. Ephesians 5). Motivated by love for his bride the bridegroom shares with her all that he own. So too, Christ shares with His Bride, the Church, all that is rightfully His – His Mother, His participation in the life of the Trinity, the merits won by His death on a cross, and even His own Body and Blood in the Sacrament of the Eucharist.

The inherent value of life and the irreplaceable role that family plays in service to that life is not only apparent on every page of Scripture, but it is something that God has placed in the hearts of all – believer and non-believer alike. Therefore, it is imperative that Christians be united together in leading all people of good will in the defense of life and the family. The serious threats from the culture of death demand that united witness.

Q3. What is the main message of the Bible?

If you have ever been to a sporting event or have even watched one on television, you have probably seen someone holding up a sign with John 3:16 on it. Have you ever stopped to ask yourself why someone might do this, and why they would choose this particular verse? In it, John says, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” This particular verse summarizes God’s entire plan of salvation history, including our incorporation into it. John succinctly adds in one of his letters that God IS love.

This is a uniquely Christian teaching. Our God is not someone distant from us who has no concern for what happens to His creation. Even after the original sin of Adam and Eve, God did not abandon us. Rather, He reveals His plan for us to be reunited with Him through the birth of His only Son who would suffer, die, and rise on the third day. We truly can take up the words of Exsultet in which we say, “O happy fault of Adam to merit for us such a redeemer”. God is passionately in love for us, and He proves it by becoming one of us and by sacrificing His only Son for us.

But the meaning of the message in John 3:16 doesn’t stop there. At the Last Supper, Jesus instructs us that we are to love one another AS He has loved us. This means that we are called to participate in this love, not only by being recipients of God’s love and mercy, but by imitating Jesus’ example of sacrifice and self-giving. This is His new commandment. Sacrificial love is not something optional to the Christian life; rather it is how we show that we are authentic disciples of Jesus Christ. This is especially true today; thus, Pope Paul VI said “Modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses” (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 41).

But how are we to know that we are truly following Christ’s example of love when there are so many counterfeits of love in our society? Jesus gives us the answer at the Last Supper when he tells us that we will abide in His love if we keep His commandments. There are many who will try to manipulate Christ’s words for their own benefit—so that they can continue in their sinful ways without the total conversion that Christ asks of us. Saint Paul even warns of those who have “itchy ears” who will interpret Christ’s words as they deem fit. Thus we see the importance of an authentic interpreter. That authentic interpreter is the Church (particularly the Magisterium). For it is the Church that was born out of the side of Christ as He proved His love for us and invited us to abide in His love.

Q4. Does the Bible indicate that there are any sins that are ‘unforgivable’?

In the last question in this series, I spoke of the great message of God’s love and mercy. This week’s question is a great follow-up because it deals with the relationship between that mercy and His justice. God is both all-just and all-merciful, and there is no contradiction between these two things. But what does that mean as regards our sinfulness? Essentially-is there a limit to that mercy?

On the surface, the answer to that question appears to be yes; for Jesus tells His disciples, “Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven” (Mt 12:31; cf. Mk 3:29; cf. Lk 12:10). However, to go beyond a superficial look at this passage, we must understand what it means to blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.

God wants to forgive all of our sin, but He will not do so against our free will—to do so would be to take away the very thing that enables us to love God. Blasphemy against the Spirit is essentially that—misusing our free will to not allow God to show us His mercy. The Catechism adds, “There are no limits to the mercy of God, but anyone who deliberately refuses to accept his mercy by repenting, rejects the forgiveness of his sins and the salvation offered by the Holy Spirit” (1864).

Based on this, how do we refuse to accept God’s mercy? Wouldn’t everyone want to accept that great gift? We can fail to repent for two reasons (and both are contrary to the theological virtue of hope). We can despair and fail to turn to God because we think our sin is too grave even for God, or we can fail to turn to Him because we presume upon His mercy and minimize sin in our mind to the point that we think repentance isn’t necessary.

God knows our ongoing need to repent and be reconciled with Him; that’s why He instituted the Sacrament of Reconciliation. If this is the ORDINARY means that God, Himself, has put in place for us to repent and be reconciled with Him, what an act of pride and presumption on our part if we were to think that that we didn’t need it. God is the one that we encounter in the Sacrament, and He is the one that forgives us through his chosen instrument, the priest. Satan will try to keep us from the Sacrament—using the ruse that it’s too embarrassing to confess what I have done or that I can be reconciled to God on my own terms and in my own way—but both of these temptations are ways that Satan tries to have us fall into blasphemy against the Spirit.

Thank God for His gift of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, for it is there that we can rejoice with the psalmist that “His mercy endures forever” (Psalm 136)!

Q5. “According to the Bible, how does God’s creation glorify Him?”

The answer to this question is essentially the same as to the other perennial questions like “what’s the purpose of my life” or “why do I exist”. It’s the same because glorifying God IS the purpose our lives and the reason for our very existence. The only unique part of this question is the emphasis on the means.

First, we must recall that our very existence glorifies God – we are a living testimony of God’s love; for we would cease to exist if He stopped thinking about us, even for a second. In answer to Hamlet’s question—emphatically, yes, it is better to be. Even the unborn, the infirmed, and the handicapped glorify God by their existence. Just as children, simply by being the offspring of their parents, bring honor to their parents and remind the world of the love between the husband and wife, so our existence glorifies God. Likewise, a masterpiece brings glory to the artist because its very existence points to the genius of its creator. We are God’s masterpiece, and our existence witnesses to the greatness of our Creator.

But our glorification of God is not limited to our existence. We also glorify Him through our good works. As Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount, our good works are to serve as a beacon for others that multiplies our own efforts to glorify God (cf. Matthew 5:16).

Furthermore, it is necessary to glorify God by bearing witness to Him even amidst our suffering (including death). God the Father was glorified by the Son enduring His suffering and death—do we really expect it to be any different for us? Thus, after speaking of the manner of death through which John would glorify God, Jesus issued the same invitation to Peter as He issues to us: “Follow me” (cf. John 21:19). Peter later affirmed this in his own letter when he said, “Yet if one suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but under that name let him glorify God” (1 Peter 4:16).

We are especially called to glorify God by our living of the moral life, i.e. obedience to God’s will. This is what Saint Paul was referring to when he told the Corinthians to glorify God in their bodies and to glorify Him through their obedience to their confession of the Gospel (cf. 1 Corinthians 6:20 and 2 Corinthians 9:13). Peter also reminds us that we are pilgrims in this world, and that by living that reality we glorify God (cf. 1 Peter 2:11-12).

Despite our efforts to glorify God in these many ways, we are all too aware of how we fail to glorify God as we ought. Thus, we need to join the Gentiles in glorifying God by acknowledging God’s mercy and abandoning ourselves totally to it (cf. Romans 15:9). Only then can we join the rest of creation, as Daniel says in his canticle, in blessing, praising, and exalting the Lord above all forever (cf. Daniel 3:57-88).

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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Friday, June 3, 2011

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The school year has come to an end and summer is truly upon us. For many, these next few months provides time to have more freedom and less structure to our days. The days and nights are longer and we are not fighting the bad weather that the winter blesses us with. What a great opportunity these lazy days of summer provides for us to learn more about our Catholic faith. We are so blessed to have 3 seminarians and 1 summer intern in Kokomo this summer to help us grow in our faith and love of our Lord, Jesus Christ! Let me introduce to you who we have:

Derek Aaron – son of the parish of St. Joan of Arc who is entering his second year of theology at Mt. St. Mary’s Seminary.
Cole Daily – son of the parish of St. Patrick who is entering his 3rd year of college seminary at St. John Vianney Seminary in St. Paul, MN.
Sam Futral – who will become Deacon Sam Futral on June 4th at the Cathedral of St. Mary and is entering his final year of seminary and God willing will be ordained a priest in 2012.
Carly O’Connor – parishioner of St. Joan of Arc who is interning at the parishes this summer and is entering her second and final year of graduate studies in theology at the John Paul II Institute.

Here at St. Joan of Arc we have many things planned to enrich our knowledge of Catholicism as well as meet new people! Make the most of this summer and make a commitment to attend one or more of these classes.

A Father Who Keeps His Promises Book Discussion – Four different sessions will be available for your convenience. In June at St. Joan of Arc on Monday mornings and Thursday evenings at St. Patrick. During July classes will be on Wednesday evening at St. Joan of Arc and Thursday morning at St. Patrick. Sign up sheets are available at Fr. Ted’s corner.
F.I.R.E. classes – a wide variety of classes will be offered at both St. Patrick and St. Joan of Arc. A schedule is available on the website and at Fr. Ted’s corner.
Theology of the Body – this 4 week class will be offered the last 2 weeks of July and first 2 weeks of August at St. Joan of Arc. Watch for more details…

We are so blessed at St. Joan of Arc to provide these opportunities. Please take advantage of them!

Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, be courageous, be strong. (1 Cor 16:13)

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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Passion Sunday, April 17, 2011

Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ,

For our sake Christ was obedient, accepting even death, death on a cross. Therefore God raised Him on high and gave him the name above all other names. Phil. 2:8-9. As St. Thérèse of Lisieux lay on her death bed on the night of Sept. 30, 1897, she pronounced the simple words: “My God, I love You!,” looking at the crucifix that she clasped in her hands. Our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI recently said, “These last words of the saint are the key of her whole doctrine, of her interpretation of the Gospel. The act of love, expressed in her last breath, was like the continual breathing of her soul, like the beating of her heart. The simple words: “Jesus, I love you” are the center of all her writings and her life. This enabled her to unite her own passion to that of Jesus. “Christ redeemed mankind and gave perfect glory to God principally through the paschal mystery: by dying He destroyed our death and by rising He restored our life. The Easter Triduum of the passion and resurrection of Christ is thus the culmination of the entire liturgical year.”

Holy Week- I am writing to encourage you to set aside some special time during Holy Week to enter into the Paschal Mystery, which is at the heart of our faith. The Church considers the Triduum to be the three Holiest Days of the Church Year. At a glance they are:

Holy Thursday- at this Mass we celebrate the Institution of the Holy Eucharist and the Priesthood. At the beginning of the Mass we receive the Holy Oils blessed on Tuesday evening at the Chrism Mass. Those oils are the Oil of the Sick used in the Anointing of the Sick, the Oil of Catechumens used during the prayer of exorcism and anointing when a catechumen is initiated (infants or adults) and the Oil of Sacred Chrism used in Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders.
Good Friday- The Passion and Death of Our Lord.
Easter Vigil- The Resurrection of Jesus from the dead. This is also the time we celebrate the Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation and First Communion) welcoming our Catechumens into the Church.

The schedule is listed below.
Holy Thursday- Mass of the Lord’s Supper @ 7:00 pm followed by Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament until Midnight.
Good Friday- Way of the Cross @ 11:45 am and Passion Service at 1:00 pm and again at 7:00 pm. Weather permitting, we will have the opportunity for Stations of the Cross both in the worship space and outside.
Holy Saturday- Easter Vigil @ 8:30 pm.
Easter Sunday– 7:30, 9:30 and 11:30 am.

Important notes:
The Perpetual Adoration Chapel at St. Patrick will be closed from 6:45 pm on Holy Thursday until after the Easter Vigil on Saturday (approximately 11:45 pm). Following the Good Friday Service, the Crucifix will remain in the Church for public veneration until 7:00 pm. When venerating the Crucifix during this time it is appropriate to genuflect to the crucifix upon arriving and departing.

May this Holy Week find you entering more deeply into the love that God desires to share with you through the sacrifice of His only begotten Son. Let us enter into that sacrifice by offering the sacrifice of ourselves and our time for His Glory. Please pray for our Elect and Candidates as they prepare to enter the Church.

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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March 9, 2011
Ash Wednesday “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the gospel”

Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ,

“You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him.” (cf. Col 2: 12)

“The Lenten period, which leads us to the celebration of Holy Easter, is for the Church a most valuable and important liturgical time, in view of which I am pleased to offer a specific word in order that it may be lived with due diligence. As she awaits the definitive encounter with her Spouse in the eternal Easter, the Church community, assiduous in prayer and charitable works, intensifies her journey in purifying the spirit, so as to draw more abundantly from the Mystery of Redemption the new life in Christ the Lord.” (cf. Preface I of Lent)

This is the opening to our Holy Father’s Lenten Message 2011. Copies are available at my corner at St. Joan of Arc or at the devotional rail in front of St. John Vianney at St. Patrick. As we prepare to journey into this Lenten Season which begins this Wednesday– Ash Wednesday, the Scripture verse Pope Benedict XVI has chosen is a tremendously important reference point for us. Every Christian should have a spiritual plan in place before beginning his/her Lenten Journey. That spiritual plan should include, as our Holy Father reminds us, to be assiduous in prayer and charitable works and striving to purify our spirit.

Our Church community invites all of her members to consider the following Lenten practices as part of her Lenten journey.

1. Read the Lenten Magnificat Companion

2. Read the Collection of Lenten Meditations entitled Repent and Believe in the Gospel: on the healing and life-giving Sacrament of Reconciliation. This will help us “purify our spirit” as we journey through Lent to that great Easter celebration.

3. Read the Bible every day of Lent for 10-20 minutes

4. Participate in the “Year of the Catechism” (it is never too late to start).

5. Make a commitment to participate in 40 Days for Life. It is the largest pro-life witness in the world and encompasses an intensive effort designed to raise awareness, save lives, bring healing, and lead our nation to repentan for the sin of abortion through three components:

40 days of prayer and fasting
40 days of peaceful vigil
40 days of community outreach

6. Catholic Home Coming Join us in prayer for the return of our brothers and sisters in Christ who are no longer practicing their Catholic faith.

7. Participate every Friday in The Way of the Cross

Please see our Parish website for more information on numbers 2-7.

Every year questions abound about how the days of Lent are counted. Of course the number “forty” has always had a special spiritual significance regarding preparation. See– Exodus 34:28, 1Kings 19:18, and Matthew 4:2 where we read about how Jesus fasted and prayed for “40 days and 40 nights” in the desert before He began his public ministry. In the life of the Church, once the 40 days of Lent were established, the next development concerned how fasting was to be done. Eventually, the practice prevailed of fasting for six days a week over the course of six weeks, and Ash Wednesday was instituted to bring the number of fast days before Easter to 40. This includes the Triduum. The Sundays of Lent are NOT included in the 40 days of Lent because every Sunday since the Resurrection of Jesus is to be celebrated as just that– The Day of the Resurrection of our Lord. This is supposed to be a day of celebration for the Christian as Jesus has triumphed over sin and death (of course you may choose how you practice Lent). Remember, the whole idea of Lent is to re-enter into an obedient Christian life through our baptismal graces which we receive through Christ and His bride the Church who gives us spiritual birth. The spiritual life is always our acceptance of God’s grace in our life. Obedience means to “to listen to” (in this case) God. May “The Love of Christ Impels us-” (2 Corinthians 5:14) to a fruitful Lenten season. For “You were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him.” (cf. Col 2: 12)

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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February 27, 2011 +JMJ+

Dear Brothers & Sisters in Christ,

“The Love of Christ Impels us!” (2 Corinthians 5:14)

We have great opportunities to live Lent this year in total self-sacrifice for the suffering of Jesus and living out the gospel. Keep reading to find out how!

40 Days for Life
From March 9 through April 17, the largest ever 40 Days for Life international campaign will take place. What is 40 Days for Life? It is the largest pro-life witness in the world and encompasses an intensive effort designed to raise awareness, save lives, bring healing, and lead our nation to repentance for the sin of abortion through three components:

40 days of prayer and fasting
40 days of peaceful vigil
40 days of community outreach

1. Pray and Fast
Prayer is the heart of the 40 Days for Life effort. It is through the many prayers that have been lifted up that victories have been won! Each day between now and the end of the campaign, please commit to pray for victory over abortion in the state of Indiana and across the nation. Christ told us that some demons can only be driven out by prayer and fasting. The two go hand in hand. Prayer keeps us rooted in the fact that it is our desire to carry out God’s will. Fasting is a sacrifice that helps us reach beyond our own limitations with God’s help. Fasting is not a Christian diet; it is a form of physical prayer. You can fast from food, TV, alcohol … anything that separates you from God.

2. Peaceful Vigil
The peaceful, prayerful presence at an abortion facility helps to inform the community of the evils that are taking place right in our own community. It also serves as a call to repentance for those who work at the abortion center and those who patronize the facility. We will support the 40 Days for Life Vigil outside of the Georgetown Rd, Planned Parenthood abortion facility in Indianapolis with our presence each Friday morning during Lent.

We will meet after morning Mass and caravan together. Each week a priest will be journeying with us to pray.

3. Community Outreach
We are asking that you bring the 40 Days for Life message to all that you know by asking them to participate in prayer with you. Prayer vigils will be planned at our local parishes during the 40 days of the campaign.

On the weekend prior to Ash Wednesday, March 5/6, we will have an opportunity for you to commit to support 40 Days for Life. Will you join us in the mission to bring an end to abortion and be part of the largest, most effective pro-life campaign against the evils of abortion?

Catholic Home Coming
During the six weeks after the New Year we had eight non-practicing Catholics attend our Catholic Home Coming program. The team that presented this opportunity was very impressed by the courage and commitment that those returning showed during their journey. Of the eight who began the session, some are back in full communion with the Catholic Church. Please continue to pray for those who have returned and for those who are discerning what God is calling them to do.

Our Faith is a treasure that makes us shine with the radiating light of Christ, and this light is so bright that it was never meant to be kept all for ourselves. The people living in our world are so hungry to know the Truth that saves, the Love that fulfills and the Light that shows the way, and they are unknowingly waiting for you to help them experience it! Thus, during this upcoming Lenten season, as we prepare for the suffering, death, and resurrection of our Lord, make a resolution to be a beacon of hope for all those who may not know the living Lord Jesus… for a personal encounter with Christ is an invaluable event in a human being’s life, and God has chosen us individually to spread this Greatest Gift.

It is our hope that TODAY and all through Lent that you will join us in prayer for the return of our brothers and sisters in Christ who are no longer practicing their Catholic faith. Below are many ways you can participate in the Catholic Home Coming Campaign:

Pick up a Catholic Home Coming Campaign prayer card found in the pews and in the church display areas, take it home and pray it daily.
Offer up Mass, Holy Communion, Way of the Cross, and many other devotional acts. There is a Catholic Home Coming Spiritual Bouquet card in the pews or parish office to help you make this prayerful commitment.
We have also set aside weekly hours in the Adoration Chapel to pray for the return of many souls. Please join us during these times : Sundays at 11:00 am & 10:00 pm, Mondays at 3:00 pm, Wednesdays at 10:00 am, and Saturdays at 9:00 am.
For testimonies, video, and helpful resources, visit the Catholic Home Coming web page at www.saintjoan.org.

Let us resolve to reach out to those relatives, friends, and acquaintances that are inactive or non-practicing Catholics and let us ask Our Lady for the necessary graces to make this approach.

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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January 21, 2011 +JMJ+

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Last week, Pope Benedict XVI announced that the much-anticipated beatification of Pope John Paul II will take place on May 1, Divine Mercy Sunday of this year. Here is the story.

Vatican City, Jan 14, 2011 / 10:55 am (CNA/EWTN News).- The much-anticipated beatification of Pope John Paul II will take place on May 1, the Sunday after Easter, the Vatican announced.

The healing of a French nun with Parkinson’s disease is to go down in history as the miracle that made John Paul II a “blessed.” The title is given to martyrs and other Christians to whom a miracle has been officially attributed, thus bringing them one step closer to sainthood.

Pope Benedict XVI approved the decree for the beatification of his predecessor during a Jan. 14 audience with the head of the Vatican department for saints’ causes, Cardinal Angelo Amato. John Paul II’s cause arrived in the current’s Pope’s hands for approval after doctors studied the miraculous healing of Sister Marie Simon Pierre Normand and concluded it was “scientifically unexplainable.” Following approval from theologians and Church officials, Pope Benedict promulgated the decree with his signature.

The atmosphere was electric at noon in the the Holy See’s Press Office with journalists from all over the world expecting news of the beatification decree. During the rather cheerful press briefing, Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi explained some of the details of the process and revealed preliminary plans for the ceremony.

In what some have called “record time,” the Pope’s cause was seemingly expedited through the trials to prove his sainthood. Fr. Lombardi admitted that the cause for the Pope was “facilitated” because of his “great fame of sanctity.” At Pope Benedict’s bidding, norms stipulating that saints’ causes begin five years after the individual’s death were waived. His cause, as those of others Popes and special cases, also leapfrogged others in what is usually a “first in, first examined” process. This being the case, no corners were cut, the Vatican spokesman assured. He insisted that “each of the legislative steps of the inquiry have been fulfilled, they have been taken with care. They have not been facilitated, rather the cause has proceeded with great attention and fidelity.”

Pope John Paul II’s cause is extraordinary in the history of the Church both for the speed with which it was advanced to beatification and because it will be his immediate successor to preside over the ceremony. The Pope’s cause was brought to beatification in just over five years, rivaling that of his good friend Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta for its speed.

His beatification will be celebrated by Pope Benedict XVI in St. Peter’s Square on May 1, the first Sunday after Easter. As Fr. Lombardi explained, the choice is full of significance for the late-Pope, who died just a day before the celebration of Divine Mercy Sunday in 2005. That year, it fell on April 3. The date changes from year-to-year, but is always the first Sunday after Easter.

“For those who followed John Paul II’s pontificate, it is a special Sunday,” said Fr. Lombardi. It is a “fundamental date in his life and his encounter with the Lord,” the Vatican spokesman said. He explained that it is the day the Church celebrates the apparition of Jesus to the disciples in the upper room and the institution of Confession. The day was particularly important to the late-pontiff because it was the day in 2000 that he celebrated the canonization of St. Faustina Kowalska and declared that the Sunday after Easter should henceforth be known as “Divine Mercy Sunday.” Sister Faustina, known for promoting the Divine Mercy chaplet, which is prayed using a rosary, said that all who go to Confession and receive the Eucharist at Mass the Sunday after Easter will be given full remission of their sins.Divine Mercy is “absolutely fundamental” to the pontificate of John Paul II. “It’s precisely the vision, we could say, of the pontificate of John Paul II that has this theme of the Divine Mercy,” Fr. Lombardi said.

The staff at St. Peter’s Basilica is already preparing for what is sure to be a grand occasion, drawing pilgrims from all over the globe. Workers are already cleaning the mosaics in the Chapel of St. Sebastian, just next to Michelangelo’s Pietà, where the soon-to-be “blessed’s” body will lie. John Paul II’s body will be taken from the crypt below and set below the chapel’s altar. Because the process came about so quickly after his death, Fr. Lombardi said that the body will not be exhumed for examination. A marble stone bearing his name “Beatus Iovannes Paulus” will adorn the coffin. The body will not be exposed, as others are in the basilica, “at least not for now,” said Fr. Lombardi.

Blessed Pope Innocent XI’s tomb, currently found below the altar in the same chapel, will be moved nearer the high altar of St. Peter’s to make room for the new tenant. His body will be put under the altar located below the famous mosaic rendering Raphael’s The Transfiguration. The transfer will take place some time before the May 1 beatification, said Fr. Lombardi. He said that other logistical details have yet to be decided for the celebration.

During his audience with Cardinal Amato, Pope Benedict also approved two miracles attributed to other figures, recognized the martyrdom of five religious sisters from Bosnia/Herzogovina, and certified that “heroic virtue” was found in the lives of five other candidates for sainthood. One of the five who were seen to have exhibited extraordinary virtue in their lives is Fr. Nelson Baker of Buffalo, New York. He spent much of his 95 years of life in service to orphaned children.

In an interview with Vatican Radio, the prefect of the Vatican’s office for the causes of saints said that all “are fascinating figures whose fame of saintliness is widespread in their countries of origin and who always constitute very current examples in their evangelical testimony.”

During the briefing, Fr. Lombardi also noted their significance. “Sainthood in the Church is numerous,” he said, “it’s just that there some great protagonists.”

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December 25, 2010 +JMJ+

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

“No one, whether shepherd or wise man, can approach God here below except by kneeling before the manger at Bethlehem and adoring him hidden in the weakness of a new-born child.” (CCC 563)

On behalf of our Pastoral and parish staffs of St. Joan of Arc we would like to wish you a very…

…Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!!!

As a gift from St. Joan of Arc, we are giving each family the book, Confessions of a Mega Church Pastor…How I Discovered the Hidden Treasures of the Catholic Church. The author, Allen Hunt, was a Methodist Pastor for fifteen years before he converted to Catholicism in 2008. He has very creatively taken the treasures of the Catholic Church and applied them to the analogy of an old house. In doing so, he guides us through the house and points out what he has discovered there. By reading this book we hope that you’ll discover in the walls of that house the beauty and truth and wonder that he has.

To follow in the same footsteps as last year, I encourage us all to please consider spiritually adopting a baby for the next 9 months and to make a personal commitment to name and pray daily for this unborn child. We are a Pro-Life parish and we must practice what we believe. Our goal at St. Joan is to spiritually adopt 4,000 babies to symbolize the 4,000 babies lost to abortion each day. There are cards available for you to name your baby. The cards will be placed at the statue of Our Lady of Guadalupe, Protectress of the Unborn, for the next 9 months. We will celebrate the birth of our babies on September 25th, 2011 with a “birth”-day party.

As a Spiritual New Year’s resolution, we will be reading the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Please consider joining us in continuing to learn about our rich Catholic faith. All of the needed information for this program will be available at Fr. Ted’s corner and on the website.

We thank God constantly for the blessing of you and we will continue to hold you up in our prayers. Thank you for being a part of our parish family. You are loved and appreciated!

As we meditate on the miracle of Baby Jesus coming to be united with us in love may we continue to love Him more each day with all of our heart, soul, mind and strength.

In the Love of the Holy Family ~ Jesus, Mary and Joseph,

Fr. Ted
Pastor

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November 27, 2010 �
First Sunday of Advent +JMJ+

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Many of us just had the opportunity to spend time with family and friends in the celebration of Thanksgiving Day. While preparing to see my family in Lafayette I was reminded of all that I have to be thankful for…my parents, siblings and their spouses, nieces and nephew, my faith and love of Jesus, the Church, the kind and giving parishioners of the parishes I shepherd – St. Joan of Arc and St. Patrick. I think that Thanksgiving is the “kick-off” of the season of reunions and the building and nurturing of friendships. We all have a deep longing and appreciation for friendships that bring us joy. We wait in joyful anticipation of what is to come.

O come, O come, Emmanuel,
and ransom captive Israel,
that mourns in lonely exile here
until the Son of God appear.

God created us to delight and thrive in intimacy and community, in loving and being loved. We were created to know these precious gifts, first of all, in our friendship with God. And if Christmas is the celebration of God’s presence, of God’s entering into a new and astonishing level of intimacy with us by actually becoming one of us, then Advent is a season of deepening our appreciation for friendships of love and intimacy. How might we do that, beginning with our friendship with God? What gifts of the spirit and heart could we offer?

What better way to renew our friendship with God this Advent than to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation? God is inviting us to “come home” and is waiting for us with a warm and joyful embrace. Look into your heart and ask yourself if reconciliation is needed with a friend, colleague or family member during this time of preparation for the coming of our Lord. St. Joan of Arc’s Parish Penance service is Thursday, December 2 at 6:30 pm and St. Patrick’s is December 15 at 7:00 pm. We will also offer additional confession times throughout Advent. Please see the Advent/Christmas Guide for more details.

Another spiritual gift that we can offer to God during Advent is to go to God the way God came to us – in and through a body. Jesus reminds us that when the Bridegroom is gone then we need to fast (Mk. 2:20). Fasting is a very powerful form of prayer. We tend to associate fasting only with the season of Lent, but the three legged stool of prayer, fasting and almsgiving represents the core of our response to God’s invitation to a relationship of intimacy. Each leg of the stool is important not just for one or the other seasons of the liturgical year, but for Christian living throughout the year, especially during a time of preparation for a major celebration such as Christmas or Easter. Please join me and my Associate Pastors in fasting during the Fridays of Advent. Our intention is the return of fallen away Catholics to the faith.

Prayer, another leg of that stool, also represents a valuable spiritual gift we can offer in this season both to God and for others. As this is the season for the giving of gifts with a generous heart and spirit, if Sunday Mass is what you normally do, how about “topping” that by attending Mass on another day of the week, visiting with Jesus in Adoration, or attending one of our many Advent activities (more in next week’s letter about those!). And in return, we receive the inestimable gift of an intensification of God’s own life within us.

The third leg of that stool, almsgiving, can take many expressions. If almsgiving is a contribution to another’s lack or need, then sometimes our simple presence is the most appreciated spiritual gift we can offer.

Advent: the season for spiritual gifts both given and received. And at the heart of it all is friendship. How will you deepen yours with your Loved One, He who is Love– Jesus and your loved ones?

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski

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November 2, 2010 +JMJ+

All Souls Day

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

This month on November 1 we celebrated All Saints Day. We pray that by God’s grace we will become who we are created to be - a saint in the Communion of Saints! Today we also celebrate All Soul’s Day – a day specially set apart that we may remember and pray for our dear ones who have gone to their eternal reward, and who are currently in a state of ongoing purification. In fact, the Catholic Church sets aside the entire month of November to remember those that have passed before us. Why should we pray for the dead during the month of November?-“nothing unclean shall enter heaven.” Revelation: 21:27
Let’s review how history plays into the belief that we should pray for those who have died.

Ancient belief:
1) People of all religions have believed in the immortality of the soul, and have prayed for the dead.
2) The Jews, for example, believed that there was a place of temporary bondage from which the souls of the dead would receive their final release. The Jewish Talmud states that prayers for the dead will help to bring greater rewards and blessings to them. Prayer for the souls of the departed is retained by Orthodox Jews today, who recite a prayer known as the Mourner’s Kaddish for eleven months after the death of a loved one so that the loved one may be purified.
3) Jesus and the apostles shared this belief and passed it on to the early Church. “Remember us who have gone before you, in your prayers,” is a petition often found inscribed on the walls of the Roman catacombs (Lumen Gentium-50).
4) The liturgies of the Mass in various rites dating from the early centuries of the Church include “Prayers for the Dead.”
5) The early Fathers of the Church encouraged this practice. Tertullian (A.D. 160-240) wrote about the anniversary Masses for the dead, advising widows to pray for their husbands. St. Augustine remarked that he used to pray for his deceased mother, remembering her request: “When I die, bury me anywhere you like, but remember to pray for me at the altar.”
6) The synods of Nicea, Florence and Trent encouraged the offering of prayers for the dead, citing scriptural evidences to prove that there is a place or state of purification for those who die with venial sins on their souls.
7) Theological reason: According to Revelation: 21:27: “nothing unclean shall enter heaven.” Holy Scripture also teaches that even “the just sin seven times a day.” Since it would be contrary to the mercy of God to punish such souls with venial sins in hell, they are seen as entering a place or state of purification, called Purgatory, which combines God’s justice with His mercy. This teaching is also contained in the doctrine of the Communion of Saints.

Biblical evidences:
1) II Maccabees, 12:46 is the main biblical text incorporating the Jewish belief in the necessity of prayer and sacrifice for the dead. The passage (II Maccabees 12: 39-46), describes how Judas, the military commander, “took up a collection from all his men, totaling about four pounds of silver and sent it to Jerusalem to provide for a sin offering” (II Macc. 12: 43). The narrator continues, ”If he had not believed that the dead would be raised, it would have been foolish and useless to pray for them.”
2) St. Paul seems to have shared this traditional Jewish belief. At the death of his supporter Onesiphorus, he prayed: “May the Lord grant him mercy on that Day” (II Timothy: 1:18). Other pertinent Bible texts: Matthew 12:32, I Corinthians, 3:15, Zechariah 13:19, Sirach 7:33.

The Church’s teaching: The Church’s official teaching on purgatory is plain and simple. There is a place or state of purification called Purgatory, where souls undergoing purification can be helped by the prayers of the faithful (Council of Trent). Some modern theologians suggest that purgatory may be an “instant” purification immediately after death, varying in intensity from soul to soul, depending on the state of each individual.

How do we help the “holy souls”? The Catechism of the Catholic Church (No. 1032) recommends prayer for the dead in conjunction with the offering of the Eucharistic Sacrifice (The Mass). The CCC also encourages “almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead.” Let us not forget to pray for our dear departed, have Masses offered for them, visit their graves, and make daily sacrifices for them. Remember we should be helping those holy souls in purgatory year round, not only in November.

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron, pray for us!

Fr. Ted

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October 5, 2010 +JMJ+

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

In HIM we are one

The Fruitful Harvest 2010 campaign has officially begun. We hope you enjoyed the video prepared by Bishop Timothy Doherty and the people of the diocese. It’s a great time to witness to the ministry of our Holy Father, the Universal Church as well as our Local Church’s needs. Quoting Bishop Doherty, “I know these are challenging economic times. Your support, encouragement and contributions are vital to the success of Fruitful Harvest and the Church’s ability to be faithful to her mission. With your sacrificial help we will meet the goal needed to fund what we are called to do as a Diocesan Church for the next two years.” As your pastor, I ask for your prayerful discernment of making a sacrificial gift that assists not only our Fruitful Harvest goal of $283,751 but also our dovetail goal of $650,000, which will give us the means as a parish family to make our monthly mortgage payments. What a blessing we have in the St. Joan of Arc campus and the facilities that help us continue to grow spiritually as well as in knowledge of our Faith through catechesis and evangelization as well as the ability to welcome others to grow in their faith and love for the Lord. Daily, St. Joan of Arc’s wonderful facilities provide a home for her many ministries. We are blessed. Please continue to pray for the success of this campaign and that God will continue to bless us with the gift of faith and a generous spirit to achieve our goal. In HIM we are one.

October is Respect Life Month – “The measure of love is to love without measure.”

Human life belongs only to God: for this reason whoever attacks human life, in some way attacks God Himself. (The Gospel of Life [Evangelium Vitae], no. 9)

St. Joan of Arc is committed to spreading God’s word that all life is sacred. Over the past year, we spiritually adopted over 1,300 babies in danger of abortion, celebrated their “birth”-days and helped coordinate the Celebration of Life Rally that took place in Kokomo on October 2. At the rally, 40 Days for Life co-founder Shawn Carney gave an inspirational talk to exhort all people to pray for and to witness to life. The goal of the 40 Days for Life organization is “The Body of Christ seeks God’s graces to change to a culture of life, and end abortion.”

40 Days for Life, which began September 22th and ends October 31st is a community-based campaign that draws attention to the evil of abortion through the use of a three-point program:

Prayer and fasting
Constant vigil
Community outreach

It is not too late to begin. Consider fasting from something you enjoy or give up a meal each day. Join others every Friday during these 40 Days for Life at the abortion center in Indianapolis (corner of Georgetown and 86th street) to pray and witness to life. We will caravan down to the clinic on Friday, October 15th after 8:15 am Mass. For more information about 40 Days for Life, please visit www.40daysforlife.com.

Mary our Mother and St. Joan of Arc our Patron, pray for us!

Fr. Ted

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September 1, 2010 +JMJ+

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

I am pleased to announce a new program that St. Joan of Arc will be offering for the young women of our parish. Young women from grades 3-12 are invited to join the group called Totus Tuus. Totus Tuus, which was Pope John Paul II’s apostolic motto, refers to our Blessed Mother and means “totally yours,” indicating that we are to go to Jesus through Mary. Developed by our summer intern, Carly O’Connor, Totus Tuus will be a formation and fellowship group that will help our young women go to Jesus through Mary.

Totus Tuus will be different than Theotokos in that its focus will not be towards religious vocation. Instead, the focus of Totus Tuus will be to help our young women grow in virtue and holiness.

Here are some of the key aspects of the program:

† Leading the Rosary monthly before Sunday Masses

† Meeting once per month for a lesson in virtue modeled by a saint and a fun activity

† Regular service opportunities

† Regular social events

Totus Tuus itself will be divided into three different age groups that will individually meet every month:

Fides: Latin for “faith,” Fides will be for girls from the 3-5 grades (Leader ~ Cathy Clearwaters )

Spes: Latin for “hope,” Spes will be for girls from 6-8 grades (Leader ~ Therese Bath )

Caritas: Latin for “charity,” Caritas will be for our high school women (Leader ~ Jill Aaron )

Please call the Parish Office (865-9964) for more information. Registration forms will be available online, at the Parish Office and at my information corner in the kiosk. There will also be a $20 yearly membership fee to cover the costs of various religious medals, cards, and fun activities.

I encourage you to seriously consider registering your daughters for this wonderful program!

In the hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Ted
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July 10 , 2010 +JMJ+

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I recently returned from an 11 day pilgrimage from Italy in celebraton of the ending of The Year for the Priest. It was an awesome experience as there were 50 pilgrims who travelled together. We had many youth on this trip who worked very hard this past year to raise money so that they could go. We specifically visited Rome, Nettuno, San Giovanni Rotondo, Lanciano, Siena and Assisi and enjoyed visiting many sacred places and getting to know one another.

I will share the highlights that I experienced in each location that we visited. I love Rome and always enjoy being there. As you know, I lived in Rome for 2 years shortly after being ordained a priest, in 2000 – 2002 and I always look forward to going back. For many, celebrating Mass at St. Paul Outside the Walls and attending the Papal Angelus Blessing were the highlights of the time spent in Rome. However, walking the streets of Rome, eating pasta and visiting my favorite gelato shop for tartufo is also reason to celebrate! For those of you who don’t know - tartufo is chocolate ice cream with a frozen cherry in the center and whipped cream on top – and is my favorite dessert while in Rome!

Our group also visited Nettuno, located on the western coast of Italy and home of St. Maria Goretti. In the shrine there is a crypt where lie the mortal remains of the saint. We also traveled south to San Giovanni Rotondo to visit the home of St. Padre Pio. His remains are in a tomb that we were able to touch. To conclude our visit there, we were each blessed with a glove that Padre Pio wore to cover the painful stigmata in his hands that he experienced for many years of his life.

We saw two different Eucharistic miracles. The first was in Lanciano in the church of St. Legontian. During Holy Mass, after the two-fold consecration, the host was changed into live Flesh and the wine was changed into live Blood, which coagulated into five globules, irregular and differing in shape and size. The second Eucharistic miracle was in Siena at the Church of St. Francis. Thieves broke into the church and stole the gold Ciborium containing 351 Consecrated Hosts. When it was realized what had happened, all events of the day were halted and prayers recited for the safe return of the Consecrated Hosts. Three days later, they were found protruding from the church poor box and the correct amount of hosts were there. The Host containing Our Lord were cleaned and then processed slowly back to the church where They were venerated. The Hosts were not consumed at that time. Years went by and periodically Hosts were consumed and were always found to be fresh. In 1850 the Bishop ordered testing which determiined the Hosts to be fresh. They also checked unconsecrated hosts put in an airtight box in 1789 and little was left of them. This miracle is of importance to the faithful as the Lord kept it in existence in the original species of unleavened bread. In all the other miracles, the bread and wine changed into another form.

We also visited Assisi the home of St. Francis and St. Clare. We had Mass at the tomb of both of these saints. The Mass at the tomb of St. Clare was very special since we were able to pray for our very own Poor Clares living in Kokomo. During our time in Assisi the priests spent the afternoon with the youth with special time for meditation, confession, a silent walk and faith sharing. Spending that faithfilled time with the youth was very special to me and fills me with joy that in Kokomo Indiana we are raising a young Catholic generation who are truly coming to know, love and serve their Lord, Jesus Christ.

We were very blessed to have my brother’s, Frs. Andrew and Brian Dudzinski be part of our pilgrimage. It is always a blessing to experience travelling to holy places and daily celebrating Mass with them. As an added blessing, our niece, Shelby (I am with her in the the picture to the left), was able to experience this pilgrimage with us. God is good!
St. Joan of Arc pray for us!

Fr. Ted Dudzinski
Pastor

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Lent 2010

Pope Benedict XVI Lenten Message�
My Lenten letter
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The information listed below is very important to me and I want to encourage you to read it and or learn more about it.

How are we doing on Catholic Youth Formation?
Click here to see St. Joan of Arc and Sts. Joan of Arc and Patrick School Acre results.
Health Care Reform

We need to know what our government is proposing for our healthcare and how it impacts what we believe as Catholics. To read the USCCB’s position on Health Care Reform visit this website http://www.usccb.org/healthcare/.
To view a 25 slide presentation on the Catholic Church’s standing on the Healthcare Debate, please click here.

What is YOUR Temperament?

What are the four temperaments?
The four temperaments were originally proposed by Hippocrates (the “father of medical science”) 350 years before the birth of Christ, to explain differences in personalities, based on the predominant bodily fluid—hence the rather unappealing names: choleric, sanguine, phlegmatic, and melancholic. Even today these same terms are used to describe temperament, by which we mean an individual’s tendency to react in a certain way throughout their life, forming an identifiable pattern.
For example, the choleric tends to react quickly and intensely, and to take action immediately and decisively. The sanguine is your classic “people person,” known for their warmth, enthusiasm, and cheerful optimism. The melancholic is deeply thoughtful and analytic, slow to respond, skeptical, sensitive, and idealistic. The phlegmatic is usually a “peace-maker”—slow to react, calm, cooperative, and reserved.

To find out what your temperament is go to this website www.4marks.com , become a member and take the temperaments test. The test is comprised of 120 questions and takes about 20 minutes to complete.

This is what you need to do:

1. Go to the website www.4marks.com

2. Register as a member (do not use your email address as your username)

3. Choose the tab “explore” and then choose temperaments

4. Take the test! It takes about 20 minutes.

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Year of the Priest

During this Year Of The Priest please pray for the priests of the World, those in the Diocese-of-Lafayette, our priests in Kokomo, those in Seminary and those discerning the priesthood that they may be the Holy Priests that God has called them to be.

More information about the Year of the Priests:
Download the letter from the Pope.
Read the letter from the Pope.
Vatican’s website for the Year of the Priests.
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops – Year of the Priests.
Special Indulgence for the Year of the Priests.

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