Florida Catholic | Faith Around The State

October 2008

Catholic women’s council: bigger than bake sales

SARASOTA | Throughout its 40–year history, the Florida Council of Catholic Women has been a source of support, empowerment and education for Catholic women who seek to make a difference in the world, responding with Gospel values to the needs of the church and society locally and globally. Still, many people know its members only by their parish bake sales. At their biennial conference in Sarasota Oct. 23–26 state council members had a lot to say about spirituality, service, sisterhood, social justice and more. Read what members of the council have to say here...

Denise O’Toole Kelly | 10.27.08 | Return To Top | Florida Catholic Online Home Page

‘Food For Our Families,’ simple and basic please

ORLANDO | After Tropical Storm Fay, generous Catholics donated bottles of high-end baby formula and jars of expensive baby food to farmworkers in the Diocese of Venice.

At the end of the distribution period, many of those jars had been left on the table in favor of other staples and less pricey brands that also had been donated. Many of the mothers decided not to pick up the fancy baby food simply because it’s too expensive for them to buy on a normal basis, said Sheila Hopkins, associate director for social concerns for the Florida Catholic Conference in Tallahassee. Farmworker moms often puree for babies the rice, beans and corn that the rest of the family eats, or buy cheaper brands.

Simple baby items and basic staples are part of the Food for Our Families drive sponsored by the Florida Catholic newspaper and the Florida Catholic Conference. Beginning Oct. 24 and continuing to Nov. 23, Farmworker Sunday, Catholics across Florida are being asked to donate specific items to help provide hope and stock the pantries of the people who put food on Florida’s kitchen tables. Individuals, parishes and organizations can participate in the effort by organizing their own drives to collect the items locally and delivering them to drop-off locations across Florida.

Read the complete article here.

Karen Osborne | 10.22.08 | Return To Top | Florida Catholic Online Home Page

Respect Life Conference: In their own words

TALLAHASSEE | When all was said and done, the dozen speakers at this year’s Florida Respect Life Conference in Tallahassee offered participants inspiration, education and affirmation, with a special emphasis the groundbreaking 1968 declaration, “Humanae Vitae,” for the occasion of its anniversary.

If you missed the 22nd annual conference, don’t worry. The Florida Catholic’s Jean Gonzalez was there with camera and notebook in hand and has distilled the event in a way that’s second–best to being there. Her coverage begins here.

10.16.08 | Return To Top | Florida Catholic Online Home Page

Shroud of Turin expert has presentation, will travel

Kissimmee resident, John C. Iannone has been studying and writing about the Shroud of Turin for nearly three decades.

DELAND | Florida resident John C. Iannone considers the study of the Shroud of Turin the “greatest CSI case in history.”

“You start to get the idea there’s only one person in history” whose image is imprinted on a centuries–old cloth,” he told a crowd of more than 100 gathered at St. Peter Parish in DeLand Sept. 23 to hear his presentation, “The Mystery of the Holy Shroud: A Case for Authenticity.”

The Shroud of Turin is a 14–foot, 3–inch–by 3–foot–7–inch linen cloth believed by many to be the burial cloth of Jesus, and believed by others to be a medieval fraud. The cloth shows a life–size photonegative image of a man with markings that believers say match the wounds Jesus suffered in his passion and death. The church does not take an official stance on the cloth’s authenticity, deferring to science in determining its age and place of origin. Scientists have studied and argued about the shroud for decades, and the question of authenticity remains controversial. The cloth continues to fascinate the nonscientific world. MORE...

Gerri Bauer | 10.13.08 | Return To Top | Florida Catholic Online Home Page

Multimedia: The Saint In The Family

OCALA | On Oct. 12, 2008, Pope Benedict XVI will canonize Blessed Sister Alphonsa Muttathupadathu, a former Clarist nun who died in 1946. She is the first native of India to be canonized.

St. Alphonsa’s great-great-nephew, Father George Maniangattu is parochial vicar of Our Lady of the Springs Parish in Ocala. Photojournalist Jannet Walsh met with Father George recently and the priest relates his thoughts and memories in the Florida Catholic’s multimedia presentation, “The Saint In The Family.”

Ed Foster Jr. | 10.11.08 | Return To Top | Florida Catholic Online Home Page

Hands–free Hail Marys

Posted: 10.09.08

ORLANDO | “ ... now and at the hour of our death. Amen.”

As I finished saying the last Hail Mary of the first decade on the CD “Praying the Rosary with St. Alphonsus Maria Liguori,” the thought occurred that this – or any hour on Interstate 4 – could be the hour of my death. Pushing the unwelcome notion out of mind during the Glory Be, I then listened to the Redemptorist narrator read St. Alphonsus’ reflection on the second joyful mystery, Mary’s visit to her cousin Elizabeth, keeping my eyes on road and my hands on the wheel.

Audio versions – many with music, Scripture readings or the writings of a saint with a special devotion to the Blessed Mother – allow praying the rosary to be a hands-free activity that can be performed while walking for exercise, washing the dishes or driving.

But should it be? Opinions on that are as diverse as the selection of audio rosaries available on CD and on the Internet for download to your MP3 player. MORE...

Denise O’Toole Kelly | 10.09.08 | Return To Top | Florida Catholic Online Home Page

Diocesan money managers: worried, but not panicked

Posted: 10.02.08

MIAMI | People who look after the church’s money say they are worried, but not panicked about the nation’s current financial woes.

Meeting in Miami Sept. 28–Oct. 1, members of the Diocesan Fiscal Management Conference told the Florida Catholic the effects of the current banking and credit crisis have yet to manifest themselves in diminished donations to parishes.

They also said that although the church invests conservatively and with a long–term mindset, diocesan investment portfolios — along with everybody else’s — have taken a hit during recent market downturns, especially the Dow’s 700–point drop Sept. 29 after the House of Representatives failed in its first attempt to pass a rescue plan for the banking industry. MORE...

Ana Rodriguez-Soto | 10.02.08 | Return To Top | Florida Catholic Online Home Page