MATUNA SI YU’OSR O M A N C A T H O L I C N E W S P A P E R O F T H E A R C H D I O C E S E O F A G A Ñ A , G U A M

SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011 VOL.65 NO. 028

MATUNA SI YU’OS THE FIFTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

38 Days left until World Youth Day (WYD)! Pilgrims from all around the world, including Guam, will head to Ma-drid, Spain this August bearing witness to our Lord Jesus Christ for the WYD. This will be a time for the youth to see the uni-versality of our Catholic Church, be with our leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI, celebrate our Catholic faith, and to help youth find their vocation. The inspiration of vocations discovered through the WYD pilgrim’s experience are seen throughout Guam, as various pilgrims have been touched to find their vocation at these spiritual pilgrimages.

“A man who discerns a vocation to the priesthood in this day and age faces many challenges. While some may try to dis-

courage him, WYD supports him,” said Richard Kidd, a third year seminarian at St. Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park, Cali-fornia. Kidd continued, “The Daily prayer, the presence of our Holy Father, the thou-sands of Catholic youth, the activities and the seminars all create an atmosphere that speaks to a discerning heart.”

For Kidd, Australia was his first WYD experience, where not only was he able to visit another country, but was given the

opportunity to meet other Catholics from around the world and talk to them about Christ and the priesthood.

This year’s WYD theme is “Planted and Built Up in Jesus Christ, Firm in the Faith”. The action of being “planted” calls our attention to this Sunday’s Gospel about the “Sower and the Seed” wherein

the Word of God is planted on various types of soil, but only those who fall on rich soil will produce much fruit. “This August, the Lord will draw thousands of individuals to be planted into the rich soil of World Youth Day in Madrid, Spain,” said Fr. Paul A.M. Gofigan, Director of

Vocations for the Archdiocese of Agaña. Gofigan continued, “We pray that those who are called to serve as priests or reli-gious during this outpouring of the Spirit will heed the call of God, not only to bear much fruit, but to be the Sowers of God’s Word.”

Emil Escalera, 20, of Dededo, has al-ways wanted to be a priest growing up.

“Every time I saw a priest celebrating Mass,

Monsignor James L.G. Benavente, rector of the Cathedral-Basilica in Hagåtña, de-fended the Roman Catholic Church on Guam in response to the July 6 headline article printed in the Pacific Daily News. “EPA Details Dumpsite” was written by PDN report-er Brett Kelman and describes an illegal dumpsite as being “taller than the cathedral in Hagåtña” in its opening paragraph.

The response comes after numerous individuals made phone calls to Msgr. Bena-vente expressing their disappointment with PDN’s unacceptable comparison of the dumpsite to the church. The Cathedral-Basilica is the Mother Church for Guam’s Cath-olics in the Archdiocese of Agaña and is a registered landmark of the Guam Historic Preservation Trust.

Guam Catholics React to PDN Comparison of Basilica to “Dumpsite”

SEE BASILICA PAGE 4

SEE PHOTOS PAGE 5

WYD2011

WYD

TOTO

IncreasesVocations

By Jennifer Louise DullaFor the U Matuna Si Yu’os

John and Kaylyn Bautista light the unity candles during their celebration of Holy Matrimony on August 7, 2010 at San Vicente/San Roke Catholic Church in Barrigada.

Photo courtesy of Kaylyn Bautista

Photo courtesy of Expressions Studio

SEE VOCATIONS PAGE 2

This is part 2 of a 6 part series leading up to World Youth Day in Madrid, Spain. The theme of this year is: “Planted and built up in the faith, firm in Jesus Christ, “ from Collosians 2:7.

CelebratesFiesta

His Excellency Anthony Sablan Apuron, O.F.M. Cap., D.D., brings incense on behalf of the faithful at the Immacuate Heart of Mary Church in Toto at its Festive Mass.

2 SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

MATUNA SI YU’OSC A T H O L I C N E W S P A P E R

is an entity of theArchdiocesan Development Group

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PublisherMost Reverend

Anthony Sablan ApuronO.F.M. Cap., D.D.

DirectorReverend MonsignorJames L.G. Benavente

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Catholic Charities Appeal...........3Sunday Gospel & Reflection.......3Toto Fiesta Photos.......................5Pale Jesus Baza Duenas..............7

WORLD YOUTH DAY

made me want to be one myself,” said Escalera. During the 2008 WYD in Australia, Escalera was very moved to see so many young men standing for their faith dur-ing the Pope’s Vocational Call.

“WYD helped me, seeing a lot of men standing up during the Vo-cational Call inspired me to con-

tinue my life and discernment to the priesthood,” Escalera shared. Escalera is one of four young men are joining the Capuchin Friars as postulants this August. Postu-lancy is the first year of formation in the Capuchin Order. “I am very excited and nervous,” he stated,

“I’m leaving my family and friends that have helped and prayed for me on my discernment. This is my first step by getting to know the Friary, living together, pray-ing together, taking classes to-gether.” Escalera exclaimed, “I can’t wait to learn how to live a Capuchin life!”

While many find their voca-tion to the religious and priest-hood during WYD pilgrimages, Kaylyn and John Bautista found

their vocation to the married life after the WYD pilgrimage in Australia in 2008. Prior to the WYD in Australia, they both left themselves open to whatever God might call them to. “I remember trying to defend myself from the distractions by staying close to God through prayer and actively participating in the events - morn-ing prayer, gospels by chance, and what seemed like endless walking,” said Kaylyn. After each WYD pilgrimage, usually after the vigil with the Holy Father, the youth of the Neocatechume-nal Way have a meeting with the initiators, Kiko Argüello and Car-men Hernández and hold a Vo-cational Calling. Invitations for men and women to devote them-selves to God and the Church are made. Men and women are called to “stand up” if they have a desire for the priesthood and religious life, respectively. “At this meeting, John and I left ourselves open to doing God’s will. Obviously, nei-ther of us stood up,” Kaylyn con-tinued, “I felt like God was saying,

“Here is the man I created just for you.” After the WYD pilgrimage in Australia, Kaylyn and John be-gan a period of discernment for a

Christian marriage. After one and a half years, they celebrated the Sacrament of Marriage on August 7, 2010 at San Vicente/San Roke Catholic Church in Barrigada.

“My marriage is a gift from God. I’m so grateful for having a won-derful, Catholic husband,” Kaylyn noted.

James Arriola and Alfonso “AJ” Escamilla, two seminar-ians from the Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Semi-nary in Yona have also found their vocation to the priesthood given their experience from pre-vious WYD pilgrimages.

“If it was my will, I wouldn’t have stood up during the Voca-tional Call,” said Arriola. “The Holy Spirit took over and next thing I knew, I was running to the stage to receive a blessing from the Pope and many bishops from all over the world,” Arriola continued, “Half the time I was walking then running to the stage, I was thinking “What am I doing? I never had this feeling before! I

want to cry! I’m mad! What are my friends going to think?” Then I saw my bishop, Archbishop An-thony Apuron on the stage, and was completely amazed to see my bishop right in front of me, giving me the blessing,” he continued,

“This was more of a confirmation for me from the Lord ensuring that he would take care of me and I’m not alone if I put the Lord first

and myself last.” Escamilla, who is in his third

year at the Seminary shared, “When reached my 20s, I entered into a big crisis because I felt like I wasn’t going anywhere in my life and felt like it was an utter mess,” he continued, “So I was banking on the pilgrimage hoping I would find an answer, an indicator to point me in the right direction. And I did. I stood up during the Vocational Call.” Standing up to the vocation for the priesthood, as Escamilla would describe, “is the best thing” that has happened to him. “I’m not in an environ-ment I use to be in. I’m happy to spend time with the Lord and to have a real intimacy with him,” he said.

Every parent wants the best for their children. Antonette and Luis Camacho of Yona have five children who have been to many WYD pilgrimages. The Cama-cho’s and have seen how the Lord has taken care of their children and has graced their family with

abundant blessings. The Cama-cho’s sons, Luis Jr. and Gabriel have answered their calling to the priesthood and their daugh-ter Danielle has found her vo-cation to the married life. Luis stated, “It’s unbelievable how big God’s plans are. My son Luis, also known as “Luigi” is serving as an itinerant in Washington D.C. and I see how the Lord has provided a clear road map and gives him di-rection,” Luis continued, “When my son told me he wanted to join the seminary, I was happy for him because as a parent, I desire to allow God to work through my kids.” Antonette is really excited for her sons David and Joshua who will be attending the WYD in Madrid. “I can see how anxious and excited my sons are for WYD and to receive an answer from the Lord in discerning their vocation,” Antontte shared. “I believe God is taking much better care of my sons, more than I would as a fa-ther,” Luis noted.

“The events and experiences

of World Youth Day have always etched an indelible mark in the minds and hearts of the pilgrims. We simply have to pray that these indelible memories will translate into service to our God through the priesthood and religious life,” Fr. Paul Gofigan noted.

Vocations: “It’s unbelievable how big God’s plans are.”CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Seminarian Richard Kidd is pictured after a Rite of Institution of Lector at St. Patrick Seminary in Menlo Park, California. Rich-ard is in his third year at the St. Patrick Seminary and is studying Theology.

Youth pilgrims from the parishes of San Dimas in Merizo and San Dionisio in Umatac are pictured during the 2008 WYD in Sydney, Australia.

Fr. Paul A.M. Gofigan, Director of Vocations for the Archdiocese of Agaña is pictured with Emil Escalera, of Dededo. Escalera is one of four young men are join-ing the Capuchin Friars as postu-lants this August. Postulancy is the first year of formation in the Capuchin Order.

Alfonso Escamilla (center) is pictured with pilgrims holding the Guam flag during the 2008 WYD in Sydney, Australia. Escamilla stood up during the Holy Father’s Vocational Call during the WYD in Australia and is a third year seminarian at the Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Yona.

Photo courtesy of Richard Kidd

Photo courtesy of Becky Aguon

Photo courtesy of Jessica Blas

Photo courtesy of Jennifer Louise Dulla

Photo courtesy of Emil Escalera

James Arriola processes into the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral Basilica in Hagatña during Pope Benedict XVI’s 60th Sacerdotal Anniversary Mass on Wednesday, June 29, 2011. Arriola stood up during the Holy Father’s Vocational Call during the WYD in Australia and is a third year seminarian at the Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Yona.

3SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

Refleksion Ibangeliu ginen Atsubispo

ARCHDIOCESAN

What is in a word, a word that once spoken vanishes and is forgotten? For so many centuries, people have uttered countless words beyond recall, so many words forgotten in the passage of time.

Yet, one Word remains—the Word ut-tered by the Eternal God. The Word that reverberates throughout human history, that echoes even beyond time and space. The Word unceasingly looks for a gener-ous heart that will nourish and care for it.

The Word is sown in the soil of our hearts and if your heart is fertile, then the Word sprouts until it bears fruit. The Word that we gladly welcome and accept into our hearts will then become human as it trans-forms us into its likeness.

May your day be filled with love and may Almighty God bless you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Archbishop Anthony Sablan Apuron, O.F.M. Cap., D.D.Sisters and Brothers,

Mane’lu-hu: Hafa sustansia-na i palabra, i palabra ni yanggen masangan malingo yan manmaleffa hit? Siklo

put siklo meggai taotao siha sumangan ti mantufungun na palabras siha ni ti sina mahasso, sen meggai palabras ni manmaleffa hit gi fina’pos i tiempo.

Lao un dangkolon palaba ha’ sumaga, era, i palabra ni sinangan i Taihinekkok na Yu’os. I palabra ni yumeyengyong i fina’pos i istoria-ta komu taotao, ni o’opan ini’ipus i tiempo yan lugat. Este na palabra ti papara man espiha un odda’ ni manrisisibi kosaki sina dumok-

ko’ yan dumangkolo’ guatu gi binila-na. Este na pala-bra manespipiha un geftao na korason ni sina muna’la’la’ gue’ yan umadahi gue’. Este na palabra matat-anom gi edda’ i korason-ta ya yanggen riku para tinekcha’-na pues i palabra siempre ufanokcha’ yan u gai prudukto. i pala-bra ni ta risibi magogof yan ta ak-septa guatu gi halom i korason-ta siem-pre ufama’taotao taimanu ha tulalaika hit guatu gi pinarehu-na.

Ohalara ya u bula guinaiya i ha’anen-miyu ya i todu hana’sina na Yu’os infa-mbinendidi, gi na’an i Tata yan i Lahi-na yan i Espiritu Santo. Amen.

Ha dingu si Jesus i gima’ ya mata’chong papa’ gi katon tasi. Un dangkolon lina-hyan taotao manetnon gi

uriya-na pues enao na humanao ya mata’chong gi boti mientras I taotao siha manohtohge gi kanton tasi.

Ya mankuinentusi siha apbmam gi fina’ akomparasion gi taiguini na manera: ‘Un diha humanao i lanche-ru para ufanatpe simiya. Palu gi sinatpe-na mamodong gi chalan tao-tao, ya manmatto I paluma ya makan-no’. Palu gi sinatpe-na mamodong gi halom acho’, anai didide’ odda’.

Man-dokko’ insigi-das sa’ ti taddong I edda’., lao anai kahulu’ I atdaomanhina’me, ya ma tutuhon manmalayu sa’ didide’ hale’-niha. Lokkue’ palu gi sinatpe-nama-modong gi maolek na odda’ ya man-manokcha’ siente, pat sino sisenta, o sino trenta buettas. Kada unu debi di u gof ripara hafa hiningonok-na.’

Mina’ Kinse Damenggo Gi Otdinariu Na TiempoIBangheliu (Mateo 13:1-23)

Catholic Charities Appeal

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Available at the Cathedral-Basilica

Gift Shop

4 SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011SCHOOLS

Students of Notre Dame High School’s Summer Enrichment Pro-gram explored another of Guam’s beautiful destinations on an excur-sion to Thousand Steps in Mangilao on Tuesday June 28. Notre Dame instructors Nicole O’Mallan and Edward Tan accompanied eight stu-dents and provided outdoor lessons biology, chemistry, and geography.

This hike is part of the Summer Enrichment Program that Notre Dame provides for students so that they may continue to advance in their academics during the summer break. For more information about registration for the coming school year or other school programs, please contact Notre Dame at 789-1676 or you may visit their website at ndhsguam.com.

Notre Dame High School Hikes to Thousand Steps for Summer Enrichment ProgramBy Jessica Perez-Jackson ‘96For the U Matuna Si Yu’os

Contessa Sgambelluri, Heather Gay and Christian Blas take in Guam’s coastal beauty.

Summer Enrichment Group Photo

Students hike the limestone shelf

Photos courtesy of Jennifer Perez-Jackson

The current structure is over 50 years old but the original location embodies over three centuries of faith, culture, and tradition of the Chamorro people. The church is also home to the image of Santa Mar-ian Kamalen, the oldest known religious artifact and a symbol of faith for Catholics on Guam and the Mar-ianas. In addition, the Hagåtña location is said to be the interment site for Chief Quipuha and at least four families from the Pre-Latte period, a clear connec-tion to the indigenous people.

“I am extremely disappointed by the PDN’s poor taste in comparing an illegal dumpsite to the Cathe-

dral-Basilica, the Mother Church for Catholics on Guam,” said Monsignor Benavente.

“This is a completely insensitive oversight on the part of PDN which has caused a degree of disap-pointment, hurt, and disrespect for countless people on Guam who hold this particular church in high re-gard because of its historical significance.”

“I hope that from this mistake the PDN and its reporters will gain a deeper appreciation and under-standing of Guam’s history and people.”

PDN has since expressed its regret for the state-ment and emphasized that such statements will not occur again in the future.

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

Basilica: “completely insensitiveoversight on the part of PDN”

5PARISHESSUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011HAWAIIAN ROCK

Toto Fiesta Highlights

Fr. Joe English, OFC Cap. lifts the monstrance during the Corpus Christi procession at Our Lady of Blessed Sacrament Church in Agaña Heights

6 SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

In a previous column, we noted the three most common argu-ments used by those who prefer to use a selective morality to ab-

solve themselves from taking a public stand on sticky issues such as abortion and same-sex marriage: 1) the “separation of church and state”, 2) “We have no right to impose our religious beliefs”, and 3) “If you don’t want (fill in the blank) then don’t” (e.g. “if you don’t want an abortion don’t have one”). Working backwards, we have already discussed the last two in previous columns, so this week we will examine the concept of the “separation of church and state”.

If you have been following the local ver-sions of the debates over abortion and the legalization of same-sex unions, you are fa-miliar with shouts for the Church to “stay out of politics”. There are many good rea-sons for the Church to insert its authority into public affairs, not the least of which is the salvation of souls, ALL souls. But for our present purposes, we will address the relationship between church and state from a secular and legal perspective.

The phrase “separation of church and state” does not appear in the U.S. Consti-tution as many suppose. The First Amend-ment simply reads: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ....” The intent of the Founders was NOT to keep religion out of government but to keep government out of religion. Had it been the other way around, our founding documents and institutions would not have been so imbued with religious references (e.g. All 50 states reference “God” in their state constitutions.)

The phrase makes its first major appear-ance almost a century after the U.S. Consti-tution was penned in a case involving the Mormon Church: Reynolds v. The United States (1892). Reynolds, a Mormon, who, in accordance with the doctrine of his re-ligion, had two wives. Polygamy had been outlawed thirty years earlier, so Reynolds brought his case for multiple wives to the Supreme Court.

It appears that the Court was subject to some consternation because it first made a strange appeal to English law, and then, perhaps sensing the weak linkage, settled on the fact that the word “religion” was not defined in the Constitution and a definition would therefore have to be provided.

After some digging, the Court unearthed a letter written by Thomas Jefferson to a Baptist church wherein he referred to “a wall of separation of church and state”, a phrase which was not his own, but an echo of similar words penned in 1644 by the founder of that church, Roger Williams.

The Court, seemingly anxious to put Reynolds away, latched on to another part of the letter wherein Jefferson had opined that though government could not tell citi-zens what to think about their religion, it could tell them what they could or could not do when religious actions were judged to be

“subversive of good order.”The Court judged that polygamy was

“subversive of good order”, and deduced

that since Jefferson had written both the First Amendment and the obscure letter, Jefferson’s note was thus a clarification of the First Amendment. In other words, the Court, in effect, said, “because Jefferson said so!”

Curiously, the “evidence” found by the Court in Jefferson’s letter did not provide a definition for “religion” as the Court had sought, but, provided a basis, after some ju-dicial contortions, for a redefinition of the words “free exercise thereof...” since it es-sentially declared that while the state could not regulate religious belief, it could in fact regulate the “exercise thereof...” if that ex-ercise was judged to be “subversive”.

What made things even stranger was that while the case gave rise to the concept of “separation of church and state”, the Court itself appealed, through a reference to a previous case (Holy Trinity Church v. U.S., 1892), to the Christian basis of “com-mon law” and in so many words, condemns polygamy upon the basis that the United States is a Christian nation:

“No free government now exists in the world unless where Christianity is acknowl-edged and is the religion of the country . . .

. Christianity is part of the common law . . .

. Its foundations are broad and strong and deep . . . . It is the purest system of moral-ity . . . and only stable support of all human laws”. (Updegraph v. The Commonwealth, 1824 - as referenced in the Holy Trinity case.)

The debate over the relationship be-tween church and state came to a head in 1947 in Everson v. Board of Education wherein the words “the wall of separation of church and state” were further invoked and cemented into the legal lexicon. The Everson decision paved the path for the dis-establishment of all things religious in the public sphere, and the “separation” phrase has henceforth served as a battering ram to beat down moral opinions of every sort, but particularly those involving sexual mores.

It’s a fascinating history of a jerky sort of connect-the-dots from an obscure phrase used by a Baptist minister in 1644 to its current contrived legitimacy wherein it serves as a platform to shout down those who would dare challenge the legal rush to embrace state-sanctioned sexual freedoms. But there is still no constitutional basis to deny a public hearing of religious opinion in matters of state. In fact, the very next phrase in the First Amendment (freedom of speech) guarantees that right for everyone, including the Church, to speak freely in the public square on any matter.

Universally, the Church has the right and the authority to speak to all issues of human consequence. In the United States, it has the additional protection of the First Amendment and cannot be legally silenced. Elected officials who hide from tough mor-al positions behind the “wall of separation” either do not understand the Constitution they are elected to uphold or simply find

“the wall” a convenient place to cower. Sad-ly, they often have the company of many Christians. This column represents only the views of its author and does not necessarily reflect the views of the staff and management of the Umatuna. Tim Rohr can be reached at www.themassnever ends.com

EDITORIALS & OPINIONS

Fr. Pius Sammut, OCD

JustStories

A mother wanted to teach her daugh-ter a moral lesson. She gave the lit-tle girl a one-dollar and a five-dollar bill for church. “Put whichever one

you want in the collection plate and keep the other for yourself,” she told the girl. When they were coming out of church, the mother asked her daughter which amount she had given. “Well,” said the little girl, “I was go-ing to give the five-dollar, but just before the collection the priest said that we should all be cheerful givers. I knew I’d be a lot more cheerful if I gave the one dollar and so I did!”

Our original sin polluted nature hates giving. It tends to measure carefully our open-handedness. This is why this corrupt nature needs to be recreated, Christianity says. And all this for our benefit! My pas-tor in Canada was inspired once to put up this big poster in our Church’s lobby, “I have tried to keep things in my hands and lost them all, but what I have given into God’s hands I still possess.”

The truth is the more we give, the more we receive. “How is it that the more I give in charity, the more I have?” asked a puzzled Christian. The answer of the catechist was disarming. “Oh, as we shovel money out, He shovels it in, and the Lord has a bigger shovel!”

And we feel lighter! In his book of ser-mons The Living Faith, Lloyd C. Douglas tells the story of Thomas Hearne, who, in his journey to the mouth of the Coppermine River in Canada, wrote that a few days after they had started on their expedition, a party of Indians stole most of their supplies. His comment on the apparent misfortune was:

“The weight of our baggage being so much lightened, our next day’s journey was more swift and pleasant.” Life can be seen from different angles.

This couple gave a sizeable contribu-tion to their Church to honor the honor of their son who had just been killed in an ac-cident. When the announcement was made in Church, the wife whispered to her hus-band, “Why don’t we give the same amount in honor of each of the boys?” The husband looked at her and said, “What are you talk-ing about? Our three children are still alive. Why should we honor their memory?!”

“Exactly!’ said the woman, “Let us give the money as an expression of our gratitude for keeping them safe!”

“Give, give, give… Nothing but giving! I am tired of giving,” complained the man.

“Okay,” answered the angel. Let us make a deal! The moment God stops giving to you, you stop giving to others!”

Let us put everything in perspective. When we give, the benefits are three-dimen-sional! It helps those in need. It inspires others to give. It forms an inner character in the giver – one marked by less egotism and fewer materialistic tendencies and en-hanced awareness of other people.

Buddha is quoted to have said, “Thou-sands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.”

After all, let us be real, those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves!

GivingBy Tim RohrFor the U Matuna Si Yu’os

Ite, Missa Est

The “Wall of Separation”From the Mass to the Market: Engaging the world beyond the church doors

Greeting 60 artists who were honoring him on the 60th anniversary of his priestly ordination, Pope Benedict XVI asked them to give witness to the beauty of truth and love.

Meeting the artists July 4 at their exhibit in the atrium of the Vatican audi-ence hall, Pope Benedict said the church and art-ists must intensi-fy their dialogue and collabora-tion to make the world “more human and more beautiful.”

The Pontifical Council for Culture or-ganized the homage by the 60 artists -- the vast majority of whom were from Italy be-

cause of time constraints and the cost of shipping art, Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, council president, told Vatican Radio.

Pope Benedict celebrated the anniver-sary of his ordination June 29.

The commemorative exhibit, “The Splendor of Truth, the Beauty of Love,” in-cluded sculpture, painting, photography, music, poetry, film and architecture. Italian composer Ennio Morricone, famed for his film soundtracks, wrote a musical tribute called “The Cross” with music timed so the score itself is in the shape of a cross. The 103-year-old Brazilian architect Oscar Niemeyer sent his model for the new bell tower for the cathedral in Belo Horizonte. Also present was a work by the Italian sculp-tor Olivierio Rainaldi, whose statue of Pope John Paul II at Rome’s main train station was panned by the public and by the Vati-can newspaper.

U.S. painter Max Cole contributed a work titled “Saltflat.” The African sculptor El Anatsui contributed a cape made out of candy wrappers and bottle caps.

Pope Benedict told the artists that real beauty comes from “the perfect harmony of truth and love” and that it elicits others’

“admiration, marvel and true joy.” “The world in which we live needs the truth to shine brightly and not be obscured by lies or banality; it needs love which enflames and is not overwhelmed by pride and self-ishness,” the pope said.

Pope asks artists to fill the world with beautyBy Cindy WoodenCatholic News Service

Pope Benedict XVI

7SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011 DEVOTION & SPIRITUALITY

The theme of today’s readings is “The word of God.” A word, ei-ther spoken or writ-ten, always reflects the

person who speaks or writes it. Whenever I read a good book or listen to a nice song, I feel as if I am in contact with a living person who wrote the book or sung the lyrics. And when I read the Bible, I envision actually listening to the early prophets and later evange-lists as they are inspired to write the Word of God.

Today’s Scripture readings tell us about God’s Word and what can and should happen to it when it is spoken to you and to me. Thou-sands of people in today’s masses will hear the Word of God, but the harvest, i.e., the results, will not be the same with everyone.

In the First Reading (Is 55:10-11), Isaiah uses a metaphor of God’s abundant generosity in na-ture to underscore what the effects of God’s Word should be. He says,

“The rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats.” The truth of God and His goodness do not return unfulfilled, for such is the power of His word.

The Gospel (Mt 13:1-23) tells us the parable of the sower. Je-sus used parables when speaking to the crowd in order to compare something unfamiliar to some-thing familiar. It helps us under-stand spiritual truth by using ev-eryday objects and relationships. Parables compel listeners to dis-cover truth, while at the same time concealing the truth from those too lazy or too stubborn to see it. To those who are honestly search-ing, the truth becomes clear.

The parable of the sower is fairly easy to understand. The seed sown is the Word of God. The sower is Jesus, by Himself, or by His ministers. “Sowing the seed” is the Word proclaimed to the congregation. And, when that happens, we are unsure where it will land. Some of God’s Word will land on the ears of those who, like the stony ground, often get a good start but quickly die. They are glad to hear the Word of God, but do not profit by it. The same Word will land on the ears of those who are like the ground that we tend carefully but does not bring forth fruit. Finally, some will land on the ears of those who are like good ground whose soil brings

forth plenty. But, what exactly is the “Word”

of God? Theologians use this word “Word” in a variety of ways. In its true and proper sense, the Word of God is the Second Person of the Trinity whose human name is of course Jesus. He is the “image of the invisible God” (as St. Paul puts

it in Colossians 1:15) and the one who fulfills and gives meaning to all of God’s revelation. More to the point, He Himself is the revelation of God. The many testimonies of God’s love are derived from and brought to a climax in Jesus.

The Word of God also refers to Jesus’ message – the good news of the Kingdom of God and of salva-tion – preached by Jesus and after His resurrection by His disciples now empowered through the Holy Spirit.

Finally, the Word of God also includes the inspired writings recognized by the early Christian community – now known to us as the Old and New Testaments of the Bible. As God’s gift to the Church, they reveal God’s love for humanity. They embody in hu-man word what is embodied in the divine Word who became flesh. It is through the inspired human words of the Scriptures that one personally encounters the divine Word – Jesus Christ.

The written Word of God is more than just a book or a Sunday reading. Human ears hear many sounds, but there is a deeper kind of listening that result in spiritual understanding. If one honestly seeks God’s will, he or she will have spiritual hearing, and the parables will give them new per-spectives.

So today, speak the words to someone who will remember that you spoke to them. Make some-one happy that you passed by their way. Do something for someone and leave a trail of kindness. Let us not waste the day, but instead be sowers of the Word, be it Christ Himself or His gospel.

Have a nice week.

Gerald A.Taitano

Living The Scriptures

The Word of God“Don’t worry, be happy” so goes the song, but how

can you be happy when you are worried and wea-ried? It’s better said than done they say, but are there not things in life that you do without uttering a word that make you happy too? The happiest people in the world are those who have life’s simple pleasures. They don’t aspire for the heights of unreachable stars but simply look around for what is af-fordable and achievable with-in their means. Their needs are not complicated and we all know that simple things abound everywhere outnum-bering the complex ones. Are you one of them?

Happy people do not envy but rejoice and appreciate the good things done by others which is why they are friendly and healthy. Envy is an obstacle to one’s growth and happiness much like a blocked artery hindering blood- flow into the heart and other bodily organs. They are not jealous over the success of others but are generous with praises and compliments. They do not brood over some-one’s failure and setback, but sympathize to lend a hand. For them friendship comes first and competi-tion second.They are appreciative even of smallest gifts and quick to return favors. They are not hard to deal with but easy to go along, not demanding but understanding. Are you one of them?

Happy people are contended with what they have, they count their blessings and not what they are missing. They do not recall past injuries but re-member happy memories. They look at the past as history, the future a dream, and the present a gift. They believe in the axiom that a bird in the hand is worth two up in the tree. They are satisfied with what is enough for they know that there is no point of human satiety. Are you one of them?

Happy people do not ask, they give. They believe in the principle that the more you give, the more you receive. They do not seek for comfort but they give comfort to the grieving and sorrowing. They do not ask for especial treatment, but treat others with fair-ness and respect. Our world is packed with hungry and thirsty people not necessarily for food and wa-ter, but for recognition and praises. In contrast, our Lord rode on a donkey and refused to be crowned a

King by the adoring crowd of Jerusalem. There are those among us who do not ask for receipts but gen-erously give much with no strings attached. Are you one of them?

For happy people, money is not an issue in their pursuit of true happiness, nor is it their master and ultimate goal. Rather it is only one of the means to achieve their purpose. For them, their family, friends, and God define what happiness is. They do not succumb to lavish gifts, nor are enslaved by wealth. They believe in the dynamism of honest in-tention and hard work, strive to attain excellence through inspiration and perspiration. They believe that every moment that passes is precious and irre-placeable, and that everything in life has a purpose, no wonder they enjoy life to the fullest. Are we you one of the? If you are, then, you are truly happy. Amen on that folks!!

In her Diary entry no. 1768, St. Faustina wrote Jesus’ words; “ Know that whatever good you do to any soul, I accept it as if you had done to Me.

Tune in to KOLG 90.9 FM for the Divine Mercy prayer at 3 p.m. daily. Recite the Chaplet of Mercy for peace in the world and conversion of sinners.

Thanks to Michelle Duenas and family for the presentation of the Divine Mercy devotion and veneration of the sacred relic of St. Faustina in their home in Yona last Sunday afternoon, July 3,2011. Likewise, to the Divine Mercy prayer team for your faithfulness in our Sunday afternoon Divine Mercy home apostolate. May the good Lord continue to bless you and your families with the abundance of His grace and mercy.

To arrange for Divine Mercy home presentation, prayer and veneration of the sacred relic of St. Faus-tina, please contact Amy Borja at 472-7778.Thank you.

Pilgrimage

I’ll be leading the Guam Divine Mercy Pilgrim-age on September 19 to October 4, 2011, to Lourdes, see the incorrupt body of St. Bernadette, visit the house of St. Therese of Lissieux, the Shrine Miracu-lous of the Miraculous Medal in Paris, Nice, Toulose, Shrine of the Infant of Prague, Geneva, Lucerne, Zurich, Swizerland, Vienna, Austria, Czechoslova-kia, Shrine of the Divine Mercy in Cracow, Poland, Shrine of Our Lady of the Black Madonna, House of Blessed John Paul 11 and many more. Please contact Anne Marie at Pactours at 649-3221, Lou Salas at 477-8079, or Fr.Joel at 483-9464. Thank you.

The Happiest PeopleBy Fr. Joel De Los ReyesFor the U Matuna Si Yu’os

Pale Jesus Baza Duenas was born in Agana, March 19, 1911. He entered San Jose Seminary in Manila in July 1926 and became a deacon on December 22, 1937. On June 11, 1938, he was the first Chamorro priest to be ordained on Guam.

During World War II, Bishop Olano appointed him Provincial Vicar of the Catholic Church on Guam. He defended the Catholic Church’s faithful from Japanese injustices and was arrested and tortured by the Japanese Impe-rial Army toward the end of the War. Nine days before the recapture of Guam by US military forces, Pale Jesus was executed by decapitation

with his nephew and two other Chamorros at Tai, Mangilao. His remains are now at the sanctuary of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, Inarajan.

Fr. Lonilo R. Torres, the Pas-toral Council, and the parish-ioners of St. Joseph’s invite the family of the late Pale Jesus Baza Duenas and the faithful of Guam to celebrate the 67th Death An-niversary Mass on Tuesday, July 12, 2011, at the 6:00o.m. Mass. Archbishop Anthony Sablan Apu-

ron, OFM Cap., DD, will be the celebrant. Din-ner will be server at the St,. Joseph’s Social Hall after Mass.

Remembering Chamorro Martyr Pale Jesus Baza Duenas

Pale Jesus Baza Duenas

8 SUNDAY, JULY 10, 2011

On their last CD before they broke up in the mid-1990s, the band Soundgarden had a song called “Never Named.” Singer Chris Cornell opened the song with this observation: “I had a dog. He was a mix. He loved me like a god, but I was just a kid.”

An utterly lackluster song, but these few words have been rambling around in my brain housing group ever since. We love our pets, but it’s a bit curious when we mull over how they think about us.

After all, I have a dog. I love my dog. Her name is Blanca.

This mix of Pomeranian and Chihua-hua was rescued from GAIN a bit over six years ago. A former student of my wife (who is also a teacher) was a volunteer there who told us about this cute white dog that had recently been brought in. Not really wanting a pet, I indulged my wife by driving up to Yigo to see this mutt whom we were told was named “Lily.”

There are a lot of cute dogs out there. Blanca is not especially cuter than the next dog, and there’s nothing really spe-cial about her. Except her toes. She has an extra set of doggie toes on her back paws, thereby earning the moniker “freak” from me within the first two minutes of seeing her.

Even so, I knew I wanted this dog and would not let anything keep me from

bringing her home. It took a week or so for the medical

check-ups and the spaying that are re-quired for dogs adopted from GAIN, dur-ing which time I went to see her twice and spend time with her. She was hesitant and nervous, but mostly she looked ex-hausted. She had been someone’s inside pet but had been abandoned when they left island. She had been foraging ever since. The trauma was evident in her eyes.

So it was with excitement that I went alone to pick her up and bring her home. She sat confused in the front seat while I drove back down south to Talofofo, strok-ing her with my hand and talking to her quietly. When we got home, I carried up the stairs to our apartment and gave my wife the chance to dote on our new ad-dition, now renamed “Blanca.” My wife even went so far as to sing songs of love to this dog that I simply called “that re-ject,” to my wife’s un-qualified an-noy-

ance.Because my wife went off island a

few days later for a conference, it was just Blanca and I at the apartment. From the moment I got home each day until I left the next morning for work, this extra-toed quasi-mutant of a dog would follow me

around like a little white shadow. When a neighbor once asked me about her, I simply referred to Blanca as my stalker.

By the time my wife re-turned, Blanca had bonded to me. In the six years since, there has never been any doubt that this is my dog, referenced as my “lit-tle love,” and summoned by me simply as Pup.

But I must confess that the one thing that comes between us, so to speak, is a habit that she has: beg-ging for food at the dinner table.

Begging is really too strong a word. It’s more like she sits next to my chair and stairs at me the entire time I are eat-ing. It’s unnerving, in a way. A bite of rice, and black eyes are resting on me. Eat a steak or some ribs, and I can sense her quiet glare. If I make eye contact, she gets

a look in her eye that say, “You had bet-ter give me something…now!”

Rib bones and ham fat aside, the one bit that she simply dies for is

Spam. I have never seen a dog who likes Spam quite so much. The prob-lem is that it makes her sick. A piece of

fried Spam makes her completely con-tent, but within an hour she is sick to her stomach, unable and unwilling to do

anything but lay down and be miser-able. Eventually, I will have to clean up the what she cannot digest. I pity the poor thing precisely because

I love her. It’s not just some vague sense of compassion about her suffering—I genuinely love her and want what’s best for her.

I’m no god, of course, but this makes me wonder how the Blessed Lord looks at me as I pray to Him for things. Prosperity. Love. Whatever it is, how must He look at my pleadings? Am I asking for what is most noble and best for me, or am I too begging for Spam?

Don’t get me wrong: I like Spam, but at the same time, it’s not sirloin or pork tenderloin. I know the difference when I eat it, but that doesn’t mean I know the difference when I’m praying for the Lord’s gifts.

I suppose I must just trust that the Lord really does know what’s best and leave it at that. Blanca doesn’t know bet-ter, but I should. Poor sinner that I am, I’m probably more like her than I’d like to admit.

But there’s a solace to knowing that when I beg at the table, I will only be met with the kindest Master there could pos-sibly be.

Besides, I’m not a dog. I’m His child.

Please send any comments to jeff@umatuna.org

LOOKING FORWARD

St. Benedict is renowned as the father of monasti-cism as it

is found in the Latin Church. Leaving his secular life around the turn of the 6th Century, he organized various communi-ties of monks and nuns and established a rule for monastic life that endures to this day. Al-though not the first monastic rule in history, the “Rule of St. Benedict” is the standard for monastic life in the Western Church and is noteworthy for its emphasis on moderation and the development of the person in the life of prayer and work.

Sts. John Jones and John Wall were Catholics in England during the reign of Queen Eliz-

abeth I just after the English Reformation. Because it was illegal for Catholics to either give or receive the sacraments during this period, Jones, who was a Franciscan priest, was ar-rested for treason and eventu-ally executed in 1598. Likewise, Wall was a Douai missionary to England who was imprisoned and executed in 1679. Both were canonized in 1970.

St. Henry was a duke of Ba-varia until 1014 when he be-came the Holy Roman Emperor. He and his wife were known for their efforts to reform the Church and to promote mis-sionary activity. Dying in 1023 and canonized just over a cen-tury later, St. Henry serves as a model for Catholic kings and political leaders by use of his power for the building of the

Kingdom of God. Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha,

known as the “Lily of the Mo-hawks,” was the daughter of a Mohawk warrior and a Catho-lic Algonquin woman. After her parents’ deaths when she was young, she was raised by her uncle. She received some education in the Catholic faith at the age of 11, thereafter be-ing committed to the life of the “Catholic virgin,” whereby she consecrated her virginity to Christ. She was baptized at the age of 20 and was notewor-thy for her life of intense prayer and penance until her death in 1680 at the age of 24. She was beatified by Pope Blessed John Paul II in 1980 and is revered in North America as one of the great Catholic Native Ameri-cans.

St. Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church, is com-monly regarded as the Francis-can equivalent to St. Thomas Aquinas (himself a Dominican). St. Bonaventure, a contempo-rary and friend of Aquinas, was a philosopher and theologian at the University of Paris until

he became Minister General of the Order of Friars Minor (the Franciscans) in 1255. His leadership and reorganization of the Franciscans was instru-mental to the development of the mission of St. Francis for a changing society and the flow-ering of education in Western Europe. Eventually made Bish-op of Albano in 1273, he died the next year (the same year as Aquinas). He was declared Doc-tor of the Church in 1588.

The Feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel celebrates Mary, the Mother of God as patron-ess of a group of hermits who came to live together in the 12th Century on Mt. Carmel. This small mountain in the Holy Land, made famous as the dwelling place of the prophet Elijah, came to symbolize the life of prayer and devotion to the true and living God. Be-sides being a great feast day for all orders of Carmelites, Our Lady of Mount Carmel is also the title under which all devo-tees of the Scapular are conse-crated.

LOOKINGforward...

JULY 11MONDAY (Memorial)

St. Benedict

JULY 12TUESDAY

Sts. John Jones and John Wall*

JULY 13WEDNESDAY (Optional Memorial)

St. Henry

* Memorials not formally celebrated on Guam

JULY 16SATURDAY (Optional Memorial)

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel

JULY 17SUNDAY

16th Sunday ofOrdinary Time

Memorials This Week

By Jeffrey L. FitzgeraldU Matuna Si Yu’os

Hey,i’m justSAYING.

JULY 14THURSDAY

Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha(Optional Memorial)

JULY 15FRIDAY

St. Bonaventure(Memorial)

Begging for Spam