Denver Catholic

2 I CATHOLIC LIFE JULY 30, 2014 I DENVER CATHOLIC REGISTER ARCHBISHOP'S COLUMN MOST REV. SAMUEL J. AQUILA "For the first time in the history of Iraq, Mosul is now empty of Christians," Patriarch Louis Sako said after the July 19 noon deadline passed. Mosul has been a city with a Christian presence for more than 1,700 years, but now the radical militant group the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has banished them and is trying to expand its territory. Our brothers and sisters in the faith were told that they must leave their homes and uproot their families if they wanted to keep the faith. If they stayed they had two choic- es: convert to Islam or die. As the distraught families left they were forced to hand over any money or valuables and stripped of their passports. In Mosul, ISIS members tagged the homes of Christians with the red spray-painted Arabic letter "N" for Naza- rene. This means that the home and anything in it can be plundered and occupied by one of their followers. Chris- tians were not the only ones to be targeted, as Shiite Mus- lims had their homes painted with the letter "R" for being "Rejecters" of the fighters' radical brand of Sunni Islam. With the Christians gone, ISIS has started burning histor- ic churches, monasteries and Shiite mosques. One mosque that was demolished was a former Catholic monastery that contained the tomb of the prophet Jonah. It had been a site of pilgrimage for Christians and Muslims for centuries but is now a pile of rubble. The auxiliary bishop of Baghdad, Shlemon Warduni, also described how the elderly, the sick and small children are being treated by the militants. He lamented, "We ask our- selves, 'Why is this happening, these things against human dignity, against God, against mankind? These (militants) rip the medicines from the hands of children, small children and throw them on the ground." I join my voice to Pope Francis' and the many others who have condemned and cried out against this grave injustice. It is clear from their actions that ISIS is unable to enter into dialogue and cannot be trusted to protect Christians or other minorities. It is their way or death. So what should we do now? First, we need to express our solidarity with our fellow Christians in the Middle East through material and spiritual support. We must pray and fast for our enemies and their change of heart as Jesus com- mands us in the Gospel. You can also donate to agencies that are still operating amidst the chaos, like Catholic Relief Services, Aid to the Church in Need and the International Catholic Migration Network. By taking action and standing in solidarity with those who are persecuted, you will grow in courage and mercy. These are essential virtues needed for the times in which we live and we must desire them in our hearts if peace is to come about. These two virtues are also needed for your efforts to protect our religious freedom in Colorado and nationwide. The second thing we should do in the wake of these atrocities is reflect on how they underscore the crucial im- portance of religious freedom for having a civilized society. But do not stop with thinking about it. All of us should become actively engaged in the political system to protect our religious rights and to work for the common good in the light of the Gospel and our faith. Religious freedom is not just the ability to worship in a house of prayer. For Christians it is the ability to be Chris- tian, to let our faith impact the way we work, shop, make decisions, form our families, run our charities and busi- nesses and interact with the rest of society. Truly encounter- ing Jesus and his Church is so powerful that it doesn't just affect what we do on Sundays, it affects our whole lives. As Americans, we have been blessed to live in a country that has valued faith, and for the most part, respected the right to practice it freely. But the government's support for What ISIS teaches us about religious freedom DENVER CATHOLIC REGISTER CIRCULATION CUSTOMER SERVICE: 303-722-4687 OR CIRCULATION@ARCHDEN.ORG Published by the Archdiocese of Denver, 1300 S. Steele St., Denver, CO 80210 Denver Catholic Register (USPS 557-020) is published weekly except the last week of December and the first week of January, and in June, July and August when it goes bi-weekly. The Register is printed by Signature Offset in Denver. Periodical postage paid in Denver, CO. Subscriptions: $35 a year in Colorado; $42 per year out of state. Foreign countries: $42 surface, all countries, 6-8 weeks for delivery; $135 air, all other countries (average). Mexico, $48 air; Canada, $55 air. Postmaster: Send address changes to: Denver Catholic Register, Circulation Dept., 1300 S. Steele St., Denver, CO 80210 or e-mail circulation@archden.org. Editorial: 303-715-3215 or editor@archden.org Advertising: 303-715-3253 or dcrads@archden.org Circulation: 303-715-3211 or circulation@archden.org Online: www.DenverCatholicRegister.org General Manager Karna Swanson Editor Roxanne King Business Manager Michael O'Neill BY CINDY BROVSKY AND LARA MONTOYA Cynthia Castillo, director of religious education at Holy Ro- sary Parish, has slowly built up trust with the Hispanic com- munity and is proud that many of her students have received the sacraments of holy Com- munion and confirmation. The north Denver church, founded by Slavic immigrants, is a small parish in an indus- trial area and establishing a Hispanic ministry has been a challenge, she said. Her goal is to grow the His- panic ministry and that's one reason Castillo and 18 oth- er parish leaders—including three from out of state—at- tended the first Catholic His- panic Leadership Program at Regis University. For 10 days through July 31, the group immersed themselves in nu- merous subjects, including fi- nance, nonprofit management and decision-making. "I see this as a great opportu- nity to expand my knowledge of Hispanic ministry," Castillo told the Denver Catholic Regis- ter. "As leaders, we have a great responsibility for training." The goal of the program, co-sponsored by the Archdio- cese of Denver, is to help His- panic ministry members, ma- ny who are volunteers, to bet- ter serve their communities. "The leadership program is a way to help people serving at the parish level," said Luis So- to, director of Centro San Juan Diego, the Hispanic ministry center for the archdiocese. "The people participating are saying they want to do more; they want to learn more. They are hungry to learn." The inaugural year attract- ed participants primarily from parishes in the archdiocese, but the group also included a priest from Kansas City, a nun from Baltimore and a lay min- istry leader from Pennsylvania. A majority of the participants themselves have emigrated from Mexico, Peru, Chile and the Dominican Republic. "As immigrants, we grew up in Latin America experiencing the Catholic Church there and it is different from the Amer- ican Catholic Church," Soto said. "I had to learn those dif- ferences firsthand because no one told me." Soto wanted the group to better understand the history of immigration in the United States and how many groups— including the Irish—faced dis- crimination because they came in large numbers. He tapped Nicki Gonzales, associate pro- fessor of history and politics at Regis, to lead the discussion. "To understand the current situation, I think it is important to understand the historic situ- ation," Gonzales told El Pueblo Catolico following the session. That understanding will help bridge cultural gaps and educate society about the pos- itive impacts of immigration, Gonzales said. "One of the things that makes America very strong, culturally, is that we are a mix of different cultures and there is this diver- sity of voice and experience and food and history that I think makes us all stronger," she said. Gonzales was impressed by the program participants' "en- ergy, enthusiasm and sincerity." Regis worked with the arch- diocese for about 18 months to make the leadership program a reality, said Tom Reynolds, university vice president for Mission and Ministry. He add- ed that Regis has learned more about the Catholic Hispanic culture through its work with nearby Arrupe Jesuit High School, which has a high His- panic enrollment. In the Americas, he said, re- gionalism plays a role in how people worship, noting there are different traditions in Mex- ico, Central America and South America. "Hispanics have an import- ant role in the Catholic Church and the future of the Church," he told program participants, welcoming them after the opening Mass on July 22. "We are honored and blessed to have you here." One program session ex- plained how Hispanic minis- tries can improve fundraising. Many Hispanic parishioners will readily volunteer for man- ual labor, such as replacing a church's roof, but giving mon- etary contributions is often unfamiliar to immigrants who came from poor countries, So- to said. "Parishes don't need to con- tinue to make 1,000 tamales (for fundraisers) when there are many other ways to make money," Soto said. Martha Jones, a Hispanic ministry leader at St. Pius X Par- ish in Aurora, said she looks for- ward to hearing experts give tips on helping her ministry grow. "We can help our community if we better understand tech- niques for budgeting, fundrais- ers and other topics," she said. Archdiocese, Regis U partner to enrich growing Hispanic ministry at parishes PHOTO BY BERNARD GRANT/DCR LUIS SOTO, executive director of Centro San Juan Diego, the Hispanic ministry center for the Denver Archdiocese, leads the opening session of the 10-day Catholic Hispanic Leadership Program at Regis University July 22. See Aquila, Page 5

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