Denver Catholic

2 I DECEMBER 17, 2014 I DENVER CATHOLIC REGISTER ARCHBISHOP'S COLUMN MOST REV. SAMUEL J. AQUILA Those who are poor, brokenhearted, imprisoned and all who are held captive should rejoice, we heard on Gaudete Sunday. When Jesus stood up and proclaimed the same message in the synagogue, he declared, "Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing." In the person of Christ, the connection between joy, works of mercy and generosity becomes clear. Last week I wrote about how feasts remind us that reaching heaven is what really matters in life and they connect us with the love of God, both in the past and in the present. This week I want to reflect on how experiencing the joy of God's love should give birth to generosity and acts of mercy. I am sure that family members come to mind as the first people you will give gifts to or be merciful towards, but as we prepare to celebrate the gift of salvation, I ask you to remem- ber the poor and downtrodden, those who are on the margins of society. In the 4th century, a young man named Nicholas lost his parents to one of the many plagues sweeping through Eu- rope. After mourning his parents' death, he committed him- self to seeking God's will for his life and doing acts of charity with the substantial inheritance he received. St. Nicholas, or in Dutch, Santa Claus, heard that a father who used to be well-off was now poor and could not provide a dowry for his three daughters. Without dowries, the girls were ignored by suitors and their father was considering sending his daugh- ters to a brothel as a way to solve the family's financial crisis. Remembering Jesus' words about giving alms in secret and not seeking the praise of men, St. Nicholas resolved to stop the father from following through on his sinful plan. The saint's biographer, Michael the Archimandrite, tells us that during the night, Nicholas wrapped the necessary number of gold coins in a cloth and tossed it through a window of the poor man's house. "As day broke, the man got up from bed, found the bundle of money in the middle of the house and, with tears that he could not hold back, taken with joy, amazed and stunned, gave thanks to God," the biographer recounted. St. Nicholas returned two more times with money for the other daughters. The father stayed up for nights, hoping to discover who was helping his family. On the final occasion, he saw St. Nicholas and realized he knew him. The poor man is said to have declared, "If it were not for your kindness, aroused by our common Lord Jesus Christ, I would have long since been consigned to a life of perdition and shame." As we heard in the readings from this past Sunday, Jesus' birth brings glad tidings to the poor, healing to the broken- hearted, liberty to captives and release to prisoners (cf. Is. 61: 1-2). Christ brings us the good news of salvation, and our joy at this gift should lead us to generously give of ourselves to those in need, just as St. Nicholas did. There are many ways you can show your joy and gratitude for the birth of Christ. Plan acts of generosity, but do it quietly and not for praise; do it for love. Following St. Nicholas' ex- ample, you could volunteer to help the poor through Catholic Charities, visit someone who is lonely, or extend forgiveness to someone who has hurt you. If you are thinking about how to be financially generous, I ask that you consider Divine Mercy Supportive Care (see related story on this page). This Catholic hospice ministry is carrying out a corporal work of mercy by caring for the sick and dying, showing the mercy of Christ to those who are at the end of their life. The need for their services has proven to be great. In fact, the physicians who work for Divine Mercy tell me that the demand has far exceeded both their expec- tations and their resources. Hence, they are in great need of resources at the end of this year to help them carry out works of mercy. I pray that you will continue using this Advent to prepare a place for the birth of Christ in your heart and home. May we be willing to generously welcome him, even if he comes to us as someone who is poor, sick, dying or in need of friendship. Joy, generosity and Nicholas 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 Interim Editor Julie Filby Business Manager Michael O'Neill BY ROXANNE KING A new partnership between Discalced Carmelite nuns and a Catholic hospice will aid both parties and ultimately help to protect life at its natural end. Those involved say the union is providential. Nuns of Carmel of the Ho- ly Spirit Monastery in Littleton have given use of three buildings and some land they couldn't care for to Divine Mercy Supportive Care, a start-up Catholic hospice lacking facilities. "They needed them and we didn't," prioress Mother Mary of Jesus Doran told the Denver Catholic Register at the monas- tery Dec. 12. "It was an answer to prayer." Kevin Lundy, Divine Mercy CEO, describes the collaboration as "the Holy Spirit hard at work." "There's a greater power at play here," he said as his eyes scanned the tranquil monastery grounds. "It wasn't something we went looking for but is something that was presented to us." Established as a nonprofit in June 2013, Divine Mercy offers in-home hospice services in line with Catholic standards of care set by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Divine Mercy's mission is to offer people the opportunity to die a natural death with dignity, comfort and spiritual care. They are battling the growing drive to aid people in hastening death advocated by organizations such as Denver-based Compassion and Choices that supported Brittany Maynard, a 29-year-old terminal cancer patient, in end- ing her life Nov. 1 under Oregon's Death with Dignity law. Divine Mercy currently uses office space at Catholic Chari- ties' headquarters in northwest Denver. "We've strongly benefitted from that relationship," Lundy said, expressing gratitude. "But we look to expand. We wish to have our own home from which to provide services." Founded in 1947, the Carmel- ite monastery sits on 16 acres that was once the country home of Denver architect Jacques Ben- edict. Today, nine nuns live a life of prayer enclosed within the monastery. They pray for the Denver Archdiocese, particularly for seminarians and priests, and are dependent on alms. Three houses and fields outside the monastery proper are too much and too expensive for the nuns to maintain, Mother Mary of Je- sus said. "(Divine Mercy) can use them for their needs and we won't have the responsibility of caring for them, so it's a blessing for us," she said. The houses Divine Mercy is re- modeling for offices and resident care are separated from the nuns' cloister by about six acres that the hospice will also maintain. "We never want to encroach upon the nuns," Lundy said. "This is their home; we're guests here." The renovations, to be com- pleted in three phases over a year and a half, are estimated to cost from $25,000 to $40,000. Divine Mercy plans to start using the first facility, located at 6261 S. Lakev- iew St., in January for administra- tive offices and meetings. "We have limited funds and the vast majority of our funds go to patient care, so we don't really have a lot of money to remodel (the buildings)," Lundy said. "But we have a small army of people anxious to help … and to see this come to fruition." More than two-dozen semi- narians and some 35 volunteers have been cleaning and renovat- ing the grounds and the proper- ties, Lundy said, adding that 85 percent of the work Divine Mercy does is by volunteers. "That's the bottom line," he said. "We as Catholics have been made acutely aware of the impor- tance to protect life at the begin- ning of life but … we have to pro- tect life at the end of life as well." Five states now permit phy- sician-assisted suicide. A bill to legalize it in Colorado is expected to be introduced next year. "Because of new legislation that is coming out … people are realizing the importance of protecting life at the end of life," Lundy said. "You start by hav- ing a cause and you turn it into a movement. It often feels that Divine Mercy is at that point in time. People want to be part of this mission to protect life from conception to natural death." Divine Mercy hospice, nuns find answer to prayer PHOTO BY TODD WOLLAM/DCR STAFF and volunteers work on Divine Mercy Supportive Care's future facility at 6261 S. Lakeview St. in Littleton Dec. 12, including from left: John Stapleton and Zach Taudien, seminar- ians; Religious Sister of Mercy Esther Mary Nickel; Father Jim Thermos; Kevin Lundy, DMSC CEO; and Cathleen Connor, R.N., director of clinical services for DMSC. DIVINE MERCY SUPPORTIVE CARE For more information or to donate, visit www.DMSCI.org. CARMEL OF THE HOLY SPIRIT MONASTERY Send prayer requests and donations to: 6138 S. Gallup St., Littleton, CO 80120

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