Denver Catholic

2 JANUARY 24-30, 2015 | DENVER CATHOLIC Archbishop's Page Vatican Denver Catholic (USPS 557-020) is published weekly except the last week of December and the fi rst weeks of January, and in June, July and August when it goes bi-weekly. Denver Catholic is printed by Signature Ož set 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, Circulation Dept., 1300 S. Steele St., Denver, CO 80210 or email circulation@archden.org. EDITORIAL: 303-715-3215 or denvercatholic@archden.org | ADVERTISING: 303-715-3253 or denvercatholicads@archden.org CIRCULATION CUSTOMER SERVICE: 303-715-3230 or circulation@archden.org General Manager KARNA SWANSON Director ANDREW WRIGHT Business Manager MICHAEL O'NEILL Published by the Archdiocese of Denver, 1300 S. Steele St., Denver, CO 80210 ARCHBISHOP'S SCHEDULE Jan. 25: Mass and dedication of new church, Light of the World Parish, Littleton (11:30 a.m.) Jan. 27: Mass, St. Joseph Parish, Denver, celebrating Missionaries of Charity 25 years in Denver (6 p.m.) Jan. 28: Confi rmation, Our Lady of Mount Car- mel, Littleton (7 p.m.) T he need for peace in every corner of the world has been weighing upon my heart following the terrorist attacks in Paris and the mass slaughter of thousands by Boko Haram in Nigeria. The calculated brutality of these attacks has stunned us all and made our hearts ache. But the cause of these mur- ders is nothing new—it goes all the way back to Cain and Abel. Pope Francis noted this in his 2014 Message for the World Day of Peace, where he stated, "Cain's murder of Abel bears tragic witness to his radical rejec- tion of their vocation to be brothers. Their story (cf. Gn 4:1-16) brings out the di' cult task to which all men and women are called, to live as one, each taking care of the other." There has been much discussion in France, in the press and in our own country about the importance of defending freedom of speech, but there is another side to the debate. The ability to freely express ourselves must be tempered by respect for the dignity of others, including their beliefs. Free speech needs to be exercised within our larger vocation to be brothers and sis- ters to one another. Peace is missing in our world. There are many contributing factors to this situation, such as poverty, corruption, a lack of education and jobs, or hatred of others because of their religious beliefs, but at the heart of it all stands a rejec- tion of the vocation to be a brother or sister. It is a failure to follow the second great commandment "to love your neighbor as yourself." This refusal creates a world that is defi cient in love and forgiveness, and it breeds a society that thoughtlessly discards the dignity of others, and among some, even justifi es murder and violence. This dynamic was on dis- play in the Paris attacks, the massacre in Nigeria and in many other violent events. Although the severity of their rejec- tion varies greatly, both those who drew the cartoons that o" ended many Mus- lims and the gunmen who attacked the cartoonists, turned away from their call to brotherhood. The radical Islamist group Boko Haram carried out its deadliest mas- sacre yet in northeastern Nigeria last week, taking the lives of some 2,000 people in the villages of Baga and Doron Baga. Certainly these men have vio- lently cast aside their vocation to be brothers to their fellow Nigerians. Yet the Nigerian government's failure to protect its people and to tackle some of the underlying causes that have attracted young people to Boko Haram is also an abandonment of its duty to serve its brothers and sisters. I want to be clear that by saying this I am not in any way equating the evil of murder with insulting someone's religion. Instead, I am pointing to their shared roots: the disregard shown for a brother or sister, the failure to respect the inherent dignity of the human person. If the world is going to become a more peaceful place, then we must be faithful to our vocation to brotherhood, which we received from God when we were given the gift of life. While fl ying between Sri Lanka and the Philippines on Jan. 15, Pope Francis spoke to reporters about free speech. Each person, he said, has "the obliga- tion to say what one thinks to help the common good. … We have the obligation to speak openly, to have this liberty, but without giving o" ense …" In other words, he explained, "there is a limit" to free speech, and that limit is deter- mined by what will respect the other person's dignity. This means people deserve the truth about what will help them fl ourish; they deserve to hear the Gospel and be intro- duced to Jesus. The truth, though, must be proclaimed in love. Treating every person as a brother or sister, especially those who do not love us in return, requires God's grace. As Catholics, we know that Cain's rejec- tion of Abel and his brotherly vocation was redeemed by Jesus' sacrifi ce on the cross. In Christ, all human relationships can be restored and every person can become an adopted son or daughter of the Father. We are called to be people who respond to what Pope Francis calls the "globalization of indi" erence" by foster- ing a culture of solidarity and fraternity, beginning in our own families, parishes and neighborhoods. We are called to share the truth in love in these places. When each of us faces Christ at our fi nal judgment, he will ask us what we did for our fellow man. May we be able to say that we saw the face of Christ in the face of every person—a brother, a sister—and did for them what we would do for Christ (Mt 25: 40). With- out a renewed fi delity to our vocation in Christ as brothers and sisters, a commitment to caring for the least and living the fullness of the Gospel in humility, the world will only become more violent and more divided. Archbishop's Column Most Rev. Samuel J. Aquila @ArchbishopDen Jan 16 Congratulations to the team @DenverCatholic on their fi rst video story, a beautiful #prolife fi lm titled "30 Hours" https:// vimeo.com/116938258 PHOTO OF THE WEEK Archbishop Samuel Aquila, along with Colorado Springs Bishop Michael Sheridan, right, address the crowd in front of the state Capitol Jan. 17 during a rally preceding March for Life Colorado. Photo by Zachary Boazman Paris, Nigeria: brotherhood rejected PHOTO BY ROSS POLLACK/FLICKR

• Cover