Denver Catholic

2 APRIL 23-MAY 13, 2016 | DENVER CATHOLIC Archbishop's Page 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 Denver Catholic (USPS 557-020) is published bi-weekly. Denver Catholic is printed by Prairie Mountain Publishing, LLC in Boulder. 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: 303-715-3230 or denvercatholic@ archden.org. ADVERTISING: 303-715-3253 or denvercatholicads@archden.org. CIRCULATION CUSTOMER SERVICE: 303-715-3230 or circulation@archden.org. Archbishop's Column Most Rev. Samuel J. Aquila PHOTO OF THE WEEK ARCHBISHOP'S SCHEDULE APR. 24: Mass with Special Religious Education community, Cathedral Basilica (2:30 p.m.) APR. 28: Mass and Confi rmation, St. Stephen parish, Glenwood Springs (7 p.m.) APR. 29: Mass and Confi rmation, Christ the King parish, Evergreen (6 p.m.) APR. 30: Mass and Confi rmation, Our Lady of the Pines parish, Conifer (5 p.m.) MAY 4: Mass with seminarians and faculty, St. John Vianney Theological Seminary, St. JPII Center (12:10 p.m.) Mass and Confi rmation, Risen Christ parish, Denver (7 p.m.) MAY 5: Opening Mass for Knights of Columbus State Convention, Crowne Plaza Convention Center, Denver (5 p.m.) MAY 7: Mass, Catholic Biblical School graduation, Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception (9 a.m.) Mass and Confi rmation, Sealed and Sent, Denver Coliseum (4 p.m.) Protect God's gift of children T ime Magazine's April 10 cover story raised a topic that is rarely discussed – how por- nography is biologically and psy- chologically damaging a generation of young men and women. Science, interestingly, is beginning to discover what God revealed thousands of years ago: that men and women have a God-given dignity that is present in the complex interconnected reality of their body and soul. Time's article comes at a good time, since April is National Child Abuse Prevention month, a time when people around our country bring attention to the great tragedy of child abuse and work to prevent its spread. Sadly, child abuse is a bigger issue than we often realize, especially in northern Colorado. For example, in 2015 the FBI conducted a nation- wide sex tra" cking sting and Denver ranked as the number one city out of 135 cities for the highest number of minors rescued. Tragically, last year was the second year in a row that Denver claimed that spot. Child abuse is a topic that no one likes to talk about because of how hor- rible it is. But we need to talk about it; we need to name it and fi ght it. When people discuss child abuse, they typically are talking about sexual, verbal or physical abuse. I believe that exposure to sexually explicit images should also be a part of that discussion. When children are exposed to sexually explicit images, their innocence is damaged and their minds are fi lled with a twisted version of sexuality that is devoid of the love and beauty God created them to know at the proper age and in a beautiful way. But there is good news. Christ's teaching on the beauty and dignity of the human person, when presented well (such as http://chastityproject. com), can prepare our children to recognize and turn away from these counterfeit versions of sexuality that reduce people to objects of pleasure. To summarize Pope St. John Paul II's thoughts in his famous book Love and Responsibility, the problem with pornography is not that it reveals too much of the person, but that it shows far too little. I urge all parents to help prepare their children for the world we live in by sharing the Church's beautiful understanding of sexual- ity with them in an age appropriate manner. The Archdiocese of Denver is also committed to fi ghting child abuse on other fronts. Since 2003, we have trained over 65,000 clergy members, staž and volunteers who work with minors to spot, report, and prevent abuse. We continue to train 4,000-5,000 adults every year, as well as some 23,000 children who are re-trained every year at their current grade level. In addition, this coming May our archdiocese will join the dioceses of Cheyenne, Colorado Springs, and Pueblo in contributing to the national ež ort to prevent child abuse by hosting the National Safe Environment annual conference in Denver. The archdiocese also has a partner- ship with the State of Colorado, which this year includes a state-wide phone number (1-844-CO -4-KIDS) that everyone can use to report all cases of neglect or abuse of children. I would like to thank all those who work to prevent the abuse of children, who are one of the most precious gifts God has given us. From them, we learn to follow the Lord, as Jesus told his disciples, "Let the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these" (Mt. 19:14). May our society and world rediscover the gift, dignity and beauty of children, and may we work to protect them and their innocence! Archbishop Samuel J. Aquila honored Carrie Sigman for 45 years of service to the Archdiocese of Denver. Sigman works in the O" ce of the Archbishop as an administrative assistant for the Moderator of the Curia. Other employees were recognized for their longstanding service. PHOTO BY ANDREW WRIGHT/DENVER CATHOLIC. Denver Catholic Jason Evert, founder of the Chastity Project, encourages teens to break free from porn addictions. The Chastity Project is one of many apostolates dedicated to protecting our children and promoting a healthy understanding of sexuality. PHOTO PROVIDED

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