CrossRoadsCross Catholic Outreach’s Parish Newsletter Winter 2015/16

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In the Philippines, more than 2 million children between the ages of 5 and 17 are involved in various forms of child labor. Traffi cking and abuse are also on the rise, creating added problems and an ever-increasing number of street children.

Without alternatives for a more hopeful future, these children typically are swept into a downward spiral, ultimately succumbing to substance abuse, sexual exploitation and extreme poverty.

Fortunately, the Catholic Church became aware of those dangers and has responded. Among those addressing the problems are the Salesian Sisters, part of the community created by St. John Bosco.

The Salesians’ charter describes the society’s mission as “the Christian perfection of its associates obtained by the exercise of spiritual and corporal works of charity towards the young, especially the poor, and the education of boys to the priesthood.”

To respond to the specifi c issues facing the poor of the Philippines, the Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco established targeted ministries to help poor Filipino children and to prevent child traffi cking. Their goal is to rescue young boys and girls from hopeless circumstances and empower them to achieve self-reliance and prosperity.

To this end, they rescue boys and girls from high-risk communities, and provide them with a safe environment where they can be nurtured with love and gain a new sense of belonging. The children are also blessed with valuable Catholic formation, a basic education and opportunities for vocational training. As they pursue these goals, their mission also educates the community at large about protecting children from the dangers of traffi cking.

“Without this important ministry of hope, many disadvantaged children might easily fall prey to child traffi cking and its associated dangers,” Cross Catholic Outreach President Jim Cavnar explained. “We partner with the Salesian Sisters because we fear for the safety of these children, and because we believe the loving approach the Salesian Sisters are taking is a God-honoring response to the need.

“Since our inception, Cross Catholic Outreach’s approach has always been to empower holistic ministries which combine charity and evangelization,” Cavnar added, “and the Sisters are a good example of this

approach. As they minister to these children in Manila, they also support them with catechism classes, Bible studies and the celebration of Mass and the Holy Eucharist. They monitor the progress of each child and offer the kind of mercy Pope Francis has called us to embrace during the Jubilee Year of Mercy.”

Cross Catholic Outreach is committed to supporting the critical work of the Salesian Sisters, empowering them as they embody the Lord’s teaching in Matthew 19:14 — Let the little children come to me, and do not stop them; for it is to such as these that the kingdom of heaven belongs.

Salesian Sisters’ Philippine Outreach Provides Wonderful Example Of Compassion During Pope’s Jubilee Year of Mercy

With Cross Catholic Outreach’s help, the Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco are creating a safe, joyful environment for at-risk girls to discover their value and potential in God.

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Francis and Sarah Monaco got married July 11, 2015, at Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, in the St. Augustine Diocese.

Both are strong supporters of Cross Catholic Outreach, so they decided to offer a nontraditional option to guests who wanted to share their happiness. The attendees were informed about the mission of Cross Catholic Outreach and given the ministry website: www.CrossCatholic.org.

In lieu of a traditional wedding gift, family members and friends had a wonderful opportunity to share their love for Christ by helping the poor.

Francis and Sarah certainly were “thinking outside of the box” with this creative way of sharing their love, not only for each other, but for the poor as well. Cross Catholic Outreach is very blessed to have the Monacos as friends and benefactors, and we pray that their consecrated love continues to bear fruit in their own lives and in the lives of those who depend on the charity of others.

Wedded Couple Finds Creative Way to Bless the Poor

Commissioned Outreach Priests Will Become “Missionaries of Mercy”

Francis and Sarah Monaco remembered the poor on their big day. God bless them!

Pope Francis has declared 2016 as a Jubilee Year of Mercy and has invited all of us to be mindful of the Father’s mercy in our own lives, as well as to extend love and mercy to others. His intention is to emphasize each person’s conversion, repentance, and witness of God’s mercy — goals very much in keeping with Cross Catholic Outreach’s mission of integral ministry.

Cross Catholic Outreach is supporting this Year of Mercy not only through corporal works of mercy, but also in spiritual and educational outreaches. Our Outreach Priest program represents just one example.

In February 2016, the Holy Father is commissioning 1,000 priests worldwide as “Missionaries of Mercy.” These priests lift up this special year’s objectives, particularly through the sacrament

of reconciliation. Cross Catholic Outreach will send six Outreach Priests to Rome to be commissioned by Pope Francis on Ash Wednesday. They will proclaim the Jubilee Year of Mercy when they visit parishes throughout the U.S. by promoting corporal and spiritual works of mercy, which are at the heart of our ministry.

“Our hope and prayer is that these visits will help parishioners grow in their understanding of God’s mercy and learn of ways to become instruments of God’s mercy to others,” explained Msgr. Ted Bertagni, who will be commissioned at the ceremony in Rome. “We believe very strongly in the Jubilee Year of Mercy’s message, and we have seen it on display in the trenches of the developing world where the priests and nuns sacrifi cially serve the poor. Our visits to U.S. parishes will allow us to share those inspiring stories.”

Archbishop Rino Fisichella supported this

ambitious goal, writing: “I was inspired to hear of the many important projects that are being supported by Cross Catholic Outreach all around the world in order to meet the material and spiritual needs of the poorest of the poor. The mission of Cross Catholic Outreach clearly evidences the essential connection between service and the new evangelization; that inseparable link between witness and word.”

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A Strong Social Force in the Oakland DioceseSt. Mary’s Parish in Walnut Creek, CA is a model of how compassionate

Catholics can witness to the love of Christ in a tangible way. Under the leadership of Fr. Fred Riccio, the parish in the Diocese of Oakland has both international and domestic outreaches to bless the poor.

The parish has hosted a Cross Catholic Outreach Priest a number of times and has been very supportive of the work of overseas missions to help the poorest of the poor. They have a deep sense of service to the needy and that helps inspire them to corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

Here in the U.S., the parish is just as active. Its St. Vincent de Paul Society operates a food pantry and a ministry to the homebound, which is critically important for people who have no one source of help. They also have a hospital ministry, which is one of the works of mercy as well.

The Knights of Columbus is also active at St. Mary’s Parish. They offer assistance to the disabled and have a meal program called Loaves and Fishes. These ministries are a refl ection of the parish’s commitment to the New Evangelization and to those in need. They also participate in the Bay Area Crisis Nursery and have a pro-life initiative in the parish as well.

Cross Catholic Outreach serves St. Mary’s Parish by offering specifi c and meaningful opportunities to help the poorest of the poor overseas, and parishioners always say they feel blessed to know that they can make an impact in the lives of the needy worldwide.

The Diocese of Oakland does a tremendous job of witnessing to the Gospel message of joy, peace and justice and St. Mary’s is a wonderful example of such efforts within the Diocese and how parishioners can respond to the call for justice and charity.

St. John Neumann parish in San Antonio, Texas, is living out Pope Francis’ call to embrace the New Evangelization and the upcoming Jubilee Year of Mercy. Fr. Octavio Muguerza, the pastor, understands the plight of the poor from personal experience, and, with Cross as a

support, he leads the parish’s international outreaches to the needy.The extensive outreach provided by the parish includes an active

St. Vincent de Paul Society, a meals on wheels program and a food pantry to help struggling families locally. St. John’s also supports the NESA (Northeast Senior Assistance) program that helps seniors who are limited in their ability to manage their lives.

St. John’s has hosted a Cross Outreach Priest many times and this has led them to take on ambitious missions.

As part of the Life, Peace & Justice ministries of the parish, they collaborated with Cross Catholic Outreach to sponsor projects in Belize.

In recent years, an average of 20 people — young and old — have annually shared in the exciting call to minister to the poor of Belize face-to-face. In this way, they have rightly embraced their international brothers and sisters in the Lord.

During the Lenten Season, the Belize Mission Committee also campaigns for donations to fund four main projects supported by SJN Catholic Parish: the education of Indian/Mayan women, a feeding program for the elderly through H.O.P.E. (Helping Older People Equally), a scholarship grant for six girls to attend Pallotti High School in Belize City, and a home repair project in the town of Punta Gorda.

Cross Catholic Outreach is blessed to partner with St. John Neumann parish as they shine a light of hope for all to see.

San Antonio Parish Has Impact In Belize and Beyond

Parishioners bless the new site of the St. Vincent de Paul Center.

St. John Neumann team works on a resident’s house.St J h N t k id t’ h

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Ministry Benefactors ShareDeeply Spiritual Pilgrimage

To Rome and Assisi

List of Endorsing Bishops Grows as Bishops, Archbishops Learn Of Cross Catholic Outreach’s Impact on International Poverty

A group of mission benefactors was privileged to take a pilgrimage to Assisi and Rome with Cross Catholic Outreach. The experience included private liturgies at special shrines and chapels in both Assisi and Rome. It also included a VIP seating at the papal audience and a private visit of the Sistine Chapel, which was reserved only for our group of 20!

The deeply spiritual experience also featured visits to the four major basilicas of Rome and allowed the group opportunities to learn more about how Cross Catholic Outreach helps support the missionary work of the Church. The participants were even blessed to be witnesses to the offi cial signing of our canonical statutes by Pontifi cal Council Cor Unum, which recognized Cross Catholic Outreach as an international charity with Pontifi cal approval (see story on page 5).

If you’d like more information about future trips, please contact Victor Biggs at 561-392-9212, ext. 238.

Word is spreading — and as more U.S. bishops and archbishops learn of Cross Catholic Outreach’s impact on international poverty, they endorse the charity’s mission.

“Our outreach is both extensive and very personal in its approach. We serve in more than 35 countries, but we work directly and individually with each priest or nun,” explained James Cavnar, president of Cross Catholic Outreach. “We fi nd out their specifi c needs, and supply exactly what they’ve asked for. The bishops

like the fact that our only goal is to empower the Church and support its existing mission.”

To that end, Cross Catholic Outreach ships food and medicines, as well as funding teacher salaries and mission operating expenses — whatever it takes to support the priests and nuns working “in the trenches.”

This creative approach is both effective and effi cient, and the U.S. bishops familiar with the outreach praise its impact.

“Pope Francis has gone to great lengths

to encourage us to be servants of the poor. I believe Cross Catholic Outreach is meeting that challenge in an authentic and effective way,” wrote Bishop Carl Kemme of Wichita. “I am particularly edifi ed by the approach of the ministry that provides the opportunity to increase the self-suffi ciency of the poor.”

Archbishop for the Military Services Timothy Broglio was even aware of specifi c

Archbishop BroglioBishop Kemme

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Archbishop González

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teamwork

The Holy Father, through the Pontifi cal Council Cor Unum, endorsed the work of Cross Catholic Outreach by conferring offi cial recognition and Catholic status on the ministry at a formal ceremony in Rome. It was an historic event, marking the fi rst time Cor Unum had approved the statutes of any international institution.

Cross Catholic Outreach President James Cavnar was present to accept the offi cial documents, and he described the event as a watershed moment in the charity’s history of service.

“Cross Catholic Outreach has been endorsed by more than 100 bishops and archbishops in the U.S. and abroad, but this endorsement of our ministry stands above all others,” Cavnar said. “It is particularly meaningful as we set goals for the Holy Father’s Jubilee Year of Mercy.”

The event was arranged and hosted by the Secretary of Cor Unum, Msgr. Giovanni Dal Toso. Cross Catholic Outreach began the process of establishing the statutes several years ago under the direction of then-president of Cor Unum Cardinal Robert Sarah, who also attended the signing ceremony and offered his encouragement of Cross and its mission.

In the Apostolic Letter of Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI entitled On The Service Of Charity, it states:

“In carrying out their charitable activity, therefore, the various Catholic organizations should not limit themselves merely to collecting and distributing funds, but should show special concern for individuals in need and exercise a valuable educational function within the Christian community, helping people to appreciate the importance of sharing, respect and love in the spirit of the Gospel of Christ. The Church’s charitable activity at all levels must avoid the risk of becoming just another form of organized social assistance.”

From its foundation, Cross Catholic Outreach has striven to be a model of this integral ministry envisioned in the thoughts and ideas of the popes — meeting the physical needs of the poor within the overall

context of their spiritual and emotional well-being so as to contribute to the building of the kingdom of God here on earth.

The canonical approval of the ecclesiastical statutes of the organization is the fulfi llment

of the papal directive that the organization and its work receive offi cial recognition.

Offi cial approval of these statutes offers to the world a universally recognized “seal of approval” — proclaiming that Cross Catholic Outreach’s international mission and ministries are operating in accordance with the wishes of the universal Catholic Church.

In Historic Event, Holy Father’s “Cor Unum” Confers Official Recognition & Status to Cross Catholic Outreach

James Cavnar accepted the documents designating Pontifi cal approval of Cross Catholic Outreach from Msgr. Giovanni Dal Toso as Cardinal Robert Sarah looked on.

Cardinal Robert Sarah commended the mission of Cross at the ceremony.C di l R b S h d d h i i

J C d h d d i i P ifi l l f C C h li O h

“This endorsementof our ministry stands

above all others.”James Cavnar

Cross Catholic Outreach

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Eight More U.S. Bishops Endorse Cross’ Outreach

CrossRoads is published by CrossCatholic Outreach. No portion

of its content may be reproducedwithout the expressed consent of Cross Catholic Outreach.

Contact us at:

1-800-914-2420President . . . . . . . . . . James CavnarEditor . . . . . . . . .Msgr. Ted BertagniComm. Director . . . .Ruthie Aguilar

CrossRoads

Cross projects and spoke of their importance, writing: I know fi rsthand the zeal of Bishop Grullon of San Juan de la Maguana. Your assistance has allowed him to bring water to so many areas of his arid diocese. It is my desire that the work of Cross Catholic Outreach be ever more widely known and supported.”

Archbishop Roberto González in Puerto Rico offered a similar encouragement, writing: “May the Holy Spirit continue to inspire and guide the efforts of Cross Catholic Outreach, and draw men and women of faith to collaborate in establishing the Kingdom of God motivated by hope and charity.”

“The work of Cross Catholic Outreach truly merits the endorsement it receives,” Archbishop Leonard Blair of Hartford agreed, “inasmuch as it provides much-needed aid to dioceses, missionaries and religious orders who serve the

poorest of the poor in the Third World.”Bishop Mitchell Rozanski of Springfi eld,

Massachusetts wrote: “If we are to truly follow Jesus’ command to help those in need, Cross Catholic Outreach is a wonderful means of truly bringing hope to those whose lives need the transformative power of Christ to improve their basic living conditions.”

And Bishop William Callahan of La Crosse added his voice: “I write to share the enthusiasm of my brother bishops with the excellent work being done for the poor and marginalized by Cross Catholic Outreach. This, of course, shares the missionary evangelical energy of our Holy Father and encourages many of our people in the United States to participate in helping the poor.”

Support of the Holy Father’s teachings is a dynamic part of Cross Catholic Outreach’s missions, and Bishop Edgar M. da Cunha of

Fall River commented on it directly, writing: “I am pleased to know that Cross Catholic Outreach enjoys a close relationship with the Pontifi cal Council Cor Unum. It is our hope that your ministry will continue the efforts of our Holy Father, Pope Francis, contributing to the development of people in a human and Christian way, especially in those most needed areas of the world.”

This mission is valuable, and it is most effective as parishioners in the U.S. learn more about the work overseas — a program Bishop Mark Seitz of El Paso endorses.

“Please know of my support for your organization and a welcome to the priests of Cross Catholic Outreach who, when visiting parishes in the U.S., are increasing the faithful’s knowledge of the desperate conditions of the poorest of the poor in developing countries,” he wrote. “Be assured of my continued prayers.”

Archbishop Blair Bishop CallahanBishop Rozanski

Bishop da Cunha Bishop Seitz

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