From the 2010 Bishop's Charity Ball ...

Tonight I sang Lefty Frizzell's 1964 No. 1 country hit "Saginaw, Michigan" for the participants of the 2010 Bishop's Charity Ball at the Horizons Conference Center in Saginaw. The Bishop's Charity Ball benefits Catholic schools and parish religious education programs. This year's event was the first for me since I installed as the Diocese of Saginaw's sixth bishop in July 2009. The Communications Office has promised more photos and uploads from tonight's ball to be posted online next week. 





You also can read about this year's Bishop Murphy Award winner.

Ground Breaking at St. Brigid School in Midland

I had the honor today of breaking ground on a very exciting building expansion project at St. Brigid of Kildare School in downtown Midland. Read more about it at see videos on the DoS News blog.

From FAITH Saginaw: Raising holy families is 'domestic engineering'

As a young priest, I was engaged in parish visitations. It was customary each year for the priests to visit the homes of all registered parishioners. Besides spending a few minutes with parishioners in their homes, particularly those who were not accustomed to coming to Mass or practicing their faith, we also took the time to conduct a yearly census.

We collected various information, e.g. who lived in the home, ages, educational background, sacramental history and practice, as well as occupations and other helpful data. In order to fit the information on a small census card, we had to use codes. When it came to “occupation,” “P” meant Professional; L=Laborer; M=Management; HW=Housewife; and so on.

In one home, next to the name of the wife and mother, my predecessor wrote “DE.” I didn’t know what this abbreviation meant, so I asked the woman if she knew. With an air of satisfaction, the woman said: “I told the priest last year, I did not like the term ‘housewife’ because it doesn’t reflect the dignity of what I do in my life. So I told Father I was a “Domestic Engineer!”

While she was referring to her everyday responsibilities within the home, I do not think she understood just how “theologically correct” her response was. The Second Vatican Council, when speaking of family life, referred to the family as the “Domestic Church.”

Read of the rest of my column on pages 14 and 15 of the new Spring 2010 issue of FAITH Saginaw magazine.