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	News Briefs: Archbishop Cordes to speak at Overture Center -- Updated: 8/8/2006, 11:27 p.m. Central Time MADISON -- The Diocese of Madison announced the venue for Cor Unum President Archbishop Paul Josef Cordes' visit to Madison. Archbishop Cordes, president of Cor Unum, the Vatican agency that oversees the pope's ministry of charity, will speak at The Capitol Theatre in The Madison Overture Center on Tuesday, Sept. 19, at 7:30 p.m. General public tickets will be made available on August 28 through Catholic Charities, 608-821-3100. The archbishop, a close collaborator of Pope Benedict XVI in the preparation of his first papal encyclical Deus Caritas Est ("God is Love"), is stopping in Madison as part of a three-city United States tour. The archbishop's speech is expected to center on the pope's encyclical in order to promote and encourage further study and reflection and to put the truth and direction found therein into practice. He will focus on what is the authentic motivation behind charitable works to promote human solidarity. For more on Archbishop Cordes, see the July 20 breaking news on the Catholic Herald Web site. Patch Grove artist donates painting for raffle PATCH GROVE -- Cathy Martin, a member of St. John Parish and a self-taught artist, has donated one of her paintings, entitled "God's Fingers," to be raffled on Sunday, Aug. 13. The raffle will take place at the parish, 213 N. Wyalusing St., during their Summerfest and rededication of the church. In addition to the painting, Martin and other parishioners dedicated their time to give the church a make-over, including a cleaning and new artwork. Proceeds from the raffle on August 13 will go towards the redecoration costs. Tickets are still available at $2 for one or $10 for six and can be purchased through Fr. Bart Timmerman at the St. Mary's/St. John's rectory in Bloomington. Call 608-994-2526. Nominate someone for "Profiles from the pew" To nominate someone to be featured in "Profiles from the pew," download a nomination form (PDF file, 269 KB). "Profiles from the pew" runs in the Catholic Herald print edition NOTE: The nomination form is a Portable Document Format file (PDF), which can be viewed using the freely available Adobe® Reader® software. Many computers already have this software and will automatically open the document when you click the nomination form link, above. Adobe Reader is a registered trademark of Adobe Systems Incorporated in the United States and/or other countries.

Fun family picnic: With serious message on marriage

By Emily Seyfert
CATHOLIC HERALD STAFF

(See also front-page photo.)

MADISON -- Over 400 individuals attended the family picnic with Bishop Robert C. Morlino held at the Bishop O'Connor Catholic Pastoral Center on Sunday, July 23.

An outgrowth of the Doctrine and Dinner held in April, the family picnic was organized by the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis (OEC) and billed as a first annual event.

Families from across the diocese enjoyed a potluck lunch, gym and pool time, and plenty of visiting with neighbors and new acquaintances. Local Knights of Columbus Council #531 grilled the brats, hamburgers, and hot dogs, while families provided side dishes, desserts, and beverages.

"We had a tremendous core of volunteers without whose help we would never have been able to pull off such a large event," remarked Jack McBride, associate director of the OEC. "A big thanks to KC Council 531 who slaved over hot grills to cook our hamburgers and hot dogs."

Al Christianson coordinated the Knights' efforts while Mike Holpin donated the use of the gas grills. The meat, buns, and paper products were donated by UW Provisions, Steve Kalscheur, Wonder Bread Bakery, and Colonial Bakery.

Also present at the picnic was a display from the Office of Justice and Pastoral Outreach giving details about the two upcoming referenda on marriage and the death penalty at the state level. Children of all ages enjoyed playing with the "I LOVE MOM & DAD" balloons that were provided at the display.

Visiting with the bishop

Eric Schiedermayer, executive secretary of the OEC, remarked, "The people of the Diocese of Madison have been very enthusiastic about opportunities to spend time with Bishop Morlino.

"There is a real hunger for clear, straightforward teaching, even on issues that are controversial," Schiedermayer continued. "The Doctrine and Dinner series (was created) so that anybody in the diocese could have the chance to 'hang out' with their bishop."

Following the picnic, adults gathered in an adjacent room to hear Bishop Morlino speak on "Marriage as a Path to Holiness."

Marriage and holiness

The bishop started by speaking of the biblical basis and foundation of marriage. "Marriage has not been incidental to the history of salvation. God's action in history has relied on one good marriage after another," he said, citing examples from Abraham and Sarah to Zachary and Elizabeth.

He went on to speak of two elements of marriage outlined in Genesis: intimacy and procreation. "The procreation of children is built into the intimacy of marriage," he explained. "They are not two purposes of marriage - intimacy and procreation - there is one purpose: intimacy which is procreative. It's all wrapped together. That's the very foundation of marriage in the Scriptures: it is one husband, one wife, one lifetime, with openness to children."

Even "God's coming into the world was a nuptial thing," through Mary and the power of the Holy Spirit, Bishop Morlino said.

That is why it is so important to defend marriage, he continued, "because God has told us over and over again" how important, basic, and sacred He thinks marriage is.

"And somehow if we lose a sense of how basic, important, and simple marriage is, we lose something in our ability to understand God . . . because God has chosen again and again to reveal Himself and to speak to His people out of a nuptial context," he said.

The bishop went on to speak of marriage as a "great mystery," explaining that when Jesus blessed the marriage in Cana, He made it a sacrament.

"The whole relationship of Christ to the church is founded in the institution of marriage," Bishop Morlino explained. "We cannot understand our relationship to God and we cannot understand who we are as church except in the nuptial context. We need to look at good and faithful marriages in order to know who God is, how He acts in history, and how we are to be the church in relationship with Christ."

Marriage is Eucharistic

The final point regarding marriage that the bishop made was that marriage is Eucharistic. The consecration is the core moment of the Eucharist, Bishop Morlino said.

At the consecration, the words are said, "'This is my Body broken for you. This is my Blood poured out for you.' That is sacrifice . . . so that sins might be forgiven. The core of the Eucharist is sacrifice and forgiveness" and "at the core of any good marriage is sacrifice and mercy."

"Married people become holy because of sacrifice and that sacrifice often takes the form of forgiveness," he said.

There is a great difference between the grace of forgiveness and just "letting it go" however, he warned. The relationship doesn't get stronger when we're letting things go. The gift of forgiveness from Christ through the spouse changes the other, "and makes the situation better than it was before the forgiveness."

The bishop concluded with the prayer that was used at weddings before the Second Vatican Council. "The priest would say to the couple: 'And so this union into which you are about to enter is surely most serious because of the sacrifices that will be asked of you in the context of a married life. Sacrifice is always difficult and irksome. Only love can make it easy; and perfect love can make it a joy.'"

New Stewardship Council:
Plans diocesan events

By Jan Okas
FOR THE CATHOLIC HERALD

MADISON -- The Office of Stewardship and Development has recently announced the formation of the Madison Diocesan Stewardship Council (MDSC), according to Associate Director Daun Maier.

Established as a collaborative effort of parish stewardship staff and the diocesan office, the council is actively pursuing ways for providing support of all diocesan parishes to encourage good stewardship of our resources.

Maier said that the committee's intent is to invigorate a stewardship message into the parishes, offer support, and be a resource to pastors, parish staff, and all volunteers who share their time and talent at the parish. The council's intent is not to implement policy, but to begin offering more diocesan-wide pooling of resources.

"We have many talented and spiritual individuals within our diocese willing to share their experience," states Maier. "We need to take advantage of this great resource."

MDSC had their first gathering on March 22 at the Bishop O'Connor Catholic Pastoral Center. The group has built a commitment to collaborate on a resource guide for encouraging stewardship as a way of life for our parishes.

According to Maier, stewardship is based upon a conversion of heart gained through prayer, when one comes to the understanding that all we have is a gift from God. Those grateful hearts lead to a grateful attitude and encourage the desire to nurture God's gifts responsibly and offer a desire to return those gifts back to God.

"MDSC and our stewardship office encourage our priests, parish staff, and the laity who volunteer their time and talent to join us at our upcoming stewardship events," Maier said. "This is an opportunity to come together and share our resources with each other as we look ahead to building the message of stewardship in the Diocese of Madison."

The group has planned two events at the Bishop O'Connor Center. MDSC and the Office of Stewardship and Development will host a "Social Gathering for Stewardship" on Wednesday, Aug. 23, from 6 to 9 p.m. A short presentation by St. Patrick Parish, Lodi, will offer insight to building stewardship within a parish. There is no charge, but reservations are requested prior to August 18.

Also, Bishop Robert C. Morlino has invited Bishop Robert Morneau, auxiliary bishop from the Diocese of Green Bay, to be a keynote speaker at the "First Annual Diocesan Stewardship Day" on Wednesday, Oct. 11. The day begins with a continental breakfast at 9 a.m., with Bishop Morneau scheduled to speak on "A Theology of Stewardship" at 10 a.m. A special Mass is planned at 11:30 a.m., followed by lunch from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. Anyone interested in becoming more familiar with stewardship within a parish may stay for a short discussion after lunch by the Madison Diocesan Stewardship Council. Cost for this event is $20 per person and registration is required prior to September 30.

To make reservations for either event, contact Jan Okas of the Office of Stewardship and Development at 608-821-3039 or e-mail jokas@straphael.org