CROSS PLAINS — […]
Year: 2013
Governor signs Senate Bill 206 (Sonya’s Law) into law
MADISON — Wisconsin Right to Life (WRTL) announced Friday, July 5, that Governor Scott Walker signed Senate Bill 206 (Sonya’s Law) into law.
This important new law requires that women seeking abortions in Wisconsin be given the opportunity to see their unborn children through ultrasound. The type of ultrasound used is determined by the woman after all options are explained to her. Sonya’s Law also requires that an abortionist have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of the abortion clinic.
Public presentation on G.K. Chesterton to be presented in Waunakee
WAUNAKEE — The presentation “G.K. Chesterton on Education” will take place Sunday, July 14, 2013 at 2 p.m. at St. John the Baptist Parish on 209 South St. in Waunakee.
In this free public event, EWTN host Dale Ahlquist will provide the wit and wisdom of Chesterton on how to educate and to avoid giving into the fads and fashions that afflict modern education.
Religious freedom on the Fourth of July
Dear Friends,
As I write this column, we are coming quickly upon the Fourth of July, when we as a nation celebrate our independence and freedom. It is this freedom which has provided tremendous room for our flourishing as a human race and as a nation, but it is a delicate freedom, built upon the presupposition that we as a nation will choose to exercise our freedom in a way that moves forward toward what is best.
At Camp Gray, ‘awesome’ is normal
By Thursday afternoon, things were in full swing at Camp Gray. Campers, ranging in age from second-graders to young adults who just finished high school, spent the last few days growing closer to God together and having fun together.
Lumen House project moves forward
MADISON — Msgr. Kevin Holmes, rector of the Cathedral Parish in Madison, publicly thanked Wisconsin State legislators late in June for acting to ensure the opportunity for faith-based housing for students attending University of Wisconsin-Madison becomes a reality beginning with the 2014 to 2015 school year.
Preserving tax-exemption
In a release dated June 21, Monsignor Holmes noted the Cathedral Parish’s tremendous appreciation for “the efforts of Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester), Rep. Travis Tranel (R-Cuba City), and Rep. Pat Strachota (R-West Bend) and Senate Majority Leader, Senator Scott Fitzgerald (R-Beaver Dam) for their role in including a matter important to the Cathedral Parish in the governor’s budget bill.
Catholic Herald wins awards
The Catholic Herald-Diocese of Madison won six awards in the 2013 Catholic Press Awards competition sponsored by the Catholic Press Association of the United States and Canada.
Sister Marie Raphael Morell, OP, dies
SINSINAWA — Sister Marie Raphael Morell, OP, died July 4, 2013, at Lovelace Medical Center, Albuquerque, N.M. The funeral Mass was held in Queen of the Rosary Chapel at Sinsinawa July 12, 2013, followed by burial in the Motherhouse Cemetery.
Sister Marie Raphael made her first religious profession as a Sinsinawa Dominican Aug. 5, 1947, and her final profession Aug. 5, 1950. She ministered in education for 26 years as a teacher and consultant; served as director of religious education for five years; ministered as a pastoral associate, chaplain, and director of spiritual care in hospitals for 15 years; and held leadership positions for the Sinsinawa Dominican Congregation, Sinsinawa, Wis., for seven years. She served in Illinois, Nebraska, Colorado, Iowa, Wisconsin and New Mexico.
Sister Danielle Griffin, OP, dies
SINSINAWA — Sister Danielle Griffin, OP, died July 4, 2013, at St. Dominic Villa. The funeral Mass was held in Queen of the Rosary Chapel at Sinsinawa July 6, 2013, followed by burial in the Motherhouse Cemetery.
Sister Danielle made her first religious profession as a Sinsinawa Dominican Feb. 4, 1928, and her final profession Aug. 5, 1951. She ministered as a teacher and librarian for 18 years, as principal and school administration staff for nine years, as a counselor for 18 years, as a general councilor for the Sinsinawa Dominican Congregation for six years and as a pastoral associate for five years. Sister Danielle served in South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Alabama, Nebraska, Iowa, and Alaska.
A defining moment: Our country needs to pass immigration reform
My ancestors made the journey from Ireland, Germany, and Belgium to the United States of America. They sought a better life for themselves and their families in this great land of freedom and opportunity.
My father’s family from Ireland settled in the Darlington area as farmers. However, they moved to Platteville where the children could get a better education. My father and some of his sisters attended what was then called the Platteville Normal School (now the University of Wisconsin-Platteville) and became teachers.
On my mother’s side, her German and Belgian ancestors moved to the Wisconsin “Holy Land,” the area near St. Anna and Kiel. They, too, started as farmers. My mother, too, graduated from college and joined the teaching profession. She met my father when they taught at the same school.
For these immigrant families, education was very important. So was practicing their religion. My parents both came from strong Catholic families.
Immigrants continue to arrive in the U.S.
Immigrants from many countries have continued to seek a new home in the United States. Statistics show that most of them arrive through legal channels. The Center for American Progress reports that there were 39.9 million foreign-born people living in the United States in 2010: 44 percent naturalized citizens, 24 percent permanent residents, 29 percent unauthorized migrants, and three percent temporary legal residents.