Tag: bishop

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Mary C. Uhler, Catholic Herald Staff

‘Great moment of joy in our Church,’ says Bishop Hying

WAUNAKEE — Bishop Donald J. Hying said it is a “great moment of joy in our Church” as he welcomed those attending the Rite of Election and Call to Continuing Conversion held on Sunday, March 1, at St. John the Baptist Church in Waunakee.

“We lift all catechumens and candidates up in prayer,” said Bishop Hying.

Catechumens, candidates

This year there are 36 catechumens (those seeking the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Eucharist) and 107 candidates (those who were baptized in another Christian denomination and wish to be welcomed into the Catholic Church) in the Diocese of Madison, a total of 143.

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Bishop Donald J. Hying

Obedience to Christ, Church will always be a blessing

Bishop Donald J. Hying's column

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus steadfastly reiterates a central theme of his mission: He has come to earth to do the will of His heavenly Father.

His long nights of intimate prayer, the extended days of ministering to the crowds, His fasts and feasts, His tears and laughter all express Jesus’ fundamental desire to fulfill what the Father has asked of Him. This radical obedience to the Divine Will culminates in the events of Holy Week.

Jesus is faithful to will of God

After the Transfiguration, Jesus resolutely sets His sights on Jerusalem, journeying up to the sacred city to intentionally embrace His Passion and death. Along the way, He speaks movingly of the destiny that awaits Him, warning His followers of future persecutions and suffering, but also assuring them that glorious resurrection waits just on the other side.

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Sara Christenson, For the Catholic Herald

Youth grow in faith, friendship at Frassati Fest

WISCONSIN DELLS — At the beginning of February, approximately 350 high school teens and chaperones gathered together at the Kalahari in the Wisconsin Dells to attend the 21st annual “Frassati Fest.”

This youth gathering is named after Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, who was from Italy and died at a young age. He is the patron of this event.

Grow in faith and friendship

This annual retreat offers a place for teens to encounter Jesus Christ and grow in faith and friendship with Catholic teens from all across the Diocese of Madison.

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Bishop Donald J. Hying

Learning from the ‘Hound of Heaven’

One of my favorite poems is the “Hound of Heaven” by Francis Thompson, in which the poet experiences God as a hugely powerful dog who resolutely chases him down the pathways of his life.

Despite every attempt to escape, hide, or elude the mighty hound, Thompson cannot do so, ultimately surrendering to being caught, only to find that this creature, which he mightily feared, is actually his very salvation.

Difficult life

The poet speaks profoundly of his own difficult experience. Thompson was born in London in 1859, entered medical school at the behest of his father, but eventually dropped out of his studies and left home.

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Bishop Donald J. Hying

Make this the best Lent of your life

Ash Wednesday, St. Bernard, Middleton
Fr. Brian Wilk, pastor of St. Bernard Parish in Middleton, distributes ashes to a parishioner during an Ash Wednesday Mass last year. (Catholic Herald photo/Kevin Wondrash)

Every Lent, the whole Church goes on a retreat together with Jesus in the desert for 40 days. Through increased attention to prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, we grow in virtue and holiness, more attentive to the grace and love of the Lord, more dynamic in the practice of our faith, more spiritually ready to celebrate the great Paschal Mystery, the death and resurrection of Christ.

The etymology of “religion” is “relationship,” so we deepen the relationships in our lives this Lent. Through prayer, we grow in our experience and attention to the Lord; through almsgiving, we serve and love others by sharing our time and treasure, especially with the needy and suffering; through fasting, we empty ourselves out, so the Lord can more truly reign on the throne of our hearts.

More Jesus. Less me. If I am especially faithful to fasting, there will literally be less of me, come Easter!

More about subtraction than addition

In a sense, Lent is more about subtraction than it is addition. By removing the noisy demands of my selfishness and the distracting clutter of my heart, God has greater freedom and capacity to live, move, and act within me.

This path of self-emptying is imitative of Jesus, who followed a trajectory of remarkable humility, in order to reach, heal, forgive, love, and save us. Jesus Christ was laser-focused on doing the will of the Father, radically directing every aspect of His life and personality to His mission.

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Kevin Wondrash

Ordination of Deacon Lawrence Oparaji February 22

Fr. Lawrence Oparaji
Deacon Lawrence Oparaji

MADISON — Bishop Donald J. Hying will ordain Deacon Lawrence Oparaji to the priesthood for the Diocese of Madison on Saturday, Feb. 22, at a 10:30 a.m. Mass in the Bishop O’Donnell Chapel at Holy Name Heights, 702 S. High Point Rd.

Deacon Lawrence is the son of Kenneth and Calista Oparaji of Angwan Fadama, Orozo, FCT, in Nigeria.They are members of St. Andrew Kagwa Parish, Orozo Abuja.

Deacon Lawrence’s home parish in the Diocese of Madison is St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Madison.

He attended grade school in the Model Learning Center/Jikwoyi Phase II, and high school in the Federal government College/Keffi, Nasarawa.

His college studies were taken at the Dominican Institute Samonda Ibadan, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Philosophy and Religious Studies.

He studied at the University of St. Thomas, St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity, St. Paul, Minn., where he earned a Master of Divinity degree.

His intern experience took place at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish in Madison. His deacon placements were at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish, Madison, and Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary Parish, Sun Prairie.

His clinical pastoral experience was taken at Lakeview Hospital, Stillwater, Minn.

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Kevin Wondrash

Bishop calls on men to be ‘St. Joseph Strong’

PINE BLUFF — “Now is the time for St. Joseph” says the new book Consecration to St. Joseph: The Wonders of Our Spiritual Father by Fr. Donald Calloway, MIC.

Each man who attended the Knights of Divine Mercy event at St. Mary Church in Pine Bluff on February 7 received a copy of this book to embark on their own journey to be “St. Joseph Strong”.

More than 300 men were in attendance and heard a talk by Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison.

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Bishop Robert Barron

The maintenance of harmony in the Church

Some years ago, my friend Msgr. Francis Mannion wrote an article concerning the three essential features of the Eucharistic liturgy — namely, the priest, the rite, and the people.

When these elements are in proper balance, rightly ordered liturgy obtains.

Further, from these categories, he argued, we can discern the three typical distortions of the liturgy: clericalism (too much of the priest), ritualism (a fussy hyper-focus on the rite), and congregationalism (a disproportionate emphasis on the people).

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Kevin Wondrash

Throw off darkness, embrace the Eternal Day

Acedia is an uncommon word that defines a common experience. Its Latin and Greek antecedents mean “negligence” and “lack of care.”

The definition is “a state of listlessness or torpor, of not caring or not being concerned with one’s position or condition in the world. (Acedia) can lead to a state of being unable to perform one’s duties in life. Its spiritual overtones make it related to, but distinct from depression.”

Linked to boredom, lukewarmness, and apathy, acedia can particularly overwhelm us in our spiritual practice and pastoral ministry.

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