Photo Courtesy Peter McLaughlin

Boston College entered a historic partnership in 2006 when it joined forces with the Archdiocese of Boston and Saint Columbkille Parish to support Saint Columbkille School in Brighton.  Four years later, the Saint Columbkille Partnership School is continuing its mission “to become one of the outstanding Catholic elementary and middle schools in the nation.”

Peter McLaughlin, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the Saint Columbkille Partnership School, explained that the school was “going out of business” when the partnership formed in 2006.

“It became apparent that Saint Columbkille was not going to survive in the mode that it was in, faced with declining enrollment, deterioration of the building, [and] inadequate resources to provide for a top-quality school,” he said.

In 2005 the school faced an enrollment of only 180 students with few professional development opportunities and a facility that was “in dire need of repairs and improvement.”

“Fr. Leahy was motivated to get involved for a couple of reasons.  [First,] he didn’t want a Catholic school in our backyard to fail.  But a broader vision, and question in his mind, is ‘how can we pass along the faith if we don’t have Catholic schools?’”

Since 2006, Boston College contributed resources to the partnership that have contributed to the increasing academic quality of the institution.  The Lynch School of Education has contributed faculty training, student teachers, and graduate enrollment so teachers can earn their master’s degree in education at no cost.

“Boston College also provided substantial financial resources initially and continues to do so.  The facility alone has been approximately a million and a half dollars spent since the partnership was formed.”

St. Columbkille School in Brighton

“The reality is that now it costs approximately $7,000 to educate a student at Saint Columbkille and the tuition is far below that,” said McLaughlin.  Tuition for K-8 students is $3,800 per year with discounts for larger families.  About half of the families receive financial aid.

However, Saint Columbkille continues to face challenges as the partnership evolves.  In its November 2009 progress report, the school cited the need to bridge the gap between the tuition collected and the actual cost of educating students.

“One challenge that we would have is the perception that Boston College is going to take care of all the financial demands of this school,” McLaughlin said.

The school is also trying to develop “best practices” for what has become a unique model of Catholic education in the United States.  Professor Mary Walsh in the Lynch School of Education serves on the Board at Saint Columbkille, and said that teachers visit from other schools to learn from the successes of the partnership.

“Saint Columbkille is now becoming a model of best practices in education, not just Catholic education, but in education,” Walsh said.

McLaughlin explained that the partnership “differs from the traditional school model where the pastor has the primary operating responsibility for the school. With the Saint Columbkille model, the Board of Trustees of the Saint Columbkille Partnership School has the responsibility of managing and directing the affairs, business, and activities of the school.”

Students from Saint Columbkille are accepted to many secondary schools in the Boston area, including Boston College High School, Boston Latin Academy, Boston Latin School, Saint Sebastian’s School, and Trinity Catholic High School.

According to McLaughlin, the partnership has not only benefited the school but also the Brighton community.  “As time has evolved, by and large people are very happy with Boston College’s involvement as the quality of the education has improved [and] enrollment has been increasing each year.”

McLaughlin said, “Boston College is perceived, certainly, as a positive influence on what has transpired at Saint Columbkille.”

Pope Benedict XVI in Malta

Pope Benedict visited the Mediterranean island of Malta from April 17 to April 18. Though at first glance this may seem superficially short, his trip teemed with sightseeing and outreach, including a Mass at the Floriana Granaries and a meeting with sexual abuse victims.

As publicly released on the Vatican website, Pope Benedict outlined three important reasons for his excursion to reporters on April 17. The first is Malta’s celebration of 1,950 years since Saint Paul shipwrecked on the island. The Pope, therefore, noted the particular relevance of Paul’s message at the conclusion of his Letter to the Galatians, “faith working through love.”

Second, the Pope conveyed his affinity for being “in the midst of a lively Church.” He cited the flourishing condition of vocations there. “I know that Malta loves Christ and loves his Church which is his Body, and knows that even if this Body is wounded by our sins, the Lord loves this Church nevertheless and his Gospel is the true purifying and healing force.”

Third, the Pope reminded us that it is precisely at Malta “where waves of refugees arrive from Africa and knock at Europe’s door.” This should move us to help Malta in providing for the refugees, showing a true spirit of charity. Once the pope landed in Malta, there was a welcoming ceremony at the International Airport of Malta, which preceded his visit to the Cave of Saint Paul.

At the Cave of Saint Paul, Pope Benedict highlighted the unexpectedness of Paul’s own visit to Malta. The meaning of this for us, then, is to realize sometimes God has different plans than we conceive on our own. His Holiness observed, “Sailors can map a journey, but God, in his wisdom and providence, charts a course of his own.”

The following day, Pope Benedict celebrated a liturgy at the Floriana Granaries. After this he met with a group of people who were victims of sexual abuse by clergy. They convened at the Apostolic Nunciatore, according to the official Vatican report. He listened and sympathized with their suffering, conveying his own shame about what they endured while also praying with them.

Pope Benedict “assured them that the Church is doing, and will continue to do, all in its power to investigate allegations, to bring to justice those responsible for abuse and to implement effective measures designed to safeguard young people in the future.”

The penultimate activity of His Holiness in Malta was a meeting with the native youth.

He exhorted them not to become discouraged if at times Saint Paul did not seem to be loving in his correspondence. Pope Benedict taught that what may seem too demanding from God is actually a love that is exacting precisely because it is so deep and intense for us.

The Pope said, “Because he loves us so much, he wants to purify us of our faults and build up our virtues so that we can have life in abundance. When he challenges us because something in our lives is displeasing to him, he is not rejecting us, but he is asking us to change and become more perfect.”

Extending this sentiment, the Pope later closed his trip with remarks at the International Airport of Malta, where he quoted Saint Paul saying, “Let all that you do be done in love.”

Moses’ face shone because of his encounter and his experience of God, who is the all-good, all beautiful, and ultimate end, and for Whom we were created to praise, know, and love. Yet how often in our modern culture do you see on campus, on the T or anywhere you may walk people’s faces downtrodden and looking like zombies?

Far from refreshing people, technology and its constant hold on our lives through texting and the computer have robbed us of the radiance that our faces should have. We have been robbed of a contemplative awe, which has been replaced by a need for immediate gratification and cheap pleasure.

Look at the example of our society’s attitude toward sex. The prevailing sentiment supports one-night stands. Saving oneself for marriage is the exception. All that matters is the pleasure, and not the gift of oneself to his or her spouse within the marital vows made before God.

Our society’s cheapened view of sex can be owed to a lost sense of beauty. Regrettably our society has reduced sex to plumbing that provides pleasure. However, if people truly realized that in that special act between one man and one woman heaven touches down upon this earth, when God’s creative power joins with the love of a couple to welcome a new life into being, they would not take it so lightly.

Our culture has become bored. With technological advancements and ever expanding scientific knowledge, we have become arrogant, losing a sense of mystery and awe. Our ancestors had a much better hermeneutic of the world than we do.

Their vision was up and outward. Most ancient cultures had a profound regard for the night sky. The vastness of space and the beauty of the stars was not just an airless vacuum with disparate balls of burning gas. It was a starting point of meditation, and a mystery that led one’s thoughts and heart to contemplation of that Creator who set it all in motion.

Some change has happened though, which has situated people in our times to have an entirely opposite view of our ancestors. Cynicism and reductionism have given us tunnel vision. We think we have all the answers, so there is no longer any awe. Everything is reducible to instinct and atoms.

When we lose a sense of God, our Creator and the architect of this universe, we also lose a correct sense of ourselves and each other. Our anthropology becomes skewed. Father Ken Himes, in his course The Moral Dimension of Christian Life, taught that the beginning of morality is, indeed, a sense of mystery, before the presence of another. He used a memorable phrase to capture the idea that mystery can lead to morality. He said that the sense of “awe” before another’s presence led to an “ought” –or a way one should act toward that person.

As you begin each day anew, set aside some time for quiet reflection in the presence of our Creator. Like Moses, ascend the mountain in contemplative awe, and when you come back down, let your face shine for others.

The practice of refraining from eating meat, called abstinence, is a very old tradition in the Church. It developed out of a strict “black fast” during Lent, in which only one meal of bread and water was consumed in a day, and then only after sundown. Over the years, the practice gradually degraded into a meal before sundown, and, eventually, into roughly the same practice observed today.

The question that most ask is usually, “Why do Catholics eat fish onFridays?” The answer is that they do not have to. The Church only mandates that the faithful abstain from meat.

However, an informal tradition of eating fish has developed over the centuries. It most likely began when those populating the Mediterranean often found meat a luxury and fish unappealingly common.

Despite this tradition, the abstinence is not fulfilled only by fish: eating vegetables is also completely acceptable. The actual practice of abstinence is regulated by several Canons in the Code of Canon Law, which is the main legislation of the Church.

Canon 1251 allows for the consumption of meat on solemnities, which are important holy days in the Church calendar, that fall on Fridays, and mandates that the faithful abstain from meat on all Fridays which are not solemnities, unless the local conference of bishops decides otherwise.

Canon 1253 allows the local conference of bishops, which in the United States is the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, to recommend forms of penance other than abstinence which the faithful may observer, citing specifically “works of charity”. However, Catholics are always allowed to abstain from meat or fast on penitential Fridays.

There are two days of abstinence which are additionally days of fast, namely Good Friday and Ash Wednesday. On these days, Catholics are allowed one full meal, and two smaller meals which together may not be larger than the full meal. However, in none of these meals are Catholics allowed to eat meat.

Abstinence, and certainly not eating fish, is not the only way to observe Friday penance. Many Catholics fast completely, often observing the black fast of old.

The Church teaches that fasting and abstinence, when carried out correctly, can work to bring the faithful closer to God. However, they must be mindful to observer both the spirit and the letter of the law. It is often quixotic in modern times to consume fish for penance, since we consider seafood to be a luxury. Unless one has a serious aversion to seafood, he might consider a more appropriate way of performing Friday penance than fish.

Carroll had the fortune of being able to speak from personal experience as his narrative wove through the darkest days of the Cold War.  The anecdotes from his own life through these times brought home the prevalence of what he called “nuclear dread” pervading society, and indeed the world, at the time.  This “nuclear dread” is what began to cause the development of an apocalyptic outlook.

Carroll’s idea of this apocalyptic outlook extends beyond a bare realization that the world could end in a nuclear exchange.

The apocalypse is viewed in terms of what Carroll called the “apocalyptic imagination” which views the world in terms of a divide between good and evil.

This is what brings us back to the religious aspect of his historical analysis, because this divide represents a view of the end which seems to come straight from the book of Revelation.  The “Manichean” division between good and evil split the general view of the world into the evil Soviets on the one hand, and we who were good on the other.

It was on this historical backdrop that Carroll talked about Boston priest Father Leonard Feeney’s position “no salvation outside the church.”

Carroll recounted the distress his young mind experienced at the thought of his Jewish and Protestant friends burning in hell.  As endearing as the anecdote was, it served to illustrate the reasoning of Archbishop Cushing, who was responsible for reprimanding Feeney and his position.  “Experience over doctrine” were the words which Carroll chose to illustrate the need to look with a compassionate eye upon the world, and not with a divisive eye which separates “good and saved” and “evil and damned” so coldly.

This was the heart of Carroll’s great insight.  He chose to believe, and the rest of the Catholic Church did soon after, that if he could love his Jewish friend then there is no reason that God could not also.

The Second Vatican Council, called by Pope John XXIII saw the realization of this by the Church hierarchy.  Carroll points out that in Pope John XXIII’s commencement speech for the council, he uses the phrase “the Church in the world” as opposed to“The Church and the world”.

The former phrase is reflective of the attitude Carroll wants, whereas the latter is invocative of the “Manichean” division and opposition of which the Church needs to rid itself.

To Carroll, even the wrangling between the Church and science is a “false dichotomy”.  This attitude promotes a fundmentalist point of view in his eyes, and is another Manichean division.

In short, understanding and tolerance are the highest values in the process of Catholic renewal.  A Roman Catholic Church which intends to succeed in the future ought to cultivate these, and relinquish its grip on doctrine wherever it proves harsh and divisive.

The Catholic Church has historically taught, and continues to teach, that the Covenant between God and the Jewish people was, properly speaking, never revoked.  Hence, the words of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, “I have not come to destroy, but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17), referring to the fulfillment which occurred with His death upon the Cross, with the words “It is consummated” (John 19:30).  There is a sense in which it is incorrect to talk about an “old” and “new” Covenant, as if they are two different systems, with the latter superseding the former.  In reality, there is simply one Covenant, which began with Abraham in the Old Testament, found its fulfillment in Christ, and continues today through His Church: the “new Israel”.

This obviously raises questionsabout the practices tied to the Old Testament, namely the ritual and ceremonial laws laid out in the Pentateuch.  Are they still valid or salvific?  What purpose, if any, do they serve?  The simplest answer can be found in Pope Pius XII’s encyclical, Mystici Corporis: “by the death of our Redeemer, the New Testament took the place of the Old Law which had been abolished; then the Law of Christ together with its mysteries, enactments, institutions, and sacred rites was ratified for the whole world in the blood of Jesus Christ.”  Ultimately, the ceremonial elements of Mosaic Law served only to prefigure the coming of the true Redeemer; while the Old Covenant was not superseded or revoked, as its true essence remained one and the same, its exterior elements were done away with, as the death of Christ made it superfluous to continue prefiguring the coming of a Redeemer who had already arrived.

The Christian Scholars Group seems scandalized by this theology, emphatically claiming that “God does not revoke divine promises.  We affirm that God is in covenant with both Jews and Christians”, as a rebuttal to the “theology of supersessionism” supposedly found in traditional Catholic doctrine.  Thus, they write, Christians should not think that Christ alone is the way to salvation, nor should they attempt to convert Jews, but rather concede that “If Jews, who do not share our faith in Christ, are in a saving covenant with God, then Christians need new ways of understanding the universal significance of Christ”.

In reality, the Group’s renunciation of  “supersessionism” does nothing to discredit the Catholic Church, since it merely repeats what has been taught for the better part of two millennia.  God, indeed, has never revoked his promise to the Jews, and his covenant extends to all people.  However, while this covenant is extended to all, by virtue of God’s universally salvific will, it does not follow that those who do not accept it have entered into it anyway, and need not be converted.  Christians, through accepting Christ, accept the Covenant; Jews, through rejecting Christ, reject the Covenant they once accepted.  God, indeed, can never be unfaithful.  He promised a Redeemer to Adam and Eve upon their exile from Eden, and established the Mosaic Law to prefigure His coming; thus, a Redeemer has come.  Those who accept Him accept God’s eternal promise of salvation, while those who reject Christ reject this promise.

The question still remains, how should Christians and Jews relate to one another in these times of increased interreligious dialogue?  Dialogue certainly ought to continue, but dialogue oriented towards conversion of the Jewish people, back to the true Covenant from which they have turned away in favor of its mere provisional elements.  The Christian Scholars Group is also right to stress the need for a peaceful and respectful relationship between them, which will foster a deeper understanding of the beliefs of both sides.  For instance, there is a very real, beautiful sense in which Judaism bears witness to the truth of the Catholic faith, something very unappreciated among modern Catholics; as St. Augustine writes in the City of God, “The Jews…are thus by their own Scriptures a testimony to us that we have not forged the prophecies about Christ”.  Mutual respect can make this testimony better understood, and bring Christians to a deeper appreciation of their own beliefs.  An atmosphere of peaceful toleration ought to be encouraged for this and many reasons, but with Christians nonetheless praying and working, that Jews may recognize and accept Christ, Who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

A 2,000 page “positio,” or position paper, was presented in front of the eyes of Pope Benedict XVI in Vatican City on April 14. According to the Catholic News Service, the presentation was made by Monsignor Joseph R. Giandurco, Vice Postulator of the Cause of Canonization of Cardinal Cooke, Patricia Handal, the coordinator of the Cardinal Cooke Guild, New York Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan, and Baltimore Archbishop Edwin F. O’Brien.

After the presentation, the 2,000 page tome was properly filed into the Congregation for Saint’s Causes, the first step in pending the verdict of sainthood or beatification.

But what does one have to do to become a saint? According to www.catholic.org, it is a three step process that is reviewed by the Vatican. First, “the process begins after the death of a Catholic whom people regard as holy.” If it is cleared by the panel of Vatican theologians and approved by the Pope the candidate is called “venerable.”

The next step is to have significant evidence of the candidate performing one miracle after they have passed away. This proves that the person is truly interceding for us from heaven. If confirmed, the candidate is now called beatified or “blessed.”

Finally, the candidate can only be canonized as a “saint” if they have performed more than one miracle. “The title of saint tells us that the person lived a holy life, is in heaven, and is to be honored by the universal Church.” The process “does not ‘make’ a person a saint;” says the website, “it recognizes what God has already done.”

As for Cardinal Cooke’s case, according to CNS, the Archbishop of Baltimore Edwin F. O’Brien regarded him as a “holy man and people just knew it.” O’Brien went on to say that “at a very difficult time in the life of the church, he used to say his goal was to move the whole church forward, but together.”

Terence Cooke was born in 1921, and passed away in 1983. He became archbishop of New York City in 1968 and held his position in the church until his death. The current archbishop of New York Timothy Dolan served under Cardinal Cooke during the 1970’s and early 80’s as vice chancellor, communications director, and personal secretary. Archbishop Dolan oversaw the final stages of diocesan investigation for Cardinal Cooke’s candidacy.

In order for the cardinal to reach beatification, Patricia Handal and the Cardinal Cooke Guild are preparing a paper. The report will state evidence of a healing that took place in Rome, believed to be manifested through the intercession of the late cardinal.

Though Catholics can get caught up in the excitement of this very process, we must not forget that the power, grace, and majesty of God is what changed and sanctioned Cardinal Cooke as well as all the other saints to do the great and holy things that they have accomplished in this world.

The version of this article that appeared in print on Tuesday, April 27th contained an error. The Observer sincerely apologizes to Msgr Giandurco.

The Resurrection

Easter Sunday, the most holy day of the year, is quickly approaching. All over the world, Catholics will gather to celebrate the risen Lord, the feast of Jesus conquering sin and rising from the dead. The Sunday before Easter, Palm Sunday begins Holy Week, the final week of Lent leading to the highest feast. The final days of Holy Week, from the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Thursday night to evening prayer on Sunday, are known as the Easter Triduum.

On Holy Thursday, the Church celebrates the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, remembering the Last Supper of Jesus. In the gospel of John, which is read during Mass, we learn that “[Jesus] poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet.” Catholics believe that this established the priesthood. The presiding priest at Mass, therefore, washes the feet of 12 parishioners, to reenact the motions of Jesus.

The Eucharistic prayer, the same as during every Mass, recalls the Last Supper and the institution of the Eucharist. During the Passover meal with His disciples, Jesus told blessed the bread and wine and gave it to them saying, “This is my body…This is my blood.” There is no closing hymn on Holy Thursday, instead there is a procession of the consecrated Eucharist. Some faithful remain after Mass for adoration of the Eucharist.The next day, Good Friday, is the day of Jesus’ passion and death on the cross. Good Friday is the only day of the liturgical year that there is no Mass celebrated. Stations of the Cross are prayed, usually at 3pm, the time it is believed that Jesus died. During the solemn Good Friday service, the gospel account of the Passion is read and Catholics venerate a crucifix. Because it is not Mass, no Eucharist is consecrated, but Communion is distributed using the consecrated hosts from the Holy Thursday Mass.

Holy Saturday, also known as the Easter Vigil is a day of anticipation of Jesus’ resurrection. There are no daytimes Masses on Holy Saturday. The Vigil service begins after sundown with the ceremony of darkness and light, where the new Paschal Candle is lit. This candle symbolizes Christ as the light of the world. The congregation then processes into the dark church following the newly lighted candle. The priest then sings the Exsultet, announcing that Christ has risen. The church lights are turned on and the Liturgy of the Word begins. There are seven readings, seven psalms, and an epistle, recounting salvation history beginning with the creation story in Genesis.

The Alleluia is sung for the first time, since it has not been used during Lent. After the gospel of the resurrection, the baptismal font is blessed with the Paschal Candle. The Sacraments of Initiation, Baptism, Confirmation, and First Eucharist, are celebrated for the Catechumens. Mass on Holy Saturday is jubilant, celebrating the most holy feast in the Catholic Church. After 40 days of sacrifice and penance, we may now rejoice in the risen Lord. The altar is decorated with colorful flowers and the bells are rung.

Easter Sunday is the feast of Jesus’ resurrection. Mass on Easter is similar to Holy Saturday except Baptism, Confirmation, and First Eucharist are not celebrated and there are the usual number of readings. There are several Masses throughout the day, as on a regular Sunday. The Triduum concludes with evening prayer on Easter.

The Easter Triduum, the three days, from dusk to dusk, that conclude Lent and begin the Easter Season. They are the culmination of the entire liturgical year, commemorating the Passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus. We remember this saving act of Jesus because he died to save us from our sins. By His death, we are alive.

USCCB Website on Health Care Reform

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops continues to voice its opposition to the passage of the recent health care reform bill which they found “deeply disturbing” and fundamentally flawed.

The USCCB opposes the bill, which was passed by a seven vote margin in the House of Representatives last week, because it expands federal funding of abortion and prohibits undocumented immigrants from seeking coverage in insurance exchanges.

Caring for the sick and vulnerable has long been a principle mission of the Catholic Church and has prompted the opening of hundreds of Catholic hospitals which account for over 15% of US hospital admissions each year.  A unanimous statement by the Administrative Committee of the USCCB on March 23 emphasized this point, stating that “For nearly a century, the Catholic bishops of the United States have called for reform of our health care system so that all may have access to the care that recognizes and affirms their human dignity.”

The passed reform bill did not contain the “Stupak-Pitts Amendment” that was included in the original House bill which would have banned the expansion of abortion funding.  In a compromise with pro-life Democrat Congressman Bart Stupak, President Barack Obama agreed to issue an executive order that maintained federal funds would not be used to pay for abortions.  Executive Order 13535 explained that the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act maintained the Hyde Amendment on abortion funding and extended it to health insurance exchanges.

While the USCCB Administrative Committee agreed with the goal of the executive order, they said that “the fact that an Executive Order is necessary to clarify the legislation points to deficiencies in the statute itself.”

“We do not understand how an Executive Order, no matter how well intentioned, can substitute for statutory provisions. […] The statute is also profoundly flawed because it has failed to include necessary language to provide essential conscience protections (both within and beyond the abortion context).” said the USCCB.

The USCCB was also disappointed the bill left many immigrants without health care options.  Shortly before the bill was passed Cardinal Daniel DiNardo, Bishop William Murphy, and Bishop John Wester wrote in a joint letter to congressmen, stating “Universal coverage should be truly universal. […]The Senate bill would not only continue current law that denies legal immigrants access to Medicaid for five years, but also prohibit undocumented immigrants from buying insurance for their families in the exchanges using their own money.”

Some Catholics, though, have voiced their support for the bill.  Network, a group of religious sisters in the United States, wrote to congress on March 17 to say that “the time is now for health reform AND the Senate bill is a good way forward.  As the heads of major Catholic women’s religious order in the United States, we represent 59,000 Catholic Sisters in the United States who respond to needs of people in many ways.”

Sister Ann Walsh, USCCB Director of Media Relations, responded to the letter saying, “Despite what Network said, they do not come anywhere near representing 59,000 American sisters.  The letter had 55 signatories, some individuals, some groups of three to five persons.  One endorser signed twice.”

Despite Network’s belief that the bill did not support abortion funding, Planned Parenthood president, Cecile Richards, thanked the religious sisters in a March 24th Huffington Post article: “It was the Roman Catholic nuns who most importantly broke with the bishops and the Vatican to announce their support for health care reform.”

Though the USCCB has serious doubts about this bill, it did emphasize its commitment to universal health care coverage, saying in their March 24th statement, “Many elements of the health care reform measure signed into law by the President … help to fulfill the duty that we have to each other for the common good. We are bishops, and therefore pastors and teachers. In that role, we applaud the effort to expand health care to all.”

John Paris, S.J., a professor in the Theology Department at Boston College, agreed, saying in a statement to the Observer that “The major issue with the health reform bill is that it is an attempt to fulfill the Catholic social teaching that we have a responsibility to aid and assist the poor in a manner that protects their dignity as human.”

“Health care coverage is a basic necessity to achieve that gospel driven goal,” Paris said.

About 40 people, including two dozen graduate and undergraduate students, attended the 7:30pm Mass. Members of local parishes led the Rosary immediately preceding the Mass.

Fr. Raymond Helmick, SJ presided over the Mass. He explained that the Mass was one in a series of monthly celebrations occurring from the feast of the Annunciation in March until the Nativity of Christ at Christmas in December.

Fr. Helmick stated that he has been presiding over the Masses in the series for at least a dozen years, but that Fr. Paul Kenney, SJ, who may have learned of a similar tradition in Great Britain, began it at Boston College.

In his homily, Fr. Helmick said that those in attendance celebrate the Masses “as a way of prayer… as a way of witness for the sanctity of life.” He clarified that this means all endangered life, especially the unborn.

Despite the often poor reception of life in the culture, Fr. Helmick reflected that the Masses are “a very happy exercise.” He cited the joy of the Annunciation as the basis for such a statement. Mary, said Fr. Helmick, found comfort in God, so we must do similarly.

Fr. Helmick acknowledged that the question concerning abortion is often “very political,” but also noted that this is not “the most important part of it.” He said that the recently passed healthcare legislation does not constitute a total loss for the pro-life movement, since it is “tremendously important” that we are respectful that everyone has access to healthcare. By the same token, however, all people, and especially Catholics, have a responsibility to protect the unborn.

According to Fr. Helmick, Catholics’ support for life “must be a matter of complete witness” in their lives.

Dana Flynn, a sophomore in the Carroll School of Management and President of the Boston College Pro-Life Club says that she supports activities like the Masses for Life on campus.

“As a Catholic university, I think that it is important that there be on-campus events like this,” tells Flynn.

“However,” she continues, “it is also important to realize that the life issue is not only a Catholic issue. As a club, we try to organize events that appeal to many different kinds of people, and maintain that our club is for anyone who supports life.”

The next Mass for Life will be celebrated on April 25 at 7:30pm in St. Mary’s Chapel.