Page 1849 – Archdiocese of Baltimore

ANNAPOLIS – When Dr. Mary Ellen Hrutka attended a Catholic elementary school in Yonkers, N.Y., there were 86 students in her class and the faculty was made up almost entirely of Franciscan Sisters of Baltimore. Some five decades later, Catholic education has changed dramatically. Religious sisters, priests and brothers now make up a small minority of faculty in Catholic schools across the country. Class sizes have shrunk and costs have increased significantly as school leaders struggle to pay for lay teacher salaries, modern technology and enhanced curriculum – all while maintaining their buildings and trying to keep tuition from spiraling out of reach. To meet the challenges of a changing educational environment, Dr. Hrutka has been named executive director of the newly formed Mid-Atlantic Catholic Schools Consortium.

Providence provides as lacrosse gets underway at St. Frances

According to U.S. Lacrosse, America’s first sport is rapidly becoming one of its favorite sports and the growth shows no signs of slowing. Adding to those statistics is St. Frances Academy, Baltimore, with the start of their boys’ lacrosse program. Head coach Rev. Derrick Truesdale, a former lacrosse player himself, is now steadily focused on teaching his players the basics of the game, securing equipment, confirming scrimmages and continuing to draw players from the student body.

Pastor finds faith and karate keep him in top form

Though Father Joseph G. Bochenek finds everlasting solace in his Catholic faith, the 62-year-old pastor of St. Brigid, Canton, has discovered the four hours of karate he studies each week keeps him nimble and in top form. A fan of Eastern disciplines, Father Bochenek joins 20 other disciples in a basement martial arts studio in the parish center Monday and Wednesday evenings for intense sessions of Okinawa Shorin Ryu Karate, run by 7th-degree black belt Danny Simons. The sprightly pastor kicks, jabs and turns with the gracefulness of a ballerina in a room of participants counting in Japanese and moving in what resembles a choreographed dance.

St. Pius X celebrates 50th anniversary

Steve Spurrier has been a member of St. Pius X, Rodgers Forge, since the day he was baptized, some 44 years ago. Now married with three children he is active in marriage preparatory classes, coaching sports teams in the parish and school and playing the drums for the group “40 more days” which helps celebrate Sunday Masses. This parish and the people who fill it have become like family to him. “We are there all the time,” said Mr. Spurrier who is a lector at the parish “It’s basically our life.” On March 11, the parishioners of St. Pius X with Bishop Mitchell T. Rozanski, eastern vicar, will celebrate 50 years as a parish and faith community. Carol Pacione, pastoral life director for the some 1,325 registered parishioners, said the first Mass at St. Pius X was celebrated in the middle of a snow storm and people walked to get to the dedication.

Church assists Chinese without appearing powerful

VATICAN CITY – While local government officials in some parts of China arrest Catholics, authorities in other areas of the country are tolerating, or even encouraging, Catholic charitable activity. A growing number of Catholic dioceses on the mainland have established a Caritas organization and are expanding their social service work. Representatives of four Chinese diocesan Caritas organizations were at the Vatican March 6-7 for a discussion about how official church-sponsored charities around the world could support their efforts and assist the Chinese poor in general.

Muslims, Catholics must teach other’s faith accurately

ROME – Muslims and Catholics in the United States need to develop educational programs that will give all of their faithful an accurate picture of the beliefs of the other, said two clerics experienced in Muslim-Catholic dialogue. Father Francis V. Tiso, associate director of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, and Imam Mohamad Bashar Arafat, president of the Islamic Affairs Council of Maryland, participated in a March 8 videoconference organized by the U.S. Embassy to the Holy See. Officials from the U.S. and Canadian embassies, the Vatican Secretariat of State and religious orders attended the conference in Rome.

Pennsylvania approves plates

PHILADELPHIA – Pennsylvania has become the latest state to approve the use of a “Choose Life” specialty license plate. The plates were approved last November and became available for purchase in January. The cost per plate is $40. The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation receives $20, and the other $20 is an annual membership fee in Pennsylvania Choose Life. Every year, when people renew their registration, they will receive a reminder from the pro-life organization to renew their annual $20 membership.

Redemptorists offer e-cards for the season

Anyone looking for a quick way to send a card for the Lenten season online should check out the Web site of the Redemptorists of the Denver Province. The site, www.redemptorists-denver.org, now offers electronic cards, called e-cards, for the Lenten season, Easter and Good Friday. There are also cards for respect for life, birthdays, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and get well wishes.

Baynesville classes reach out to all

Seven-year-old John Cirincione shows up with his entire family for religious education classes on Sundays at Immaculate Heart of Mary, Baynesville. His dad Paul settles him into his classroom while his mom, Robin, prepares a separate classroom as teacher of a preschoolers’ religious education class. The Cirinciones are parishioners of Immaculate and also have two daughters ages 3 and 4. Severely autistic, John is one of seven children who benefit from the teachings of the Catholic faith in Immaculate’s religious education for students with special needs.

Muskrat love: A Lenten Friday delight

RIVERVIEW, Mich. – There’s an alternative to fish for some Michigan Catholics abstaining from meat on Fridays in Lent – muskrat. The custom of eating muskrat on Ash Wednesday and Fridays in Lent apparently goes back to the early 1800s, the time of Father Gabriel Richard, an early missionary in Michigan whose flock included French-Canadian trappers. Legend has it that because trappers and their families were going hungry not eating flesh during Lent, he allowed them to eat muskrat, with the reasoning that the mammal lives in the water.

U.S. must keep up support for troops in Iraq

FRANKFORT, Ill. – Support from people in the U.S. is important to the nation’s troops who are serving in Iraq and must continue, especially for soldiers “in harm’s way,” a military chaplain told a congregation in the Diocese of Joliet. Father John Hannigan, a priest of the Chicago Archdiocese, has been has been on leave from active duty since January, but before that he had been stationed in Iraq since the early days of the war.

Pope, Catholic media workers strategize