http://www.sfarchdiocese.org/about-us/articles-resources/ Articles and Resourcesen-us Mon, 01 Jan 1900 08:00:00 GMTMon, 03 Jun 2013 17:43:33 GMT http://www.sfarchdiocese.org/about-us/articles-resources/2013-Archived-Articles/State-legislators-organizing-to-respond-to-religious-freedom-challenges-3748/    State legislatures, rather than the federal courts, are becoming the new battlegrounds over religious freedom, two state legislators acknowledged at the 2013 National Religious Freedom Conference. Citing examples of legislative proposals and the introduction of rules governing state-funded programs and schools, Oklahoma State Rep. Rebecca Hamilton, a Democrat, and Idaho State Sen. Curt McKenzie, a Republican, said they believe such efforts are intended to remove any religious influence from public life. Hamilton, who identified herself as a pro-life Catholic, told the 150 people at the conference that she has been told by at least one constituent to "go to church all you want but leave it there." "The arrogance of telling me to ignore my religious beliefs ... is a result of the ethos of the culture in which we live, in which it's OK to attack people because of their faith," Hamilton said. "We've reached the point in this country that bashing people because of their faith is accepted, it is tolerated. You can get re-elected doing it. You can have big ratings on your television show doing it," Hamilton said. In response, legislators in some states have formed religious freedom caucuses, small groups of legislators committed to blocking attempts to limit religious practice. Tim Schulz, state legislative policy director for the American Religious Freedom Program at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, said nine state caucuses have been formed in the last year. He told the conference similar caucuses are being formed in nine other states. McKenzie, who spearheaded the formation of the Idaho caucus in 2012, said the group has helped protect religious freedom through the passage of a law allowing students at public universities to follow their own consciences and faith standards in forming groups and selecting their own leaders. Similar legislation has made its way to other states, he said. "Don't underestimate the ability of this program to influence policy at the state level," McKenzie said. "Legislators find input from you as thought leaders invaluable." Jennifer Kraska, executive director of the Colorado Catholic Conference, expressed concern over what she described as "outright hostility" toward religious belief that emerged at times in debates in the Colorado Legislature. She called for a broad-based effort to educate people about the threats to religious freedom that have emerged nationwide. "I am hopeful that in Colorado we will someday soon put an end to these senseless attacks on religious liberty," Kraska said. "I know for the vast amount of people in Colorado, the issue of religious liberty is not a partisan issue. Rather it is a constitutional value that must be protected and cherished." A round-table of six religious leaders of different faiths also explored concerns about limits on religious freedom, with several speakers addressing the importance of reaching out to young adults at a time when religious practice among members of that age group is declining. "Young people in the 20-to-40 (year-old) demographic don't understand our concerns," said the Rev. Eugene F. Rivers III, senior policy adviser to the presiding bishop of the Pentecostal Church of God in Christ. "We're using an eight-track tape in an iPad world." Rabbi Abba Cohen, director of the Washington office of Agudath Israel for America, urged the audience to challenge derisive comments about religion and religious practice. "This indeed creates a more secular society," he said. "This leads to the creation of a poison atmosphere in society to weaken laws protecting religious freedom." Speakers also raised concerns that discrimination against people of faith has increased in workplaces and schools and within government. Among examples cited were a business that restricts someone wearing a turban or a hijab from having public contact with customers, bullying of students representing a minority faith and rules that require men and women wanting to obtain a driver's license or photo identification to uncover their hair in violation religious practice. Amardeep Singh, director of programs with the Sikh Coalition, a Sikh civil rights organization, said that because such practices are growing, people of faith must stand together to defend one another. He also called for tolerance not just among people faith but in wider society. "If we're going to ask society to accept our differences, we're going to have to accept secular differences as well," Singh said. The conference also heard from Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, director of the Zahava and Moshael Straus Center for Torah and Western Thought at Yeshiva University in New York, who urged participants to better understand their neighbors and appreciate their differences, especially when it comes to faith traditions. He said differences among people, whether faith traditions or cultures, must be protected. A society that allows for no differences among people is totalitarianism, he said. Rabbi Soloveichik said America's founders recognized the importance of religious freedom and the biblical concept of covenant that exists between God and people as well as among people. But he questioned whether government officials today understand those principles. "In this day and age American public officials speak of freedom of worship rather than free exercise, as if our religious identity is reserved for the church and the synagogue and not something we take with us and freely obey in the public square," he said. By Dennis Sadowski 5-31-13, WASHINGTON (CNS) END  Mon, 03 Jun 2013 17:43:36 GMT2013 Archived Articles http://www.sfarchdiocese.org/about-us/articles-resources/2013-Archived-Articles/New-Oakland-bishop-looks-to-Pope-Francis-example-3747/  Bishop Michael C. Barber, S.J., was ordained and installed as Bishop of Oakland on May 25, promising to follow Pope Francis' emphasis on caring the poor and the suffering. “I would like to do for Oakland what Pope Francis is doing for the whole Church,” Bishop Barber said in his remarks at the end of Mass at the Cathedral of Christ the Light. “My vision is this: the priests take care of the people. The bishop takes care of the priests. And we all take care of the poor, the sick and the suffering – those suffering physically and spiritually,” he said to a filled cathedral. Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco, the previous Bishop of Oakland, served as the new bishop’s principal consecrator. The archbishop delivered the homily, saying that Pope Francis “certainly has given us much to think about, and not just think but do, to respond in kind to his example.” “He is calling us to reexamine our lives, calling us back to basics, to reflect more deeply,” Archbishop Cordileone continued. “Perhaps, for those in ordained ministry, the most striking of all is his style of preaching. He is so direct and so down-to-earth, getting down to the heart of the matter in a pastoral, personal way.” Bishop Barber emphasized the importance of collaboration, saying that as a priest he was always grateful “when my superiors allowed – or better yet, made it easier – for me to do my job.” He said he did not know what he would do about the diocese’s debt. “But what I do know is this,” he said. “If we are generous with God and generous in taking care of his people, God will take care of us.” Bishop Barber has roots in Oakland, where his father was born. His mother was born across the bay in San Francisco. The new bishop thanked former San Francisco Archbishop John Rafael Quinn, who ordained him to the priesthood. He thanked the priest who baptized him, Father John Cummins, who later served as second Bishop of Oakland. He also had special words for Sister Mary Jude, O.P., who taught him religion in eighth grade. “You may not realize it, but this sister has taught every person in the diocese of Oakland -- because she taught me the faith, and I will hand it on to you,” Bishop Barber said. “In honoring her, I honor all consecrated religious women, all teachers, and all catechists in our diocese. Until Pope Francis named him as bishop, Bishop Barber had served as Director of Spiritual Formation at Saint John’s Seminary in Brighton, Mass. He joined the Society of Jesus in 1973. He served in numerous capacities, including as a missionary in Western Samoa, an assistant professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, a tutor and chaplain at the University of Oxford, and as chaplain for the U.S. Navy Reserve. The bishop took a moment to joke about his Jesuit past. “I overheard a woman say to a Jesuit before Mass this morning: ‘Thanks for giving us Father as our bishop.’ The Jesuit replied: ‘Thank you for taking him!’” Bishop Barber said.   “Good people of Oakland, thank you for taking me!” he added. “In my 58 years of life, it never entered my mind that I would be bishop of Oakland,” he concluded. “It probably never entered your minds either. I know I am unworthy.” “But I also know that from all eternity it has been in the mind of God that this is my vocation,” he said. “With your prayers, and the grace of God, and Mother Mary’s love, I intend to fulfill it.” Oakland, Calif., May 31, 2013 (CNA/EWTN News)  Mon, 03 Jun 2013 17:43:22 GMT2013 Archived Articles http://www.sfarchdiocese.org/about-us/articles-resources/2013-Archived-Articles/Ancient-art-form-of-iconography-called-Scripture-in-paint-3749/   Veronica "Ronnie" Royal of Virginia has been an iconographer since 1998, working diligently to hone her craft and encourage the use of icons in contemplation and prayer. Born in Nancy, France, she was raised in the Ukrainian Catholic Church by her Russian mother and Ukranian father. Icons were very much a part of her church and family life. She is often commissioned to paint saints who are not particularly popular or are obscure, like St. Andrew Kim Taegon, namesake of a couple's adopted son. His grandmother commissioned Royal to paint the icon as a gift to her son and daughter-in-law in celebration of their new child, Taegon. "You have to remember that the church continues to declare saints, and yet iconography originated from the early church," Royal said. "So there is a place for present-day iconographers to bring Catholic saints to life through this ancient tradition." Iconography was a well-developed art form by the third century, but its origins began with the new church. St. Luke, the apostle and evangelist, painted three icons of Mary, including "Our Mother of Tenderness." "The Holy Spirit speaks to us through sacred art and allows us to gain an understanding of the subject's experiences in the Christian journey that we are all undertaking," Royal said in an interview. "St. Damascene calls icons 'Scripture in paint,'" she continued. "I like that because it suggests the process of visualizing what we know from the Bible or the lives of saints and bringing these experiences to a personal level through prayer." The general approach to painting an icon is to begin with a dry, knot-free piece of nonresinous wood and apply coats of gesso, which acts as a special primer. The outline of the icon is put on tracing paper and then powdered with a chalklike substance that can then be transferred to the wood's surface by tracing each line. Gold leaf is then applied to key places such as the background or a halo, and then the painting begins. Royal has developed her own approach, which she teaches in her workshop. Egg tempera paint is most often used, she said, but she teaches her students with acrylic. "Oils are used sometimes," she added, "but even the coarsest materials in the hands of a master can become a feast for the eyes and spirit. Whether it is delicate furrows in fabric, the essence of feathers, or each strand of hair, the iconographer brings unique talents and a spiritual awakening to create a venerable image. The Holy Spirit is at work without a doubt." Royal has traveled the world to perfect her craft, including a recent visit to Greece to study for a month under an iconographer whose works she admires. The first image she painted was "Christ the Pantocrator," and despite how sophisticated her work has become, Royal keeps that original icon close to her heart. "I was so proud of it. I look at it now and recognize the work of a novice." As she has honed her craft, Royal said she still often uses the outlines of existing icons. She even examines the works of great masters to see how they depicted saints. Royal teaches students with varying skill levels during Saturday-morning workshops. Two or three artists often sit at her dining-room table with implements and tubes of paints spread about. At other sessions, there are up to seven iconographers with varying degrees of skill and expertise at work, some of them at the kitchen table. "I have two students who are exceptional -- they could teach me," she said with a smile. One of those students, Therese Nakasato of Springfield, isn't so ready to abandon Royal's tutelage, noting: "Ronnie has a good eye for detail, and I appreciate what she brings to my icons. I also prefer to work with other artists in order to share ideas and lend support. It's otherwise a solitary process -- certainly there's a place for being alone while painting. But artists also need each other." Royal added, "We all learn from each other, and that is a great blessing." Royal's natural vocation as a teacher and fine focus on detail allow her to bring along new students in the craft on a step-by-step basis, while also helps each to realize their potential. "I'm demanding, but I don't ask of any of my students something they can't do." Student Lynn Vecchietti, a sixth-grader who attends parochial school, said that she doesn't mind being around adults. "We pray, we share our brushes and paints, we work quietly and hard. I really love it and am going to paint St. Michael for my brother John as my next icon." Most of all, Royal said, she wants to glorify God and help to spread the tradition of iconography to other artists. "As I've grown in this vocation, I've found that my faith has also grown. It's almost difficult for me to pray without an icon, and I see the virtues of figures I've painted in the faces of people that I meet. But mostly, I am humbled by the responsibilities that come with sharing this profound form of worship." Royal has been commissioned to paint dozens of icons for Catholics from East Coast to West Coast. By Betty Ellen Walter 5-29-13, ANNANDALE, Va. (CNS) END Mon, 03 Jun 2013 17:42:17 GMT2013 Archived Articles