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The Parish
And The Handicapped
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BY FATHER JOSEPH M. CHAMPLIN
AN UNUSUAL REUNION recently united members of this 1948 group
of seminarians studying at Rome’s Belgian College. The host for the
Vatican reunion dinner was Pope John Paul II, pictured as Father Karol
Wojtyla (top row, right). Members of the group attending from the United
States included Monsignor Thomas W. Larkin (top row, left) and
Monsignor Robert W. Schiefen (middle row, left), both serving in Florida.
Pope John Paul II Hosts His Seminary Class
BY MICHAEL MOTES
(Reprinted from THE GEORGIA
BULLETIN, Atlanta, Ga.)
Monsignor W. Thomas Larkin,
Administrator of the Diocese of St.
Petersburg, is back basking in the
Florida sun after a most unusual class
reunion.
post-World War II seminarians studying
in Rome. Three Americans and two
Poles thus ended up in the Belgian
school with 15 natives of that country
and the camaraderie began.
His host for the gathering of old
friends was one of two Polish priests
with whom Monsignor Larkin studied
more than 30 years ago at the Belgian
College (Angelicum University) in
Rome. Then he knew his friend as Karol
Wojtyla. Today the world knows his
former fellow seminarian as His
Holiness, Pope John Paul II.
Pope John Paul II sent out invitations
to his fellow classmates last January and
the reunion was set for March 31. In
addition to Monsignor Larkin, the two
other Americans who were a part of the
1948 group are also Florida priests and
attended the reunion. They are
Monsignor Robert W. Schiefen of
Sarasota, and Monsignor Joseph Dawson
of St. Augustine.
and stated that he enjoys his job. He
appeared genuinely interested in each of
us and there was a certain amount of
joking among the group as to who had
changed the most since our school days
together more than 30 years ago.”
diocese of St. Petersburg was on the
East or West coast of Florida.
“I replied to the Holy Father, that we
were on the BEST coast and that
seemed to please him,” Monsignor
Larkin said.
John Paul is remembered by his
fellow classmate as “a very well-rounded
and extremely brilliant student,”
The friendship dates back to 1948,
when Monsignor Larkin was among a
group of American, Belgian and Polish
seminarians studying at the Belgian
College. The Americans and Polish were
unable at the time to enter their
native-speaking schools in the Eternal
City because of the great influx of
“The Holy Father was a very gracious
host,” says Monsignor Larkin. “Our visit
was quite informal and began with Mass,
which we had the great pleasure of
con-celebrating with the Pope. He then
gave a brief homily and welcomed us to
the Vatican in French.”
“He was always very interested in the
Americans studying in Rome and would
spend a great deal of time with us,”
Monsignor Larkin recalls. “He was very
gifted in languages and liked to practice
his English with us.”
The pontiff has always enjoyed
singing and Monsignor Larkin
remembers Karol Wojtyla as one
always was ready for a songfest.”
‘who
Monsignor Larkin commented that
Pope John Paul II “seemed very relaxed
The reunion the Pope hosted lasted
for over five hours and during the
course of the evening, Monsignor Larkin
was asked by his host whether his
THE
TEACHING,
SHARING
CHURCH
Priest Relieved By Stay Granted Louts Evans
BY MSGR. NOEL BURTENSHAW
(Reprinted from THE GEORGIA
BULLETIN, Atlanta, Ga.)
At one stage I thought of calling
Cardinal Medeiros in Boston and asking
him to get Rose Kennedy to make a
public statement for Johnny.”
Father Kevin Duignan, Pastor of St.
Robert’s Church in Atmore, Alabama,
was taking a short quiet doze on
Thursday afternoon when the good
news arrived.
The exhausted pastor was not in the
arms of his favorite rectory armchair.
He was sitting on a bunk bed on Death
Row in Holman Prison. He had not slept
a wink in four days.
It was the television set that brought
the news prayed for by Father Duignan
along with millions of others across the
nation. Condemned murderer John
Louis Evans III, scheduled to die in the
electric chair at midnight, had received a
stay of execution.
“On Wednesday, as the execution
neared, I did call the Apostolic Delegate
(to the United States) Archbishop
Jadot. The Archbishop was at the
Josephinum Seminary in Ohio attending
a meeting. He most kindly showed his
concern and offered to help in any way
possible. I asked him to send a telegram
to Governor James, reminding him of
the opposition of millions of Catholics
to capitol punishment. But I cannot say
if the telegram was sent.”
the priest, who has been pastor in
Atmore for two years, was with the
condemned man’s attitude. “He was
depressed and unmotivated to live. On
one hand, he considered himself no
good; on the other, he knew he should
struggle for life.”
The see-saw battle went on during
weeks of conversation and prayer. Mass
was forbidden by prison rule on Death
Row but the reminder of his Catholic
family upbringing brought results. “He’s
changed,” says the grateful priest..
“Spiritually he’s a new man. Now he
wants to fight, he will meet with his
lawyer and there’s time for us all to
work.”
Two years ago, after a serious
operation, he was assigned to the small
unhurried parish of St. Robert. Life and
ministry was to be less hectic in his new
church.: “The hand of God works in
strange ways,” said Father Kevin, “these
past weeks have shown me the struggles
of a human soul as I have never
experienced them before. I have come
to know this young man. I love him as a
son.”
In the background, through the
crackling sounds of a long-distance phone
call, the rectory door bell was
impatiently ringing. More reporters,
more questions, more opinions.
Relief and excitement still resounded
in the voice of the Irish priest, when
contacted Saturday morning by THE
GEORGIA BULLETIN. “Johnny had
just gone to another room above death
row to tape a last message for his
mother in Beaumont, Texas, when the
news broke. The cells along the row
erupted in cheers.”
The Alabama Governor did contact
Father Duignan asking about the
condition of Evans and promised to call
again on Thursday, before execution
time. In the meantime the stay was
granted.
The greatest struggle experienced by
Father Duignan was ordained in 1952
for the Diocese of Mobile. He had
studied in All Hallows College in
Dublin, Ireland, and at St, Mary’s
Seminary in Baltimore. He has held
many parish assignments in the South
Alabama Diocese.
The last words Father Kevin Duignan
had heard from newly reprieved John
Louis Evans III were, “Go home,
Father, and get some sleep. We are both
worn out.”
Obviously it was not to be for the
pastor of St. Robert’s.
Ironically, the only sign of dejection
noticed was in the eyes of Evans. He
had insisted for four months that the
execution should take place on
schedule. But changes are gradually
taking place in the 29 year-old Texan.
Father Kevin Duignan played a big part
in those changes.
“He wept on hearing the news and
then we walked in the yard,” said the
priest. “He had asked that God give him
a sign. Just a week earlier his mother,
Betty, pointed to my interest as that
sign. Now Johnny is seeing other signs
too.”
“After our talk in that little yard, he
turned to me and said, ‘Go home Father
and get some sleep.’”
Sleep was Father Duignan’s greatest
need. Days and nights had blurred into
one long nightmare of action, as the
56-year-old pastor had fought the
dwindling hours of John Evans’ life.
“I counselled him and brought the
consolation of the Sacraments to him.
We were more than penitant and priest.
We became fast friends.”
Moments after Duignan had risen
from 12 hours of sleep, the South
Alabama pastor reviewed the thoughts
and actions he had considered and taken
on behalf of his new friend.
‘Fantastic ideas came to my mind.
JANAAN MANTERNACH WRITES,
“Smiling at the woman Jesus said to
her, Tt is not right to take the food of
sons and daughters and throw it to the
dogs.’ The woman was not put off.
‘Please, Lord,’ she insisted, ‘even the
dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their
master’s tables.’ Jesus said to her,
‘Woman, you have great faith. Your
wish will be answered.’ ’’ (NC Sketch
by Barbara Sahli)
leaders to make sure that this door is
always open.”
In our seminary days a quarter of a
century ago, we studied various
obstacles in church law which impeded
the ordination of certain handicapped
men to the priesthood.
Here are several practical
ramifications for local churches and
worshipping communities which are
found in or flow from the document:
The most famous of these
impediments was the absence of the
thumb or index finger. Since a priest
then held the consecrated bread
between these digits, and these only,
their congenital absence or later
amputation rendered him unsuitable for
the priestly ministry. At least we
received that impression during those
early-1950 days.
- Physical design ✓of the parish
buildings. “Structurally inaccessible
buildings are at once a sign and a
guarantee of their isolation from the
community. Sometimes all that is
required to remedy the situation is the
installation of outside ramps and
railings, increased lighting, minor
modification of toilet facilities and,
perhaps, the removal of a few pews and
kneelers.”
Moreover, any severe disfigurement
or limitation likewise supposedly
rendered ordination impossible or most
unlikely. It was even quietly understood
among the students that our own
rector’s ministry had been limited to
seminary work because of an accident
earlier in his life which cost him the
little and third fingers.
-- Provision for participation in the
liturgy.
Should a blind person serve as a
lector? Of course, providing the
individual reads well.
May a deaf person be commissioned
as a special minister of the Eucharist?
Why not?
With this background I thus sat rather
stunned in the chapel of an Eastern
seminary early one recent morning,
watching an obviously handicapped man
making his way to the front. He walked
with difficulty and awkwardly carried a
briefcase in his permanently crooked
arm.
How does a handicapped person
receive the sacrament of penance?
Reconciliation rooms, urged as the ideal
by our bishops, provide an excellent
solution since the penitent can be
wheeled into the space, if necessary, and
sit, kneel or stand as desired.
Intellectually I made a correct
judgment - he indeed was a student for
the priesthood (a fact confirmed later
by the rector). Emotionally I felt a
shock since this clashed with attitudes
and impressions given and gained in my
own formative years.
That incident merely underscores
how society’s and the church’s approach
to such persons has changed for the
better in a relatively brief period of
time. During their November meeting,
the United States Catholic bishops
approved a “Pastoral Statement on the
Handicapped.” One sentence directly
relates to the issue mentioned above.
What about those who must struggle
coming to the altar for Communion or
swallowing the host? In the first
instance, send a minister with the
Eucharist directly to his seat before
others begin their approach; in the ^
second, present the precious blood to
the handicapped either with the chalice
or in smaller cups.
- Specialized catechesis. This year,
for the first time in our religious
education program for public school
students, we are conducting a class
geared especially for a half dozen of our
exceptional children. v
“In this connection, we look forward
to the day when more handicapped
individuals are active in the full-time
professional service of the church, and
we applaud recent decisions to accept
qualified candidates for ordination or
the religious life in spite of their
significant disabilities.” j!
- Support for community efforts to
help the handicapped.
A major portion of that pastoral
document deals with the parish and its
responsibility in this matter. “The
parish is the door to participation for
handicapped individuals, and it is the
responsibility of the pastor and lay
One of our suburban parishes hosted
a town meeting to discuss the proposed
development of several small homes iti
the village for the emotionally and
mentally disadvantaged. Threatened
residents began to express opposition
until!the pastor welcomed this group,
praised their interest and lent his strong
support.
“I have some experience in this
matter,” he said. “My 40-year-old
brother is retarded.”
(Copyright (c) 1979 by NC News Service)
A Phoenician Woman
BY JANAAN MANTERNACH
One day Jesus left his own country,
Palestine. He crossed the border and
walked north in the land called
suffering because of her daughter’s
condition. But Jesus also sensed how
strong the woman was.
So he challenged her to a kind of
Children ’s Story Hour
Phoenicia. He was going toward the
great cities of Tyre and Sidon.
word game. Word games were common
in Jesus’ day. He wanted to see how
clever she was.
This was unusual for Jesus to do. He
hardly ever went outside his own
country. He felt his mission was to his
own people, the Jews. But that day, for
some reason, he visited Phoenicia.
The people of Phoenicia were great
sailors. Their merchant ships sailed all
over the world. The Phoenicians were
not Jews. They did not share the beliefs
of the Jews. They worshipped idols.
Smiling at the woman, Jesus said to
her, “It is not right to take the food of
sons and daughters and throw it to the
dogs.” His words had a harsh sound.
The Jews of Jesus’ day called those who
were not Jews “dogs.” The woman,
understood. Jesus was saying that he
was sent only to God’s people, the Jews.
They are God’s son and daughters.
As Jesus was walking along with his
disciples, a woman approached him. She
was a Phoenician, or Canaanite. She
must have heard rumors of Jesus’ power
to cure people. Even though she did not
share Jesus’ beliefs, she came to him for
help.
The woman was not put off. She
sensed that Jesus was inviting her to a
battle of words. She sensed also that he
was very sensitive and caring.
“Please, Lord,” she insisted, “even
the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from
their master’s tables.”
“Lord, have pity on me! ” she pleaded
with Jesus. “My daughter is terribly
troubled by an evil spirit.” Jesus
stopped and listened to her. But he did
not respond.
Jesus was delighted with her reply. It
showed her courage and sense of humor.
It also showed her trust in him. So Jesus
said to her, “Woman, you have great
faith. Your wish will be answered.”
His disciples urged him to ignore her.
“Get rid of her,” they said, “She keeps
shouting at us.”
At first Jesus seemed to agree with
his disciples. He said to them,
apparently within earshot of the
woman, “My mission is only to Israel,
to the Jews.”
The woman smiled with joy and
thanks. Even though she did not share
Jesus’ beliefs, she believed in him. She
liked him and trusted him. She showed
greater faith in Jesus than many of his(
own people did.
Then the woman came closer to
Jesus. She fell down at his feet and
cried, “Help me, Lord!”
As they were talking together, some
of her friends ran up. They told her that
her daughter had just started to get
better. They were all excited and happy.
The woman and her friends ran home to
her daughter. Jesus smiled as he
watched them gb.
Jesus was touched by her painful
plea. He sensed how the woman was
(Copyright (c) 1979 by NC News Service)