About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 4, 2020)
She (Times gainesvilletimes.com Saturday, January 4, 2020 Nick Bowman Features Editor | 770-718-3426 | life@gainesvilletimes.com FAITH EVENTS Hispanic Worship Service. 1-2:30 p.m. Jan. 12. Unity of Gainesville Church, 3415 Stancil Road, Gainesville. 770-534- 0949, unityofgville@ gmail.com. Marriage Enrichment. 9-9:45 a.m. Jan. 19. Mount Zion Baptist Church, 4000 Thurmond Tanner Road, Flowery Branch, mzbcinfo@yahoo. com. Free. Woven Marriage Conference 2020.5 p.m. Jan. 24 - Jan. 26. Camp Hope, 7011 Pony Lake Road, Dahlonega. Singles Enrichment. 9 a.m. Jan. 26. Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 4000Thurmon Tanner Road, Flowery Branch, mzbcinfo@yahoo. com. Free. 2020 Night to Shine at Union Grove CH Church, Cleveland, Ga. Buddy Reg. 6-9 p.m. Feb. 7. Union Grove CH Church, 1497 Holiness Campground Road, Cleveland. Daddy Daughter Date Night. 6:30-8:30 p.m. Feb. 7. Canvas Christian Church, 3560, Cumming. $10. Men2Men Prayer Breakfast. 9-10:30 a.m. Feb. 8. Email for location, 4000 Thurmon Tanner Road, Flowery Branch, mzbcinfo@ yahoo.com. Free. Ladies Conference. 6-8 p.m. Feb. 22. Canvas Christian Church, 3560, Cumming. $20. Marriage Enrichment. 9-9:45 a.m. Feb. 16 - Mar. 15. Mount Zion Baptist Church, 4000 Thurmond Tanner Road, Flowery Branch, mzbcinfo@ yahoo.com. Free. Singles Enrichment. 9 a.m. Feb. 23 - Mar. 22. Mt. Zion Baptist Church, 4000 Thurmon Tanner Road, Flowery Branch, mzbcinfo@ yahoo.com. Free. “The Hormone Connection” — Common Does Not Mean Normal. 6:30-9 p.m. Mar. 19. Covenant Life Church, 1945 Lawrenceville- Suwanee Road # 3513, Lawrenceville. $10. Father’s Heart Atlanta 2020.6-10 p.m. Mar. 25 - Mar. 27. World Outreach Church For All, 1294 Braselton Highway, Lawrenceville. Add your event Go to gainesvilletimes. com/calendar, hit “+Add event” at the top right, create a Cityspark account and follow the prompts. Tag your event with “Religious” to have it appear in this calendar. Pope Francis apologizes for smacking woman’s hand BY NELSON OLIVEIRA New York Daily News He may have the patience of a saint, but everyone has a limit. Pope Francis apologized Wednes day for losing his cool and slapping the hand of a woman who grabbed him and tugged him toward her on New Year’s Eve as he visited a Nativity scene in Vatican City. “So many times we lose patience. It happens to me too,” he told thou sands of worshipers gathered out side St. Peter’s Basilica for his New Year address. The 83-year-old pontiff then said he was sorry for “the bad example” he gave just hours earlier. Francis was walking through St. Peter’s Square Tuesday night when he began greeting some of the pil grims who were standing on the other side of a barrier. At one point, as he turned away from the crowd, a woman yanked his arm and tried to tell him something. But Francis — once described as the “Cool Pope” — was not pleased. Footage of the incident shows a visibly irritated Francis smacking her hand and freeing himself from her grip while scolding the woman, though it was not clear what he said to her. His off-script apology came moments before the Catholic leader denounced violence against women during his first mass of the year. Videos of Francis’ angry reaction went viral on social media Tuesday night, with many commenters call ing the pope rude and aggressive while many others sided with him, noting that he could’ve easily been hurt. Photos by GREGORIO BORGIA I Associated Press Pope Francis presides over a Mass for the solemnity of St. Mary at the beginning of the new year, in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, Wednesday, Jan. 1. Pontiff declares women should be treated with dignity in homily Pope Francis presides over vespers of the Feast of St. Mary and Te Deum of Thanksgiving at year’s end, in St. Peter’s Basilica, Tuesday, Dec. 31,2019. BY FRANCES D’EMILIO Associated Press VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis is pinning much of his hopes for a more peace ful world in the new year on women, saying violence against them is akin to profaning God and calling for them to be increasingly involved in making major decisions. In his homily Wednesday in St. Peter’s Basilica, Francis decried the “many times wom en’s bodies are sacrificed on the profane altar of advertisements, of profit, of pornography.” He also lamented that women are “continually offended, beaten, raped, forced into prostitution” or forced to have abortions. The Catholic church forbids abortion. Francis didn’t mention if under his watch things might change in how women are treated in the Catholic church. According to Vatican teach ing, women can’t become priests. And the top job — the papacy — has been strictly for males. He contended that if we want a better world in the new year, we should treat women with dignity. Francis urged that women become ’’fully associated” with decision-making in order to make the world more united and at peace. “And if we want a better world, that is a house of peace and not a courtyard of war, may the dignity of every woman be at the heart of it,” Francis said. “Women are givers and media tors of peace, and should be fully associated with decision making processes.” He added: “For when women can transmit their gifts, the world finds itself more united and more in peace. So, a con quest for women is a conquest for the whole of humanity.” Francis didn’t comment on how the Catholic church treats women. As well as women not being allowed to be priests, some conservative elements of the Catholic church are scandal ized by parishes that allow girls to be altar servers. And, as The Associated Press has reported, there have been instances of priests — who are supposed to be celibate — impregnating women, and then not recogniz ing the child as their offspring. Reflecting on the state of affairs of the church, Francis cautioned against divisions, blaming the devil for those who emphasize differences, ideolo gies and factions. Pope delivers New Year’s sermon In the rural South, you don’t have to ask for prayer It was the beginning of sum mer, the beginning of dusk edg ing toward twilight as we headed home from dinner with friends. Everything fell silent in the car for a moment, the time when the threads of one conversation have been sewn up but another one has not yet been cast. As the sun sank almost out of sight, we four studied the beauty of the rolling mountains filled with different shades of green. It was hay- getting-up time so we drove past fields with newly cut hay, waiting for a fluff and a baling. Other hay fields were pristine and shining with huge round bales ready to be trucked away. “Isn’t it beautiful this time of year when farmers are get- tin’ up hay?” asked someone thoughtfully. “Yes,” I replied softly. “It is.” Her comment filled with stud ied admiration came back to me the next day. I am ashamed to RONDA RICH southswomen@bellsouth.net say that though I always noticed the hayfields and it always regis ters with me if the hay baling is finished or the farmer is coming back the next day, I never revel in the sheer beauty of it all. From the rural South, a place crafted by the turn of many a hand beneath an all-too-often cruel sun, I rise up. Here’s how you’ll know where I come from: Folks plant their gardens so they’ll ‘come in’ during the week they’re off from work. No one in the sweat-driven South ever calls it a vacation. They are also mindful not to plant the gardens where they will come in during revival week. Once when Tink was new to the South, we went to a weekday morning revival service. It was July. As the preacher moved to close the service, he asked if anyone had a word or an announcement. One normally quiet man, who had taken off work for revival week, said, “Preacher, I just wanna say how much I’ve enjoyed the services this week. It’s been a blessin’. The other night we come home from church and mama said, ‘have you checked your corn? It might be time to get it up.’ And, sure ‘nuff, it was. Every day after church, we go home and work on the corn then we come back to church of an evening. It’s been hard work but I wouldn’t take nothin’ for it.” Tink had never heard of any one checking his corn. He was bewildered. From that day for ward, though, that became his saying whenever he needed to make certain about something. “I’d better check my corn.” Where I come from, some folks still use the old blue Ford tractors that are reliable but are no longer manufactured and a rough, over-used pick-up truck is a source of pride. In this place that I call home, the kudzu can crawl across a gravel road in one week’s time and lightning bugs brighten up the night’s sky like bulbs on a Christmas tree. The dew glistens prettily on blades of grass dur ing the summertime then frosts those same blades boldly on win ter mornings. In the rural South, you don’t have to ask for prayer. People just walk up to you in the grocery store or at the farmer’s exchange and say, “I’ve had you on my mind lately. I don’t know why but I have. So I’ve been prayin’ for ya.” In my South, stray dogs are fed with leftovers — biscuits and gravy are a favorite — wild blackberries grow in abundance and the honeysuckle can fra grance the air for days on end. Where I come from, the dogwood trees are heavy with white, snowy blossoms every April and every December when the trees are naked of leaves, bunches of mistletoe shine high in the old oak trees. It is a land of beauty where I come from. I am from the rural South. Ronda Rich is the best-selling author of several books, including “Mark My Words: A Memoir of Mama.” Sign up for her newsletter at www.rondarich.com. Her column publishes weekly.
