Parish to hold annual Lenten speaker series
By Brandon A. Evans
Holy Rosary Parish, 520 Stevens St., in Indianapolis, will present its fifth annual Lenten Speaker Series, titled “Spaghetti and Spirituality,” on Feb. 16 and 23 and March 2, 9 and 16.
Each evening, there will be Mass in English at 5:45 p.m., a light, meatless dinner at 6:30 p.m. and a presentation at 7:15 p.m. Questions and answers will end by 8:30 p.m. and a book sale will immediately follow the program.
Bruce Konicek, a member of the parish and the organizer of the event, said that this year the theme of the series is the state of the Catholic Church overseas.
“Together with the U.S. presence in Iraq along with a general lack of understanding of Catholic affairs in that part of the world, I figured this would be a most appropriate theme,” Konicek said.
One of the speakers will address the subject of Catholic U.S. service personnel overseas, he said, while “four of our five speakers will discuss some facet of the Church in either the Holy Land or the Middle East.”
Father Thomas Euteneuer, president of Human Life International, the world’s largest pro-life, pro-family educational apostolate, will speak on “The Global Depopulation Movement and Its Effects on the Middle East” on Feb. 16.
Father Euteneur has been extensively involved with the pro-life movement as a priest of the Diocese of Palm Beach, Fla., including serving as the spiritual moderator for the diocesan Respect Life Office.
Bishop John J. Kaising, an Auxiliary bishop for the Military Archdiocese and vicar for chaplains and vocations, will speak on “Military Chaplains: Serving Those Who Serve” on Feb. 23.
Bishop Kaising has been an Army chaplain since 1969, and is a veteran of the Vietnam War. He was ordained a bishop in 2000 and has been awarded the Legion of Merit and Bronze Star.
Father Thomas Dubay, a seminary and university teacher as well as the author of several books, will speak on “Deep Conversion—Deep Prayer” on March 2.
Father Dubay has spent three decades traveling the world giving retreats, lectures, missions and mini-courses to priests, religious and laymen.
This session will be followed by a 40-hours devotion, and Father Dubay will give two more talks over that time period.
“The 40-hours devotion was a routine observance in parishes throughout the archdiocese,” Konicek said, “but it slowly disappeared.”
Msgr. Joseph F. Schaedel, pastor of Holy Rosary Parish, wanted to reintroduce the devotion, which includes Mass, Vespers, confession, adoration and the chance for spiritual guidance.
Chorbishop John D. Faris, associate secretary general of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association and former president of the Canon Law Society of America, will speak on “The Life of Eastern Catholic Churches in Their Homelands” on March 9.
Chorbishop Faris, a Maronite Catholic priest of the Eparchy of Saint Maron, is the author of many articles on Eastern Churches, Eastern Canon Law and interecclesial issues.
Msgr. Denis J. Madden, vice president of the Holy See’s relief and development agency for the Middle East and co-founder of Accord Foundation, a humanitarian organization that works in the West Bank and Gaza, will speak on “Christianity in the Holy Land Today” on March 16.
Msgr. Madden is also vice president of the Holy See’s relief and development agency for the Middle East.
There is no cost for these events except a free-will donation. Reservations are requested no later than 5 p.m. on the Monday before each seminar.
“In essence,” Konicek said, “I’m really interested in each one of our speakers because they are bringing so much of their personal experiences from events we only read about—which take place thousands of miles away—to our parish.”
He called the series “a unique opportunity … to have so many important topics to learn and pray about during this Lenten season.”
(For more information or to make reservations, call 317-636-4478.) †