CARDINAL GEORGE ISSUES STATEMENT ON MEDICALLY UNINSURED
Francis Cardinal George, O.M.I, Archbishop of Chicago, asked legislators at all levels to fashion policies and legislation ensuring basic health care access to all in a statement he released in recognition of “Cover the Uninsured Week” at St. Anthony Hospital, 2875 W. 19th Street.
Cardinal George encouraged all health institutions especially Catholic ones, to keep the safety net available to the medically uninsured until the necessary policies are enacted. The Illinois Catholic Health Association and the Illinois Catholic Conference of Bishops co-sponsored the events with St. Anthony Hospital in the hope that legislative representatives from every level of government could dialogue and share their mutual plans on addressing an issue that has become a national crisis in America today.
“Individual people, health care institutions, government, business and society as a whole must work together to care for the mind, the body and the spirit of all God’s people,” Cardinal George said. “By raising our voices collectively, there is a greater chance to bring about the changes needed to provide equal and fair access to basic human health care for all.”
Statistics indicate that over 1.8 million of the nation’s 44 million individuals who have no health insurance reside in Illinois. Approximately 3.18 million Illinois residents, almost 1 out of 3, were uninsured at sometime during 2001-2002. An estimated 550,000 suburban residents lack health insurance with another 742,000 in Chicago.
Most people without insurance, approximately 8 out of 10, are in working families. It is believed that 8.5 million uninsured are in constant jeopardy as they are sicker each day and die younger because they cannot receive preventive and clinical health care.
“In view of this crisis, I join many others today in asking for change in our health care system,” Cardinal George declared. “Through prayer, hard work and trust in God and in each other, we can make access to health care a reality for all the people of our country.”
RESPECT LIFE
The Easter Season is a time of celebration, a time for reflection on the joy of Christ having walked among us, on his resurrection, on our rebirth and redemption. Contemplating God’s miracle of our own creation and the beauty of His plan in sending His beloved son to live with us and for us, affords us an opportunity to reaffirm our respect for this greatest of all God’s gifts, life itself.
From the beginning of civilization, laws were made to promote life over death through church and government enforced morality. Over time, civilization has shifted to where we, as individuals, have been given the power to make those life and death choices on a daily basis. We are, especially now, in this age of technological miracles, asked to make choices that determine not only the course of our own lives, but the lives and the very existence of those around us.
Euthanasia, abortion, contraception, assisted suicide, genetic experimentation; no issue is closed to discussion, they are debated in both private and public venues. We listen silently to the logic of others and, intimidated by their authority and their volume, we even begin to see and believe the gray areas they paint. Though knowledgeable, we doubt, and we hesitate to act. In the name of forbearance we stand by as those around us choose death. In the name of temperance, we hold our tongues as courts and legislatures take action to minimize life, promoting a culture of selfishness and waste and acquiesce to the effects of their edicts. Glad that such weighty decisions touch our hearts only rarely, and most often only on a cerebral level, we live a silent faith.
But as Catholic citizens, the church asks more of us than just an informed intellect and tacit acceptance of individuality and law. We are asked to act. We are called to pray over our actions, and those of our friends, acquaintances, legal and appointed representatives. We are exhorted to raise our voices to defend the weak, to promote minority over majority, to give rights to those who, save for us, would have none.
As part of the recent Easter celebration, we gathered to contemplate Christ in the garden, meditating with exquisite anguish the loss of His own human life. Let us determine to reflect upon the loss of each life in the same way. With more than 4,000 abortions each day, assisted suicide laws being debated across the country, innumerable fertilized embryos washed away in experimentation or attempts at elective contraception, genetic testing on ‘unwanted’ fetuses; the potential that exists within each statistic is destroyed, and God’s gift squandered. Let us determine to make a difference.
Queen of Angels’ Respect Life Committee has been established as a resource for information regarding these and other life issues from conception through to natural death. We will provide you with timely information regarding the Catholic Church’s view of current events, ways to truly show your ‘faith in action’ and guidelines as to what you can do as a member of a democratic society to ensure rights for those without them. It is NOT our goal to intimidate, to threaten or to judge. It IS our goal, through visibility and education, to raise the awareness of the parish, the school and the community to the life issues around them. We will provide opportunities and support every effort to embrace the whole cycle of life with which humanity has been blessed. Consider life. Celebrate life. Choose life.
The Queen of Angels Respect Life Committee is new and forming, please join us with your energy, your thoughts and your ideas. There is a monthly meeting posted in The Guide, and on the Respect Life section of the parish web site, www.respectlifechicago.com. Or call Patti Corbitt at 773-275-8044 for further information.
SCHOOL BOARD OPENINGS
At the end of the school year there will be four vacancies on the board. Three vacancies have three full year terms and the other has a term of two years. These 12 members represent the parish community served by the school. The school board acts as an advisory committee to both the Pastor and Principal. To be eligible to become a board member you must meet the following criteria:
-Be an adult member of the parish at least 21 years of age or be a parent/guardian of at least one child currently enrolled at Queens
-Membership is limited to one person per household
-Employees of the local school or parish and no member of the immediate family is eligible for membership
-Attend at least one school board meeting prior to the election
Please join us and see if this ministry is your next Parish activity. For more information regarding areas of responsibility, interested parties should contact Wayne Steger at 773-604-5148.
ARTIST TAKES SECOND PLACE
Jeanne Hankett, a sophomore at St. Benedict High School, took second place at the Congressional Arts Competition. Her painting, “Life Before Light” will be prominently displayed in Congressman Rahm Emanuel’s Washington D.C. office. Jeanne is an artist and scholar who is actively involved in St. Benedict H.S.’s Honors Academy. Way to go, Jeanne!
CALENDAR MEETING IS MONDAY, JUNE 14
Leaders of all parish ministries and organizations are invited to the annual Calendar Meeting at 7 p.m., Monday, June 14 in the Lower Voss Center. A mailing will be sent out early next week with forms to be completed prior to the meeting to request meeting space for the year. Attendance by organization heads or their designated representatives is mandatory.
FELLER SCHOLARSHIP ANNOUNCED
The Men’s Club of Queen of Angels Parish proudly announces the first presentation of the Nicholas J. Feller Memorial Scholarship to an eighth grade graduate of the parish school who will pursue high school studies at a Catholic high school. The award will be presented at graduation ceremonies on Friday, June 4. The dedication of the scholarship is in honor of Mr. Feller for his 40 years of active service to the Queen of Angels Parish community.
PLEASE MAKE A NOTE OF IT!
There will be only one Mass at 10 a.m. Monday, May 31 in observance of Memorial Day. Parish Offices will be closed and will reopen at 8:30 a.m. Tuesday, June 1. In the event of an emergency that requires the attention of a priest, please call 773-539-7510 and the answering service will contact one of the priests. This is the procedure to follow any time a priest is needed in an emergency and the office is not open.
ENTERESE DE SUS DERECHOS COMO TRABAJADOR EN UN SEMINARIO EN ESPAÑOL
el Domingo 23 de mayo, 1:45 p.m.
Todos los trabajadores, tanto inmigrantes como nacidos aquí, tienen derechos bajo la ley. ¿Le están pagando a Ud. lo que debe cobrar por ley? ¿Está su patrono protegiendo su seguridad como lo requiere la ley? ¿Provee su patrono el cuidado médico requerido en caso de que tenga un accidente en su trabajo? ¿Conoce Ud. a alguna persona que haya sido tratada injustamente sólo porque carece de documentación legal? ¿Trata su patrono a todos los trabajadores por igual sin importar sexo, edad, religión o incapacidad?
Lo invitamos a asistir a una discusión sobre la ley del trabajo con José Oliva del Centro de los Derechos de los Trabajadores de Todas las Creencias Religiosas de Chicago. El Sr. Oliva dirigirá una discusión en la iglesia este domingo, 23 de mayo, comenzando a la 1:45 p. m. en el sótano de la iglesia. Infórmese acerca de los derechos que tienen todos los trabajadores. Sepa a donde acudir en caso de que necesite ayuda. Proteja a su familia, amigos y a Ud. mismo informándose de sus derechos.
