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2005 the year in review
Inspirations
Throughout 2005 we met many who inspire others by just doing what it is they do day after day and year after year. We found the passion of these unsung heroes of the Church worth noting. In no particular order, they are:
- Hundreds of people made the decision to join the Catholic Church and were welcomed at various parishes. In all, 1,895 people were welcomed fully into the Catholic faith in the Archdiocese of Detroit.
 When Jim and Karen Donahue, parishioners at Our Lady of Sorrows Parish, Farmington Hills, heard their fellow parishioner and fellow Catholic Central High School parent Donna Cash needed a kidney, Jim stepped up and donated one of his to Cash. Since, Cash and her husband, Chuck, and the Donahues have worked to promote organ transplants, which the Church supports.
 Fr. Janvier Wopoule, who came to the Archdiocese of Detroit from his home in Cameroon, Africa, gave people of the archdiocese, and especially those of St. Regis Parish in Bloomfield Hills, where he was based, a sense of the Church's universality. While Catholics here welcomed Fr. Wopoule to American culture, Fr. Wopoule opened their eyes to the plight of Catholics in his native land.
- M'Arch and Janet Marie McCarty bring God's Word to life for teens as they also bring to life colorful characters on-stage. Performing with a Muppet-like character named "Shermie," the McCartys each year spend months ministering to Catholic school children through plays based on Gospel stories.
 Fundraiser James Conniff, right, and medical doctor Peter Krenitsky, left, parishioners at All Saints Parish, Memphis, and St. James Parish, Ferndale, respectively have spent countless hours, energy and financial resources to support the Detroit Veterans Center, helping the men and women who have served and protected our country and many who have fallen on hard times.
- The young girls in a Grosse Pointe faith-sharing group Handmaids of the Lord showed their love and concern for the dignity of life by distributing prayers and bracelets bearing pro-life messages. The girls, working with Right to Life of Michigan, also used the bracelets for fundraising to protect the lives of the unborn and others who cannot protect themselves.
- Roger Matthews and his wife, Dominique, a member of St. Gerard Parish in Detroit, have selflessly given of their time, talent and treasure to help get medicines, medical equipment and supplies to poverty-stricken Third World countries of Haiti and Nigeria.
 Fr. Ray Bucon, a U.S. Army Reserve chaplain from the Archdiocese of Detroit, shared the reflections on his ministry to American servicemen and women that came to him during a six-hour convoy through a war zone in Afghanistan. In November, Fr. Bucon received new orders, transferring him to Iraq.
- Michael and Shelly Moreland, parishioners at St. Gerald Parish in Farmington, used their creative skills to spread God's word through moviemaking. The couple produced their first short-film, "A Bullet and a Prayer," to try to bring more Christian values into the entertainment so popular in society.
- Celebrating Mass may be the most visible role for our priests, but throughout 2005 they continued to inspire us through sacramental rites, through our times of joy and times of sorrow, and always by the dedication to their vocational calling.
Year of the Eucharist comes to a close
October marked the end of a year-long celebration of the Year of the Eucharist with a special ceremony in the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.
The year was instituted by the late Pope John Paul II and meant to unite Catholics in celebration and Eucharistic adoration. At the closing ceremony in the Archdiocese of Detroit, Cardinal Adam Maida stressed the connection between the Eucharist and the way Catholics lead their lives.
"Saying 'amen' to the Body of Christ means you are committing yourself to use your gifts and talents to build up the Church and to work for the salvation of the world," he said.
Some found the year to be especially significant considering the death of the pope.
New priests, deacons, lay ministers to serve in archdiocese
During 2005, the ministry of the Archdiocese of Detroit was enhanced by the addition of three new priests, four new permanent deacons, and more than 200 newly certified persons in various forms of lay ministry.
And the vacancy in episcopal oversight of the Northwest Region of the archdiocese left by Bishop Walter A. Hurley's appointment to head the Diocese of Grand Rapids was filled by Cardinal Adam Maida's appointment of Msgr. John Zenz as episcopal vicar for the region.
In May, Frs. Andrew Bloomfield, Joseph Lang and Maurice Henry Sands were ordained to the priesthood by Cardinal Maida at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament.
In October, Deacons Jene W. Baughman, Michael D. Chesley, Alex C. Jones and Michael A. Somervell were ordained by the cardinal, also at the cathedral.
Also, the archdiocese certified 13 lay people as pastoral ministers, four as pastoral musicians, three as liturgical ministers, 11 as youth ministry coordinators, and 160 as parish and school catechists.
Together in Faith process keeps moving forward
 Together in Faith the process that aims at a better utilization of local Church resources to serve the people of the Archdiocese of Detroit moved forward during the year, as parishes and schools completed their self-evaluations, which were then considered by their vicariate council and reviewed by the TIF Coordinating Committee.
The process underwent some changes itself, as the idea of a November announcement date for all the changes to be brought about by the plan was replaced by an understanding that the TIF process would be an ongoing mechanism that would produce changes over time not all at once.
But the process of developing individual plans for parishes and schools, and how they would fit into an overall strategic plan, yielded some early results. There was a realization that some parishes and institutions were not really viable at least not by themselves.
St. Gemma and St. Christine parishes in Detroit merged to form St. Catherine of Siena Parish; Precious Blood and St. Francis de Sales parishes, also in Detroit, merged to form St. Peter Claver Parish, and St. Agatha Parish in Redford Township closed, as did St. Dominic Parish, though the Outreach Center remains open.
The process also resulted in 17 Catholic schools closing at the end of the 2004-2005 school year.
Archdiocesan youth join in World Youth Day
In August, Pope Benedict XVI stood amid a million young people on a field near Cologne, Germany, and encouraged his flock to lead others to Christ by following Him in their daily lives.
Throughout the year, youths and young adults in the Archdiocese of Detroit were doing just that as they prepared for and went on pilgrimages to celebrate World Youth Day.
Several hundred from the Church of Detroit actually went to Germany for the celebration, and 130 youths took part in a local pilgrimage Aug. 19-20 in North Branch and Detroit to mark the occasion.
Since Pope John Paul II started World Youth Day celebrations in the 1980s, the Church has had them every two or three years in different parts of the world.
Local young people who took part say the experience didn't entail just a physical journey, but a spiritual one that emboldened them in their faith.
"As a teenager, you go through times when you doubt and it's hard to stay on the right path," said pilgrim Ellie Sharkey, a high school student from Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish in Temperance. "But when you see 1.3 million people, you can't doubt. It was an experience that said, 'Keep going! You're doing the right thing!'"
After the pilgrimage, at the pope's urging, many of the youths shared Christ's message by telling their families, friends and parish communities about the pilgrimage.
Encuentro catches on for Hispanic youth
In 2005, hundreds of Hispanic youths and young adults from the Archdiocese of Detroit joined together to share their faith and ideas on how to strengthen the Church's rapidly-growing young Hispanic culture.
The effort was part of Encuentro, a movement across North America meant to give Hispanic youths the support and encouragement they need to evangelize their peers.
This summer, the Encuentro movement started in four areas: Pontiac, Southwest Detroit, Macomb and Farmington. By late October, more than 150 members of Encuentro gathered for a daylong retreat at Sacred Heart Major Seminary in Detroit.
"It's a call from God," said Rafael Velasquez, 25, a parishioner at St. Stephen/Mary Mother of the Church who took part in the retreat. "I feel that it's truly a miracle how the youths are coming together here in the Archdiocese of Detroit. And for us to make that commitment, for us to say 'Yes' to God it's a gift that we receive."
Encuentro members are optimistic that this is just the beginning.
Urban youth ministry program begins
The Church of Detroit is not about to leave anyone behind not in the suburbs or the inner city, not alcoholics, not drug addicts, not prostitutes or gang members.
In that spirit, the Archdiocese of Detroit this summer affirmed a fledgling urban ministry, which has its roots at St. Michael Parish in Pontiac, with hopes of expanding it throughout all inner-city areas of the archdiocese. The Education Department established an Office for Urban Ministry and hired for its director 25-year-old Alejandro Torres-Antonio, who worked with urban youths at St. Michael and other parishes in Pontiac.
The goal of the ministry is to bring the Word of God and the graces of His presence to "at- risk" young people those who grow up in broken families or are exposed to gang life, for instance. A driving force behind the ministry is a number of young people from Mexico who are in an apostolate called "Barrios Unidos en Cristo," which means "Hoods (Gangs) United in Christ," and others who pray for the movement.
On one hand, the urban ministry entails providing a Christian atmosphere of prayer, reflection, fun and activities to those young people who can't find it in their daily lives. On the other, it entails bringing gang members, prostitutes and drug addicts off the streets and giving them a sense of God's love.
Torres-Antonio said, "It's just like in the Gospel. Christ doesn't wait for us to go to Him. He comes to us."
Catholic leaders praise Rosa Parks
Cardinal Adam Maida called civil rights pioneer Rosa Parks a "prophet" as he and other local Catholic leaders praised her life and accomplishments after she died Oct. 24 at 92.
Parks, whose refusal in 1955 to give up her seat on a Montgomery, Ala., bus to a white man as required by the discriminatory laws in effect at that time sparked one of the key early events in the struggle for racial justice, had lived in Detroit since 1957.
"We have come a long way since Rosa Parks' courageous action, but we still have a long way to go," Cardinal Maida told a gathering in Warren.
Fr. Edward Farrell, who had known her for decades, said it was the inspiration she provided by "(having) the courage to say 'no' in a non-violent way," that led to her selection as Cardinal John Dearden Peace Medal recipient earlier in the year.
13 priests are named monsignor
 Thirteen local priests were named monsignors and two monsignors were elevated in rank in October at the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament. The honor came from Pope Benedict XVI and was presented by Cardinal Adam Maida.
"In a Church as large and diverse as ours, in a community with such a long history and tradition of faith, it is appropriate that some of our brothers bear the title of monsignor," the cardinal said.
The new monsignors are: Msgr. George Brown, Msgr. John Budde, Msgr. G. Michael Bugarin, Msgr. Patrick Halfpenny, Msgr. Donald Hanchon, Msgr. John Kasza, Msgr. Charles Kosanke, Msgr. Peter Lentine, Msgr. Robert McClory, Msgr. George Miller, Msgr. Jeffrey Monforton, Msgr. Thomas Rice and Msgr. Walter Ziemba.
Msgr. James Moloney was named to the highest level, protonotary apostolic. Msgr. Michael LeFevre was elevated to the second level, prelate of honor to His Holiness.
Men's and Women's conferences grow
The harvest of Catholic men and women was plentiful in the third year of the Archdiocese of Detroit's Catholic Men's Conference and Catholic Women's Conference.
On Feb. 5, about 3,000 Catholic men gathered at University of Detroit Mercy's Callihan Hall to attend "Put Out Into the Deep III: The Fatherhood of God, the Fatherhood of Man," where they focused on what it meant to be a man of prayer and a man of God.
"The only real man who ever walked the earth was Jesus," said Fr. John Riccardo, pastor of St. Anastasia Parish, Troy, who traditionally sets the conference's tone by giving the first talk. "He showed us what a real man does a real man relies on the Father."
Throughout the day, men listened to national Catholic speakers and reflected on their call as fathers, sons and brothers in the Church.
In late October, 1,500 women from the archdiocese gathered together at Macomb Community College in Warren for "Reflecting the Light of Christ: Embracing the Genius of Women."
Mothers, single women, religious and young women gathered to reflect on their role within the Church and how to show their love for Christ each day.
"This is such an affirmation for Catholic women," said one attendee, Mary Schultz. "I look forward to it every year."
Bp. Hurley installed in Grand Rapids
Bishop Walter A. Hurley, 66, was installed as 11th bishop of Grand Rapids Aug. 4 in the St. Andrew Cathedral. The former Detroit auxiliary bishop succeeded another former Detroit auxiliary, Bishop Kevin M. Britt. Bishop Britt had died unexpectedly in May 2004, just months after becoming Grand Rapids' bishop.
Despite expressing sadness about leaving the Archdiocese of Detroit where served for 40 years as priest and prelate, Bishop Hurley struck a mostly upbeat note in his homily. He spoke of his excitement about the "new opportunities, new challenges, and new adventure" that awaited him.
Before leaving Detroit, Bishop Hurley served as pastor of Our Lady of Sorrows in Farmington, and was Cardinal Adam Maida's delegate for clergy sex abuse issues and reform. He also helped make the cardinal's dream of a Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington, D.C., a reality, shepherding the project through fund-raising and construction.
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