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Home  / News & Publications /  Michigan Catholic News / 2008 /  The Gospel in Action: Celebrating 175 years

Published May 2, 2008

My Brothers and Sisters in the Lord:

Again this month, we continue to reflect on the blessings our Church of Detroit has received over the last 175 years. As we do so, we also consider how we have shared our gifts of faith and charity with each other and other residents of our wider metro area. During this month of May, I will reflect on our tradition of Christian service and social justice and we continue to build on the example of our ancestors in the faith by which we, for our part, are putting the Gospel into action.

A servant Church … for the life of the world

As I begin this column, I wish to emphasize an important principle of our faith, something we often take for granted, but for that very reason, continually need to articulate: Our relationship with the Lord must necessarily express itself through active membership in the Church. And the Church, for its part, has a vocation and mission to be a "light to the nations" – first and foremost by proclaiming the Good News, but also by Our efforts for justice and peace, and promoting the Gospel of Life. Responding to the needs of the least of our brothers and sisters is not an optional or "extra" aspect of our faith life; service is a vital and essential part of the act of believing. We could speak of our service in terms of a "ripple effect." Once we truly know the Lord's saving mercy for us, we cannot help but extend that gift to others – first with joy to other believers, but then even beyond our own communion of faith, inviting non-believers to know and love the Lord by the way we respond to the urgencies of human need.

In his first encyclical, "Deus Caritas Est," Pope Benedict XVI clearly taught this same idea as he outlined the necessary and integral connection between love of God and love of neighbor: "Union with Christ is also union with all those to whom He gives Himself. I cannot possess Christ just for myself; I can belong to Him only in union with all those who have become, or will become, His own. Communion draws me out of myself towards Him and thus also towards unity with all Christians…" (article 14). After explaining that the Church's love must be expressed in "ordered service to the community," the Holy Father then went on to explain that God's love, working through the Church, must extend "beyond the frontiers of the Church"; he made his point all the more clearly by highlighting the parable of the Good Samaritan, a parable which proclaims the "standard of universal love" toward all who are needy in any way.

Hidden service, public service

Here in the Archdiocese of Detroit, Christian service and action on behalf of justice and peace have long been a part of the proclamation of the Gospel and the celebration of the Holy Eucharist and the sacraments. It would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to try to summarize in one column the countless ways individuals, organizations and parishes have put their faith into concrete service; thanks be to God, the generous response of loving service over the decades far exceeds anything we could possibly tabulate.

As we know, most "Christian service" – like the story of the Good Samaritan itself – happens within the setting of family life, the workplace, or the immediacy of particular urgent needs. In a certain sense, every Christian should naturally and automatically have the mind and heart of a servant; one need not pause to consider whether to serve but, rather, only how to serve. In highlighting some of the "legends" of our heritage, it is very likely that the greatest heroes remain "un sung" and known to God alone.

The evolution of our service

As we reflect on our tradition of Christian service, it is also important to see all ministry and service against the larger backdrop of national and international realities. In every age and in every circumstance, the Church has done its best to respond to the specific challenges of the moment. Sometimes programs or organizations are appropriate for a particular circumstance, but then, as things change and evolve, certain programs or processes are no longer helpful and something new is needed. Just as educational structures have changed greatly over the last 175 years, so, too, the way Christian service has been organized and delivered has changed radically and frequently; but through it all, there has been consistency in our purpose and mission.

In every time and place, the most important thing is the faith motivation that prompts our deeds of Christian service. As our Holy Father reminds us in his first encyclical, the Church is not a social service institution per se, but a community of faith that puts its beliefs into action. We perform deeds of social outreach and advocacy as a response of faith; we see ourselves as instruments of God's love for the world. We believe that by promoting justice, we are inviting others to experience a compelling witness to the Gospel.

Health care and religious congregations

In the earliest years of our history, Christian service happened gradually, spontaneously and naturally, usually without any particular structures; it tended to be immediate and concrete. Often, the response of the Church to health and social service needs was through the presence and action of religious communities of men and women. Most of our original hospitals and health care centers for children, the elderly or the chronically ill, were founded and maintained by religious. In our own area, we owe a debt of gratitude to many such congregations, including the Sisters of Bon Secours, the Felicians, the Religious Sisters of Mercy, the Daughters of Charity, the Sisters of St. Joseph of Nazareth and the Sylvania Franciscans.

As the 19th century faded into the 20th and 21st centuries, health care became ever-more institutionalized and new challenges emerged, especially maintaining Catholic identity, sponsorship, mission, and values in the midst of a pluralistic society with many competing economic pressures. Again, presence and service remain but now often through partnerships among Catholic institutions, and also with other non-profits and for-profits. From the perspective of the Church, the critical point is fidelity to the Church's teaching on the dignity of life. We seek to maintain quality professional competent service within an environment of faith and charity. When difficult choices sometimes come our way, the Church has always maintained that faith values and commitment take priority over financial security; our service must always be clearly, consistently, and whole-heartedly "Catholic" in every sense of the word.

Care of the very young and the elderly

In the letter of St. James, we read that true religion that is pure and undefiled before God includes care of orphans and widows (James 1:26-27). In early years of our history, Christian service took the form of asylums for orphans and houses for the poor, especially women. The first mention of any charitable institution in the archdiocese comes from the 1841 Catholic Almanac and its reference to the "Ladies of Providence." Throughout the 1900s, many homes for youth and/or elderly were established, usually by religious women; one of the most prominent of these was St. Francis' Home for Orphans, originally established in Monroe by the Sisters of St. Joseph, and then later, moved to its Detroit site. In the 1930s, the Little Sisters of the Poor established the Burtha Fisher Home for the Aged. The League of Catholic Women Residence in Detroit has also been a valuable presence as well and has served as a setting for networking various Catholic initiatives. Active for over 90 years, the Detroit chapter of the National Christ Child Society runs a residential facility for boys with special needs, ages 6-12.

In the 1960s, the John C. Ryan estate made possible the creation of Ryan Senior Residences in every part of the archdiocese. Working with Msgr. Wilbur Suedkamp and Bishop Joseph Schoenherr, these homes were established to provide low-cost housing for seniors in a religious, communal setting. Although the archdiocese sold these homes to Mercy Health in the 1990s, the mission endures and residents receive quality service. Care for the elderly continues to happen in various settings throughout the archdiocese, particularly on the campus of Lourdes Nursing Home in Waterford Township, run by the Dominican Sisters of Oxford and through the service of the Daughters of Divine Charity at their Detroit and Bloomfield Hills facilities.

Fr. Solanus Casey and the Capuchins: Direct service

One of the great "icons" of Christian service in Metro Detroit is the Venerable Fr. Solanus Casey, OFM Cap. As doorkeeper of St. Bonaventure Monastery through two decades, along with his brother Capuchins and many Secular Franciscans, he modeled the intrinsic connection between worship of God and loving care for the least of our brothers and sisters; in some way, we could speak of him as our own Blessed Teresa of Calcutta. He was ready and willing to listen to people's problems, to pray for their healing, and to serve their physical and material needs as well.

At the time of the Great Depression in November 1929, the Capuchin Soup Kitchen was established and continues to thrive, serving more than 60,000 meals per month; 30 percent of those meals are for children. Over the years, the Capuchin friars have also extended their ministry to include distribution of food to families in need, assistance for those struggling with alcohol and substance abuse, and a reading program for young people. Their neighborhood garden produces more than 8,000 pounds of produce a year and they allow all their guests to the soup kitchen (givers and receivers alike) to record their personal history so their experience can be honored and others will learn from them.

The Legacy of St. Vincent de Paul

The St. Vincent de Paul Society here in Metro Detroit continues to build on a rich heritage of St. Vincent de Paul, Antoine Frédéric Ozanam and Louise de Marillac, and their tradition of service from France in the late 17th century. Although its settings of service have been realigned over the years, local chapters in most of our parishes respond to callers in a manner that is always efficient and compassionate, prayerful and respectful.

The need and rights of workers

Over the decades, particularly during the 1940s, trade unions were understood to be a very important means for ensuring the rights of workers and establishing the Christian social order as outlined by Pope Leo XIII and Pius XI. Cardinal Edward Aloysius Mooney established the Archdiocesan Labor Institute in 1939 and by 1940, there were 34 parish labor schools with an enrollment of approximately 1,200 men and more than 50 women. Fr. Ray Clancy was the first secretary of the Archdiocesan Labor Institute and helped defend the work of the United Auto Workers against accusations of communism.

Over the decades of the last century and into the first decade of this century, the role of labor unions has changed greatly. As Pope John Paul II explained in several of his social justice encyclicals, especially "Laborem Exercens" (1981), human labor remains a fundamental issue of our time. To the extent that trade unions are necessary to affirm, protect and promote worker's rights, the Church encourages them. In recent decades, new structures and covenants between owners and workers also make possible other ways of achieving the same purpose of goal – that is, just pay, access to health care benefits and job security.

Msgr. Clement Kern and Most Holy Trinity

One of the great heroes of the last generation was Msgr. Clement Kern, longtime pastor of Most Holy Trinity Parish in Detroit (1943-1977), who took a special interest in the rights of workers and lent his support to the United Farm Workers, led by Cesar Chavez, when they were boycotting lettuce and grapes harvested by non-union workers. He also supported the United Auto Workers of America and was ready to speak on behalf of the rights of any who were being ignored.

He established the first free medical clinic in the archdiocese in 1950, the St. Frances Cabrini Clinic, which still operates today, offering free or low-cost health care to individuals without health insurance. Sr. Mary Ellen Howard, IHM, is the current director of the Cabrini Clinic, and many physicians nurses, therapists and volunteers give of their time for these important efforts for the health of God's "little ones." Also long connected with Holy Trinity and its outreach is the pro bono service of lawyers who avail themselves to recent immigrants and indigent people in need. The archdiocese also provides legal immigration service in the nearby Southwest neighborhood of Holy Redeemer Parish.

Msgr. Kern is probably best known for his deep love for the Hispanic people who moved into Most Holy Trinity Parish during his tenure as pastor. In fact, it is a little–known fact that Msgr. Kern chose to be buried at Holy Sepulchre Cemetery in Southfield in the midst of 12 Hispanic people whom he had loved and served over the years.

Focus: HOPE

Forty years ago, immediately following the July 1967 civil uprising, the archdiocese was blessed by this creative response of Fr. William Cunningham, Fr. Jerome Fraser, and Eleanor Josaitis.

They established Focus: HOPE with the mission of "practical action to overcome racism, poverty, and injustice." Educating Catholics and non-Catholics alike, and advocating for a greater respect for the rights and needs of all, Fr. Cunningham and his co-founders understood the direct link between racism and poverty; toward that end, they were concerned with offering educational opportunities for those who did not enjoy access to universities or skill training in technology.

Focus: HOPE established various programs for such skill development: in 1981, the Machinist Training Institute; in 1989, FAST TRACK; in 1997, First Step; and in 1993, The Center for Advanced Technologies.

Thanks to these programs, thousands of graduates have found employment in the information technology industry. Although Fr. Cunningham is now deceased more than 11 years, his legacy continues to live on. Eleanor Josaitis and many others have built a very impressive foundation and inspired many creative ways of responding to the needs of God's people.

Partnerships with business, other faith communities, and government

Part of the genius of Fr. Cunningham and his "team" at Focus: HOPE included the insight that the Church could not – and need not – do everything; there is a legitimate and necessary role for partnership with the civic government, business, and other religiously motivated individuals and groups.

Focus: HOPE modeled a concept now nationally embraced under the title "faith-based communities of service." The Church, its structures and personnel, can often provide a ready and efficient network and means of service delivery; this can be a "win-win" as long as government regulations do not force any compromise with regard to core Catholic faith values.

After the Second Vatican Council, Cardinal John Dearden and bishops throughout the United States recognized the overwhelming and complex social needs of the times required that the Church become a voice of advocacy and a networking presence: Nationally, the United States Catholic Conference took on a new identity and mission, and here in Michigan, the Michigan Catholic Conference was established, with headquarters in Lansing.

Much of the social service agenda of the Church is hammered out and put into action through the networking and leadership of the Michigan Catholic Conference staff, working with each of the seven dioceses of the state, as we affirm the dignity of all life, especially the unborn and the dying, the rights of immigrants, workers and employers, fair and universal access to education, health care and welfare, responding to the needs of families and affirming the dignity of Christian marriage.

Department of Christian Service

In light of the teachings of Vatican II on a "servant Church" and our own Synod, clergy, religious and laity alike committed themselves to Christian service as an essential way of living out their baptismal vocation. Parishes created Christian service commissions and, wherever possible, hired a full-time director of Christian service to inspire, motivate, and coordinate local efforts in the parish and vicariate, often networking with other agencies such as St. Vincent de Paul.

The archdiocese created a Department of Christian Service as a "coordinating center" for education, advocacy, and networking of direct services which sometimes could not be effectively accomplished at the parish level (for example, immigration and refuge resettlement).

Christian Service was blessed by many strong leaders in the "office" and in the "field," including Blanche Barber (director 1974-86), Dick Beachnau (director 1986-89), Pat Zerega (director 1990-94), and Daniel Piepszowski (director 1994-2003). Many clergy, religious, and lay leaders offered their talents, skills, wisdom, and experience over the decades: Fr. Victor Clore (on mission and advocacy); Fr. Sylvester Taube, Bud and Sue Ozar, Dorothy and Ben Stapel (on family life); and Tom Shellabarger and Howard Hoeflein (on the Church's role in public policy issues).

As the Church continually reorganizes and purifies and clarifies its mission and discerns the best use of human and material resources, further changes have emerged within the past decade. And so, paralleling national patterns, in 2002 Christian Service became part of the Department of Parish Life and Services, thus bringing together worship and service, the formation of pastoral leaders and advocacy for peace and justice. Structures come and go, and needs keep evolving, but the ministry of the Church remains the same: The healing work of our Redeemer seeks to manifest ever-new signs of Resurrection and hope in the midst of the enduring challenges of violence, racism, poverty, and human suffering.

Ever-new ways of service

As Pope Benedict XVI pointed out in his encyclical Deus Caritas Est, much of the social service of the Church involves working to establish a more just social order according the principal of subsidiarity. As he explains, while the Church cannot take upon itself the actual political struggle to create a more just society, nonetheless, the Church must never remain on the sidelines. The special gift the Church can offer is precisely the blessing of God's love, thus ensuring that service is never simply a matter of bureaucracy: Divine charity must animate all works of justice.

Furthermore, given the complexity of a global society, local needs must always be seen within the context of the suffering of people around the world, especially those experiencing the effects of war and violence, famine and hunger, and lack of basic necessities of life. Our works of Christian charity often happen through national, international sources, and organizations such as the Catholic Campaign for Human Development and Catholic Relief Services.

Conclusion

In the Acts of the Apostles, we read that the early Christian community "devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers. …All who believe were together and had all things in common; they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one's needs…" (Acts 2:42-44).

Here in Metro Detroit, Christian service has been a visible and vital aspect of the story of our Church since the days of Fr. Gabriel Richard, who died serving the needs of those suffering from the cholera plague of the early 1830s.

Service has been "spoken" in many different languages and through different structures; through all ages and circumstances, service happens through lives of prayer and chastity. In a somewhat hidden but still powerful way, every one of us serves the least of our brothers and sisters through our participation in the Catholic Services Appeal and the many fund drives which happen for many beautiful causes throughout the area. The needs are always great and as the Lord Himself said, we will always have the poor with us; yet, we also have great resources, and every day we have opportunities to look for ever new ways to build on the tradition of service we have inherited.

Let us thank the good Lord for the heritage of our 175 years of service and recommit ourselves to be active participants of the "Gospel in action."

Your brother in the Lord,

†Adam Cardinal Maida
Archbishop of Detroit