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JANUARY 20, 2011 Volume LXXXV • Number 11 www.evangelist.org $1.00 CONFERENCE PROMOTES EQUALITY THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE DIOCESE OF ALBANY Recalling Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the STOP conference at Siena College confronts prejudice: Page 16 Family of the Year Knights of Columbus single out the Petrillose family of Burnt Hills: Page 7 TALENT ON TAP HOLY SPIRIT PARISH in Gloversville held a talent show last weekend for youth and adults. At left, Padaric Decker entertains; for more photos, see page 9. (Nate Whitchurch photo) BY JOHN THAVIS CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE Vatican City — Pope Benedict XVI approved a miracle attrib- uted to Pope John Paul II’s inter- cession, clearing the way for the late pope’s beatification on May 1, Divine Mercy Sunday. Pope Benedict’s action Jan. 14 followed more than five years of investigation into the life and writings of the Polish pontiff, who died in April 2005 after more than 26 years as pope. The Vatican said it took spe- cial care with verification of the miracle, the spontaneous cure of a French nun from Parkinson’s disease — the same illness that afflicted Pope John Paul. Three Vatican panels approved the miracle, including medical and theological experts, before Pope Benedict signed the official decree. “There were no concessions given here in procedural severi- ty and thoroughness,” said Cardinal Angelo Amato, head of the Congregation for Saints’ Causes. The Vatican said it would begin looking at logistical arrangements for the massive crowds expected for the beatifi- cation liturgy, which will be cele- brated by Pope Benedict at the Vatican. Divine Mercy Sunday had special significance for Pope John Paul, who made it a Church-wide feast day to be cel- ebrated a week after Easter. The pope died on the vigil of Divine Mercy Sunday in 2005. With beatification, Pope John Paul will be declared “blessed” and thus worthy of restricted liturgical honor. Another mira- cle is needed for canonization, by which the Church declares a person to be a saint and worthy of universal veneration. The Vatican spokesman, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, summed up much of the senti- ment in Rome when he said Pope John Paul would be beati- fied primarily for the spiritual gifts of faith, hope and charity that were the source of his papal activity. The world witnessed that spirituality when the pope prayed, when he spent time with the sick and suffering, in his vis- its to the impoverished coun- tries of the world and in his own illness “lived out in faith, before God and all of us,” Father Lombardi said. Father Lombardi said the Vatican was preparing to move Pope John Paul’s body from the crypt of St. Peter’s Basilica to the Chapel of St. Sebastian in the basilica’s upper level at the time of beatification. The chapel, on the right side of the church after Michelangelo’s Pieta, is accessi- ble and spacious, an important factor given the stream of pil- grims who come to see the pope’s tomb. Father Lombardi said Pope John Paul’s casket would not be STEP TOWARD SAINTHOOD Pope John Paul II to be beatified POPE JOHN PAUL II TO BE BEATIFIED, SEE PAGE 6 BY ANGELA CAVE STAFF WRITER David Valentino has hitch- hiked and freight-jumped his way around America, bunked in Buddhist monasteries in the Himalayas and slept in family sheds in Nepal. Along the way, faith saved him from throwing his life away, led him to his Nepali wife and called him to work with Catholic mis- sions abroad. Today, the 34-year-old parish- ioner of Our Lady of Hope in Copake Falls is working with his parish to fund education proj- ects in slum mountain villages outside the main cities of Nepal. A Nepali Catholic priest who built a school in Pokhara, a large city in the center of the country, updates the Valentinos on the needs of his people. Our Lady of Hope parish, a 2010 merger of St. John Vianney parish in Claverack and St. Bridget’s in Copake Falls, is accustomed to working with for- eigners. St. Bridget’s was linked to a parish in Nicaragua for almost two decades; that rela- tionship continues. Though Our Lady of Hope has not yet drafted a formal plan to sponsor what Mr. Valentino calls the Asha Outreach Project, many parishioners have sent individual donations and patronized a sale of handmade Nepali wool clothing. “Asha” means “hope” in Nepali and Hindi. “I think it’s great,” said Bill VonAncken, treasurer for human development at the parish. “You have someone from your own parish doing basically missionary work — your very own, doing the Lord’s work.” The Valentinos’ first project was to pay for the surgery of a low-income Nepali man with a gangrenous leg. Donations from Copake Falls Catholics funded a new prosthetic limb. The Nepali man had been fired from his carpentry job because of his disability. His wife had just given birth to their first child. Mr. Valentino stepped in to find the family housing. Other projects have related to building and funding four edu- cation outreach centers including one in Gagangauda, a village 45 minutes east of Pokhara. Less than $400 (U.S.) per year is an average salary for many parents of the new school’s 112 students. Almost 340 students are served by the different centers. Mr. Valentino estimates that maintaining the outreach cen- MISSIONARY MAN Catholic connects Copake to Nepal THE VALENTINOS IN NEPAL CATHOLIC CONNECTS COPAKE TO NEPAL, SEE PAGE 3 SUBSCRIBE 453-6688

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Family of the Year Volume LXXXV • Number 11 www.evangelist.org Recalling Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the STOP conference at Siena College confronts prejudice: Page 16 HOLY SPIRIT PARISHin Gloversville held a talent show last weekend for youth and adults. At left, Padaric Decker entertains; for more photos, see page 9. (Nate Whitchurch photo) CATHOLIC CONNECTS COPAKE TO NEPAL, SEE PAGE 3 THE VALENTINOS IN NEPAL POPE JOHN PAUL II TO BE BEATIFIED, SEE PAGE 6 $1.00 CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Evangelist N12c #2

JANUARY 20, 2011Volume LXXXV • Number 11

www.evangelist.org

$1.00

CONFERENCE PROMOTES EQUALITY

T H E O F F I C I A L P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E D I O C E S E O F A L B A N Y

Recalling Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., the STOP conference atSiena College confronts prejudice: Page 16

Family of the YearKnights of Columbus single out thePetrillose family of Burnt Hills: Page 7

TALENTON TAPHOLY SPIRIT PARISH in Gloversvilleheld a talent show last weekend foryouth and adults. At left, PadaricDecker entertains; for more photos,see page 9. (Nate Whitchurchphoto)

BY JOHN THAVISC A T H O L I C N E W S S E R V I C E

Vatican City — Pope BenedictXVI approved a miracle attrib-uted to Pope John Paul II’s inter-cession, clearing the way for thelate pope’s beatification on May1, Divine Mercy Sunday.

Pope Benedict’s action Jan. 14followed more than five years ofinvestigation into the life andwritings of the Polish pontiff,who died in April 2005 aftermore than 26 years as pope.

The Vatican said it took spe-cial care with verification of themiracle, the spontaneous cure ofa French nun from Parkinson’sdisease — the same illness thatafflicted Pope John Paul. ThreeVatican panels approved themiracle, including medical andtheological experts, before PopeBenedict signed the officialdecree.

“There were no concessionsgiven here in procedural severi-ty and thoroughness,” saidCardinal Angelo Amato, head ofthe Congregation for Saints’

Causes. The Vatican said it would

begin looking at logisticalarrangements for the massivecrowds expected for the beatifi-cation liturgy, which will be cele-brated by Pope Benedict at theVatican.

Divine Mercy Sunday hadspecial significance for PopeJohn Paul, who made it aChurch-wide feast day to be cel-ebrated a week after Easter. Thepope died on the vigil of DivineMercy Sunday in 2005.

With beatification, Pope JohnPaul will be declared “blessed”and thus worthy of restrictedliturgical honor. Another mira-cle is needed for canonization,by which the Church declares aperson to be a saint and worthyof universal veneration.

The Vatican spokesman,Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi,summed up much of the senti-ment in Rome when he saidPope John Paul would be beati-fied primarily for the spiritualgifts of faith, hope and charity

that were the source of his papalactivity.

The world witnessed thatspirituality when the popeprayed, when he spent time withthe sick and suffering, in his vis-its to the impoverished coun-tries of the world and in his ownillness “lived out in faith, beforeGod and all of us,” FatherLombardi said.

Father Lombardi said theVatican was preparing to movePope John Paul’s body from thecrypt of St. Peter’s Basilica to theChapel of St. Sebastian in thebasilica’s upper level at the timeof beatification.

The chapel, on the right sideof the church afterMichelangelo’s Pieta, is accessi-ble and spacious, an importantfactor given the stream of pil-grims who come to see thepope’s tomb.

Father Lombardi said PopeJohn Paul’s casket would not be

STEP TOWARD SAINTHOOD

Pope John Paul II to be beatified

POPE JOHN PAUL II TO BE BEATIFIED, SEEPAGE 6

BY ANGELA CAVES T A F F W R I T E R

David Valentino has hitch-hiked and freight-jumped hisway around America, bunked inBuddhist monasteries in theHimalayas and slept in familysheds in Nepal.

Along the way, faith saved himfrom throwing his life away, ledhim to his Nepali wife and calledhim to work with Catholic mis-sions abroad.

Today, the 34-year-old parish-ioner of Our Lady of Hope inCopake Falls is working with hisparish to fund education proj-ects in slum mountain villagesoutside the main cities of Nepal.

A Nepali Catholic priest whobuilt a school in Pokhara, a largecity in the center of the country,updates the Valentinos on theneeds of his people.

Our Lady of Hope parish, a2010 merger of St. John Vianneyparish in Claverack and St.Bridget’s in Copake Falls, isaccustomed to working with for-eigners. St. Bridget’s was linked

to a parish in Nicaragua foralmost two decades; that rela-tionship continues.

Though Our Lady of Hopehas not yet drafted a formal planto sponsor what Mr. Valentinocalls the Asha Outreach Project,many parishioners have sentindividual donations andpatronized a sale of handmadeNepali wool clothing.

“Asha” means “hope” in Nepaliand Hindi.

“I think it’s great,” said BillVonAncken, treasurer forhuman development at theparish. “You have someone fromyour own parish doing basicallymissionary work — your veryown, doing the Lord’s work.”

The Valentinos’ first projectwas to pay for the surgery of alow-income Nepali man with agangrenous leg. Donations fromCopake Falls Catholics funded anew prosthetic limb.

The Nepali man had beenfired from his carpentry jobbecause of his disability. Hiswife had just given birth to theirfirst child. Mr. Valentinostepped in to find the familyhousing.

Other projects have related tobuilding and funding four edu-cation outreach centers —including one in Gagangauda, avillage 45 minutes east ofPokhara. Less than $400 (U.S.)per year is an average salary formany parents of the newschool’s 112 students.

Almost 340 students areserved by the different centers.Mr. Valentino estimates thatmaintaining the outreach cen-

MISSIONARY MAN

Catholic connectsCopake to Nepal

THE VALENTINOS IN NEPAL CATHOLIC CONNECTS COPAKE TO NEPAL,SEE PAGE 3

SUBSCRIBE453-6688

Page 2: Evangelist N12c #2

ters will cost almost $15,000. Most schools in Nepal are

government-funded, but theirquality tends to be less than thatof private schools. The greatestneed lies in the villages, whereteachers usually work withoutpay and students leave at earlyages to work in their parents’trades.

Electricity is limited through-out the country. Most villagerseasily find water flowing fromglaciers, but city residents buycatch basins to collect rainwateron their roofs.

The last time the Valentinosstayed in Nepal, they paid for atruck to pump water into a hold-ing tank after the public waterfailed to arrive.

Mr. Valentino seeks sponsor-ship for 40 individual students— some from the villages andsome from St. Francis School inPokhara, which was built by Rev.Anthony Fernandez, aMissionary of St. Francis Xavier.

Sponsors would pay for stu-dents’ uniforms, school supplies,medical needs and food; somestudents are orphaned, some

disabled, some poor. Mr. Valentino didn’t always

know his purpose. He finishedhigh school in Copake, but leftart school before graduating. Hedonated his childhood savingsto charity and lived on thestreets up and down both U.S.coasts for two and a half years.

After running into trouble sev-eral times, developing a drugaddiction and feeling responsi-ble for the demise of his friend’smarriage, he planned to end hislife in the Hudson River inManhattan. But music waftingthrough the streets inspired himto visit an outreach center runby an evangelical church.Members there helped himthrough the rough patch.

Mr. Valentino returned home— and returned to the CatholicChurch. He became active in hisparish, even considering study-ing theology. After another stintat art school, he worked 16 hoursa day as a manager for a multi-media distribution company.

One of his employees there, aRussian, described an event inIndia about which Mr. Valentino

had had a dream. “I had a feelinginside like, ‘Wow, this is reallymore than a coincidence,’” Mr.Valentino said. “I’m really meantto go to this place.”

He made his way to India in2001, studying interfaith topics.During the Maha Kumbha Melain Allahabad, a pilgrimage thatattracted 60 million people, hewitnessed devotional sacrificesand took a ritual dip in theGanges River.

Mr. Valentino returned to theU.S. and worked for his father’sconstruction company, tooktrips to Nicaragua with theCopake Falls parish and spentthree months staying inCatholic seminaries in Thailand,where he worked on communalfarming projects.

In 2005, he returned to Indiato work for the Missionaries ofCharity and others, splitting histime between caring for the eld-erly and teaching English to chil-dren. On breaks, he traveled andworked at orphanages and nurs-ing homes in other parts ofIndia.

Mr. Valentino even sat withthe 15-year-old boy known as“Little Buddha,” who meditatedin the woods for eight monthswithout food.

Then, at age 29, Mr. Valentinodecided to move to Nepal, acountry he had only briefly visit-ed. His house mother intro-duced him to his future wife,Sanju, whose full name means“flawless victory.”

Sanju, 19 at the time, was aChristian convert from

Buddhism. Mr. Valentino initial-ly worried about their age differ-ence, but knew within two meet-ings that Sanju was right for him.

“I allowed the Holy Spirit tomake the decision for me,” hesaid.

The couple’s son, Mallu, wasborn in 2007. Mallu and hismother were baptized in theCatholic Church the followingyear. The family now has resi-dences in both Copake andPokhara.

Mr. Valentino is currentlysidelined by an illness, but plansto go back into constructionwhen his health returns.

He says his faith has played alarge role in his mission work.

“It’s been my foundationbecause there’s definitely beenplenty of challenges and darknights,” he said. “It’s helped memaintain focus.”

Without faith, he said, hisaccomplishments “wouldn’teven have been possible.”

3January 20, 2011 T H E E VA N G E L I S T

FAITH AT WORK

BY CASEY NORMILEI N T E R N

For the second year in a row,Buddhists, Christians, Hindus,Muslims, Jews and Sikhs willgather together to talk in thepursuit of understanding andpeace.

Representatives from eachreligion will meet Jan. 30 at theHindu Community Center inLoudonville to discuss how theteachings of their faith can leadto peace — and to find commonelements with other religions.

The symposium, “In Pursuit ofWorld Peace and Harmony,” isan effort by coordinator TarikMalik to aid the Capital Regionthrough the work of faith com-

munities. This year’s conference will

feature Monshin Naamon, theabbot for the Buddhist JiunzanTendaiji; Dr. Jyoti Swaminathan,a philosophy teacher at theHindu Temple; Imam NaseemMehdi, vice president of theAhmadiyya Muslim Commu-nity; Rabbi Yaakov Kellman,executive director of JewishEducational Resources of NewYork; and Jagmohan SinghChahal, president of the SikhCommunity of the CapitalDistrict.

Barbara DiTommaso, directorof the Albany Diocese’sCommission on Peace andJustice, will be the representa-

tive for the Catholic Church.“When different religious tra-

ditions get together and social-ize, that’s helpful enough,” saidMs. DiTommaso. “Then they canget to know each other. Butwhen they begin to talk abouttheir beliefs, it reaches a wholenew depth.”

The movement toward coop-eration and understandingbetween faiths has always beenclose to Ms. DiTommaso’s heart.For three years after the Sept. 11,2001, attacks on the U.S., sheorganized interfaith prayer serv-ices for peace in the world;through the years, she has beenable to meet and work withmany people of other faiths.

“The people I’ve met throughthis work are just the best thateach religion can produce,” shetold The Evangelist. “They arethe kindest, most respectful peo-ple I’ve ever met.”

Ms. DiTommaso began herwork in interfaith dialoguebecause she saw a great need toerase the fear that existedbetween religions due to misun-derstandings and the impor-tance of seeing Christ in every-one, even those of differentmind.

Her goal in attending the sym-posium, she said, is to develop atwo-way street: “I’m expecting tolearn more about these otherfaiths and I hope to shed somelight on Christianity for others.You don’t want to step on others’beliefs and you don’t want any-one to trample yours.”

Through conferences such as

this one, she said people of dif-ferent faiths can come to accepttheir differences in order to helpothers.

“The goal is not to make onemish-mashed religion, but to gettogether and help those who arehurting: the poor, the homeless,and the needy,” said Ms.DiTommaso. “This kind of altru-istic help is what will reveal tothe world what we all believe:that God’s love is unconditional.”

INTERFAITH MEETING

Believers unite across religious lines

“In Pursuit of World Peace andHarmony” will be held Jan. 30, 3-6p.m., at the Hindu CommunityCenter, 450 Albany Shaker Rd.,Loudonville. The conference is freebut registration is required; callTarik Malik, 542-5801, or [email protected]. For further information, callBarbara DiTommaso, 453-6695.

CHILDREN PRAY AT ST. FRANCISSCHOOL IN POKHARA, NEPAL

Catholic connects Copake to Nepal

MISSION TRIP

Catholic carpentrybenefits Belize BY ANGELA CAVES T A F F W R I T E R

A group of Catholics fromHoly Spirit parish inGloversville will travel to Belizenext month to repair and reno-vate a primary school damagedby floods from an autumn hurri-cane.

Though their two-to-three-week trip will likely not coverthe whole job, the group hopesto fix walls, windows and doorsat the 1,000-student CathedralSchool in Belize City.

Belize City is the largest cityin the Central American nation,said Holy Spirit parishionerCarolyn Darkangelo. This is theeighth year the parish has sent agroup to Belize; volunteers pre-viously repaired and refur-bished five schools and trans-formed two residential build-ings into churches.

Mrs. Darkangelo recalledtheir first trip, when theyrewired a one-room school inRancho Dolores, painted wallsand repaired furniture. Yearslater, in Ladyville, they rewired,

painted and repaired a 20-roomschool. Other projects haveincluded replacing windows,repairing plumbing and paint-ing blackboards.

Mrs. Darkangelo and herhusband are electricians, butsome volunteers with no tech-nical skills train as they go.Others tutor children duringthe visits.

The Belizetrips startedafter a parish-ioner took apilgrimage toM e d j u g o r j eand struck upa friendshipwith her guide,Rev. OliverSmalls, ofBelize. FatherSmalls, nowadministratorof HolyRedeemer Cathedral in BelizeCity, visits the Gloversvilleparish annually.

Donations to the Belize mis-sion fund supplies; volunteerspay their own way. TheDarkangelos return annually.“It’s a wonderful feeling,” Mrs.Darkangelo said. “The people ofBelize are just magnificent.They don’t have a lot, but theylaugh a lot.”

Send donationsto the Churchof the HolySpirit, BelizeMission, 149South MainStreet,Gloversville,NY, 12078. Forinformation,call CarolynDarkangelo,883-7446.

CATHOLIC CONNECTS COPAKE TO NEPAL, FROM PAGE 1