welcome, father phan · father phan grew up in central vietnam and moved to the united states ten...

Christ The King Church, Nashville, TennesseeVolume 20, Issue 2, Summer 2018

Hospitality ......................................................................... 2 Columbian Squires ........................................................... 2 A Discussion We Need to Have ........................................ 3 Relationship Recovery ..................................................... 3VBS 2018, Shipwrecked ................................................... 4School News ..................................................................... 8Garden of The Year Awards ........................................... 10Milestones in Faith ..........................................................11 True Notes ....................................................................... 12

Continue on page 2

Welcome, Father PhanBy Kathy Reese

F ather Anh Tuan Phan has settled in nicely in his new role at CTK. He is eagerly looking forward to be-coming involved in the various ministries here. He

is open to all experiences; however, during his formation in the seminary, he discovered that he is adept at work-ing with people, especially helping them during difficult times of life. He also likes working with children.

Father Phan grew up in Central Vietnam and moved to the United States ten years ago when he was 20 years old. His maternal grandparents sponsored his family, and in April of 2008 his parents and three children moved here. His younger sister is an eighth grader at St. Ann’s, and his younger brother will graduate from MTSU in December. He also has a sister who is a Cistercian nun. She is pres-ently at Divine Word College in Dubuque, Iowa training as a missionary. She hopes to return to Vietnam when she completes her studies. Father Phan’s older brother and his family still live in Vietnam, along with his paternal grandparents.

As far as when he knew he had a calling to become a priest, Father Phan said it was a gradual realization. While living in Vietnam, he taught CCD classes and would go with his father to work in the church. After high school his paternal grandmother suggested that he apply to the seminary. He wasn’t sure, so he prayed to God to give him a sign. He opened himself up to God’s plan and felt that passing the entrance exam was his sign. After moving to the United States, Father Phan studied at Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans. During his early years at Notre Dame, his formation as a priest was almost derailed by snow. In January 2011 he left Nashville driving to New Orleans in the snow. He couldn’t maneuver through the snow and became very frustrated. Fortunately, his grand-father lent Father his car to drive to New Orleans.

2 Volume 20, Issue 2 l Summer 2018

Continued from page 1Father Phan has many interests including sports and

food. His favorite sport is soccer, but he also enjoys play-ing ping pong, tennis, and volleyball. While in the semi-nary, he was introduced to flag football and became some-what of a celebrity at Notre Dame. He is now known as “The Legend” because he caught a Hail Mary pass from the quarterback to win the game. Father Phan’s food in-terests are varied. His favorite Vietnamese dish is Spicy Noodle Soup from Central Vietnam. Asked if he cooks this soup for himself, he smiled and said that his mother and grandmother make it for him. His favorite American food is steak, which he eats in moderation, and seafood.

For the last two weeks in July, Father Phan took a long-awaited trip to Vietnam to visit family. This was his first time to return to Vietnam in seven years. Now that he has returned, everyone will have ample time to enjoy getting to know him. W

HospitalityBy Carolyn Goddard

A n image had been stirring my imagination of late — it is Rublev’s icon of the Trinity. If you are not familiar with it, allow me to give you

some sense of its beauty. There are three figures in wondrously colored garments seated around a small table with what looks like a large chalice, possibly containing some bread in it. While the artist’s inten-tion was certainly to depict the Christian notion of Father, Son and Holy Spirit; the icon also brings to mind the “three men” who visited Abraham in the story found in Chapter 18 of Genesis. The “three men” turned out to be “the Lord.”

The word that both the icon and the story whis-per to the ear of my heart is hospitality. The Bible is big on that virtue, suggestion that in showing kind-ness to any stranger, we show kindness to God. This makes sense if we think of Incarnation not as a one time happening, but as an on-going reality for then God is present in the flesh of, the person of, others.

I am most likely to offer hospitality to people who look and think a great deal like me. I would like to extend my table. I would like to live more in the spirit of hospitality as Henri Nouwen defined the word. “Hospitality means primarily the creation of free space where the stranger can enter and become a friend ... Hospitality is not to change people but to offer them space where change can take place. It is not to bring men and women over to our side, but to offer freedom not disturbed by dividing lines.” May I, may we all, become more hospitable. W

By Pat Watson

T he Columbian Squires is an arm of the Knights of Co-lumbus, which focuses on the spiritual, cultural, civic, social and physical improvement of boys and young

men, and the development of their leadership qualities. The Reverend Richard Pius Miles Squires Circle was formed at Christ the King in Fall 2015, in association with the CTK council. The Circle is a way to get more boys involved in ser-vice in the parish community, as well as provide opportuni-ties for to participate in leadership roles. Meetings are coor-dinated and conducted entirely by Squires, who lead various positions such as treasurer, secretary, and Chief Squire.

Charter member and most recent Chief Squire Kevin Go-mez has led the Circle over the past year. The Squires par-ticipate in service activities and parish events throughout the year, including the Community Festival in the fall, Breakfast with Santa and decorating the church in the winter, Knights of Columbus Fish Fries in the spring, and Mur-Ci Homes Festival in the summer. The Squires also plant and maintain four flower beds in front of Christ the King Church, along Belmont Boulevard, and has been awarded in the annual gar-den contest for the past two years.

All of these events provide ample opportunities for Squires to complete service hours, help the parish and the community, and connect with one another. Any Catholic boy between 10 and 18 years old can join the Squires; meetings take place every 2nd Sunday of the month at 5 PM in the CTK Council Room. If you have any interest in joining the CTK Circle, please contact the 2018-19 Chief Squire, D.J. Vigerust, at [email protected]. W

From L-R: DJ Vigerust, Zach DeGuira, Greg Gomez and Kevin Gomez.

Columbian Squires


A Discussion We Need to Have

Relationship Recovery

By Margaret Emsweller

I t may be difficult for many of us to grasp the reason why one could find himself in such a dark place and feel so isolated that suicide would be the only answer

for the despair he presently endures. Yet we are seeing an increase in number of suicide deaths in our country, espe-cially among our youth.

According to the Center for Disease Control, suicide is the third leading cause of death for youth between the ages of 10-24. It results in approximately 4600 lives lost each year. In the United States, on average there are over 5400 suicide attempts per year by young people grades 7-12.

So what are some of the risk factors for suicide? Ac-cording to the American Medical Association, youth who are bullied are more than twice as likely to consider sui-cide. A recent article published in “Clinical Psychologi-cal Science” found that the generation of teens born after 1995 is much more likely to experience mental-health is-sues than their millennial predecessors. In the five years between 2010 and 2015, the number of U.S. teens who felt useless and joyless surged 33 percent. Some suggest that teens spent much less time interacting with their friends in person and more time on smart phones; and more time spent on social media leads to unhappiness. Teens feeling socially isolated is also one of the major risks for suicide. Academic expectations and the related stress is greater for

By Arlene Stone

C hrist the King will once again be offering the Relationship Recovery Program for its fifth year commencing on Wednesday, October 17,

2018. Notice of this year’s Program will start ap-pearing in the September Bulletins. This year we are asking the participants to pre-register; therefore, if interested in participating please contact Arlene Stone at [email protected].

Here are only a few of the comments participants wrote on their evaluations after completing the Three Phased Program:

“What I discovered through this class helped me to heal emotionally, physically and spiritually; without it, I know I would be a very bitter human being today.”

our youth than in previous generations. But depression and suicide have many causes, including genetic predis-position, family environment, bullying and trauma which can all play a role.

Christ the King Parish in collaboration with Christ the King School will offer two opportunities to discuss Teen Suicide Prevention in the Fall. The sessions will be held on Wednesday, September 26, at 7:00 pm in the Parish Hall and another session on Sunday, Sept. 30, at 9:45 am in the West Wing of the Parish Hall. A panel of local profes-sionals led by Joe McLaughlin, Clinical Psychologist and Christ the King parishioner, will detail the risk factors for suicide and how we can help our children, grandchildren and the youth in our community.

Joe has vast experience counseling teens and recently stated “We need a willingness to talk about this topic and a willingness to approach and talk to someone experienc-ing suicidal thoughts.”

The panel will also include a representative from the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network; Sara Smith, Christ the King Counselor; and William Forster who will share his story after the loss of his brother to suicide. There will be an opportunity for questions at the end of the presen-tation. The reasons aren’t totally clear as to why suicidal ideology plagues so many of our youth today, but one teen lost is too many. This is a discussion we need to have. W

“I learned the art of journaling which allowed me to really get in touch with what I was feeling, and it wasn’t always anger.”

“I also learned that how a person treats me has nothing to do with me, but with my mate, boss, friend, etc. This allowed me to move into forgive-ness which saved me and our children from what could’ve been a bitter divorce.

As a facilitator of this program I am honored to be part of such a Christ-based ministry and hope that you will encourage those that you know who are going through a divorce or a relationship break-up to take a leap of faith and courage to consider experiencing this life altering program. W


By Kathy Skinner

VBS 2018, Shipwrecked I t was another fantastic year at VBS! This year, the theme

was Shipwrecked … Jesus Rescues. Each day, the 210 children learned how Jesus rescues us when we are lone-

ly, when we worry, when we struggle, when we do wrong, and when we are powerless. Our adults and teens helped the children see how this connected with their daily lives and feelings.

The greatest part of VBS is how happy everyone is and how much fun all have learning stories from scripture as well as playing and praying together. We have the benefit of this ministry involving near 100 teen and adult leaders. Their example and dedication is powerful for the younger children. It also often leads to teens discovering new gifts they can use in other areas of life and in other ministries. A quiet and more reserved teen may end up being the strongest leader and presenter in a station. The experience is priceless.

This year we worked hard to get more involved in the building of our set. We had more people than ever and had a lot of fun while creating our deserted island. Teamwork paid off, and we are grateful for all who gave any amount of time to make it happen. We hope more will get involved in our African Safari set next year when we celebrate ROAR: Life is wild. God is good. VBS 2019 will be July 15-19 with teen registration beginning March 1 and child participant registration beginning April 1. W


By Kathy Reese

A nother school year is upon us bringing with it positive changes to improve academics

and facilities. The faculty will wel-come two teachers to their ranks, both of whom have ties to CKS. Dur-ing the summer, the library has un-dergone renovations to enhance the effectiveness and aesthetics of it.

Brittany Francescon Meriwether is coming home to CKS to teach sev-enth and eighth grade English and seventh grade geography. She is also the learning specialist for grades two through six and will offer after school study help.

Brittany graduated from CKS in 1998 and continued her educa-tion at Father Ryan High School and then got her degree from Uni-versity of Tennessee. She has eleven years of experience in education. She taught at Murrell School from 2007-2013 and was nominated as Teacher of the Year in 2013. She spent the next year at Granberry Elementary School where she was a Blue-Ribbon nominee. From 2014-2018 Brittany taught at Father Ryan High School. One of her former principals de-scribed her as an amazing and or-ganized teacher who showed great leadership in school and is a wonder-ful mentor.

Brittany is adept at working with all types of learners. She is well versed in the use of educational tech-nology and uses a variety of assess-ment tools. She feels that “collabora-tion with faculty is so important.”

Brittany is the daughter of Sam and Judy Francescon. She is married

to Chris Meriwether, and they have two children: daughter Isla (2 years old) and son Eli (3 months). From her time at CKS, she remembers “the strong sense of community,” and she is “excited to build new relationships with families and faculty.”

CKS is fortunate to have Bri-an Knoop come on board as fifth through eighth grade science teacher and moderator of Science Olympiad and STEM. He brings with him 37 years of experience in the education field. Brian earned his B.S. at Mur-ray State University and his Masters at Tennessee State University.

He taught for two years in Arkan-sas. After moving to Nashville, his first teaching position was at CKS from 1983-1985. Since then he has taught at several schools including St. Edward, St. Henry, Overbrook, St. Bernard, and University School in a variety of roles.

Brian has also spent most of his summers since 1995 attending work-shops and seminars on diverse topics. Some of the many subjects include the following: satellite imagery at Uni-

L to R: Joey Maffei (8th), DJ Clark (8th) Elli Maffei (6th), Ellie Schulz (5th), Sanjeeth George (7th), Aidan Carr (7th), Brian Knoop (science teacher)

versity of Michigan, living in space at the Air Force Academy, psychol-ogy classes at Harvard, and learning about volcanic activity at Volcano National Park in Hawaii. This sum-mer he attended the National Nano-technology Coordinated Infrastruc-ture at Stanford University.

Brian is married to Teresa and has a daughter Lauren, who is also a teacher. He is excited to be returning to CKS. As he stated, “I have now come full circle in my educational career.” He feels that the “...facilities here are second to none among the diocesan elementary schools...” and is eager to begin the new school year.

As faculty and students begin the new school year, they have been treated to a revamped library. Reno-vations to the library were funded by the CKS Finance Board and a parish donor. The floors have been retiled and the walls have been painted with fresher, brighter colors including a mural on one of the walls. The chairs have been changed out for newer pri-mary-colored ones. LED lighting has been installed, which helps reduce


Grace Holland (8th grade, center) with other students

Mark Bryant (8th grade) Sean Meffe (7th Grade)

eye strain and headaches thus allow-ing for better focus and concentra-tion. LED lights are also more eco-nomic.

Other improvements involve re-surfacing shelving and installing a new countertop at the circulation desk and new cabinetry for the card catalog, book return, and display shelves. A new AV Flat Screen has been added along with a magnetic LEGO wall. The “new” library is sure to help students in their quest for learning.

National Youth Leadership Fo-rum: Explore STEM is a program that gives middle school students the opportunity to explore careers in science, technology, engineering, or math. This summer three CKS students went to one of the forums. Eighth graders Grace Holland and Mark Bryant traveled to Wake Forest University in Winston Salem, North Carolina for a week-long forum while seventh grader Sean Meffe at-tended a forum at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. W


E ach year parishioners adopt 20 garden beds or areas around the church to care for throughout the grow-ing season. Some are adopted by individuals, some by

families and others by parish groups such as the Squires or a PREP class. The responsibilities include planting the area with appropriate plants, watering the areas as needed (which has been a lot recently) weeding, mulching and generally car-ing for the area, as if it was their own. Some of the areas are small and some are huge!. Some receive several hours of sun and some are totally in the shade. Some are in well estab-lished beds and others are in relatively new areas. Together, they all contribute to thebeauty of our parish grounds.

For several years we have held a Garden of the Year con-test to select the best garden as judged by members of the church staff. The criteria is very subjective. Some awards have been given for taking a new area and making it more attractive and others have been given for taking a long exist-ing area and doing something a little different to improve it. Still others have been awarded in appreciation for the diffi-culty in maintaining a formidable area. The contest is mainly done for fun and to provide a little incentive to our garden-ers, after the joy of planting something new has passed and the upkeep gets old and the days get hot.

The winner of this year’s award goes to Arlyn and Grace Wernke, who adopted both the Cornerstone bed and the bed and urn by the entrance to the St Joseph Chapel. These are large, shady areas which require a great amount of work. In the judges view, these area contributed significantly to the appearance of the grounds. Congratulations to both of you for your hard work. The two runner up awards went to Eba Hobbs and Sallie & David Brackman for the large bed in the circular driveway in front of the rectory and to Christi Wehby for the circular bed around the statute of the Blessed Mother in the Grotto. In addition, the judges awarded hon-orable mentions to Emily Brackman for the two pots on each side of the iron bench by the circular drive and to the Squires for the 4 beds at the front walkways to the church from the Belmont sidewalks.

Recently, I read a reflection from Your Spiritual Garden: Tending to the Presence of God which summed up my expe-rience as a Christ the King gardener:

“The manual labor we do in the garden can be bone wearing, yet richly satisfying. When we experience visible results from the earth, we find solace and peace in an oth-erwise fragmented world. Gardens teach us disappointment when bugs or four-legged critters destroy hard effort and beauty. Growing something, anything, is a lesson in patience and love. Gardens fill us with gratitude.”

Our Christ the King community is grateful to the many who have adopted garden areas at the parish over the years. We thank you for your hard work and your contribution to the naturalbeauty of our grounds. W

Garden of The Year AwardsBy Jim Bryan


MILESTONES IN FAITH March 2018 - August 2018WEDDINGSPatrick Michael Couture and Laura Sawyer StewartPhilip James Dickman and Margot Emily GastonAndrew Lawrence Herman and Laura Marie EllisDaniel Frazier Jordan and Christie Joan RoyNathan Joseph Kutsko and Laura Kathleen WolohanMitchell Everett Lancaster and Sarah Elizabeth HintonJoshua Michael Owings and Anna Maria HintonCraig Andrew Veltri and Halee Catherine CulicertoAustin Joseph Vogt and Briana Christine Engelbert

BAPTISMS & NEWLY RECEIVED INTO THE CHURCHChristopher Stone AnticiParker James ArenthMary Catherine AtwoodBrooklyn Rae BassCharles August BerryEmma Ryan BrownOliver James BushRiley Kay ByrneGreyson Cade CadavidLeo Ames CadavidMichael Isaac CameronArcher Shields CarrollPeter Lionel CarterPhilip Tobias CarterAsher Kent CochranJude Thomas CooperSimon Adamson CooperField Patrick CreekmoreJohn William DewanFord White DiMeolaMacaulay Francis DouglasDelia Rose EdmondsJohn Bernard Elam

Caroline Patricia FassbenderEleanor Marie GatesElizabeth McClellan GhanemVincent James GogliottiThomas Jude GormanWilliam David HolderSamuel Ross HollanderNolan Joseph HolmanLila Marie HulseyMallory JacksonLiam Thomas JohnsonJames Wingfield KameenEloise Marie KarbLezlie Rene KuebkerAbram Lou LintonPreston Obiora MaduGeorge Campbell MaherJeanne Elizabeth MarchettiGiancarlo Adrian MariscalAllison Amy MarshCharles Westerkamp MayhausTessa Drew MeadMyla Rose MenkeElijah Christopher MeriwetherMadeline Lucille MillsMaeve Magdalene O’NeillEmma PettyjohnJackson Bryan PicklesimerJames Patrick PicklesimerLibby Coralynn RauBrendan Christopher RichBrooklyn Nicole RogersFrancesca Bernadette SchaferVera Chretien SchmidtDelaney Rose ScullyHarry Bett TardioBenjamin John Mark ThomasBowen Patrick ThompsonDillon Jones ThurmanJackson Ryan WalkerCatherine Carlin WestKelly Riehl WilliamsMaria Lucile Wiltshire Alexander George Wiora

NEW PARISHIONERSBrad & Marianne AhlgrenSarah AlfieriSally AllgeierCharles Alvis & Eileen CunninghamRose & Jeff AndersonKaty AnthonyGeoffrey BorchgrevinkJohn BrenzieChristine & Bobby BrownDanielle BrouillardPetey BruniBlake Buchert & Makenzie CookGabrielle BuonoAlison BurryJennifer ButlerWhitney & Branden CadavidAimee CailletCatherine & Tyler CameronNick CarrierJayme & Jim CaseyJosh & Emily CarterTracy & Lee ClarkMichelle & Tony CoburnAlison & Dave CrockerAdam DanielKat & Billy DecKitty & Dennis DelaneyMargot and James DickmanTim & Denise DowneySheila & Alex DownsEvan Dressel & Nina FredericksRyan & Erica EckenJanie & Pete FalkenbergNicole FerreiraColin FinnElizabeth & Caleb FordJohn Foster & Rebecca ArceJillian & Russell FreemanTess GaleAshley GrahamErica & Aaron GunterJarrod HajekMarilyn & Jay HammondMatt HardyMatt Hickman & Andie StoneMalia & Eric Holman

Sarah & Kenny HomannTrevor Humes & Izabelle PetersDon Husley & Jennifer LeBlancErin & Alex HunterJeffrey Jackson & Katie FeldhausAndrew Jelinek & Bethany ScanlanMaddy & Josh KasselWendy KaysenKim & Mike KeggKelly KeyKariann KozlowskiJoe Kustelski & Annie OrtmeierAnna LeachChimaobi Madu & Lily ColeyAndrew McCloyMatthew McCloyNikki & Mike McCoyMaureen McGeehanAshley MonteroLa Sonia MossHeather & Spencer MullinsRachel NewtonCaroline OndreyMolly & Dillon O’NeillDavid Parker & Emma BishopTraci PekovitchTish & Bryan PicklesimerTaylor PierceDonna RossBeth & Jim RossiAngie & Dillon RussellMark SchaeferKristen & Kramer SchmidtEmily SchroederElizabeth & Mark SestiniKristen & Joey ShanineMarley SherwoodJennifer & Ricky ShinallMark Skopal & Michele McCannRachel & John SloweyCody Smith & Kasie DeanLauren StiehleKristen SzewczykSarah & John Thetford

Continue on page 12


Volume 20, Issue 2, Summer 2018 Published at Christ The King Catholic Church 3001 Belmont Blvd., Nashville, TN 37212Parish Office 615.292.2884, ext. 300

Pastor Father Dexter BrewerEditor-In-Chief Deacon Bob True

Editor & Art Director Suzanne Lynch

Contributors Jim Bryan Margaret Emsweller Carolyn Goodard Kathy Reece Nancy Rohling Kathy Skinner Arlene Stone Jeanette Vogt Pat Watson

The Cloister is a community publication and we welcome any news or stories that Christ the King parishioners would like to contribute. The views and opinions expressed in the Cloister articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Christ the King or the Catholic church.

By Deacon Bob

True NotesL ast month, due to the graciousness of a re-

tired career Marine Hank Goodrum who has once again volunteered to lead, a new

ministry began at Christ the King. About one year ago, I was introduced to Dr. Tom Seals, a theology professor at Lipscomb University who had written the book, God’s Word for Warriors. The Veterans Ministry at Lipscomb has been using the book as a guide to meet with veterans who have been in combat. The book and the ministry is beginning to get national attention in a variety of environ-ments. I truly believe the Holy Spirit wanted this ministry to be offered at Christ the King, so Mi-chael Lemming, Deacon John Krenson and I ap-proached Father Dexter who immediately gave it his enthusiastic approval. Hank facilitates these weekly meetings on Wednesday evenings from 7:00 till 8:00 in one of the meeting rooms, off of the Parish Hall lobby. This is an ongoing ministry.

I have come to the realization that it is the rare individual who gets through life without expe-riencing a traumatic event, which fails to create some form of post-traumatic symptoms. It might be coming up on a bad auto accident on the inter-state, or being involved in one, or suddenly losing a good friend or loved one, or even seeing some-thing horrible in the news. Vietnam brought war right into our living rooms, and I still remember being at Bongo Java waiting for coffee to see the second plane hit on 9/11. I for one could name several such events in my own life, even though I’ve never been in combat. So we are now inviting all, who feel they may benefit: police, firefight-ers, nurses, doctors, emergency personnel – any-one who feels the need to join the meetings on Wednesday evenings for as long as you like. We will have a book for you.

One more thought. I have been on this journey of life since World War II and I’ve never seen this country of ours so politically divided! There seems to be much more “dualog” than dialog. Much of it is diatribe! Is there another syndrome attacking our population — another PTSD – Political Trau-matic Stress Disorder? We’re all in this together folks, so let’s remember to love one another even if we don’t agree.

For more information on the Wednesday eve-ning meeting contact me at 615-243-8783 or Hank Goodrum at [email protected]. W

Denise & Marty Van DorenTrent Van Egtern & Sara WadeMike VertinPaige VickMaria Vigil & Pedro Vigil-SaldanaSara Jo & Ryan WalkerCorum Webb & Ashleigh OverbyOsualda Palanca-Wildrick & Andy WildrickJacqueline & Peter WojtkiewiczJohn & Jackie MessmerBrandon & Elizabeth MomaSuzannah MontgomeryDan & Maria MooreElizabeth MusserMary Catherine NardMarla OrsaghJessi & Angela OtisHaley PeelLaura PhilippsTaylor PruettLauren Roubion

Alyssa RodriguezJoe & Allyson RogersChristie RoyJim Satterfield & Breanna BorgertLarry & Ann SatkoskiElizabeth ScarpaSam & Lauran SevierStephen & Ellen SextonJustin SmithZach & Anna SmithJustin SmolderJon Stone & Brittany TaylorTodd StylesLindsay SummersRobin Thoppil & Manju XavierJohn & Ellen TigheVictoria TreboschiSullivan & Elizabeth TuckJoel & Katherine VeitscheggerBrian & Emily VickersKellie WaltonLaura WinalskiAbigail Wood

Continued from page 11

welcome, father phan · father phan grew up in central vietnam and moved to the united states ten...

Documents