Archbishop says appeal ‘brings hope to people society pushes aside’

A record 380 people of the Miter Society watch a video about the United Catholic Appeal at the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center in Indianapolis on Oct. 10.

By Natalie Hoefer

Mary Omosegbon smiles in the bright yellow and red of her native Nigerian garb.

She may be from Africa, but the concept of a United Catholic Appeal (UCA) is far from foreign to her.

“Oh, yes, it’s huge!” she says of the appeal she contributed to in the Church in Nigeria, where she was raised Catholic.

She likened donating to the appeal to the Gospel story of the widow who gave all she had—just a coin—to the treasury of the temple in Jerusalem.

“That [concept] still holds to today,” said the member of St. Monica Parish in Indianapolis in terms of contributing to the UCA. “Whatever you can give, you give, and God knows that.”

She shared this story after the Mass at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis on Oct. 3 for members of the Miter Society—those who contribute $1,500 or more to the UCA.

In his homily during the Mass, Archbishop Charles C. Thompson spoke of one who was the opposite of the generous widow—Jonah, the not-so-eager prophet mentioned in the evening’s first reading.

“Jonah is clearly a very reluctant prophet, especially where the [people of Nineveh] are concerned,” he told the roughly 400 people present.

“The Lord came to Jonah [twice]. The first time resulted in the well-known story of Jonah running away, being cast over the side of a boat, eaten by a fish and three days later being spit out on a beach.

“Having learned a lesson, Jonah now reluctantly carries out the mission that is given to him.”

The archbishop noted that, “Like Jonah, each of us is given a mission. As Pope Francis has emphasized, the Church is missionary by nature. In turn, each and every baptized member is called to be a missionary disciple. We constantly rely upon divine grace to persevere in faith, hope and charity, lest we become reluctant disciples, stewards and witnesses.

“The United Catholic Appeal is a wonderfully unique way for us to show forth our unity in proclamation of the word, celebrating of the sacraments and outreach of service as a Church that takes seriously its mission without hesitation or reluctance.”

Archbishop Thompson took his message to an even more personal level when he addressed the record crowd of 380 during the reception at the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center following the Mass.

He said when he considered the theme—“All it takes is one good person to restore hope”—for this year’s

$6.5 million appeal, he thought of the final line of paragraph #12 of Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home”: “Rather than a problem to be solved, the world is a joyful mystery to be contemplated with gladness and praise.”

He invited all to consider that phrase in terms of the United Catholic Appeal, but to substitute the word “world” with “human person,” so that the line reads: “Rather than a problem to be solved, the human person is a joyful mystery to be contemplated with gladness and praise.”

In other words, he said, “Rather than a problem, the unborn, the immigrant, the poor, the vulnerable, the elderly, the sick, the dying—rather than a problem, they’re human persons whose joyful mystery is to be contemplated with gladness and praise.

“For me, that’s what diocesan appeals are all about. It’s about how we continue to reach out to the dignity of persons through our ministries and services.

“All it takes is one good person to bring hope to all those people who society so often pushes aside. On behalf of all of those who do not have a voice, I thank you for being their voice.”

The ministries and services funded by the UCA are those which no single parish or deanery could support, such as seminarian and deacon formation; priest retirement; adoption services; refugee and immigration assistance; all the ministries of Catholic Charities in Indianapolis, New Albany, Tell City and Terre Haute; support for Catholic schools, and more.

Catholic education is one of the reasons Omosegbon finds joy in contributing to the appeal.

“What joy is not there to find in giving?” she asked. “Think of the Catholic schools. Where I come from, the Church schools were not for Church members. I see my Church [in central and southern Indiana] trying to make it [Catholic education] accessible to today’s generation, so I’m very pleased about that.”

Supporting Catholic education is also important to Anthony and Susie Geswein of St. Susanna Parish in Plainfield.

“We like the values they were taught,” Susie said of the couple’s three children, now grown, who graduated from

St. Susanna School. “It was a great family atmosphere, a great education, and of course the opportunities to attend Mass.”

The Gesweins, however, choose not to designate a specific ministry for their UCA contributions.

“I feel like [our gift has] more outreach, more people benefit from it when we let [the archdiocese] decide,” Anthony said. “We both just enjoy being able to give back what we receive.”

Norman and Kathy Kruer of Most Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Jeffersonville also appreciate the far-reaching aspect of the appeal. They donate because of “all the ministries it helps, what it’s able to do with the money, the diverse support it gives to all the deaneries and parishes,” Norman said.

Kathy noted that two ministries of particular importance to them are St. Elizabeth Catholic Charities in New Albany—where she served on the advisory council for 11 years—and priest retirement.

“The priests provide a lot to the members of the parishes, so we need to take care of them in the later part of their lives,” she said.

Funding priest retirement is also why Father John Hall contributes to the UCA at the Miter Society level. He is pastor of St. Elizabeth of Hungary Parish in Cambridge City and St. Anne Parish in New Castle, which includes

St. Rose of Lima Church in Knightstown.

“I basically give to support my brother priests who are retired, and the seminarians,” he said. “And also to give a leadership example to the members in my parish, asking them to join me in giving.”

He said when he considers the UCA, he recalls a phrase that he once heard: “ ‘Give ‘til it feels good.’ So you go past the hurt part. I write my check out quarterly, and I know it’s going to the service of the Church, not just in Henry County and Wayne County, but throughout the archdiocese.”

Despite being a young couple with children ages 3 and 18 months, Andy and Rachel Miller of St. Matthew the Apostle Parish in Indianapolis still make it a priority to contribute to the UCA.

Although he is archdiocesan associate director of vocations, Andy, 34, said the couple does not limit their contribution to seminarian formation.

“What’s most important to us is that the money goes where it’s most needed,” he said. “We feel that by giving to UCA, they’re able to designate those dollars to a place that’s most needed in a way that we don’t see. We like knowing that it’s the greater, broader picture that we’re donating to.”

Giving to the United Catholic Appeal “is a reflection of where our values are as a family,” added Rachel, 31. “It’s a reminder to our family that our spiritual life sets the foundation, and that [priority] needs to be reflected in our contributions, both spiritually and financially.”
 

(For more on the archdiocesan United Catholic Appeal, go to www.archindy.org/uca.) †