Bishop Kevin Farrell

The Chief Shepherd of the Catholic Diocese of Dallas

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Catholic Charities Sunday

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Catholic Charities Sunday

A generous Protestant was responsible for the beginning of Catholic Charities in Dallas, before the Diocese of Dallas was established in 1890. In 1888 Thomas Lafayette Marsalis, founder of Oak Cliff, and a member of the Dutch Reformed Church, donated eight acres to the Catholic Church “to be used for some charitable purpose.” Father Joseph Martiniere, pastor of Sacred Heart Church knew that the most vulnerable in need of help at that time were orphans so it was decided to use the donated land for an orphanage which opened in 1891. Early Texas was a dangerous place for orphans who were often exploited and used as field hands or pressed into some other form of child labor to earn their keep,

Dallas Catholic Orphanage was the beginning of Catholic Charities Dallas which has sought out the poor, the vulnerable and the abandoned for 125 years without regard of race or religion. From those early days through today, countless children, women and men have been helped through Catholic Charities’ outreach to orphans, the elderly, the homeless, and families and individuals seeking refuge or assistance. Catholic Charities, like Father Martiniere, is aware of those who need a hand up, or a safe place of refuge, but looks to generous people like Tom Marsalis to make it possible.

Next weekend, Oct. 31 – Nov. 1, a special collection to support the ministries of Catholic Charities Dallas will be taken up in the churches of our diocese. I appeal to each of you to be generous in your support because, as always, it will help those in need, regardless of their race or religion. Let us all look to assist our brothers and sisters in need and remember that we help people not because they are Catholic, but because we are Catholic.”

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Image Credit: Prince of Peace Catholic Community Outreach Committee donated nine sets of IKEA tables and (36) chairs to our Refugee & Empowerment Services – Facebook

 

We don’t ask if you’re Catholic… we just ask how we can help

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We have a Pope who talks the talk and also walks the walk. If you read this blog regularly you are no stranger to Pope Francis’ dedication to caring for the marginalized; the poor, the homeless, the abandoned.

In his Lenten message, he called for parishes and communities to become “islands of mercy in a sea of indifference.” As an example, the Holy Father has made the Vatican into an “island of mercy” in the heart of Rome where 0.11% of the people live on the street.

Pope Francis has frequently invited poor people off the street to breakfast with him and even included their dogs. In November he promised that showers and a changing area would be opened at the Vatican this month. Last week he added barbers and hairdressers, all to care for the poor and homeless. That is called showing the way.

Saturday night a lot of people heard the Pope’s message and responded. The annual Catholic Charities Gala to support the agency’s many charitable outreaches in our diocese was attended by more than a thousand generous people who walked the walk by donating tens of thousands of dollars to help those in need.

The motto for the event: “We don’t ask if you’re Catholic… we just ask how we can help”. Thank you to Catholic Charities, our sponsors, and to all who attended for making it such a successful night.

Image credit: Catholic Charities of Dallas Facebook page

How to Reach Out to the Homeless, the Poor and the Lonely

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Homeless

The chill winds of November are upon us reminding everyone that the happy business of the Holiday Season is just around the corner. The warmth of the spirit of Thanksgiving and Christmas makes the cold winter more endurable…for most of us.

Unfortunately there are many for whom the holidays bring only loneliness and bone-chilling cold. Instead of sitting in front of a welcoming fireplace, they huddle around a fire kindled in a garbage can. The homeless among us are invisible, except when one approaches our car at a traffic stop asking for a handout…. making us very uncomfortable and maybe a little scared. Most of us pretend we don’t see them and turn away.

For others, the holidays mean working two or three jobs to buy a few gifts for the children and manage a small tree to bring a bit of the spirit of Christmas into their lives. Jesus’ statement that the poor will always be with us (Mt 26:11) was a lament not a prophesy. Jesus also judged harshly those who did not feed the hungry, clothe the naked, welcome the stranger or visit the imprisoned. (Mt 25).

I was shocked and saddened by the front page story in Monday’s Dallas Morning News on the number of homeless children in our country. It is shameful that in our time and place there can be 2.5 million homeless children. There are many reasons, but two primary causes are domestic violence and the lack of affordable housing, particularly for families with children. Affordable housing is being demolished to build new upscale condos and town houses. Landlords are refusing to rent to families with children.

Our Holy Father Pope Francis is committed to clarifying Jesus’ Gospel of mercy and compassion. His words to us are not his message, but Jesus’ message. Reach out to the homeless, the poor and the lonely. Reach out to bring hope to the hopeless and to dispel the darkness that overwhelms so many with the light of love, compassion and mercy.

Give of yourself, give of your treasure, become a light in the darkness. There are many ways to help as a volunteer or by monetary assistance. Make your own holiday happier by giving of yourself or your treasure. If you do not know where to start, Catholic Charities Dallas offers many opportunities. Check out their website at www.catholiccharitiesdallas.org.

You will be blessed!

Image Credit:  Marc Brüneke on Flickr

Forming Families through Adoption

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Catholic Charities of Dallas is committed to building families…one child at a time. Every child needs and deserves a home with the love and support of a mother and a father. As we observe National Adoption Awareness Month, we celebrate all of those wonderful families that have been formed through adoption.

Due to a variety of circumstances, there are birth parents who recognize they are unable to provide for their child. Some are birth mothers who were courageous enough to choose adoption not abortion for their baby but are unable to provide the home and family the child needs. It is a blessing for birth parents to have Catholic Charities to turn to for assistance in making an adoption plan.

For couples wishing to parent a child from infant to six months, Catholic Charities’ Infant Adoption program offers the assistance needed to make the right choice for the birth parents, adoptive parents, and, most importantly, the child.

There are other children who are in the foster care system, who live day-to-day, never knowing when or where they will move next.  They long to be a permanent part of a “forever family.” Catholic Charities Finally Home program places children three or older currently in foster care for adoption by a family who will provide the love, care and security that only a “forever home” can give them.

If you or someone you know is experiencing an unplanned pregnancy and needs to find such a home for a baby, please call Catholic Charities hotline at 1-800-222-9383 (1-800-BABY-DUE) to get more information.

If you are a couple that has love to share and are considering forming your family through adoption, please call (214) 526-2772 to schedule an appointment.  It will be the first step in experiencing the unconditional love and excitement that children bring.

Image credit: Freepik 

Catholic Charities Sunday – November 2nd

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CCD

Charity is touching another with the love of Jesus. But because Jesus has no hands but ours, His mercy, His compassion and His love is mediated through us. We are the instruments of His love.

Charity should begin at home, but it must not end there. In the Gospel of St. Matthew (25:31-46) Jesus reminds us that we must reach out to the hungry, those who thirst, the stranger, the naked, the sick and those in prison. If we are unable or are ill equipped to do that personally, then we should enable those who can. That is the ministry of Catholic Charities of Dallas.

Some are able to give generously of themselves but if we cannot give of ourselves, then we can give of our substance. Gifts to Catholic Charities welcome the stranger, feed the hungry, give hope to the desperate, and bring the compassion, love and mercy of Jesus to the hungry, the immigrant, the homeless, the despairing and the lonely.

Blessed Mother Teresa said “It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.” Each of us needs to put a lot of love into our gift to Catholic Charities next Sunday. It is a way of lending Jesus your hands and your heart.

On This World Refugee Day Unaccompanied Minors Seek Refuge

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Unaccompanied migrant children

Hope of refuge drives people to take incredible risks. For most us, the idea of sending a child alone on a trek of thousands of miles across a strange country is incomprehensible. However, thousands of parents in Central America are doing just that in hopes that their children will find a safer and better life than theirs.

So far this year, more than 40,000 unaccompanied children, mostly from Central America, have entered the United States illegally. This deluge of refugee children has overwhelmed Border Patrol and Health and Human Services facilities and the flow is unceasing.

Obviously, the cause of this flood of refugee children — the unstable and unsafe conditions of some Central American countries — must be addressed, but the immediate problem is the children who are being warehoused in overcrowded and unsafe temporary facilities by the government.

I am working with Catholic Charities of Dallas to move quickly to work with the government and other non-governmental agencies to provide safe havens for these children. Catholic Charities has expertise in working with refugees from generations of experience, but the unaccompanied children present unique problems —both legal and protective.

Our diocese has no residential facility, but individual placements have already begun. We are gearing up to provide safe refuge for additional children pending judicial action. Already this calendar year, 1,000 unaccompanied refugee children were released to family members who reside in the Dallas Immigration Court jurisdiction.

This tragic situation must be addressed with prayer, wisdom and compassion. As we observe World Refugee Day today, I ask that you please join me in praying for the welfare of these youngsters and that leaders on both sides of the border will work to address this issue.

Image Credit: Unaccompanied migrant children seen at a U.S. government facility in south Texas (CNS photo/ handout, Reuters) (June 16, 2014)

 

Catholic Charities Sunday

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Less than two months into his Papacy, Pope Francis emphasized charity as the essence of the Christian life when he told a general audience that the Gospel (Mt 25:41) “tells us that we will be judged by God on charity, on how we have loved our brothers and sisters, especially the weakest and most needy of them”

It was an emphatic yes to Cain’s infamous question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?” (Gen 4:9).  In a society that tends to hide the “weakest and most needy” from our sight, Catholic Charities becomes our hands in reaching out to the homeless, the hungry, the abandoned and the needy.

Catholic Charities provides the opportunity for individuals to assist personally in their ministry through their volunteer programs.  Their agencies also offer direct financial and material assistance to desperate families and individuals; they provide help to refugees and legal aid and resettlement services to immigrants.

Services to senior citizens are offered through the Brady Center, including nutritional meals and fellowship activities. Many lives have been touched through the pregnancy and adoption programs.

Their Mission Statement says it well and reflects St. Paul’s words, “The love of Christ urges us on.” (2 Cor. 5:14)  Motivated by the teachings and love of Jesus Christ, Catholic Charities of Dallas serves, advocates for, and empowers people in need regardless of race, religion, age, gender or national origin and calls the community to action.

I commend the leadership and the many associates of Catholic Charities for carrying the love and compassion of Jesus to “the weakest and most needy” of our diocese.

Next Sunday, (Nov. 2-3) is Catholic Charities Sunday.  It is our opportunity to participate in the many works of Catholic Charities. Please be generous.

As the Holy Father said last week, “Do not get tired of bringing the mercy of the Father to the poor, the sick, the abandoned, the young people and families.”

Their need is endless and your support is priceles

Have a wonderful evening at Catholic Charities Gala

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Once in a while we get the opportunity to have a great time and do an important work or charity at the same time. Well, the 15th Annual Bishop’s Gala benefitting Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Dallas is one of those opportunities.

What a remarkable tradition of fun, food and world class entertainment Catholic Charities has established with this event! This year’s gala features Steve Martin, who will headline the February 2 event at the Hilton Anatole. Martin, a Texan born in Waco, has won four Grammy Awards and an Emmy Award for his work. He is the author of a number of books, including, Born Standing Up, his autobiography. In addition he has written several screenplays and appeared in many movies but is particularly remembered for his role as the overwhelmed dad in Father of the Bride I and II
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What is most important is that the proceeds from the Gala will support the wide ranging works of Catholic Charities, including programs for senior citizens at the Brady Senior Center and Marillac Senior Center and family services at the Cross Family Center.

Catholic Charities Immigration and Legal Services and Refugee Empowerment Services have helped thousands of immigrants and refugees who have sought haven in the United States. Catholic Charities Dallas assists in obtaining citizenship and jobs while also helping our brothers and sisters in need to adapt to a new and strange culture.

Many families have been enriched, and unwed mothers assisted through the Pregnancy and Parenting Services and Adoption Program which, like all CCD programs, may be accessed throughout the Diocese of Dallas through the Central Office in Dallas and Regional Offices in Plano and Garland.

I hope you will be able to join me for a wonderful evening and contribute to the many ministries of Catholic Charities of Dallas. For more information visit http://www.catholiccharitiesdallas.org/