I can think of no greater venue in southern New Hampshire to focus one’s attention on Christ in the Eucharist than under the Baroque cover of Ste. Marie’s church in Manchester.  Even the still in-progress installation of a marble floor for the spacious sanctuary could not distract those present from Him who in His Eucharistic Presence is the source and summit of our faith.

I’m  going to be there.  Are you?  The speakers will be Bishop Robert Hennesey, Auxiliary Bishop of Boston, Bob and Penny Lord of EWTN fame and Dr. Hugo Poza of the hosting Ste. Marie Parish.  Mass will be offered by Bishop John McCormack, Bishop of Manchester.  What better way to spend a day and $20?

I know I’ve been away a lot lately, mea culpa.  Life intervenes sometimes, particularly when it involves ripping up carpet and swinging a hammer.  And yes, the dog decided to walk into the freshly painted wall.  Not the brightest bulb on the tree, that one – loving and loyal, but he’s not the Einstein of the dog world.

But on the subject of the topic of this post, first I wanted to make mention of the fact my Diocese is celebrating her 125th anniversary this year.  The Diocesan web site will have a running series on the history of the Diocese including artwork, stories and multimedia clips.  The entry point for this series is here.  I can’t let this go without saying that I could only wish the Cathedral looked more like it did at its consecration than it does now.  I suppose some would call that nostalgia…

Second, it pains me to have to say the New Hampshire House and Senate have pushed through legislation attempting to legalize same-sex “marriage” in this state.  While there is no hue and cry for this move the legislature has seen fit to invent rights in a state reeling with many other issues.  Perhaps they believe we are too distracted to fight the issue.  Bishop McCormack released the below statement concerning this issue.  We can only hope and pray that the Governor sticks to his campaign promises and vetoes this legislation.  If you’re a New Hampshire resident, please contact the Governor’s office and ask him, politely and with all due dignity, to veto this legislation.  St. Joseph, patron of this Diocese and head of the Holy Family while on earth, pray for us!  Mother Mary, Immaculate One, pray for us!

(MANCHESTER, NH)  We believe that we should be doing all we can as a society to support and protect marriage, which is a union of a man and woman and has been throughout history.

We further believe that trying to redefine marriage on the run, with the slimmest of legislative margins and without a robust investigation into all possible conflicts between same sex marriage legislation and religious liberties is contrary to the spirit of New Hampshire.  Quite simply, if this legislation is allowed to become law there will be many unintended consequences that will undoubtedly lead to unnecessary confusion, litigation and denial of rights to many people in our state.

When a change of this momentous scope is proposed and there is not adequate time to not only look at all the implications of it, but also not to hear in depth from the people whom it will affect, then there are going to be serious problems.  Short of preserving marriage as the union of one man and one woman, there must be adequate protections for churches, but also for individuals who have a genuine conscientious objection to participating in or assisting ceremonies of same sex couples.

We urge Governor Lynch to veto this legislation, if for no other reason than it leaves too many unanswered questions regarding protections for religious organizations and persons of conscience.

Tomorrow starts the great season of Lent, a season I think I sometimes enjoy a little too much.  But this post isn’t yet about Lent.

Should you happen to live in New Hampshire, the Diocese of Manchester has created an email alert service to help keep us abreast of public policy issues.  This is an extension of their Faithful Citizenship News section.  You can sign up for emails here.  It’s the least we can do, and understanding what’s going on around us is a mandate for any Catholic.

New Hampshire Attorney General Kelly Ayotte has announced the results of the fourth and final audit of the Diocese of Manchester saying, “I’m pleased to announce in this final audit that there have been significant and dramatic improvements by the diocese since the agreement was signed in December of 2002.”  The many significant improvements cited include the creation of a database tracking criminal background screening, training of all diocesan personnel, the appointment of safe environment coordinators at every parish, school and camp as well as the appointment of a diocesan-wide compliance coordinator.  Having talked to some people who have gone through the process in various capacities it should not be assumed that these are check-the-box activities – having a safe environment has been ingrained in the conscious thought process of everyone I’ve talked to who works for the Church.

Are there still problems?  To be sure – the Church is still manned by fallible people and in particular those who have a greater inclination to try to find a way to not judge another, perhaps at the peril of all involved than your average person might.  I don’t, however, see anyone I’ve talked to willing to take any chances at looking the other way because the raw pain such actions have caused before is far too well known.

I do hope the Diocese submits to regular independent audits because, as the comments section of the Union Leader article linked to above show there are many who simply have no interest in believing that anyone in the Diocese has learned a lesson.  Even should these audits be performed certainly there will be those who ignore any positive results, but that is not a reason to not do them but rather one that should demand they be performed if only to offer every opportunity for people to keep an open mind.  To be worth the effort, the audits must be sufficiently independent and have sufficient cooperation as to make any accusations of impropriety fall to the side.

This should be seen, contra many of the commenters at the above article, as a continuation of an upward swing in the conscious protection of children and the preservation of a safe environment by the Diocese of Manchester.  I believe the progress attained thus far can and will, and indeed must, be continued and even further progress made.  I long for a day when this issue is no longer in the forefront of the minds of so many and when the Church is seen as a paragon of loving concern for each and every person not because it was flogged into it but because of the love of Christ shining forth through it.  I will, as will so very many others, be keeping an eye out to make sure it is only this trajectory which is taken.  To borrow a phrase, “Never Again.”

Our Diocesan magazine, Parable, has a good interview with one of the nuns in the local contemplative Order, the Sister Adorers of the Precious Blood in Manchester.  Sister Christine Marie Maier entered the Cloister in 1988 and became their Vocations Director in 2008.  In this interview she discusses her early life, her path towards the Cloister and aspects of the life she loves.  I can only hope this article is read by young children (and not-so-young children) far and wide.  The world needs contemplative nuns.

Sister Christine Marie speaks with awe of the special vocation she and her community enjoy. “Contemplative prayer is mysterious; it is the highest form of prayer. This type of prayer comes through God, and you can only make yourself available to it.” Though the vocation comes as a gift, she says, the person must respond in very concrete ways. “When we make our vows, we vow to really focus on our relationship with Jesus Christ. We seek to imitate Christ, to imitate the Blessed Mother. Everything we do in our life, we do with an intention that it is going to make us a better and more complete people, because Christ Himself did everything well.