Home | Contact Parish Info | Diocese Map | Clergy Assignments | Pastoral Center Offices | Local Catholic Organizations | Jobs | Links The Northern Cross - Local News Briefs Seminarians gather Seminarians Eli Gieske, Tim Lange and Ryan Moravitz were present for the annual summer gathering of seminarians. Seminarians for the diocese heard speakers, relaxed and prayed together. Bishop Baraga Days events to be held in September Bishop Baraga Days will be held in Sault Ste. Marie, Mich., the community of Bishop Frederic Baraga’s first cathedral, on Sept. 29 to 30. Beginning in 1927, a weekend was chosen to commemorate Sept. 21, 1823, the first Mass celebrated by Father Frederic Baraga. The event will open with a Solvenian Mass celebrated by Bishop Anton Jamnik from Ljubljana, Slovenia, at 5 p.m. at St. Joseph Church, 606 E. Fourth St. Following the Mass, the Singing Slovenes, an ethnic musical group from Duluth, will entertain at a dinner theater at the Kewadin Hotel and Convention Center, 2186 Shunk Road. A bus will leave from Duluth on Saturday morning, Sept. 29, and return on Monday, Oct. 1. Cost for this trip based on double occupancy is $244 per person with KSKJ members receiving a $20 discount. Included in the cost is two nights lodging at the Kewadin Hotel and Convention Center, travel by Deluxe Motor Coach, a $30 weekend booster button that includes the main meals, and $20 in gaming tokens. For information about Bishop Baraga, visit http://www.fredericbaraga.org. For information on lodging, visit http://www.kewadin.com. For information about the trip, contact Sharon Bucar at (218) 626-1928 or Mary Spehar White at (218) 626-2333. Three men begin diaconate formation in September Three men were admitted to candidacy for the permanent diaconate in the Diocese of Duluth on Aug. 22 and will begin the formation process in September. They are Lyle Johnson, St. James Church, Duluth; Steven Hedlund, St. Francis Church, Carlton; and Keith Grow, St. Francis Church, Brainerd. Formation is a four-year process of study and discernment of vocation, at the conclusion of which is the hope of being ordained for ministry as a permanent deacon. Tickets now available for Catholic education dinners Tickets are on sale for the annual diocesan dinners for Catholic education. The Duluth dinner will be held at the DECC on Sunday, Oct. 14, at 4 p.m., and the Range dinner will be held at Valentini’s Restaurant in Chisholm on Tuesday, Oct. 23, at 6 p.m. The keynote speaker for the Duluth dinner is Jeff Cavins, author of “The Great Adventure Bible” series. Father William Baer, rectorpresident of St. John Vianney College Seminary at the University of St. Thomas, will be the speaker at the Range dinner. Proceeds from the dinners help Catholic schools with tuition assistance, computers, texts and other expenses. Tickets for both dinners are $100 per person. For more information and to purchase tickets, contact Rose Eichmueller at 2830 E. Fourth St., Duluth, MN 55812, (218) 724-9111 or reichmueller@dioceseduluth.org. Son, brother of deacons killed in separate accidents Steven Mayer, son of Deacon Philip Mayer, and his wife, Diane, died in a single car accident on July 31. Mayer was the son-in-law of Deacon Michael Koecheler and his wife, Becky. The Mass of Christian Burial was held on Aug. 6 at St. Joseph Church in Crosby. Deacon Richard Johnston’s brother, Ted, was killed in a car accident on Aug. 17 in Garrison. The Mass of Christian Burial was held on Aug. 21 at Mary Immaculate Church in Coleraine. Diocese receives thanks for helping with hurricane relief Bishop Dennis Schnurr received a letter thanking him for the Duluth diocese’s participation in the second national collection of the U.S. Bishops Hurricane Recovery Task Force, which raised a total of $10.3 million. The Archdiocese of New Orleans received $6,175,103, and the Diocese of Biloxi received $4,116,735. The first national collection generated more than $130 million to support hurricane relief and recovery efforts. Parish social ministry workshop set for October The Duluth diocese in partnership with Catholic Charities USA and the dioceses of St. Cloud, Crookston and Fargo will sponsor “Our Faith, Our Lives, Our World,” a workshop on parish social ministry, on Oct. 12-14. It will be held on the Lake Koronis Assembly Grounds in Paynesville. Featured speakers include John Carr, secretary of the Department of Social Development and World Peace of the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops; Jack Jezreel, founder of JustFaith; and Sister Donna Gunn, CSJ, from the diocese of Jackson, Miss. Everyone is welcome regardless of their level of experience. For more information and registration materials, contact Patrice Critchley-Menor, director of the Social Apostolate, (218) 724-9111, or pcrithcley@dioceseduluth.org. More than 200 attend lay ecclesial ministry meeting Two hundred ten lay ministers, priests, religious and bishops representing 26 national organizations, formation institutes and Catholic colleges and universities met from July 31 to Aug. 3 at Saint John’s University in Collegeville for a national symposium on lay ecclesial ministry, “Working in the Vineyard of the Lord.” Around 60 representatives participated from the Hispanic, African-American and Asian-Pacific communities, ensuring their story and experience was also heard. The symposium explored areas of formation, pathways to ministry, authorization and the ministerial workplace. This historic symposium was a response to the call by the U.S. Conference of Catholic bishops in “Co-Workers in the Vineyard of the Lord” to review the reality of lay ecclesial ministry across the country and “refine [Co-Workers] in the light of our experience.” The publication of both the recommendations and organizational commitments for improving and sustaining lay ecclesial ministry will later be available on the St. John’s School of Theology Seminary Web site at http://www.csbsju.edu/sot/symposium. National Catholic bioethics seminar set for St. Paul The National Catholic Bioethics Center will hold a seminar on Catholic bioethics at St. Joseph’s Hospital in St. Paul Sept. 21-22. Physicians, physician’s assistants, nurses, nurse practitioners, clergy, chaplains, educators and anyone who is interested in learning more about the Catholic approach to ethical issues in health care are invited to attend. CME credit is available for doctors as well as CEUs for nurses and Catholic chaplains. Speakers are Dr. John M. Haas, Dr. Marie T. Hilliard, Dr. Stephen Napier and Father Tadeusz Pacholczyk. Registration fee is $400; NCBC members $225; and for students $340. Registration includes admission to the seminar and one copy of “Health Care Ethics: A Manual for Ethics Committees,” a copy of each presentation and continental breakfast both mornings. For more information or to register, contact http://www.ncbcenter. org/annual_seminars.asp or Julie Kelley, (215) 877-2660.   Diocese of Duluth • 2830 E Fourth St • Duluth Minnesota 55812 • (218) 724- 9111 Copyright 2013 DIOCESE OF DULUTH All Rights Reserved.