MUNSTER – A Catholic group whose name refers to one that Scripture instructs is “above all others” may have set a high bar to reach for planning appropriate fellowship. So, a local Society of the Holy Name group began their meeting with Holy Mass.
Jesus’ name was said many times during the liturgy at the Carmelite Monastery on Sept. 25. Following the Mass and a supper at the adjacent banquet hall, Father Rick Holy, pastor of St. Edward, Lowell, delivered a presentation about missionary discipleship to the men’s group traditionally known as the Confraternity of the Most Holy Name of God and Jesus.
Father Holy spoke about the beauty of the sacramental life lived by many believers, a faith that manifests itself in the arts, education and charity. And while an observed pendulum swing to faith and traditional values may bode well for the nation and, particularly, young people, the diocesan director of pro-life activities said Catholics need to step up their efforts in one particular area: evangelization.
“In the last 8-10 years, especially with our most recent bishops, Bishop Donald J. Hying and Bishop Robert J. McClory, evangelization has been emphasized quite a bit,” said Father Holy at the event coordinated by members of the St. Thomas More parish Society of the Holy Name. “In 2017, Bishop Hying published ‘Go Therefore and Make Disciples of All Nations’ (a pastoral letter), and each parish had to do a synod action plan.
He continued, “Bishop McClory came out with ‘We Proclaim Jesus As Lord…’ a pastoral letter on missionary discipleship.” But where did this all get started? Where are we at? How do we see this in relation to our faith? How do we go about doing this?”
Father Holy said the genesis of the movement was in Jesus’ Great Commission (Matt. 28:16-20). He said Christ gifted the Church with apostles and disciples, “ones who make other disciples.”
Fast forward through the centuries, where memorable church members carried on leadership roles in building the Body of Christ worldwide. Father Holy said evangelistic work tended to become specialized, or left for those who were “professional” missionaries.
“We were taught to be a good disciple – to go to Mass and worship God, to receive the sacraments, support the Church as good stewards, to volunteer and give to charities … but to evangelize was not part of our Catholic psyche,” he explained.
Rather than just “checking the boxes,” Father Holy implored the faithful to go beyond their comfort zones and lead through example and invitation, which “are essential” to the life of the Church.
Representing two generations, father and son Holy Name members Jack J. Fugger and Jack A. Fugger of Schererville found family parallels in the message of defending and spreading the faith.
“My grandma was really devout; she kept me in the faith,” said the elder Fugger, explaining that her family suffered greatly in Austria during World War I and her grandmother was eventually raised by Carmelites. “My daughter, Julia Fugger (a teacher at St. Paul Catholic School in Valparaiso), is like a carbon copy of my grandmother.”
Fugger’s grandfather immigrated to America and set up a furniture-making business.
This Easter vigil, the senior Fugger was alongside his wife as the former Lutheran completed her lifelong journey into the Catholic Church.
“My wife and I were trying to convert each other,” Fugger said. “I didn’t think it was actually working. What started happening was she would go out and talk about Catholicism to other people – ones who had issues with it. And she would argue the Catholic point.”
Twenty-year-old Jack shared that he has been concerned about a friend who drifted away from the Church.
“What really stood out about the presentation was how Protestants will be evangelizing more than Catholics,” said the younger Jack. “I have a friend who used to be Catholic, but he converted to Baptist, ‘born again.’ I talked to the guy a bit. And I want to bring up what Father Rick talked about tonight.”
During his hour-long presentation, Father Holy referenced participation and resource statistics culled from the diocese’s work with the Disciple Maker Index parish life assessment tool in cooperation with The Catholic Leadership Institute.
Father Holy reminded his audience that there were many “strengths” and “opportunities” – as CLI coordinators labeled the data – in the local Church. Some trends are improving, he noted, but expressed concern that recovery from the pandemic era may be more of a return to the status quo and not necessarily the fruits of an uptick in “evangelistic impulse.”
“Evangelization is why the Church exists, it is why Jesus established the Church,” said Father Holy, after reading the Parable of the Talents. “Sharing our gift of faith matters. Inviting others into a relationship with God that has already been extended to us and that we have responded to matters.”
“Bishop Robert E. Barron puts this beautifully when he says, ‘The Church does not have a mission, it is a mission,’” the Lowell priest said of the Bishop of Winona-Rochester (Minn.), who is a prominent author, podcaster and member of the White House Religious Liberty Commission.
Aldo Perez, a parishioner of St. Joseph, is active in the Holy Name Society at the downtown Hammond church. When he learned about the St. Thomas More-sponsored meeting, he marked it on his calendar. He said the message of evangelization is timely and “men’s fellowship is important.”
St. Thomas More Holy Name president PJ Caraher knows that the group is one of just a few active chapters in the diocese. He wishes that the organization’s offering of Corporal Works of Mercy continues as members prayerfully share the name of the Lord with others.
“We’re men who take the chance to get together in prayer; we start with the Rosary in all of our meetings,” said Caraher, diocesan priest Father Steven Caraher’s dad. “Tonight was a natural outgrowth to try to deepen our spiritual growth.
He added, “Iron sharpens iron. As men, we need more of that working together.”
Caraher said group members invite speakers and listen to podcasts to try “to understand the times we’re in and what our response is.”
“People want something real and this world is proving itself to be fake – all of these things we are chasing are not filling our hearts,” he explained. “There’s a hunger out there. Our challenge is to be able to meet the world and address it.”
The Society of the Holy Name was founded as a response to the urgings of the Council of Lyons in 1274. Groups like the Dominican Order lead movements that produced great devotion and efforts to counter blasphemy and immorality. Though membership declined after the 1950s, a revival of the organization has continued since the 1990s.
At St. Thomas More, the group hosts monthly meetings on the third Monday of each month; the next meeting is set for Monday, Oct. 20.
For more information about the Holy Name at St. Thomas More, email PJ Caraher at pjcaraher@gmail.com.
Caption: Father Rick Holy, pastor of St. Edward in Lowell, delivers a presentation in the chapel of Our Lady of Mercy on the campus of the Carmelite Fathers Monastery in Munster on Sept. 25. At the St. Thomas More parish Society of the Holy Name meeting, Father Holy quoted Scripture, saints and the recent diocesan Disciple Maker Index data to paint a picture of a Church whose obligation is to evangelize more. (Anthony D. Alonzo photo)
