When we rise to meet challenges...

	Bishop Robert J. Banks

October will be a busy month this year. As usual it is the month of Mary and the Rosary. It is also the month in which we focus annually on the need to Respect Life. And this year, we shall be celebrating the 25th anniversary of Pope John Paul II's election to the papacy. Now how do we put it all together?

But first, let's talk about the Pope's health. There were at least two news releases last week about the Pope's worsening health. One of them had Card. Joseph Ratzinger saying something about the Pope being very sick. That was worrisome, since Card. Ratzinger is very cautious in what he says. Then there was a lengthier comment by Card. Christoph Schönborn, OP, of Vienna, Austria, that seemed to indicate the Pope was in his last days.

When the first of those reports came out, I was in Greenwich, Conn., at a meeting of the Board of Trustees of Catholic University of America. Among the trustees were a few bishops who had much more information about Vatican life than I. They were able to assure us that there had been no major changes in the Pope's condition. But we know, of course, that the Pope suffers from a condition that will only worsen over time, so he needs our prayers as he continues to be a Pope with an important message for the world to hear.

The renewed rosary

And that gives me an idea that puts together all the things that have to be remembered in this month of October. As we all should know, our Holy Father has a great devotion to the Blessed Mother, Mary. The most recent evidence of that devotion was his Apostolic Letter last year on the Most Holy Rosary. He personally encouraged us to say the Rosary during this Year of the Rosary and he dared to change the traditional rosary, adding the Luminous Mysteries to the traditional trio of the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious.

We also know that one of the Holy Father's most serious concerns has been the disrespect for human life, especially unborn human life, that has increasingly been a part of modern culture. He devoted a whole encyclical, Evangelium Vitae, to the subject.

Therefore a suggestion would be for each of us to pray at least one Rosary this month for our Holy Father, his health and his intentions. And we would choose the Luminous Mysteries for that rosary:

• Jesus' Baptism in the Jordan;

• Jesus' self-manifestation at the wedding of Cana;

• Jesus' proclamation of the kingdom of God, with his call to conversion;

• Jesus' Transfiguration; and

• Jesus' institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper.

And if you really want to do something that would be extra pleasing to the Holy Father, recite that Rosary with your family.

Death in Iraq

Moving to another subject, Iraq has been on my mind these past months. I almost dread to pick up the newspaper each morning for fear that there will be a headline about another one of our soldiers killed in an ambush. That means a young man, or now a woman, cut down in their youth, and a family back home mourning the loss of a loved one. I just pray that it will all end, both for our soldiers and for the Iraqi people.

A priest-friend of mine just returned from Iraq. He is a Navy chaplain and was with the Marines all through the invasion and in the months since then. He tells a slightly different story than the one we receive through the media. He says that, out in the countryside, the American troops are welcomed and waved to by the people. In the cities, it can be a different story.

In any case, all this was on my mind when I went to The Gathering last weekend at St. Norbert College. If you weren't there, you missed a wonderful opportunity to learn and be inspired by more talks, presentations and conversations than I could count. Fortunately, thousands of our people did make good use of the opportunity.

Inspirational youth

The kickoff on Friday morning featured a musical presentation of the Gospel by a group of students from Roncalli High School in Manitowoc. It received a standing ovation from the more than 1,000 people who were there.

In one scene, a young man, playing the role of Christ, stood by himself at the middle of the stage, singing part of the Gospel story. As I looked at him, I thought of young men just a couple of years older, over in Iraq bravely facing the possibility of death. And all the young men in their late teens who poured out of the landing boats at Normandy on D-Day, facing a hail of gun fire.

When prepared, challenged

It is remarkable what young people can do, and have done, when prepared and inspired or, perhaps, just commanded. Don't mistake me, I would much prefer that our young men and women never have to face those circumstances. But I just wonder if we challenge our young people enough or whether they challenge themselves enough.

We wonder if we ask too much as a Church when we require celibacy. We, old and young, can think of any number of reasons why it is too hard to fit in Mass on a busy weekend. Chastity seems like an unreal possibility in today's society, both to the young and to their parents and maybe even their grandparents.

This is not a criticism of our young people. I am trying to say that young people do and have done wonderful things. I just wonder if, as Church, we recognize that enough and challenge our young people enough.

Roncalli High challenged those students to go through some tough rehearsals to put on a demanding show, and they did it. And we are all better for it.