North Country Catholic - Official Newspaper of the Diocese of Ogdensburg

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Tom Higman of Carthage and Scott Belina of Watertown, seminarians from St. Charles Borromeo Seminary, are two of the young men preparing to serve as priests of the Diocse of Ogdensburg. They are shown waiting for Pope Benedict XVI to arrive to celebrate Mass April 20 Papal Mass at Yankee Stadium. In the article below, Father Douglas Lucia, reflects on the current state of vocations in the diocese.

National News

Priest calls for new strategies to keep young adults in church

SAN ANTONIO (CNS) -- Every diocese needs a comprehensive pastoral plan specifically aimed at young adults to reverse the hemorrhage of Catholics in their 20s and early 30s leaving the Catholic Church, a national pioneer in young adult ministry said. Father John Cusick, director of young adult ministry for the Archdiocese of Chicago and the father of the Theology on Tap program, said the church needs a savvy "new apologetics" and "satellite sites" away from the parish grounds where young adults can gather to form quality relationships without feeling pressure from the church. Addressing a youth ministry symposium in April at the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio, Father Cusick cited a recent USA Today poll indicating that 10 percent of Americans are former Catholics and said the percentage is much higher among people in their 20s and early 30s. "If Catholic youth ministry is so good, where are all the young adults? They're missing in action," he said. "For the moment (in their teens), they have a good sense of church, but then they fall off the end of the table."

Pope expresses deep sadness over cyclone's destruction in Myanmar

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI expressed deep sadness and "heartfelt sympathy" after hearing news of "the tragic aftermath" of Cyclone Nargis, which killed tens of thousands in Myanmar. News agencies reported May 6 that more than 22,000 people had been killed and 41,000 were missing after the cyclone's heavy rains and winds of up to 120 mph swept over southern Myanmar May 3. The cyclone damaged at least three major cities, including Yangon, the capital of Myanmar and its largest city. In a telegram sent on behalf of the pope by the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Pope Benedict said he was praying for the victims and their families and called for "divine strength and comfort upon the homeless and all who are suffering." A copy of the telegram, addressed to Archbishop Paul Zinghtung Grawng of Mandalay, president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Myanmar, was released by the Vatican May 6. The pope said he was "confident that the international community will respond with generous and effective relief to the needs" of cyclone victims.

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