Waterloo Catholics

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Current Schedule
Comments from Participants
 

“Summer at the Cellar”

A Continuing Education Program for
Catholic Adults and Young Adults

•   •   •

Our popular summer and winter Cellar programs offer Catholic adults of all ages an opportunity to learn and grow in a comfortable, familiar environment at the Cellar Lounge in downtown Waterloo. 

We choose presenters from among pastors and pastoral leaders as well as lay leaders on both the local and diocesan level.  We ask them to address a variety of interesting and important issues which shape the lives of Catholic adults in the Church today.

Presenters and participants alike enjoy the relaxed and informal atmosphere which contributes to a stimulating combination of presentation and discussion.  Beverages and food are available before, during and after the presentations.

Cellar programs are free and open to the public.  No registration.

All programs are held at
The Cellar Lounge
320 East Fourth Street • Downtown Waterloo
7:00-8:30pm
The Cellar Bar is located on the lower level of CU Restaurant.
Convenient access and parking is available in the rear.
[CU Restaurant and The Cellar accept Scrip]
(Limited access is available for individuals who are physically handicapped.)

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Current Schedule • Summer 2010

Tuesday, June 22
“Where Does Reconciliation Begin in
a Polarized Church and Society?”
Presented by
Fr. Joseph Nassal CPPS

Presented in cooperation with American Martyrs Retreat House, Cedar Falls

Fr. Joseph Nassal is a member of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood and the author of eight books including The Conspiracy of Compassion, Rest Stops for the Soul, Premeditated Mercy, Moments of Truth, and Stations of the Crib. He was ordained in 1982 and has been engaged in retreat, renewal and reconciliation ministry since 1988. He presently serves on the leadership team for the Kansas City Province of his congregation and lives in Berkeley, California, where he is helping to establish a House of Prayer for those on the margins of church and society.  He speaks and writes frequently on the theme of forgiveness and reconciliation.

•   •   •

Wednesday, July 14
“The Church's Pro-Life Agenda
in the Wake of Health Care Reform”
Presented by
Tom Chapman

The U.S. Catholic Bishops' Conference was a vocal participant in the public debates over health care reform earlier this year.  Although some Catholic groups endorsed the legislation which eventually passed, the bishops opposed it on grounds that it did not adequately guard against the use of public funds for abortion.  Where is the Church's pro-life agenda now, in the aftermath of the debates over health care reform?  What are the issues and the challenges facing the Church's efforts to insure that public policies and laws protect the rights and life of every person?

Tom Chapman  is the executive director of the Iowa Catholic Conference, the public policy voice for the Catholic bishops of Iowa.  Tom is a native of Spirit Lake and a graduate of Briar Cliff University in Sioux City. He worked as a reporter for KMEG-TV and on the staff of Mercy Medical Center in Sioux City before coming to the Catholic Diocese of Des Moines in 1991. He served as director of communications, editor of The Catholic Mirror and chancellor for the Des Moines diocese before being appointed executive director of the ICC in 2007.  Tom and his wife Paulette have three children and live in Urbandale, Iowa.

•   •   •

Wednesday, July 28
“Making Saints--How the Catholic
Church Decides”
Presented by
Sr. Mary Paynter OP

Over the course of two millenia, the Catholic Church has developed an intricate process by which it determines who is officially designated as a saint.  Since 1964, the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa, Wisconsin, have been advocating sainthood for their founder, Fr. Samuel Mazzuchelli, an Italian Dominican priest who founded Catholic communities in the Upper Midwest in the last half of the 1800s.  In this presentation Sr. Mary Paynter will explain the process by which the Church canonizes saints and the criteria which the Church uses to determine who deserves this special recognition.
Click here for more information on Fr. Mazzuchelli's cause

Sister Mary Paynter is a member of the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa, and has been vice-postulator for the Cause of the Venerable Samuel Mazzuchelli since 2004.  Sr. Paynter received her BA degree from Rosary College in River Forest, Illinois and her MA and PhD degrees from the University of Wisconsin at Madison.  She taught English at Rosary College (now Dominican University) and Edgewood College in Madison, and served as Academic Dean at Rosary.  She has also served as a member of the General Council of the Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters and a Member of the Board of the Urban League in Madison. 

•   •   •

Tuesday, August 10
“Authority in the Church--
What Happened to ‘Father Says’?”
Presented by
Rev. Msgr. Lyle Wilgenbusch

"The Church is not a democracy."  Church leaders frequently use this response to explain why the institutional Church operates differently from other organizations or civil governments.  Some critics claim that the use or misuse of authority in the Church is the main reason for a pattern of sexual abuse in the 1960s and 70s.  The Church's ability to enforce its rules was at the heart of a recent local court challenge.  In this presentation, Msgr. Wilgenbush will examine the role of authority in the Catholic Church -- where it comes from, how it is exercised, and the challenges facing people in authority in the Church today.

Msgr. Wilgenbush is a native of Dubuque and a graduate of Loras College.  He attended Mt. St. Bernard Seminary in Dubuque and was ordained to the priesthood in 1966.  He taught religion for many years at Wahlert High School in Dubuque and Regis High School (now Xavier High School) in Cedar Rapids. He served as pastor at St. Mary Parish, Waverly and St. Joseph the Worker Parish, Dubuque.  He was appointed Episcopal Vicar for the Waterloo region of the Archdiocese of Dubuque in 2004.

•   •   •

Tuesday, August 17
“Stages of Faith--How We Grow in
Our Relationship to God and Others”
Presented by
Bev Byford and Dave Cushing

Catholics often think of faith as some thing which you either have or you don't.  But faith is more like a relationship, and like any relationship it grows and develops. Most people pass through three phases or "stages" of faith between infancy and adulthood.  If they keep growing, adults may enter into three more phases or "stages" in their faith development.  In this presentation, Bev Byford and Dave Cushing will discuss James Fowler's six "stages of faith" and how both individuals and communities can benefit from a better understanding of how faith develops and matures.

Bev Byford is a native of Waterloo who earned her BA and MA degrees in English Literature from the University of Northern Iowa.  She served as an adjunct professor in the English Department at UNI and director of religious education at St. Mary Parish before becoming director of faith formation for Queen of Peace Parish in Waterloo in 2002.
Dave Cushing earned his BA degrees from Loras College and his Master of Divinity degree from St. Meinrad School of Theology.  He served as director of religious education at St. John and St. Nicholas Parishes and pastoral associate at Blessed Sacrament Parish before becoming director of adult faith formation for the Waterloo parishes in 2006.

•   •   •

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Comments from Participants

Summer 2010

Polarization in the Church

"Wonderful discussion...great information!!!"
"I really like this program--very knowledgeable speaker!"
"Loved the first hour. [The discussion] disintegrated with talk about the teacher and annulments."
"This was the best program ever."
"It was better than I expected."
"Good, but unfortunately, too much time spent on one topic."
"Great speaker and presentation."
"I was disappointed so much time was spent on the problem at Columbus."
"Excellent!  This would be a great parish mission speaker."
"I realized how much this night was needed."
"Fantastic.  The best ever.  A profound opportunity to think about all of this."

________________

Winter 2010

Bishops in the Public Forum

"The presenter was excellent.... a wonderful in-depth grqasp of the entire topic and of the questions raised....  So fun to listen to him!"
"I enjoyed the program very much...."
"Very interesting and informative...great delivery and presentation of thoughts....  Very relevant to today's world...."
"Truely great program...."
"Just wonderful!  I would love to take a class of [his] at Loras...."

Reflections on the Year for Priests

"I really appreciated his presentation on the history and his perspective...."
"Excellent presentation....  I felt he has been taking this subject to prayer...."
 

Challenges Facing Women Religious

"Sr. Pat and Sr. Jennifer were excellent...."
"Lots of new information -- things to follow up on in the future...."
"Very good explanation of of current situation with religious women...."
"[The most important discovery was] the movement of women religious orders from quasi-monastic to apostolic mission...."
"They did a very good job...."
"Very well presented...."
"Both were excellent....  [This was] very enlightening...."

________________

Summer 2009

Catholic Perspectives on Gay Marriage

"Great insights and background information...."
"Very understandable, educational and enlightening.  Great!"
"Very thought-provoking.... His background information was great, but give us a chance to process this with our table partners on the ground level...."
"It was very thought provoking and the subsequent discussion was very interesting...."
"I made two comments for which I desired a reply; he blew both of them off."
"One of the best over the years I've come to these.  Wonderful!"
"I like the variety of topics covered.... They stretch our minds."

Is There a Place for God in the Modern World?

"Was very interesting and informative....I could have listen to him for many more hours...."
"[This was] my first session.  I enjoyed this very much!"
"Excellent -- would like to have him come back...."
"Very articulate...well prepared.  Exceptionally relevant given the times...."
"His basis is completely good but possibly doesn't really connect enough with present Christians."
"Excellent grasp of educational technique... [The] subject matter was excellent."
"He was very quick at blaming the younger generation but didn't acknowledge how the humans in our church helped create the shaking ground that our church is on...."
"I know society is in a downside; how do I help support my faith in today's world?"

Seven Steps to Financial Freedom

"Very good over all."
"More down to earth as far as tying in the religious side than I expected."
"Very good to hear that Catholic financial [planning] includes, as it should, values, self-responsibility and discipline."
"Good for the younger generation.... A little over simplified for the older group in attendance...."
"Too much basic information I already knew and practice."
"Very interesting!  Much better than what I had anticipated.  She is very knowledgeable."

Catholics and the Word of God

"Great program...."
"Discussion of Bible as crucial and central but not our exclusive resource was helpful."
"Loved that Fr. Kopacek was completely OK with us running him off on tangents."
"Father is a great teacher and he does a great job to encourage discussion."
"Absolutely riveting and delightful!"
"Really really good.... More!"
"As always, Father exceeded expectations and is so well versed in Catholicism..."

Traits of a Healthy Spirituality

"Wonderful! ...  It would be great to hear more from her"
"It was wonderfull. ... It was great to meet the writer!"
"This spirituality topic was so well presented.  Absolutely wonderful."
"She made the ordinary so extra-ordinary."
"Wonderful ... terrific."
"Excellent.  It met all my expectations.  [But] it was too short."

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Winter 2009

"The Winter Face of God"

"I was surprised at the format, but found it very enjoyable... The storytelling was intriguing...."
"Wow!  A very nice and different slant on winter.  Both presenters did a great job.  It was very enjoyable...."
"I realized by the presentation that winter was a time of rest and a new beginning....  I thought the stories were interesting and entertaining...."

"Catholics and the Politics of Abortion"

"An excellent program, very timely and informative...."
"Great speaker.  Make him return.  I loved the discussion...."
"Very informative, organized and knowledgable presentation.  I was surprised [to learn about] the original Republican and Democratic stands on abortion....  Very relevant...."
"Concise and well presented.  I expected a very liberal presentation, but instead it was very fair...."

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Summer 2008

"What Immigrants Have Taught Us About Faith and Justice"

"Excellent--very eye-opening.  I really learned so much from this.  Each speaker did a wonderful job.  I appreciate the time and commitment the speakers have to the mission of our church."
"Very insightful.  Your experiences give us the real pain and suffering of these people!  [You] helped me understand whtat is happening...and what we can do."
"[It was]very beneficial to hear first hand the accounts of what is happening in Postville.  Excellent speakers.  Very well done!!  I think we all need to hear this so that we are aware and together can get reform."

"Five More Things Parents and Grandparents Should Know"

"Thought-provoking ... better than expected ... very good."
"A strong early life education in our Catholic faith/church is of utmost importance.  Then it won't be a worry that the 18-21 year old doesn't participate.  My worry is that there is no strong base to come back to.  That's why young Catholics go elsewhere...."
"Very excellent.  This opens my mind very much as to how to do better with young adults."
"It was important for people of my generation to hear what this generation is thinking."
"Very good and informative.  Kevin was easy to listen to and made good points.  I enjoyed his stories."
"Interesting perspective.  It gave me ideas and support for inviting young adults to our faith."

"Should We Fear the "Christian Right"?"

"Articulate, expressed a definite viewpoint [but] was completely historically accurate."
"I agreed generally but not in all particulars....Very good presentation.  Thanks."
"Very courageous! ... A little too much history for me."
"Very informative.  I realized I didn't know as much as I thought about the Founding Fathers' perspective."
"Very good and interesting speaker....  Well worth the time.  It opened my eyes and made me think."
"Very thought provoking...."
"Very biased and one-sided...."

St. Paul's Gospel of Freedom

"Very scholarly...but a little above my head."
"Very knowledgeable and articulate....  Her format assumed some knowledge which I did not know."
"Very good speaker.  She knew so much and I learned from her."
"Makes me want to read Paul's letters again."

•   •   •

For more information contact:
Director of Adult Faith Formation. 320 Mulberry Street, Waterloo IA 50703
Phone: 319-234-9912  •  Email: <DBQ208s3@arch.pvt.k12.ia.us>

Last Update: 06.28.10