Letters From the Cross May 2013

The Station of the Cross Catholic Radio Network

101.7 FM BUFFALO“Proclaiming the fullness of Truth with clarity and charity.”

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I’d like you to imagine for a moment that you are the eternal Son of God. All powerful, possessing all wisdom and goodness, and full of mercy; you are, in fact, love and mercy itself. As God, you know that the world you created will fall, and so with the

other two persons of the Blessed Trinity, you devised a plan ahead of time to save the world. The plan is this: You will enter into the world, sacrificially love fallen mankind, forgive them, and elevate them to a life of grace and sonship with your Father. Specifically, you are going to take on human nature, become a man, establish a Church, sacrifice yourself as a victim, rise from the dead, and send fallen mankind the Holy Spirit to sanctify them and bring them to paradise.

But you are not a magical God. You are not going to enter the world already developed and 33 years old. No. You are going to enter the world through a woman. That woman will be your mother.

Now, remember, you are God. Would you who are all powerful, having the capability of fashioning your own mother, make her have any flaws whatsoever? If you had the power to create your own mother, would you make her anything less than a masterpiece of feminine beauty and genius? I didn’t think so.

What son, if he could precede his mother, would make his mother have any defects? What son would want his mother to be a sinner? Any good son would desire that his mother have the superlative of every virtue: the most kind, loving, humble, gentle, merciful, tender, and compassionate of all creatures. She would have the most of everything good and lovely. She would, in fact, be the most holy human person who ever lived; she would be conceived and born immaculate, having nothing to do with darkness, death and evil. Nothing would compare with her, and outside of the Holy Trinity, no one would be greater than she is.

She would even be a virgin-mother. As her divine Son – if I were God – you can guarantee I would do this for my dear mother. But not just that, I would want her to have every privilege possible: sinless, immaculate, virgin, mother, queen, princess, and pattern of creation and human perfection. Plus, if I were God, I would figure out some way of making her not just my mother, but the mother of everyone. Such a wonderful mother should be shared with everyone.

Well, the reality, my friends, is that we are not God. We are incapable of such things. But in coming into the world to save us, the Eternal Word prepared a worthy dwelling place for his Incarnation to take place. He made his own mother. And she is a masterpiece.

And what makes this mystery even more amazing is that Jesus actually figured out a way of sharing the masterpiece of Mary’s motherhood with us! He is not a selfish God. On the contrary,

as a most loving Son, he is so proud of his mother that he wants her to be everyone’s mother. Thus, he made her the spiritual mother for all who are adopted into his sonship.

But let’s not stop there. If you were God, why not make her the most painted woman in the history of the world! Make her name so lovely that every culture would have a variation of it. It would, in fact, be the most common female name in human history.

You might also see to it that a book was written, a book that your Holy Spirit inspired and co-authored, that would tell all generations to call her blessed (cf. Lk 1: 48). You might even anticipate her solemn entrance into human history by promising that it would be her tender and delicate heel that would crush your enemy, forever defeating the darkness of Satan (cf. Gen 3:15).

Why, you might even be so bold as to have made preparations in the beginning of time for all to honor her through establishing universal Commandments that must be observed by all. One of these Commandments would be that sons and daughters, in order to please you, must honor their father and mother (cf. Ex 20: 12).

In your divine wisdom, you established it this way so that when you shared your mother with others (cf. Jn 19:26-27), making her their spiritual mother, they, as her sons and daughters, would necessarily have to honor her in order to please you.

This would be a most brilliant plan. A plan only God could do. And God did.

But let’s take it even a step farther. Similar to the Word (Jesus) creating his own mother, God the Father also created the perfect daughter. If you were God the Father and could fashion your own daughter, would you not want your daughter to be the most beautiful, pure, and lovely girl of all? I know I would. Any father would. Every good father wants to guard his daughter and protect her from anything that could harm her. And this is exactly what God the Father did in creating the mystery of Mary. She is a princess.

This princess has received a plentitude of his grace. She is “full of grace” (Lk 1:28). God the Father protects her with a jealous and all-powerful love. If anyone attacks or threatens his little girl, they are in big trouble.

And there’s one last step in understanding the Trinitarian masterpiece that is Mary. The Holy Spirit, in creating Mary, fashioned the perfect bride. Mary is the perfect spouse of God. Once again, if you or I could create our own spouse, we would create a spouse without any flaws or imperfections – one good and virtuous and worthy of praise. As a man, I would create a masterpiece of feminine beauty. She would be

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THE WOMAN OF OUR DREAMS by Fr. Donald H. Calloway, MIC

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May is the month of Our Lady, and May 13 is the Feast Day of Our Lady of Fatima. Back in 1996, when The Station of the Cross was just in its planning stages, we made the decision to dedicate this apostolate to Our Lady of Fatima. We named our first station, WLOF in Buffalo, in her honor, and she,

through her intercession to our Lord, has taken care of us. She takes the gifts that we offer to Our Lord, embellishes them in her motherly way, and presents them to Him. He has in turn blessed us immensely, growing now to a network of six stations and an iCatholicRadio app.

All of our stations are now named after our lady under her various titles:WHIC – Holy and Immaculate Conception - Rochester, NY WQOM – Queen of Martyrs – Boston, MAWMTQ – Mary the Queen – Elmira/Corning, NYWTMI – Mary Immaculate – Syracuse, NYWQHE – Queen of Heaven and Earth – Oil City, PA

One of the ways we are blessed is through the generous support of our listeners. We want to sincerely thank you for the outpouring of generosity during our recent fund drive.

There are three segments to the drive: a pre-fund drive, the four day on-air portion, and a post-fund drive, which continues until we reach our goal. You can listen in to our station to hear weekly updates on how closely we are to reaching our overall goal of $400,000.

This year, we added the opportunity for listeners to sponsor a day of programming and subsequently honor a person or business on the air for a day. This opportunity is still available to you by calling 1-877-711-8500. See the Fund Drive ad for more details.

Once again, we are so grateful to you, our listeners, for supporting us so graciously with your prayers and donations. Your generosity is a blessing to us and to all whose lives are impacted by Catholic radio.

PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE: WHERE ELSE BUT ON CATHOLIC RADIO? by Jim Wright

Now, Hispanics can call the Station of the Cross their own. A new program, the first one in Spanish, is being broadcast in the Buffalo area. The Office of Cultural Diversity of the Diocese of Buffalo, brings the program, “Bajo el Manto de Maria” (Under Mary’s Mantle) to the Latino faithful. The program is hosted by Deacon Alejandro Manunta with the presence of Marangelí Rodriguez who discuss the readings of the week, present faith issues, conduct interviews and, very important for the Hispanic culture, good music.

The name Bajo el Manto de Maria or in English, Under Mary’s Mantle, was chosen in order to emphasize the deep devotion that all Latin-American peoples have for Mary. This devotion comes under different names in different countries; in this way we have Our Mother of the Divine Providence in Puerto Rico and Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico and so on. But, at the same time, all these peoples are united as one large family with one Mother, and this is represented by being together under Mary’s mantle.

It is very important, especially in this year of Faith, to highlight the importance of the New Evangelization, taking the Gospel of Christ to all nations and in all languages.

Y que el Señor los bendiga!!

Deacon Alex is a Permanent Deacon in the Diocese of Buffalo. He can be reached by calling 1-877-888-6279.

BAJO EL MANTO DE MARIA: UNDER MARY’S MANTLE

by Deacon Alex Manunta

the woman of my dreams. Angels would bow down in her presence, and everyone would be subject to her, sing songs about her, and praise her loveliness and unique beauty. All darkness and demons would flee at her presence, and the very fragrance of her person would make grown men cry. My lady would be the best!

Well, just so, the Holy Spirit fashioned the perfect bride. She is the beautiful dove of God, the dove of beauty, and there can’t possibly be a more lovely and perfect woman.

Mary is the masterpiece of God. She is the perfect mother, daughter and spouse. She is the perfect woman. She is the perfect creation, and no other created thing compares to her. She is the Immaculata. God made her. God lives in her, and through her and with her, he crushes the darkness...

Therefore, if we want to conquer sin and evil, we must make a decision to live under the mantle of God’s masterpiece: the Immaculata. If God himself lives in her and conquers evil through her, who are we to think that we do not need her!

Taken from “Under the Mantle: Marian Thoughts from a 21st Century Priest” by Fr. Donald Calloway, MIC available at www.fathercalloway.com. Used with permission. Fr. Calloway is the Vocation Director for the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception out of Stockbridge, MA.

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THE WOMAN OF OUR DREAMS continued from page 1

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I joined The Station of the Cross in August 2012 and feel blessed to be a part of this growing radio apostolate. I cannot think of a better way to be a laborer in God’s vineyard than by helping to spread the faith through Catholic radio.

It would seem that the breadth of my title – Vice President of Development, Marketing and Public Relations – would fully capture the scope of my job responsibilities. Yet, as is the case with our entire team, the work is often more broad and varied than the job title. Our ability to perform a wide range of tasks with a small staff and a dedicated group of volunteers reflects our station’s commitment to being good stewards of your generous financial contributions.

Speaking of money, one part of my job is to help raise funds to keep us on the air. A significant element of fund development is overseeing our two annual fund drives. This involves a lot of work – mass mailings, phone calls, etc. That consumes about one-half of an entire year. For example, although our on-air spring fund drive just passed, there is still considerable work to do in the current post fund drive phase.

The marketing and public relations aspects of my job involve developing and implementing strategies to promote the station, increase listenership, and garner exposure and publicity. I develop marketing plans, spearhead initiatives like the current billboard campaign, write press releases, negotiate media trades, and write and execute on-air marketing pitches, among other responsibilities.

I also work with our president, Jim Wright, on developing the strategic vision of the radio network and managing the day-to-day operations. This involves overseeing planning and processes, developing systems and procedures, and connecting different parts of the station’s operations to achieve our goals. As a result, much of my time is spent juggling diverse projects and serving as a lynchpin for all of the network’s activities.

This aspect of my job, managing the network’s operations, has become a heightened responsibility as a result of our expansion into new markets. Part of my time is spent tracking and managing the work flow of the stations and serving as a liaison between our president and the station managers.

The last nine months have been a rewarding experience. I am grateful to each person on our team for their support, as well as to all of our listeners, volunteers and benefactors for helping to sustain our network. None of this would be possible without you, and for that, we are all very grateful.

You can reach Zach at: zach@thestationof the cross.com or 1-877-888-6279.

BEHIND THE SCENES WITH: ZACH KRAJACIC

BLESSED TO BE PART OF A GROWING RADIO NETWORK

As pilgrims visiting Rome during the first couple of weeks in March, my wife and I had the surreal experience of being in St. Peter’s square for the election of Pope Francis. When we found out that the conclave would start on Tuesday, March 12, our group of 28 pilgrims was overjoyed with the news that the

conclave would start while we were in Rome and hoped for the Holy Spirit to work quickly, as our flights home were scheduled for Friday March 15.

The first night of the conclave, we stopped in St. Peter’s Square to see if we might get a glimpse of the smoke rising from the chimney after the first vote. When we arrived, we could feel the excitement and energy of the congregation gathered awaiting the first display of smoke. To our amazement, there were thousands of white birds circling above the Sistine Chapel. My wife and I are convinced this was a sign that the Holy Spirit was present. We saw black smoke that night, signaling that the pope had not yet been elected. The birds dispersed and we continued on to dinner.

The next day, we made our way back to St. Peter’s Square around noon to witness the second display of black smoke. Again, birds flocked to encircle the space above the Sistine Chapel and dissipated after the smoke had cleared. We continued touring the city’s churches in the afternoon and decided to head back to St. Peter’s Square to witness the smoke that evening. We arrived in the square about 5:00 pm and decided to stay until smoke was released from the chimney that evening. Yet again, we witnessed thousands of birds gather and fly in circles above the chapel where the Cardinals were voting. My wife and I were amazed to witness such a miracle.

We expected that we would see black smoke again and then make our way to dinner with some of our fellow pilgrims. We were wrong. A little after 7:00 pm, smoke started rising from the chimney, but this time...it was white. Our excitement was confirmed by the ringing of the large bell above St. Peter’s façade. People were jumping up and down, and the square was a frenzy. Any space to move around disappeared as hundreds of thousands of people rushed to cram into the square.

Within an hour, “Habemus Papam” was announced and Pope Francis appeared. People from all over the world waved flags to display their support for the newly elected pontiff. We joined in on shouts of “Francesco” echoing throughout the square as it started to become clearer that Pope Francis was a humble pastor from Argentina. Even though we could not understand every word he was speaking, we were overjoyed by his request for us to pray for him in silence, his unmistakable presence, and the imparting of his apostolic blessing. My wife and I felt immensely blessed to be a part of the audience for this spiritual event and our pilgrimage was one that we will surely never forget.

Mark Vilardo is a volunteer and listener of The Station of the Cross. He and his wife Meredith reside in Buffalo, NY and are expecting their first child this July.

A BIRD’S EYE VIEW OF THE PAPAL ELECTION FROM ROME by Mark Vilardo

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IN MAY’S ISSUE:The Woman of Our DreamsSpring Fund DrivePresident’s MessageNew Spanish ProgramRome ExperienceBehind the ScenesOverview for the Month

OVERVIEW FOR THE MONTH OF MAY

The month of May is dedicated to

The Blessed Virgin MaryAs spring blossoms forth and we are surrounded by new life, we spend this month full of the joy of our Easter celebration

and in anticipation of the coming of the Holy Spirit, our Consoler and Advocate.

The first 19 days of the month fall within the liturgical season of Easter. The remainder of the month (beginning the

Monday after Pentecost) is Ordinary Time.

A PRAYER FOR MOTHERSSweet and blessed Mother, guide our mothers that they too may lead us to your Son, just as

you show us. May they imitate your love and devotion. May we in return also be loving, patient,

understanding and supportive to our mothers.

Blessed Mother, we pray for all mothers – our own, our aunts, our grandmothers –

both living and departed.

Amen.

MAY 2013 HOLY FATHER’S INTENTIONS:General:

That administrators of justice may act always with integrity and right conscience.

Missionary: That seminaries, especially those of mission churches, may form

pastors after the Heart of Christ, fully dedicated to proclaiming the Gospel.

MAY FEAST DAYSThe saints that we will focus on this month — those who have already shared in the rewards of the Resurrection — are St. Joseph the Worker (May 1), St. Athanasius (May 2), Sts. Philip and James (May

3), Our Lady of Fatima (May 13), St. Matthias (May 14), St. Isidore the Farmer (May 15), St. John I (May 18), St. Bernadine of Siena (May 20), St. Christopher Magallanes (May 21), St. Rita of Cascia (May 22), St. Bede, St. Gregory VII and St. Mary Magdalene de Pazzi (May 25), St. Augustine of Canterbury (May 27) and the Visitation (May 31).

The feast of St. Philip Neri (May 26) is superseded by the Sunday liturgy. The Solemnity of the Ascension (May 9) is celebrated on May 12 (Sunday) in most dioceses in the United States.

Excerpts from CatholicCulture.org