Saddened by passing of priest
I was greatly saddened to read in the Hawaii Catholic Herald of the passing of Msgr. Francis A. Marzen.
I first met Msgr. Marzen in 1967 when I was sent to Hawaii from San Francisco by Community Counseling Service Inc. to help the Sisters of St. Francis raise funds for a retirement facility on the Manoa campus of Saint Francis Convent School.
Msgr. Marzen was then pastor of our Lady of Good Counsel in Pearl City under Bishop Sweeney. Despite my malihini status he trusted me and my plan. Thanks to his priestly leadership and love for the Franciscans, the campaign was a success.
In 1969, Msgr. Marzen again demonstrated his vision for the church in Hawaii and encouraged the new bishop, John Scanlan, to invite me to help with the first diocesan-wide fund-raising campaign “PROJECT HAWAII.” These two campaigns were the forerunners of many other campaigns over the past 30 years that have raised millions of dollars for health care, education, social, cultural and religious projects in Hawaii.
The church in Hawaii has lost a great priest.
Mike DeNunzio
San Francisco
In defense of circumcision
In the Nov. 5 issue of the paper, there was an article by Father John Dietzen called “Circumcision.” I was deeply disturbed and saddened that this article would be published in your paper. Does the Catholic Church say that God commanded Jesus to be “mutilated” along with all Jewish males? That doesn’t make sense.
Further more, I checked with a doctor and he informed me that the uncircumcised had a greater chance for infection than the circumcised. Some men even had to have this procedure in later life because of difficulty urinating. I also read in a medical journal that women who were married to uncircumcised men had a greater risk of cervical cancer.
Does this mean that we should boycott St. Francis and other hospitals if they perform this “immoral” procedure? This article is also great for the ecumenical movement with our Jewish brethren, who demand circumcision as part of the law of God. It is statements like this that hurts the church and its credibility. Thank you for listening to my concern.
Father Maurice McNeely
Las Vegas