rkranz, Author at The Bishop's Bulletin

Fifty years of priesthood span three countries

September 2021, Vocations

Sep 01, 2021 by rkranz

By Laurie Stiegelmeier Father Albert Cizewski, ordained a priest in Poland 50 years ago, has experienced parish life in three different countries. Over those years, the Real Presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament has given him the strength to carry out his vocation every day. Early ministry years [caption id="attachment_6045" align="alignright" width="300"] Father Albert Cizewski, pastor at St. John de Britto in Britton, draws strength and joy from his time in front of the Blessed Sacrament.[/caption] It’s difficult for him to say what drew him to the priesthood, but he had been an altar server for many years and met a wonderful priest who was a good example. After eight years of elementary school and four of high school, Father Albert attended six years of seminary in Bialystok, Poland.…

Is it possible for us to know that Jesus is divine?

Does the Church have an answer?, September 2021

Sep 01, 2021 by rkranz

Question: I know this might seem like a silly question for a Catholic to ask, but how do we know Jesus is divine? Answer: Thank you for submitting this question, and let me assure you, this isn’t a silly question at all. As I’ve written repeatedly of late in this column, it’s a good thing to ask questions about our faith in order to better understand it. And, as I’ve said many times, we can’t love what we don’t know, so if we’re going to love God more deeply, we need to understand him more fully. This question in particular is a crucial one, as it goes to the very heart of our Catholic faith. Jesus is unique in a great many ways, but among founders of world religions, his…

Turn life’s everyday moments into opportunities to evangelize

Missionary Discipleship, September 2021

Sep 01, 2021 by rkranz

By Laura Melius When we consider the great evangelists through history, who comes to mind? Matthew, Mark, Luke and John? St. Paul? Or a more recent example, such as Archbishop Fulton Sheen? What if we looked closer, much closer, to within ourselves? As baptized Christians, we are all called to carry out this important work. For God to use us as evangelists, we do not need to be effective public speakers or prolific writers or have an abundant number of followers. We just need to recognize and answer his call to share the life-changing message that Jesus Christ is Lord and God. Getting started Where do we start on this task of evangelizing? How can we best share Jesus with those we encounter each day? The best place to start,…

Retreat invites men to explore deeper faith

Headlines, September 2021

Sep 01, 2021 by rkranz

Men in our Catholic parishes often desire to deepen their relationship with Jesus Christ and the Church, but they don’t know exactly how to do that. It can seem like a daunting task with no one to help them get started. The 10th annual Sioux Falls Area Men’s Retreat could be the perfect catalyst to a more meaningful relationship with the God who made them. Presented by the Sioux Falls Area Men’s Group, this retreat runs from October 22-24 at Broom Tree Retreat Center in Irene. The theme this year, St. Joseph, Terror of Demons, plays off the year of St. Joseph and provides a stable foundation to begin this journey. Deacon Ralph Poyo will lead the group on an interactive retreat that will lead men to examine the sound…

Turn to God for the supernatural gift of faith

Bishop DeGrood's Column, September 2021

Sep 01, 2021 by rkranz

In a college course I took, I was blessed to learn an important insight from St. Anselm about a good approach to the things of faith that we don’t understand: “faith seeking understanding.” This key insight has been so helpful to me because previously I would come from the disposition of “I need to understand first and then I will believe (have faith).” The problem with my former way of thinking was that I needed to learn that faith is a gift from God. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) speaks of faith as the “theological virtue by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief, because he is truth itself” (CCC 1814).…

The Church’s “yes” leads to the freedom to flourish

Featured, September 2021

Sep 01, 2021 by rkranz

By Josie Bopp Tell all your sins to a priest—regularly. You can’t get divorced. No eating meat on Fridays during Lent. Remember to follow the 10 Commandments. If you’re not Catholic, you’re probably going to hell. Oh, and don’t forget the big one: don’t have sex before marriage. For many who grow up Catholic, the Church is sometimes characterized as one resounding “no.” The experience of faith is sometimes mistakenly reduced to a set of rules and regulations, with the sense that if all of them are followed, a good Catholic will stumble his or her way into heaven, arriving with the correct answers, albeit having lived a seemingly miserable life. Even for those outside the Church, a caricature of the law-obsessed Catholic Church prevails. [caption id="attachment_6051" align="alignright" width="300"] Dr.…

Tending to our humanity is not for the faint of heart

Guest column, September 2021

Sep 01, 2021 by rkranz

By Emily Leedom [caption id="attachment_6042" align="alignright" width="300"] Emily Leedom, executive director of Catholic Family Services[/caption] At the start of 2020, when newly appointed Bishop DeGrood shared that he had been discerning a vision for the Diocese of Sioux Falls, it felt like a rallying cry to gather the troops. As that vision rolled out, Catholics throughout eastern South Dakota began discerning for themselves, their families, their parishes and their communities how they might enter more deeply into lifelong missionary discipleship, rooted in the love of God. As I pondered this vision, I found myself asking questions. What keeps people from being lifelong Catholic missionary disciples? What are those challenges that keep us from being who God truly created us to be? What keeps us from being a bridge for other…

Mission SOS offers a place to pray for the unborn

August 2021, Headlines

Aug 01, 2021 by rkranz

By Marcus Ashlock Do you want to be involved more regularly with the pro-life movement but standing out in the weather or in public is not your calling? Maybe in your youth standing for a full Rosary was something you could do often, but now you have bad knees and would rather sit. What if you could pray in private with other individuals? Mission SOS (Saving Others Spiritually) is a lay ministry that provides a prayer space in an apartment next door to Planned Parenthood in Sioux Falls. It’s a place where anyone can come to pray for the mothers considering abortion. The group has coordinated its efforts with the men of Jericho Wall who pray each Tuesday evening at 7 p.m. Women and children who come with their husbands…

Bishop’s Hunt impacts Newman Centers in diocese

August 2021, Headlines

Aug 01, 2021 by rkranz

[caption id="attachment_5998" align="alignright" width="300"] Father James Morgan, rector of the Cathedral of Saint Joseph, makes the most of his time at the hunt with other priests and hunters. (Photo by Ellen Keena)[/caption] The 28th Annual Bishop’s Charity Hunt will be taking to the fields in the Kimball area in September to raise money in support of Newman Centers in the Diocese of Sioux Falls. Priests and lay hunters alike will join Bishop DeGrood to hunt pheasants, swap stories and celebrate Mass. Produced by the Catholic Community Foundation for Eastern South Dakota, the hunt will be hosted by Horseshoe K Ranch on September 20-21. There will be plenty of great food, trap shooting to warm up, and prizes to win, not to mention the challenge of hunting. All proceeds for the…

How do we know Church teachings are biblical?

August 2021, Does the Church have an answer?

Aug 01, 2021 by rkranz

Question: Last November, you answered a question about why Catholics don’t read the Bible more. I have a related but different question: how do I respond to people who say the Church’s teachings aren’t biblical? Answer: This is another great question, especially because it’s such a common one; many other Christians look at the Church’s teachings in light of their own reading of the Bible and wonder where those teachings came from, or even more, how Catholics can square their teachings with the Bible. By way of answering this question, I’d like to start with this point: the Catholic Church firmly and absolutely teaches that none of its doctrines contradict Scripture. That is, there are no Catholic teachings that go against the Bible. Now, many other Christians will certainly disagree…

Author: rkranz