MOUNT HOLLY — On March 17, Catholics of Irish descent in the Diocese of Charlotte gathered to celebrate their Irish roots with a special Mass at Old St. Joseph Church in Mount Holly, one of North Carolina’s oldest Catholic churches.
Sponsored by the Ancient Order of Hibernians and the Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians in the Charlotte area, the annual Mass paid tribute to the historic church’s first pastor, Father T.J. Cronin, who was Irish born and is buried in the adjacent church cemetery. Father Paul McNulty, chaplain of the St. Brendan division of the Hibernians, offered the Mass. St. Joseph Church was built in 1843 for and by Irish immigrants, who had come to mine for gold along the Catawba River.
It is the oldest Catholic church still standing in the state and is an official state and U.S. historical site. Today St. Joseph Church is used for special occasions such at the feasts of St. Patrick and St. Joseph in March, and tours are available upon request through Queen of the Apostles Church in Belmont.
— Photos by Tara Heilingoetter | Catholic News Herald
The 2017 Catholic Relief Services Rice Bowl Program began on Ash Wednesday, March 1. This year’s CRS Rice Bowl theme, “Encounter Lent,” echoes the call of Pope Francis that our faith seeks “a culture of encounter.” CRS hopes that, through participation in Rice Bowl, a spirit of global solidarity is cultivated.
One way that the CRS Rice Bowl Program assists in building global solidarity is by offering Lenten opportunities for participants to learn about a variety of countries overseas, to explore the principles of Catholic social teaching, and to enter into the practice of making sacrificial offerings to help those who face poverty, hunger and illness around the world.
“Rice Bowl gives the faithful, especially the youth in our parishes and schools, the opportunity to see our Lenten journey as a time to walk on a global path with our brothers and sisters in need around the world,” said St. Charles Borromeo Church’s Deacon Edward Konarski, who chairs the CRS advisory committee that assists in promoting CRS Rice Bowl and Catholic Charities CRS Rice Bowl Mini-Grant Program.
The 2016 Lenten CRS Rice Bowl Collection involved 57 parishes and diocesan schools and raised $62,218. Twenty-five percent of Rice Bowl funds remain in the diocese to support the charitable efforts of diocesan Catholic entities through the distribution of Catholic Charities CRS Rice Bowl 
Mini-Grants. In 2016, a total of 17 $1,000 CRS Rice Bowl Mini-Grants were awarded to Catholic entities from throughout the diocese located in the following communities: Albemarle, Andrews, Arden, Asheville, Charlotte, Clemmons, Gastonia, Greensboro, Hayesville, Jefferson, Mocksville, Morganton, Murphy, Spruce Pine and Sylva. The grants, targeting local poverty and hunger relief efforts, provided funds for charitable efforts such as: buying supplies for newborns, stocking food pantries, filling weekend backpack meals for school children, thrift store outreach and holiday meal packages.
This year’s CRS Rice Bowl Mini-Grant applications will be available starting Tuesday, Aug. 1, at www.ccdoc.org/cchdcrs and will be due Monday, Oct. 16.
“These grants are a helpful support for parishes and Catholic school projects that are reaching the vulnerable in our local communities,” Deacon Konarski said. “We see that our Lenten sacrifice made through CRS Rice Bowl touches the lives of our neighbors, as well as countless others overseas whom we will likely never meet, but can encounter in our prayers and our charitable giving.”
— Joseph Purello is the director of Social Concerns and Advocacy for Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte and also serves as the diocesan director for Catholic Relief Services.