Mass at cathedral brings Catholic Scouts together
By Curtis DeWulf
Special to The Witness
DUBUQUE — On Jan. 29, the Catholic Committee on Scouting of the Archdiocese of Dubuque held its annual Scout Recognition Mass with the archbishop at St. Raphael Cathedral in Dubuque.
Principal celebrant and homilist was Archbishop Michael Jackels. He was assisted by Father Dwayne Thoman, Scout chaplain for the Northeast Iowa Council, and Deacon Michael Klappholz, archdiocesan Scout chaplain. Scouts attended from across the archdiocese, and a large sized group of past St. George Emblem recipients came to celebrate the Mass as well. (This award recognizes those who have made great contributions to Scouting.)
[ms-protect-content id=”1339,323,1059,1325,324,257,322,6459″]
In the archbishop’s homily, he asked the Scouts to be humble, and to help Scouts become humble, he talked about how to show humility. He explained that to show humility it takes three actions: asking for help, accepting help and helping others. Many commented on the homily, and it will be used for many a Scoutmaster minutes.
After the homily, Scouts were recognized for earning their religious emblems; Light of Christ for Cub Scouts age 7 to 8, Parvuli Dei Cub Scouts age 9-10, Ad Altare Dei Boy Scouts age 12-17 and Pope Pius XII Boy Scouts/Venturers age 14-20.
After Communion, two adults were recognized for the St. George Emblem, which is given by the local archdiocese for outstanding work with the youth of the area in the Scouting program: Jeremy Schmidt of Resurrection Parish Troop 91 Dubuque and Jody Meyer Troop 66, St. Benedict Parish of Decorah. For outstanding work and longtime devotion to the work of the archdiocesan Catholic Committee on Scouting, Craig Pilcher Troop 360 Marion, St. Stephen Parish Central City was recognized with the Bronze Pelican.
After Mass, Archbishop Jackels stayed and took pictures with everyone who wished to, and then he went to the reception and shared friendship, fellowship, cookies, punch and coffee with the Scouts and guests.
DeWulf is a member of the Catholic Committee on Scouting of the Archdiocese of Dubuque.
Archbishop Jackels hands his crozier to a young Cub Scout and Scout leader from Church of the Resurrection’s Pack 91 after the Jan. 29 Mass. (Photo by James Hallenbeck)
[/ms-protect-content] [ms-membership-login]
