Shinnecock Kelp Farmers and Sisters of St. Joseph Collaborate to Cleanup Local Bay

For thousands of years, these waters have been viewed as a sacred space by the Shinnecock Indian Nation.

Rebecca Genia, a Shinnecock kelp farmer, said, “we are attached to seaweed, we were born into it, our culture is from seaweed, surrounded by water you know that’s our culture is in the water.”

But thanks to some heavy development in the Hamptons community, the clear waters of Shinnecock Bay have turned murky.

“You have a place that’s one of the wealthiest places in the entire world that has no sewer infrastructure. It’s really actually a disgusting and filthy situation. the water’s not safe,” said Tela Troge, a Shinnecock kelp farmer.

It didn’t take a science degree for locals like Rebecca Genia to realize that trouble has been brewing in these waters.Genia said, “We have seen it going downhill and what my grandchildren, what my great grandchildren see when they’re out in the bay is way different than when we were kids.”

So a group of Shinnecock women decided to team up, creating a kelp farming collective in 2019. They hope to tackle the rising nitrogen levels in the water.

They enlisted the Sisters of St. Joseph who live right across the bay, and established a winter hatchery on the nuns’ seven acre property.

The sea plant pulls nitrogen out of the water, while also creating a thriving habitat for shellfish. The sisters say it is all part of their mission.

“We are one with the earth and we give to the earth and knowing that we never want to take anything more than what we need,” said Sister Kerry Handal of the Sisters of St. Joseph.

The work has only been going on for a few years, but they have seen the impact.

“The fish and the plant life, you can see an increase, they’re drawn to right here which before they weren’t,” said Handal.

The farmers and the sisters say they are determined to help, because they know the consequences of just standing by.
“It affects us all. You, me, us, every single person, every single living creature on this earth,” said Genia.

Catholic News Headlines for Wednesday 07/19/2023

The sisters of St. Joseph are teaming up with the Shinnecock Indian nation to combat pollution.

A Brooklyn street has been named for a fallen NYPD detective.

Pope Francis has a new personal secretary.

Pope Francis met with the children attending the Vatican’s summer camp.

World Youth Day 2023 Event Is Helping To Revitalize A Rundown Area of Lisbon

World Youth Day is just two weeks away, and aside from evangelizing young Catholics, it’s also revitalizing a community in its host city.

However, the stage that the Lisbon City Council has prepared for World Youth Day has attracted the attention of the international community for one detail: its construction will cost almost $5.5 million.

The executive director of World Youth Day Madrid in 2011, Yago de la Cierva, spoke about these expenses with the mayor of Lisbon, who will receive Pope Francis during the pilgrimage.

“I think the controversy regarding the stage is one that has no real basis and perhaps the confusion comes from a problem of miscommunication, that it has not been well explained,” de la Cierva said. “What the mayor explained to me is that an area of the city that was neglected and in poor condition has been improved. It has been left fully prepared for many events in the future.”

De la Cierva further contends that although the purpose of World Youth Day “is not to bring money to the host country. If the organization is efficient, an event of this magnitude can be very beneficial.”

Pope Francis Tells Summer Camp Children: “Grandparents Are My Superheroes”

Despite not having any public meetings scheduled during the month of July, Pope Francis met with children from the summer camp, “Estate ragazzi in Vaticano.”

The children greeted him with songs and some of them presented him with gifts including bracelets, a necklace and a poster.

During the meeting, Pope Francis responded to the different questions the children asked him, including who his superheroes are.

“I don’t know if you all will share the idea that I will have,” Pope Francis said. “Do you know who my superheroes are? Grandparents. Because they built a family and then they grew older. But grandparents are wise. And that is why it is important that you all talk with your grandparents. Do you speak with your grandparents or not? I don’t understand.”

This message comes just five days before World Day of Grandparents and the Elderly, which the Pope started in 2021.

He also encouraged the campers to express their gratitude to their parents and to have a healthy relationship with the digital world.

St. Francis College Pledges Commitment to Diversity After Supreme Court Rejects Affirmative Action

By Jessica Easthope

Sabrina Tayeh isn’t Catholic, she’s a practicing Muslim, but at St. Francis College her faith is accepted and embraced.

As a rising sophomore, Sabrina says she remembers applying to St. Francis, knowing she was being looked at as an individual.

“It made my admission here more genuine, it was more about who I was and getting to know me and my experiences before that.”

That’s how St. Francis College looks at every prospective student, regardless of race, religion or financial status. Robert Oliva the vice president of enrollment management says in the wake of the Supreme Court overturning affirmative action, St. Francis is more committed than ever to inclusion.

“Overturning affirmative action has actually allowed St. Francis College to reaffirm and double down on our commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, values that are intrinsically Franciscan,” Oliva said.

At St. Francis college 65 percent of the school are students of color and every student admitted receives some kind of tuition assistance. Figures Ali Scott the director of marketing, government relations and community affairs says are some of the ways the school keeps to its Franciscan values.

“We are about making sure everyone has an opportunity to get the education they deserve,” said Scott.

After the decision, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops called on Catholic colleges and universities to uphold their commitment to education access.

“It is our hope that our Catholic institutions of higher learning will continue to find ways to make education possible and affordable for everyone, regardless of their background,” read a USCCB statement.

And Sabrina says maybe the decision will force other colleges to do what St. Francis has done all along.

“I think that this will have an opportunity for colleges to actually get to know the people that they’re admitting more rather than just the statistics they have on paper,” she said.

Sabrina works in the admissions office, she says if anyone applying to college feels like supreme court decision hurts their chances, St. Francis College might be the place for you.

Catholic News Headlines for Tuesday 07/18/2023

After the Supreme Court voted to overturn affirmative action, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops called on Catholic Colleges and Universities to uphold their commitment to education access.

The Pope’s peace envoy is meeting with President Joe Biden today.

Pope Francis will travel to Mongolia on August 31,making him the first-ever papal to visit the country.

Pope Francis will also travel to Portugal to attend World Youth Day.

Currents News Receives Two Regional Emmy Nominations

The Currents News team has received two regional Emmy nominations.

The newscast is nominated for the “Best Evening Newscast” and “Human Interest Story” categories.

The awards will be announced in October.

Brooklyn Teen From St. Athanasius Credits Scouting For His Baptism As a Catholic

A Brooklyn Boy Scout has earned his merit badge in faith.

Jake Harmon, 16, said the scouts have not only taught him how to tie ropes and build a fire, they’ve helped him learn about the Catholic faith.

It’s the reason he is now a baptized Catholic today.

The young teen grew up in a mixed-faith household. His parents let him decide what religion he wanted to pursue.

After finishing the Catholic award, Harmon decided to pursue the faith.

The young teen took religious education courses at his home parish of St. Athanasius in Bensonhurst.

“At the end of it I realized I wanted to be Catholic for the rest of my life,” said Harmon.

Currents News Katie Vasquez caught up with Harmon in Narrowsburg, up in the Catskill Mountains, where the new Catholic was attending the yearly pilgrimage to Ten Mile River Scout Camp.

Up in the Catskill Mountains, three hours from Brooklyn, a group of Boy Scouts celebrated their faith.

Every year, they make the trek up to Ten Mile River scout camp, connecting with nature and God as Bishop Robert Brennan celebrated a special mass.

But this year for scout, Jake Harmon, the mass felt different. He was baptized during the Easter vigil last April.

“My mom is Catholic and my dad is Jewish,” said Harmon, “they didn’t want to push religion on us because they wanted us to choose because they both had different opinions.”

The 16-year-old said scouting helped him first learn about Catholicism.

“The big part about scouting and the sash I wear is giving back not only to the camps and the community and that kind of reflects a lot with the catholic faith and helping everyone around you,” said Harmon.

But the big pull to decide his beliefs came after he asked his Troop 99 leader, Brian Long, about a special award for the Catholic faith.

“He asked me if he could take the Catholic religion award, I told him yea. But he says I’m half Jewish, half Catholic. I says well you can go for the Catholic award and the

Jewish award then you can make the decision on which faith you want,” said Long.

After finishing the Catholic award, Jake decided to pursue the faith. He took religious education courses at his home parish of St. Athanasius in Bensonhurst.

“At the end of it I realized I wanted to be catholic for the rest of my life,” said Harmon.

His interest in Catholicism even spread to his family, first reaching his brother, who is also a scout.

Then they convinced their sister.

“We came to her and said we want to do this, is this something you want to do? she saw that we found ourselves in it and that she wanted to join us,” said Harmon.

Bishop Brennan said stories like Jake’s highlight all the good scouting can do.

“It shows you some of the contributions that this experience of scouting can do, because one of the things that happens here is that a young person discovers more about themselves and who they are and faith life being part of that and he really discovered his catholic faith being here,” said Brennan.

Now Jake is wearing his faith like a badge of honor. He is currently pursuing the second part of the Catholic religion award which involves reflecting on this time, from baptism to his new life as a Catholic.

Cardinal-Elect Christophe Pierre Celebrates Feast Day in Astoria

On a rainy Sunday a week after being named a Cardinal, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, found himself at a Queens parish celebrating Mass for the feast day of its namesake, as if nothing had changed.

Cardinal-designate Pierre celebrated Mass and participated in a procession at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, on what was the feast of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on Sunday, July 16,. The presence of the pope’s U.S. representative at the Mass was certainly unique, but something he said is important to his ministry.

Cardinal-designate Pierre, 77, is from Rennes, France. He has been apostolic nuncio to the United States since 2016. Prior to that, he was a nuncio in Uganda, Haiti, and Mexico. In his role he has many times delivered the news to priests of their bishop appointments, but didn’t expect to get the call himself.

Lower Manhattan Church, Our Lady of Rosary, Vandalized In Latest Series of Attacks

For the second time in as many weekends there was an attack against a Catholic church in New York City.

Walter Chisolm, 42, allegedly broke into Our Lady of Rosary Catholic Church through a window and entered its shrine to Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, where he damaged a large crucifix, on Saturday, July 15, according to an NYPD spokesperson.

Chisolm, who was wearing a purple priestly vestment robe and no pants, was arrested for vandalizing the Manhattan shrine to the first American Catholic saint.

He attacked a responding officer, striking him in the face, causing minor injuries, according to the NYPD.