In preparation for Ash Wednesday, the students of Fremont Bishop Hoffman Catholic School’s Sacred Heart Campus attended a palm burning ceremony led by Father Kenneth Lill and Deacon Alfredo Diaz Feb. 16. (Photo courtesy of Bishop Hoffman Catholic School)

Construction workers are seen outside the newly renovated National Shrine of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini in Chicago Jan. 19. For nearly 10 years the shrine, run by the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, has been closed for major restoration and the construction of an urban garden area. The 56-year-old shrine, scheduled to reopen in the fall of 2012, is dedicated to the first American citizen to be declared a saint. (CNS photo/Karen Callaway/Catholic New World)

But the National Shrine of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, scheduled to reopen Sept. 30, marks the spot where Mother Cabrini, the first American citizen to be canonized and the universal patroness of immigrants, died. As such, it is the only one of Chicago's many shrines to be built on a spot of historical significance to the person that it honors.

The shrine building, constructed as an addition to Columbus Hospital in 1955, closed in 2002 after the hospital closed and was sold to developers.

It will reopen this fall with a new entranceway and lobby -- built as part of the ground floor of the neighboring condo building -- and with a new mission, said Sister Joan McGlinchey, a member of the general counsel of the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart, the order Mother Cabrini founded and brought to the United States in 1889.

Mother Cabrini died in 1917 and was canonized in 1946, and she had such a wide following that Cardinal Samuel Stritch, Chicago's archbishop from 1939 to 1958, helped build the shrine at Columbus Hospital nine years later, Sister Joan said.

But when the hospital was open, the shrine always served as a hospital chapel as well as a place of pilgrimage. It also was always supported by the hospital, even after the hospital itself became part of Catholic Health Partners and the sisters retained ownership of the attached shrine.

Then, Mass was celebrated twice daily, for a congregation made up mostly of hospital employees and the families of patients. When it reopens, Mass will be offered every weekend, and the shrine will be primarily a place of prayer and pilgrimage.

There were pilgrims before as well, said Father Theodore Ploplis, who became rector of the shrine when he was hired as chaplain of Columbus Hospital in 1987. He held that post until 2001 and will return to it this year.

"This was a place where a holy person lived and worked and died," said Father Ploplis, who currently is a chaplain at nearby St. Joseph Hospital.

Perhaps the most popular part of the shrine then was the replica of the room in the convent where Mother Cabrini died; the convent was torn down in the late 1960s or early 1970s, according to Sister Joan. The room that was attached to the shrine also has been torn down, but there will be a relic room in the new entrance space, Sister Joan said, and the first-class relic of Mother Cabrini -- an arm bone -- will be returned to the altar.

"It's not a museum," she told the Catholic New World, Chicago's archdiocesan newspaper. "But it is a place where we will have people visiting to learn about Mother Cabrini."

There's a lot for most people to learn. Sent to the United States by Pope Leo XIII to minister to immigrants, she traveled for nearly 30 years throughout the country and the world, founding orphanages, schools and hospitals. Father Ploplis said she was like the Mother Teresa of the turn of the last century, and was well known to politicians and civic leaders in Chicago, one of her main bases of operation.

When she was canonized, Catholics from all over the area filled the city's Soldier Field for a Mass of thanksgiving.

Several organizations who claim her as a patron plan to return to the shrine, Father Ploplis said, including the Knights of Columbus St. Catherine Council 182, the Mother Cabrini Regional Fraternity of the Secular Franciscan Order, the Catholic Physicians Guild and the St. Cabrini Adoration Society. There are plans to start eucharistic adoration at the shrine.

Father Ploplis also hopes to welcome non-Catholics and nonbelievers who might want to see the art and architecture of the shrine, which features walls made of Carrara marble, excavated from the same quarry used by Michelangelo; frescoes depicting the life of Mother Cabrini; and an Italian pipe organ, the only one of its kind in the United States. He hopes they will find a sense of peace there.

The priest and the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart also plan to work with Catholic schools and with the Chicago-area immigrant community, Sister Joan said.

The sisters, meanwhile, are "very much trusting in God" as they work to create a viable plan to sustain the shrine. Their numbers in Chicago have dwindled to six, and they don't have the financial resources to operate the shrine on their own.

"It's a challenge, but it will make a contribution to the church here in Chicago," Sister Joan said.

Five Toledo Notre Dame Academy students signed letters of intent to play sports at colleges during the next school year. The signing was part of a pep rally at the school Feb. 8. (Photo courtesy of Toledo Notre Dame Academy)

They joined five other members of the class of 2012 who have committed to play sports in college.

Signing were seniors Alexandra Aughenbaugh to The Ohio State University for cross country and track, Megan Herr for soccer at the University of Dayton, Caitlin McComish to the University of Toledo for soccer, Demy Whitaker to Bowling Green State University for soccer and Lexis Williams to the University of Toledo for track and field.

Five other NDA eagles who already signed in the fall and are to play college sports are Michelle DeHenning, volleyball for Ashland University; Rachael Dzierzak, swimming for The Ohio State University; Jocelyn Uchic, volleyball for Clarion University; Lisa Urbanski, volleyball for Owens Community College; and Catherina Wells, basketball for the University of Toledo.

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie appears on "Meet the Press" in Washington Jan. 22. The Catholic governor, as he had promised to do, quickly vetoed a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in the state Feb. 17 and renewed his call for a ballot question to decide the issue. The measure went to his desk after the state Assembly passed it Feb. 16, three days after the state Senate approved it. (CNS photo/William B. Plowman, courtesy NBC)

The state Assembly passed the bill Feb. 16 with a 42-33 vote. The state Senate approved it 24-16 Feb. 13.

When the bill reached his desk and he vetoed it, Christie said in a statement that "same-sex couples in a civil union deserve the very same rights and benefits enjoyed by married couples -- as well as the strict enforcement of those rights and benefits."

"Discrimination should not be tolerated and any complaint alleging a violation of a citizen's right should be investigated and, if appropriate, remedied," the Republican governor said, suggesting an ombudsman be appointed.

As the same-sex marriage measure moved through the Legislature, Christie, a Catholic, said legalizing marriage for same-sex couples should be put on the November ballot for voters to decide the issue.

In testimony at a Jan. 24 hearing, the executive director of the New Jersey Catholic Conference urged state lawmakers "to continue to recognize marriage as a union between one man and one woman. This is critical as marriage is the foundation of the family. The family, in turn, is the basic unit of society."

"Marriage as a union of one man and one woman has its roots not only in human tradition and history, but also in natural law, which transcends all man-made law," said Patrick Brannigan, executive director of the conference, which is the public policy arm of the state's Catholic bishops.

"Marriage is a natural institution," he said. "New Jersey, like other states, has from the beginning recognized marriage, honored it, and sought to support and protect it."

He also said while the Catholic Church opposes legalizing marriage for same-sex couples, it teaches that homosexuals "must be accepted with respect, compassion and sensitivity."

"The fundamental human rights of homosexuals must be defended and we must strive to eliminate any forms of injustice against homosexual persons," Brannigan said.

He noted that many supporters of same-sex marriage claim that the civil unions law "is not working," but that the state's Division of Civil Rights found that out of a total of 13 complaints filed since 2007, when the law was passed, authorities had found "probable cause" in only one of those complaints.

Brannigan also said couples in civil unions claim they are not able to participate in their partner's health care decisions, but he said the law guarantees they can, noting that Catholic-run health care facilities specifically allow individuals to designate "anyone they wish as a health care decision-maker."

Supporters of same-sex marriage criticized Christie's proposal to appoint an ombudsman to make sure the civil unions law is being upheld properly, saying that it is not an acceptable substitute for marriage for same-sex couples.

"It's not equal. It's not the same," Senate President Stephen Sweeney, a Democrat, told reporters. He and other advocates of legalizing same-sex marriage say it is a civil right guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.

The bill as passed by the Legislature included an exemption for religious leaders, churches and faith-based organizations so they could not be forced to perform marriage for same-sex couples or allow such couples the use of their facilities.

In Maryland, the House of Delegates Feb. 17 passed a measure to legalize same-sex marriage in that state. The Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee was expected to pass the House version Feb. 21 and advance it to the full Senate for consideration later in the week.

At home participants set aside a half hour to pray each day for five days. Each participant also meets with a spiritual director at Lial Renewal Center for a half hour on these five days.

The retreat begins March 11 with a gathering at 7 p.m. at Lial Renewal Center where participants learn more about the retreat and join together for a short prayer time.

The retreat closes with a light supper and ritual that begins at 6 p.m. March 16. Retreatants and their directors schedule convenient times to meet each day.

The registration fee is $50 per person. For more information and to register, contact Notre Dame Sister Mary Dean Pfahler at 419-877-0432 or email mdpfahler@toledosnd.org. Registration is also available online at www.toledosnd.org/lial_renewal.html.