The following story first appeared in the Winter 2005 Glenmary Challenge.
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Glenmarian to Direct Catholic Committee of Appalachia
Sees CCA’s mission as serving the broken and the vulnerable by addressing the regional problems that affect parts of 26 dioceses.

Father John Rausch has been named director of the Catholic Committee of Appalachia. This grassroots organization gives “a voice to Catholic people working in mission and ministry in Appalachia,” Father John says.

CCA is a network of Catholic ministers—lay, ordained and professed—who work throughout Appalachia, but particularly in the central Appalachian region. The group, with about 400 members, studies social problems confronting the Church in this region—and helps find viable solutions.

“We act as a liaison between the people in ministry and the 26 bishops of the region who are part of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops,” Father John says. All or part of 26 dioceses in the eastern United States are part of the Appalachian region.

CCA has worked with the bishops of Appalachia in facilitating two pastorals on this region: This Land Is Home to Me and At Home in the Web of Life.

The first, published in 1975 and celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, highlights the powerlessness of the people who are held in the grip of corporations who own and control much of the land in Appalachia. The second, published 20 years later, examines sustainable communities, giving a vision for a healthier way of life.

Glenmary was instrumental in the creation of CCA in 1970. It began as a Catholic caucus within the Commission on Religion in Appalachia (CORA), which continues today. Among the early members of the Catholic caucus working ecumenically with CORA were Glenmary Fathers Les Schmidt, Charlie Hughes and John Rausch and Glenmary Sister Rosemary Esterkamp. “We were a Catholic minority in CORA, devoted to living a social expression of the gospel,” Father John says. Eventually that minority formed CCA.

A former CCA board member, Father John believes his work with CCA fits well with that of Glenmary. “As a Glenmary priest, I see this work as an expression of my calling to reach out to people who are broken and vulnerable,” he says. Some of the issues CCA is continuing to work on include poverty, mountain top removal, the drug problem, domestic and community violence and for-profit prisons. “Although we can’t solve all the problems associated with these issues, we hope to bring public awareness, offer education and resources and be a conduit for systemic change.

“My challenge is to re-awaken a sense of region in the Church’s mission,” he continues. “Many dioceses look at their own geography and don’t realize that social issues go beyond their boundaries.”

As CCA director, Father John will plan and promote the group’s educational and public relations efforts. And as spokesperson for the group, he will represent CCA to the Appalachian bishops.

In addition to his position with the Catholic Committee of Appalachia, Father John will continue working as the coordinator of peace and justice for the Diocese of Lexington, Ky., writing a syndicated column for the Catholic press and leading educational tours through the Appalachian region, an area he has called home for over 30 years.

To learn more about the work of the Catholic Committee of Appalachia, contact Jeannie Kirkhope, 213 Orchard Run Rd., Spencer, W.Va., 25276, 304-927-5798.