January 2014 - Catholic Diocese of Brownsville

Transcripción

Volume 5, Issue 7
Serving More Than A Million Catholics in the Diocese of Brownsville
Baptized in
the Holy Spirit
January 2014
For more photos on new
churches, renovations, see page 8
Charismatic
Renewal
Conference
Jan. 17-18
By ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
SAN JUAN —“I am an Andrew,” said Irma Gomez, a parishioner at Holy Spirit Church in
McAllen. “Just like Andrew introduced his brother Peter to Jesus, we
want to introduce our brothers and
sisters to Jesus.”
Gomez said that is the mission
of the second annual Charismatic
Renewal Conference, set for Jan.
17-18 at the Basilica of Our Lady of
San Juan del Valle-National Shrine.
The theme of the event is, “The
New Pentecost” and it will feature
speakers, workshops, music, liturgy and prayer.
The conference will kick off on
Friday, Jan. 17 with registration
and check-in from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m.
The events will begin at 7 p.m. with
praise and worship and a keynote
address by Msgr. Juan Nicolau, pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help
Parish in McAllen.
On Saturday, Jan. 18, the day
will begin at 8 a.m. with registration and check-in, followed by
prayer and worship and a variety
of breakouts sessions and speakers. Bishop Daniel E. Flores will be
among the presenters. He is scheduled to speak about Mary, Our
Blessed Mother as an evangelizer.
The bishop will also celebrate Mass
at 5:30 p.m.
More than 300 attended the inaugural Charismatic Renewal Conference at the University of TexasPan American in Edinburg in 2013.
Deacon Alex Gamboa of St.
Joseph the Worker Parish in McAllen said the basilica was selected as
the event venue in 2014 because of
its centralized location. He and the
other organizers hope the conference will be accessible for all who
wish to attend.
“The ultimate goal of the conference is to promote formation
and ministry for the participants
within their parishes,” he said. “We
» Please see Charismatic, p.13
Eric Sanchez/The Valley Catholic
Bishop Daniel E. Flores anoints the walls of
the new St. John the Baptist Church in San
Juan on Nov. 24, 2013.
St. John the
Baptist Parish
dedicates new
sanctuary
By ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis is not seeking fame or accolades,
but being named Time magazine’s
Person of the Year will make him
happy if it helps attract people to
the hope of the Gospel, said the
Vatican spokesman.
“It’s a positive sign that one of
the most prestigious recognitions
in the international press” goes to
a person who “proclaims to the
world spiritual, religious and moral
values and speaks effectively in favor of peace and greater justice,”
said the spokesman, Jesuit Father
Federico Lombardi.
The choice of Pope Francis “is
not surprising, given the wide appeal and huge attention” to his
pontificate so far, Father Lombardi
said in a written statement Dec. 11,
shortly after Time announced it
had named the pope for the annual
feature.
“Rarely has a new player on the
SAN JUAN — “This is the work
of the Church,” Bishop Daniel E.
Flores said. “We have to be thinking of who is not here, people who
maybe feel they have no place and
invite them to come. The only reason we need bigger churches is so
that we can invite more people, because the work of the Church is the
building up of the people.”
Bishop Flores blessed and dedicated a new 10,000-square-foot
sanctuary for St. John the Baptist
Parish on Nov. 24, replacing the
38-year-old church that was filled
with standing-room-only crowds
on most Sundays.
Rows of sturdy wood pews with
comfortable kneelers have taken
the place of the maize colored plastic and metal chairs that the parishioners once sat in for Mass.
The new church, which was
designed by Richard Moore & Associates of San Antonio, seats more
than 900. The total cost of the project was $1.75 million. Plans for the
new church included the bell tower
from the original San Juan Shrine,
which was dedicated in 1954.
Bishop Flores celebrated three
dedication Masses in as many
weeks. A week after the festivities
at St. John the Baptist Church, Our
Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Mis-
» Please see Person of the Year, p.5
» Please see Blessing, p.14
PRO-LIFE MARCH
DIVINE MERCY
THOSE WHO SERVE
Time’s choice not surprising
Pope Francis is third
pope to win Person
of the Year honor
By CAROL GLATZ
Catholic News Service
EN
EN ESPAÑOL
ESPAÑOL
Artículos sobre la Jornada
Mundial de la Paz, y una
marcha en contra del aborto
“VERBUM MITTITUR
SPIRANS AMOREM”
(“The WORD is sent
breathing love.”)
Event set for Jan. 11
Page 3
Conference to be held in
Weslaco
Page 4
Brother André LeMay, OFM
Page 9
Paginas 11-13
2
DIOCESE
Familia Mas
Alla de las
Fronteras
Obispos Católicos de la frontera
Texas-México publicaron una carta
pastoral titulada, “Familia más
allá de las fronteras,” tratando las
profundamente humanas tragedias
familiares que se sufren bajo el
sistema migratorio actual.
Los Obispos Fronterizos representando a la diócesis y arquidiócesis; de México (Chihuahua, Ciudad
Juárez, Matamoros, Nuevo Casas
Grandes, Nuevo Laredo y Piedras
Negras), Texas (Brownsville, El
Paso, Laredo y San Antonio) y Nuevo México (Diócesis de Las Cruces);
explican que se sintieron obligados a
escribir este documento, “Notamos
especialmente la cultura de incremente violencia afectando muchos
países de origen, los peligros de la
migración, y la extensa pobreza y
desempleo afectando especialmente
a los jóvenes de familias inmigrantes. El sistema de inmigración actual
en los Estados Unidos agrava estas
difíciles condiciones crónicas que
afectan a las familias.”
“Familias más allá de las
fronteras” fue enviado al Presidente
Barack Obama y también será
distribuido a los Senadores de Texas
y los miembros de la Cámara de
representantes como también a una
serie de líderes civiles y de fe.
A continuación una sección de
la carta.
Queridos hermanos y
hermanas en Cristo:
Desde su elección como Pontífice Romano, el Papa Francisco
ha declarado frecuentemente
que nuestros esfuerzos en la
renovación de la Iglesia tendrán
credibilidad solamente cuando nos
convirtamos en cristianos valientes
y procuremos servir aquellos que
más nos necesitan. El Santo Padre
ha reconocido el drama trágico de
millones de inmigrantes en todos
los continentes como también la
seria y gran responsabilidad de la
Iglesia al respecto:
La Iglesia es madre y su
atención maternal se expresa con
especial ternura y cercanía para
aquellos que se ven obligados a
dejar su propio país y existir entre
el desarraigo y la integración. Esta
The Valley Catholic - January 2014
Family Beyond Borders
“Catholic Bishops of the Texas-Mexican
border published a joint pastoral letter titled,
“Family Beyond Borders,” addressing the profoundly human tragedies families are suffering
under the current immigration system.
The Border Bishops representing dioceses
and archdiocese; From Mexico (Chihuaha,
Ciudad Juárez, Matamoros, Nuevo Casas
Grandes, Nuevo Laredo, and Piedras Negras),
Texas (Brownsville, El Paso, Laredo, and San
Antonio) and New Mexico (Diocese of Las
Cruces); explain they felt compelled to write
this document, “We note especially the culture
of increasing violence affecting many countries
of origin, the dangers of migration itself, and
the widespread poverty and unemployment
especially affecting the youth from immigrant
families. The current immigration system in
the United States exacerbates these chronically
difficult conditions affecting families.”
“Family Beyond Borders” was sent to President Barack Obama and will also be distributed to the Texas Senators and members of the
House of Representatives as well as a number of
civic and faith leaders.
An excerpt of the letter follows.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:
Since his election as Roman Pontiff, Pope
Francis has often stated that our efforts to
renew the Church will only have credibility
when we become courageous Christians and
seek out those on the margins who are most
in need. The Holy Father has recognized the
tragedy that involves millions of migrants
on every continent; and the Holy Father has
given expression to the Church’s responsibilities in their regard:
The Church is mother and her motherly
attention is expressed with special tenderness
and closeness to those who are obliged to flee
their own country and exist between rootlessness and integration. This tension destroys
people. Christian compassion, “suffering
with compassion”- is expressed first of all in
the commitment to obtain knowledge of the
events that force people to leave their homeland, and, where necessary, to give voice to
those who cannot manage to make their cry of
distress and oppression heard.1
As bishops of the border region, we write
to you because of the urgency of the Church’s
task to serve the suffering Christ whose image
we see in the suffering people we encounter
daily in streets and in our neighborhoods.
This suffering is present throughout our
dioceses, in our parishes, our health care and
tensión destruye a las personas. La
compasión cristiana -este «sufrir con», con-pasión-se expresa
700 N. Virgen de San Juan Blvd., San Juan, TX 78589-3042
Telephone: 956/781-5323 • Fax: 956/784-5082
Bishop Daniel E. Flores
Publisher
Brenda Nettles Riojas
Editor
Rose Ybarra
Assistant Editor
The Valley Catholic email:
[email protected]
Follow us on facebook
Catholic Diocese of Brownsville
www.cdob.org
Subscription rate
ZBG Studio/Graphic Design
$15 per year • $17 outside of Texas
$25 out of U.S.
Terry De Leon
South Texas Circulation
The Valley Catholic,
Circulation
Advertising
(956) 784-5055
Gustavo Morales
Lower Valley
(956) 266-1527
Gilbert Saenz
Upper Valley
(956) 451-5416
a publication of the
Diocese of Brownsville,
is published monthly
Member of
the Catholic Press Assocition
MOST REVEREND
DANIEL E. FLORES
BISHOP OF BROWNSVILLE
social service institutions, and in our youth
groups.
PRINCIPLES AND PERSPECTIVES:
The Church bases her teaching on immigration in the Sacred Scripture and in the tradition of Catholic Social teaching. In 2003, the
Catholic Bishops of Mexico and the United
States published a pastoral letter, “Strangers
No Longer,” which expressed anew this teaching; in it the bishops spoke of five principles
that should guide our views on immigration?
1. All people have the right to find opportunities for a decent life in their homeland.
2. All people have the right to migrate to
support themselves and their families.
3. Nations have the right to control their
borders.
4. Refugees and asylum seekers have the
right to safety and protection.
5. Undocumented migrants have human
rights, which include dignity and the right to
participate in civil society.
Since the publication of this letter, our
greatest concern as pastors and bishops on the
Mexico U.S. border has been, and continues to
be, the difficult conditions faced by migrants
and their families.
The majority of immigrants today are of
Latin-American descent. Many perceive that
immigration is merely a one-way movement
of needy people from Latin America in search
of a more prosperous life in the United States.
They tend to see immigrants as masses of
poor people endlessly on the move, willing
to live beyond the borders of their homeland
without their families. It is also said that immigrants and their families do not contribute
to American society and culture, that they
simply come to take advantage of the welfare
system. Such perspectives lack realism, and
do not perceive the demanding conditions
affecting immigrants and their families; and
they fail to acknowledge the contributions of
immigrants to our society.
principalmente en el compromiso
de obtener el conocimiento de los
eventos que obligan a las personas
a dejar su patria, y, cuando sea
necesario, darles voz a aquellos que
no logran que su llanto de angustia
y opresión sean escuchados. 1
Los obispos de la zona fronteriza les escribimos debido a la
urgente tarea de la Iglesia para
servir a los que sufren. Vemos la
imagen de Cristo en las personas
que sufren y en aquellas con las
que nos encontramos diariamente
en nuestras calles y en nuestros
vecindarios. Este sufrimiento se
encuentra presente en nuestra
diócesis, en nuestras parroquias,
en nuestras instituciones del cuidado de salud y servicio social y en
nuestros grupos de jóvenes.
PRINCIPIOS Y
PERSPECTIVAS:
La Iglesia basa su enseñanza
sobre inmigración en la Sagrada
Escritura y en la tradición de la
The nuclear and extended family are essential to the very fabric of life in any society;
this is as true of in modem American society,
as it is in traditional Latino cultures. As the
place where life and human relationships are
first nourished, family life deserves attentive pastoral care from the Church, and the
support of the wider social community. This
is particularly true in situations where in the
family structure must bear the great strain of
destabilizing social, political, and economic
forces.
Today, immigrant families face many
serious threats. Among these threats, we note
especially the culture of increasing violence
affecting many countries of origin, the dangers of migration itself, and the widespread
poverty and unemployment especially affecting the youth in immigrant families. The
current immigration system in the United
States exacerbates these chronically difficult
conditions affecting families. As pastors, we
are challenged to increase our outreach to defend families and to show special concern for
their children. As a Church we must all work
together to defend the family against the evils
that threaten to undermine this cherished and
vulnerable source of our Catholic and cultural
identity. As shepherds serving in both the
United States and in Mexico, we urge all to remember how the virtues and values of family
life have historically sustained the growth and
greatness of both our great nations. Looking
to the future, respecting and preserving family
life is the indispensable condition for building
a safer, more secure life for our children.
There are many misperceptions concerning undocumented immigrants and their contribution to society in the United States. For
example, immigrants do pay taxes; between
one half and three quarters of undocumented
immigrants pay state and federal taxes. They
also contribute to Medicare and provide as
much as $7 billion annually to the Social Security Fund, even though they are not eligible
for Social Security benefits. Undocumented
immigrants have a net benefit, not a drain,
on the U.S. economy. The American Farm
Bureau reports that without guest workers the
U.S. economy would lose nearly $9 billion a
year in agricultural production.3
The complete letter is available both in English
and Spanish online at www.cdob.org
enseñanza social católica. En el
2003, los Obispos Católicos de
México y de los Estados Unidos
publicaron una carta pastoral, “Ya
no somos Extranjeros,” la cual
expresa esta enseñanza, en ella los
obispos hablaron sobre cinco principios que deberían guiar nuestro
punto de vista sobre inmigración:2
1. Todas las personas tienen
el derecho de encontrar oportunidades de tener una vida decente en
su patria.
2. Todas las personas tienen el
derecho de inmigrar para mantenerse a sí mismos y a sus familias.
3. Las naciones tienen el derecho de controlar sus fronteras.
4. Los refugiados y los que
buscan asilo tienen el derecho de
seguridad y protección.
5. Los inmigrantes indocumentados tienen derechos humanos, los cuales incluyen la dignidad
y el derecho de participar en una
sociedad civil.
Desde la publicación de esta
Bishop Flores’ Schedule
Jan. 2
10 a.m.
San Juan
Talk for 2nd Annual Diocesan Stewardship Conference
Jan. 4
11:30 a.m.
San Juan
Mass for 2nd Annual Diocesan Stewardship Conference
Jan. 18
4:30 p.m.
Basilica
Talk & Mass for Charismatic Movements
Jan. 19
10 a.m.
San Juan
Mass for Deacon’s Annual Retreat
carta, nuestra mayor preocupación
como pastores y obispos en la
frontera de México y Estados Unidos ha sido, y continua siendo, las
condiciones difíciles que enfrentan
los inmigrantes y sus familias.
Hoy en día, la mayoría de los
inmigrantes son de descendencia
latinoamericana. Muchos perciben
que la inmigración es simplemente
un movimiento de individuos en
extrema necesidad procediendo
de América Latina en busca de
una vida próspera en los Estados
Unidos. Ordinariamente se ve a los
inmigrantes hispanos como una
masa de gente pobre, dispuestos
a vivir más allá de las fronteras
de su patria sin arraigo de la vida
familiar. También se dice que los
inmigrantes y sus familias no
contribuyen a la sociedad y cultura
americana, que simplemente
vienen a tomar ventaja del sistema
de bienestar público. Dichas
perspectivas no son realistas y no
» Por favor lea Carta de los obispos, p.13
January
Jan. 24
6 p.m.
Spirit Award Banquet
Jan. 25
8:20 a.m.
4th Annual Divine Mercy Conference
Jan. 25
10:30 a.m.
La Posada Providencia 25th Anniversary
McAllen
Weslaco
Harlingen
DIOCESE
January 2014- The Valley Catholic
3
BUILDING AND PROPERTY
OFFICE
Para
servirles
The Valley Catholic
The Building and Property
Office oversees all construction
projects, property managment,
real estate matters and property insurance claims in the
Diocese of Brownsville. The
office works conscientiously
at applying good stewardship
practices to care for the diocese’s blessings and resources.
This department is responsible for assisting the parishes,
schools and other diocesan
entities in matters related to
new construction, renovations
and maintenance, which includes maintenance of building
walls, roof integrity, the upkeep
of electrical, plumbing and
air conditioning systems and
parking areas. The department
is responsible for preparation
of bid process and presenting
plans and specifications of all
construction to the building
committee and for advising the
bishop and pastors in matters
related to the purchasing or
selling of property.
The office is located in the
John J. Fitzpatrick Building
of the Upper Valley Pastoral
Center and is headed by director Javier Solis, who has served
the diocese for more than 11
years. He is assisted by Rey
Rivera. They are both members of the the Conference for
Catholic Facility Management,
a national network.
The year 2013 was a busy
year for the Building and
Property Office. Three new
sanctuaries were blessed and
dedicated: St. Theresa of the
Infant Jesus Parish in Edcouch,
St. John the Baptist Church
in San Juan and St. Eugene de
Mazenod Church in Brownsville. Three more churches
completed major renovations,
St. Anne Church in Pharr, Our
Lady of Guadalupe Church
in Mission and the Immaculate Conception Cathedral in
Brownsville.
Other major projects
included the completion of the
new gymnasium and classrooms at St. Joseph School
in Edinburg, a new religious
education center/parish hall at
Sacred Heart Parish in Escobares and a bell tower renovation project at Our Lady of
Mercy Parish in Mercedes.
Projects expected to be
completed in 2014 include a
new sanctuary for Our Lady of
Holy Rosary Parish in Mission,
a new religious education center for Our Lady of Perperual
Help Parish in McAllen, a new
multi-purpose building for
San Cristobal Magallanes in
Mission, a new parish hall for
Santa Monica Mission Church,
a new gymnasium and classrooms for St. Anthony Parish
in Harlingen and the renovation of the old Sacred Heart
Church in Edinburg to a parish
hall and religious education
center.
Office: Building and Property
Director: Javier Solis
Phone: (956) 781-5323
Honoring
religious priests,
brothers, sisters
The Valley Catholic
The Valley Catholic
Pro-lifers of all faiths are invited to participate in a march set for Jan. 11, which will process through the streets of downtown McAllen.
More than 1,000 attended the event last year, which commemorates the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion.
Marching for Life
Organizers aim to
raise awareness in
the public square
The Valley Catholic
The Respect Life Apostolate is
organizing a march in McAllen on
Saturday, Jan. 11. The event will
begin with opening prayers at 9
a.m. at St. Joseph the Worker Parish, 900 S. 23rd St. continue into
downtown where it will pass by
the local abortion clinic and end
at Sacred Heart Parish, 306 S. 15th
St. with closing prayers.
The march is held in reparation for the more than 55 million
babies who have been killed in
the United States since the Roe v.
Wade Supreme Court ruling on
Jan. 22, 1973 that legalized abortion. Pro-life activists across the
nation are observing the anniversary with events of prayer and action.
In 2013, the march was held
in downtown McAllen for the first
time and drew more than a 1,000
pro-life warriors.
“We want to raise awareness
in the public square,” said Cecilia
Batungbacal, one of the event’s
organizers. “We need to send the
message that we are not going to
stay in our houses and churches
praying for the end of abortion.
We are going to stand up for God’s
commandments publicly.”
The abortion facilities in
McAllen and Harlingen are
among the clinics in Texas that can
no longer legally offer abortions
after new legislation took effect.
The law requires that all medical
providers who perform abortions
have admitting privileges at local
hospitals.
The McAllen facility, however,
is offering referrals to other abortion clinics around the state, said
Diamantina Barba, a counselor
at McAllen Pregnancy Center, a
Catholic, pro-life facility.
Calls and visits to the McAl-
len Pregnancy Center have also
increased since the new laws went
into effect. The center is located
about two blocks away from the
abortion clinic.
“We have many women calling us, desperate to have an abortion,” Barba said. “They are frantic
because they can’t find a place to
have an abortion. We have been
very busy. Please continue to pray
for us, these women and their babies.
“We are the only voice these
babies have,” Barba added.
Even though abortions are no
longer performed there, Barba
and other pro-lifers have continued to visit the sidewalk outside
of the abortion clinic to pray and
counsel the women going in and
out of the facility.
In Harlingen, the owner of the
abortion clinic has been very vocal
about his intent to assist women
seeking abortions and refers women to Mexico buy abortifacient
» Please see Life, p.15
Welcoming the stranger
Shelter marks silver
anniversary, plans
fundraiser
Special to The Valley Catholic
HARLINGEN— La Posada
Providencia will host its annual
Hands & Hearts brunch and auction event at 9 a.m. on Saturday,
Jan. 25 at the Cultural Arts Center of Texas State Technical College in Harlingen.
Tickets are $35 per person
and may be purchased by contacting La Posada Providencia
at (956)399-3826, or agonzalez@
lppshelter.org, or in person by
visiting the shelter, 30094 Marydale Road in San Benito.
In 2014, La Posada will be celebrating its 25th anniversary of
“welcoming the stranger” to the
Rio Grande Valley. Since 1989,
the emergency shelter has helped
more than 7,000 people from
more than 70 different countries
who have suffered displacement
Courtesy photo
Esperanza carried her daughter, Ana, to
the U.S. for a better life.
from their native lands due to war,
famine, natural disaster, poverty
or oppressive governments.
A ministry of the Sisters of
the Divine Providence, La Posada
provides clients with safe shelter,
food, clean clothes, local transportation and supportive services,
including English classes and life
skills lessons to help them take the
necessary steps to achieving selfsufficiency and responsible integration into U.S. culture.
La Posada has assisted people
like Esperanza and her family,
who sought help from the shelter
in August 2013. Esperanza’s nineyear-old daughter, Ana, was born
with a birth defect and is unable
to walk. Until they arrived at La
Posada, Esperanza still carried
Ana in her arms everywhere she
went.
Esperanza’s husband—the father of her children—died soon
after Ana was born. The family
had no money for medical treatment or a wheelchair for Ana.
When the family’s house was
destroyed by a tornado two years
ago, the impoverished family
made the decision to leave Guatemala. Accompanied by her 11
year-old son José and 14 year old
daughter Maria, Esperanza carried Ana in her arms to the United
States in hopes of finding a better
life—and possibly medical care for
Ana. Esperanza with Ana in her
arms and accompanied by José
and Maria, arrived at La Posada on
August 14. Thanks to the La Posada staff, who put a call out to their
supporters, a local medical supply
company donated a wheelchair for
Ana that very afternoon.
SAN JUAN — On Sunday,
Feb. 2, Bishop Daniel E. Flores will
celebrate a Mass in honor of World
Day for Consecrated Life at 3 p.m.
at the Basilica of Our Lady of San
Juan del Valle-National Shrine.
All religious priests, brothers and
sisters serving in the Diocese of
Brownsville are invited to attend
the Mass.
The faithful are also encouraged to attend the public Mass to
express their support and gratitude
for the men and women religious
who serve our community.
There are more than 150 in
religious life in our diocese serving
in a variety of ministries. They are
Catholic school and public school
educators, social workers, hospital
chaplains, nurses, catechists and
much more. Most serve in multiple ministries within the Church
and in the secular world, using
their talents and abilities to serve
God and our society.
Sister Leticia Benavides of
the Missionaries of Jesus, one of
the event’s organizers, said it is
wonderful to share this celebration
with the people of God.
“It is important to have some
visibility of the religious serving in
our community,” she said. “We are
called to be a sign of God’s kingdom here on earth and this Mass is
a moment to remember that.”
In 1997, Pope John Paul II
called for the men and women in
religious Life — those serving in
Institutes of Consecrated Life and
Societies of Apostolic Life — to
be recognized throughout the
Church.
World Day for Consecrated
Life is attached to the Feast of
the Presentation of the Lord on
Feb. 2. This Feast is also known
as Candlemas Day, the day on
which candles are blessed symbolizing Christ who is the light of the
world.
The U.S. Conference of
Catholic Bishops asks the faithful
to please pray for all those who
have made commitments in the
consecrated and apostolic life, and
be sure to thank them on their
special day. May they continue to
be inspired by Jesus Christ and
respond generously to God’s gift of
their vocation.
Prayer for Religious Life
God our Father, we thank you
for calling men and women to serve
in your Son’s Kingdom as sisters,
brothers, religious priests, consecrated virgins, hermits, as well as
members of Secular Institutes and
Societies of Apostolic Life. Renew
their knowledge and love of you,
and send your Holy Spirit to help
them respond generously and courageously to your will. We ask this
through our Lord Jesus Christ, who
lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and
ever. Amen.
DIOCESE
4
»Family Life
»Women speak
for themselves
en el Valle
Lydia Pesina
Director, Family
Life Office
Family spiritual
plan for the
new year
A
s we begin a new year,
the Year 2014 A.D. (Ano
domini) 2014 In the Year
of Our Lord, we are reminded
that the Church has a long and
beautiful history. As Christians we
believe that the most important
and significant event in the history
of mankind, is the coming of Our
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. That
is why we began a new calendar
2,014 years ago which we use to the
present.
We just celebrated the virgin birth of the baby Jesus from
December 25th through Epiphany,
The Feast of The Three Kings.
Many of us celebrated this great
commemoration with wonderful
cultural and seasonal foods such as
tamales, ham, and lots of Christmas sweets. And then we begin to
make New Year’s resolutions, or at
least New Year Plans: diet plans,
home improvement plans, exercise
plans, financial plans, vacation
plans, etc. Perhaps it is also a good
time to make a “Family Spiritual
Plan”.
As Christian families, perhaps
that is one of our most important
roles; to assist our family in whatever shape or stage it finds itself in,
to continue to grow spiritually; to
continue to nourish our spiritual
life so as to become the person
God has so uniquely created us to
be.
Recently, I was reviewing some
of the Church’s documents that we
highlight in a course entitled “Ministry with Families 101: a Ministry
Formation Experience for All
Whose Efforts Impact Families”. It
is a joy to read some of the beautiful words that have been written
by our Church leaders over the
years about our role as Christian
families. I would like to share a few
excerpts from some of these documents that remind us of that role.
• Lumen Gentium, #11( Dogmatic Constitution on the Church,
1965) “…the parents, by word and
example, are the first heralds of the
faith with regard to their children.
• Gaudium et Spes, #48, 50, &
52 (Pastoral Constitution on the
Church in the Modern World,
1963) The family is, in a sense, a
school for human enrichment…
• Apostolicam Acutositatem,
#11( Decree on the Apostalate of
the Laity, 1965) the family has
received from God its mission to
be the first and vital cell of society.
It will fulfill this mission if it shows
itself to be the domestic sanctuary
of the Church through the mutual
affection of its members and the
common prayer they offer to God,
if the whole family is caught up
in the liturgical worship of the
Church and if it provides active
hospitality and promotes justice
and other good works for the service of all their brethren in need.
• Evangelii Nuntiandi, #71
(Evangelization in the Modern
World , 1975) in a family, which
» Please see Spiritual Plan, p.15
Brenda
Nettles Riojas
Bishop Daniel E. Flores
Father Anthony Gramlich, MIC
Divine Mercy for Souls
Annual
Conference
set for Jan. 25
The Valley Catholic
Fountain of Mercy Ministries, a local apostolate, is hosting
its fourth annual Divine Mercy
Conference on Saturday, Jan.
25 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the
Weslaco ISD Performing Arts
Center, 506 E. 6th St. Organzers
said that they hope, that through
this conference, God’s children
will become zealous for the salvation of souls.
Keynote speakers:
Bishop Daniel E. Flores —
The title of his presentation is, “I
Thirst ...” The bishop endorsed
the conference in a letter to the
priests of the diocese. “May this
serve as a reminder to prepare
ourselves for the holy season of
Lent, which will come one short
month after the conference,” the
letter reads.
Father Anthony Gramlich,
MIC — He serves at the National
Shrine of Divine Mercy in Stockbridge, Mass. One of the missions
of his religious community, the
Marians of Immaculate Conception, is to spread the message and
devotion of Divine Mercy. He will
make two presentations titled,
“St. Faustina and the Salvation of
Souls,” and “Empty Purgatory.”
Father Jose Maniyangat — A
missionary priest from Orange
Park, Fla., Father Maniyangat is
an advocate of Eucharistic healing for those seeking spritual,
mental and physical relief. Father
Maniyangat will share his life after death experience which took
place in 1985 on the Feast of Divine Mercy.
How much is it?
Early registration is $25. Continental breakfast and lunch are
included. Organizers said that
cost should not deter those interested in attending from registering as scholarships are available.
Admission is free for priests, deacons and religious brothers and
sisters.
How do I register?
Organizers ask that everyone
complete the registration process, even those attending at no
cost, for planning purposes. Preregistration is available online at
www.fomm.us or contact Triny
(956) 472-0119 or Yolanda (956)
454-2103.
The Valley Catholic
Far right, Bishop Daniel
E. Flores and Father
Joaquin Zermeño, parish
administrator of St.
Isidore Church in San
Isidro and Immaculate
Conception Church in
McCook chat before the
bishop’s presentation
on Heaven, Hell and
Purgatory at the Thirsty
Monkey in Edinburg on
Nov. 4.
Heaven, Hell and Purgatory
The Valley Catholic
The following questions were
posed to Bishop Daniel E. Flores
following his talk on “Heaven,
Hell, & Purgatory” during a
Theology on Tap session Nov. 4,
2013 in Edinburg. He addresses
the “devil’s end game of despair”
and the importance of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the
Sick.
You can listen to the bishop’s
answers online at www.cdob.
org.
1. Why do we need the Sacrament of the Anointing of the
Sick?
2. What if you confess your
mortal sins to God but not to a
priest, will you go to heaven or
hell?
3. When in purgatory is
physical pain infected?
4. Is it a mortal sin to desire
to die, so I can meet the presence
of Jesus already? Sometimes I
don’t want to deal with the heartaches of this life and just be with
Jesus? 5. What can we do to
help souls in purgatory; purify
our souls now so our time in
purgatory will be less? Are there
some prayers that we can say?
6. Does anyone escape purgatory?
7. Could you clarify the reason for wearing a scapular?
8. It is said that the souls
that go to hell do not belong to
the mystical body of Christ; that
they are no longer part of the
same; in turn does this isolation
affect the essence of the human
spirit? What can we expect happens to the soul after spending
time in hell?
9. I was once told that heaven
Editor of The
Valley Catholic
Father Jose Maniyangat
is not an actual physical place
but rather a state of the human
soul?
10. If we get to be blessed to
go to heaven, will we get to see
our godparents and our spouses
only; in other words only the
people who were present during
our lives?
11. What is the Church’s view
on spreading ashes?
12. Is it wrong to assume that
a child with severe brain damage who is bed bound will go
straight to heaven?
13. Why are kids born with
diseases?
14. What do you think
about organ donation? Does the
Church approve?
15. Who is an angel?
16. If one commits suicide,
will God forgive? Do they go to
purgatory or hell?
Peacemakers:
You and I
C
an one person make a difference in the world?
We can look to the
saints and their examples for the
answer; we can look to the two
blessed popes, Blessed John XXIII
and John Paul II, who will be
canonized April 27; we can look
to Pope Francis, Time Magazine’s
2013 Person of the Year, who is
calling on each of us to be revolutionaries and leave the comfort of
our homes and parishes to go out
into the streets and share the good
news with others; we can look to
men and women in our own community.
In this New Year, Pope Francis
calls us to be peacemakers. He believes each of us can make a difference. In his message for World Day
for Peace, for which he chose the
theme, “Fraternity, the foundation
and pathway to peace,” he writes,
“A lively awareness of our relatedness helps us to look upon and to
treat each person as a true sister or
brother.”
He cautions against a ‘globalization of indifference’ which
makes us slowly inured to the
suffering of others and closed in on
ourselves.” I think this ‘globalization of indifference’ he refers to
happens when we stop listening
to God’s direction and lose sight
of how connected we are in this
world.
Recently I reviewed the book
Let the Great World Spin by
Column McCann. The author
weaves in and out of 11 different
characters’ lives. He illustrates how
people connect and each character
in some way has touched another’s
life. In the closing chapter, there is
a line that sums up what some days
feel like – “The world spins. We
stumble on.”
We can become dizzy, disoriented, disillusioned, with the
speed in which our days run and
with the unrest that persists in the
world, along our border, in our
communities, sometimes in our
own homes. Daily headlines about
violence along our borders in Texas
and Mexico and about the unrest
in other parts of the world, point to
the desperate need for peace. The
struggle for peace always leaves me
distressed and without answers.
Sometimes self doubt derails me
and I begin to lose hope. The task
seems daunting from my vantage
point and I wonder how I, living
here in the Rio Grande Valley, can
work for peace in the world?
Pope Francis, writes in his
message for World Day for Peace,
“We Christians believe that in the
Church we are all members of a
single body, all mutually necessary, because each has been given a
grace according to the measure of
the gift of Christ, for the common
good (cf. Eph 4:7,25; 1 Cor 12:7).”
Jesus Christ says – “I am
» Please see Peacemakers, p.13
FAITH
January 2014 - The Valley Catholic
»Sunday
Readings
The Word of God in the Life
and Mission of the Church
JANUARY 5
(Solemnity of the Epiphany
of the Lord)
Reading I IS 60:1-6
Responsorial Psalm
PS 72:1-2, 7-8, 10-11, 12-13
Reading II EPH 3:2-3A, 5-6
Gospel MT 2:1-12
JANUARY 12
(Feast of the Baptism of the Lord)
Reading I IS 42:1-4, 6-7
Responsorial Psalm
PS 29:1-2, 3-4, 3, 9-10
Reading II ACTS 10:34-38
Gospel
MT 3:13-17
JANUARY 19
(Second Sunday in Ordinary Time)
Reading I IS 49:3, 5-6
Responsorial Psalm
PS 40:2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10
Reading II
Gospel
1 COR 1:1-3
JN 1:29-34
JANUARY 26
(Third Sunday in Ordinary Time)
Reading I
IS 8:23-9:3
Responsorial Psalm
PS 27:1, 4, 13-14
Reading II 1 COR 1:10-13, 17
Gospel
MT 4:12-23
Person of the Year,
continued from pg. 1
world stage captured so much attention so quickly -- young and
old, faithful and cynical -- as has
Pope Francis,” Time said on its
website. “With a focus on compassion, the leader of the Catholic Church has become a new
voice of conscience.”
Blessed John Paul II was
named Person of the Year in
1994 and Blessed John XXIII in
1962.
Other past honorees include several U.S. Presidents,
Mahatma Gandhi, Adolf Hitler,
Josef Stalin and Mark Zuckerberg, founder of Facebook. The
magazine says the title goes to
the person or idea that “for better or worse ... has done the most
to influence events of the year.”
The pope “does not seek
fame and success, because he
serves to proclaim the Gospel
and God’s love for everyone,”
Father Lombardi said. But if the
recognition “attracts women and
men and gives them hope, the
pope is happy.”
The spokesman added that
Pope Francis would also be
pleased if the magazine’s decision “means that many have understood, at least implicitly, this
message” of hope.
5
»Making Sense of Bioethics
Ethical Directives in Catholic Hospitals
A
t the beginning of December, the American Civil
Liberties Union filed a
sweeping federal lawsuit against
the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops over its Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic hospitals, alleging that the Directives,
with their prohibition against direct abortion, resulted in negligent
care of a pregnant woman named
Tamesha Means. Ms. Means’ water
broke at 18 weeks, leading to infection of the amniotic membranes,
followed by spontaneous labor
and delivery of her child. The child
lived only a few hours.
During the course of these
events, Ms. Means went a Catholic
hospital in Michigan several times,
and, according to the lawsuit, was
sent home even as contractions
were starting. The lawsuit not only
suggests that she should have been
given a drug to induce labor early
on but claims this wasn’t possible
precisely because the hospital
was Catholic and bound by the
Directives. It further asserts that
Catholic hospitals are not able to
terminate a woman’s pregnancy by
inducing premature labor “even if
necessary for her health,” because
to do so would be “prohibited” by
the Directives.
In point of fact, however, the
Directives would not prevent the
early induction of labor for these
cases. Not infrequently, labor is
induced in Catholic hospitals in
complete conformity with the
Directives. Directive #47 (never
mentioned in the lawsuit) is very
clear: “Operations, treatments,
and medications that have as
their direct purpose the cure of a
Tadeusz
Pacholczyk
Priest of the
Diocese of Fall
River
proportionately serious pathological condition of a pregnant woman
are permitted when they cannot be
safely postponed until the unborn
child is viable, even if they will
result in the death of the unborn
child.”
Deciding about whether to
induce labor involves the recognition that there are two patients
involved, the mother and her in
utero child, and that the interests
of the two can sometimes be in
conflict. In certain situations — for
example, when the child is very
close to the point of viability and
the pregnancy is at risk — it may
be recommended to delay early
induction of labor in the hope that
the child can grow further and the
pregnancy can be safely shuttled to
a point beyond viability, allowing
both mother and child to be saved.
Sometimes expectant management
of this kind is not possible. Each
case will require its own assessment of the risks, benefits, and
likely outcomes before deciding
whether it would be appropriate to
induce labor.
When a woman’s water breaks
many weeks prior to viability and
infection arises, long term expectant management of a pregnancy is
often not possible. In such cases,
induction of labor becomes medically indicated in order to expel the
infected membranes, and prevent
the infection from spreading and
causing maternal death. Early
induction in these cases is carried
out with the foreseen but unintended consequence that the child
will die following delivery, due to
his or her extreme prematurity.
Such early induction of labor
would be allowable because the
act itself, i.e. the action of inducing
labor, is a good act (expelling the
infected amniotic membranes),
and is not directed towards harming the body-person of the child,
as it would be in the case of a
direct abortion, when the child
is targeted for saline injection or
dismemberment. The medical
intervention, in other words, is directed towards the body-person of
the mother, using a drug to induce
contractions in her uterus. One reluctantly tolerates the unintended
loss of life that occurs secondary to
the primary action of treating her
life-threatening infection.
On the other hand, direct
killing of a human being through
abortion, even if it were to provide
benefit for the mother, cannot be
construed as valid health care, but
rather as a betrayal of the healing
purposes of medicine at its most
fundamental level. Such an action
invariably fails to respect both the
human dignity of the unborn patient and his or her human rights.
It also gravely violates a mother’s
innate desire and duty to protect
her unborn baby. If she finds
herself in the unfortunate situation
of having a severe uterine infection during pregnancy, she, too,
would appreciate the physician’s
» Please see Ethical directives, p.15
Pope Francis offers map and guide in
apostolic exhortation on the Joy of the Gospel
O
n the Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ the King, which
also marked the end of
the Year of Faith this past Nov. 24,
2013, Pope Francis issued his first
apostolic exhortation “Evangelii
Gaudium” (The Joy of the Gospel). He addressed the apostolic
exhortation on the Proclamation
of the gospel in today’s world to
all the bishops, clergy, consecrated
persons and the lay faithful. The
complete document is available
in different languages online at
vatican.va.
Usually apostolic exhortations
are written to make recommendations after a Synod of Bishops. A
Synod of Bishops is a gathering
of selected bishops from around
the world to discuss a particular
subject or issue the Church is facing. In October 2012, the Synod
of Bishops gathered to discuss
“The New Evangelization for the
Transmission of the Christian
Faith.” This apostolic exhortation:
Evangelii Gaudium is the result of
the contribution of such gathering
encouraging the Christian Faithful
to embark on this new chapter of
Evangelization.
This was in an effort to propose
news ways to promote the new
evangelization resulting with the
approval of 58 propositions and
the establishment of a Pontifical
Commission for the New Evangelization to monitor religious
freedom, develop guidelines for
training evangelizers and ensure
Deacon
Luis Zuniga
Director, Office for
Pastoral Planning
& San Juan Diego
Ministry Institute.
there is a church in every diocese
where confession is always available.
According to Vatican Radio,
Phillippa Hitchen, who reports
on the latest apsotolic exhortation
Evangelli Gaudium, mentions that
“Pope Francis speaks on numerous
themes, including evangelization,
peace, homiletics, social justice,
the family, respect for creation,
faith and politics, ecumenism,
interreligious dialogue, and the
role of women and of the laity in
the Church. Putting down in print
the joyous spirit of encounter with
Christ that characterizes every
public appearance he has made so
far. The man who has constantly
kept the media’s attention with his
desire to embrace and share his
faith with everyone he meets, now
urges us to do exactly the same. To
“recover the original freshness of
the Gospel”, as he puts it, through
a thorough renewal of the Church’s
structures and vision. Including
what he calls “a conversion of the
papacy” to make it better able to
serve the mission of evangelization
in the modern world. The Church,
he says, should not be afraid to
re-examine “customs not directly
connected to the heart of the Gospel” even if they may have deep
historical roots.” (official vatican
network: news.va)
Archbishop Rino Fisichella
(President of the Pontifical
Council for the Promotion of the
New Evangelization) presented
the document at a Vatican press
conference on Nov. 26. He said, “If
we were to sum up Pope Francis’s
Evangelii Gaudium in a few words,
we could say that it is an apostolic
exhortation written around the
theme of Christian joy in order
that the Church may rediscover
the original source of evangelization in the contemporary world.
Pope Francis offers this document
to the Church as a map and guide
to her pastoral mission in the near
future. It is an invitation to recover
a prophetic and positive vision of
reality without ignoring the current challenges. Pope Francis instills courage and urges us to look
ahead despite the present crisis,
making the cross and the resurrection of Christ once again our ‘the
victory banner’.”
He also offered a summary of
the seven main themes gathered
in the five chapters of the 51,000word apostolic exhortation. “It
constitutes the fundamental pillars
of Pope Francis’ vision of the new
evangelization: 1) the reform of
the Church in a missionary key, 2)
» Please see Joy of the Gospel, p.15
St. John Bosco, founder of the Salesian
order, is seen in a historical image from
the Salesian Central Archives.
»Feast Day
- January 31
Spotlight
on
St. John
Bosco
Catholic News Agency/EWTN
On Jan. 31, the Roman Catholic Church honors St. John
Bosco (or “Don Bosco”), a
19th century Italian priest who
reached out to young people to
remedy their lack of education,
opportunities, and faith.
John Bosco was born in August of 1815 into a family of
peasant farmers in Castelnuovo
d’Asti – a place which would
one day be renamed in the
saint’s honor as “Castelnuovo
Don Bosco.”
John’s father died when he
was two years old, but he drew
strength from his mother Margherita’s deep faith in God.
Margherita also taught her
son the importance of charity,
using portions of her own modest means to support those in
even greater need.
At age nine, he had a prophetic dream in which a number of unruly young boys were
uttering words of blasphemy.
Jesus Christ and the Virgin
Mary appeared to John in the
dream, saying he would bring
such youths to God through the
virtues of humility and charity.
In 1841, John Bosco was ordained a priest. From that time,
John was known as “Don” Bosco, a traditional Italian title of
honor for priests. In the city of
Turin, he began ministering to
boys and young men who lived
on the streets, many of whom
were without work or education.
The priest was determined to
save as many young people as
he could from a life of degradation. He established a group
known as the Oratory of St.
Francis de Sales, and became a
kindly spiritual father to boys in
need. His aging mother helped
support the project in its early
years.
St. John Bosco died in the
early hours of Jan. 31, 1888, after conveying a message: “Tell
the boys that I shall be waiting
for them all in Paradise.” He was
canonized on Easter Sunday of
1934, and is a patron saint of
young people, apprentices, and
Catholic publishers and editors.
6
DIOCESE
Catholic schools recognize volunteers
SPIRIT
awards
diocese Of brownsville
2014
The Spirit Awards banquet will be held on Friday, Jan. 24 at Msgr. Ralph Hall at Our Lady
of Sorrows Parish and School in McAllen. The event raises funds for the diocesan tuition
assistance program and recognizes those who have made a difference in our Catholic
schools.
The Diocese of Brownsville has awarded Amy Kawaguchi, president of Business Development for Arrowhead Holdings, with the diocesan Spirit Award. Kawaguchi assists private
schools to ensure that they receive equitable participation in federal programs.
An honoree or honorees from each of the 13 Catholic schools in the diocese will also be
recognized at the banquet.
The event kicks off the annual observance of Catholic Schools Week, which runs Jan. 26
to Feb. 1.
The 2014 theme selected by the National Catholic Educational Association is, “Catholic
Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service.”
George V. Diaz
Maricela Izkra Diaz
Julio Cesar & Jessica Rodriguez
Dora Rogers
Immaculate Conception School,
Rio Grande City
Oratory Schools
of St. Philip Neri
Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic School, Mission
St. Joseph Catholic School,
Edinburg
Trolena
& Francisco Loya
St. Anthony Catholic
School, Harlingen
Executive Council of OLSS Parent/Teacher Organization
Our Lady of Sorrows School, McAllen
Brownsville Foundation
for Health and Education
Miriam Casarez
Sr. Marcela Ewers, D.C.
Lindsay Irwin
Elsa Ibarra
Guadalupe Regional Middle
School, Brownsville
Incarnate Word Academy,
Brownsville
Juan Diego Academy,
Mission
St. Joseph Academy,
Brownsville
St. Luke Catholic School,
Brownsville
Amy Kawaguchi
Diocese of Brownsville Honoree
An educator and advocate for children, Kawaguchi
is president of Business Development for Arrowhead Holdings, LLC.
She currently serves as a consultant to dioceses and
private school consortiums on equitable participation in federally funded program, innovative technology services, and proven instructional practices.
Mr. & Mrs John Ortiz
Dr. Benjamin Salinas
St. Mary’s Catholic School,
Brownsville
St. Martin De Porres School,
Weslaco
catholic Schools Week, Jan. 26-Feb. 1, 2014
“Catholic Schools: Communities of Faith, Knowledge and Service.”
DIOCESE
»Hope in Action: A Spotlight on Youth
High school senior a parish asset
Special to the Valley Catholic
BROWNSVILLE — Richard
“Ricky” Hernandez is a high
school senior at Hanna High
School and a parishioner at Mary,
Mother of the Church Parish in
Brownsville.
He is a leader on the ACTS
Core Team and a catechist for the
middle school EDGE program
on Wednesdays and high school
LifeTeen program on Sundays. He
also serves as Eucharistic Minister
for the LifeTeen Mass. He has
been involved in the parish for
about six years. He also serves the
community at large as a part of
the soup kitchen crew, feeding the
homeless, making food baskets for
the needy during Thanksgiving,
collecting and handing out
Christmas gifts, and Christmas
caroling at local nursing homes.
“More than anything, Ricky
has created a safe and loving
environment for his fellow youth
leaders and students and is an
asset to our parish,” said Kimberly
Garza, youth ministry coordinator
at Mary, Mother of the Church
Parish. “He continues to grow in
his faith and has an admirable
hunger for Our Lord and Savior.
He’s a great example of what
obedience and love for our God
should look like as he continues
to give his time helping our parish
and caring for our youth, the
present and future of our Church.”
Name:
Richard
Troy
Hernandez
School/Grade: Hanna High
School/Senior
What I do at (local Catholic
parish): I’m a youth Leader/
Catechist, Eucharistic Minister, I
help with Bible Camp and many
service projects throughout the
year.
Diaper Drive
Courtesy
From Nov. 4-8, I led a project to help
mothers who rely on the services of the
Baby Boutique at Catholic Charities of
the Rio Grande Valley in San Juan. I have
always known that there are mothers in
need of help, but I had never really done
anything to contribute to the cause.
One day, Mrs. Janie Perales, the Office
Manager at Juan Diego Academy, asked
me if I wanted to help Catholic Charities
with a diaper drive. I was excited about
the opportunity to help mothers in need.
I had never hosted a diaper drive on my
own, but I knew that my JDA community
would gladly assist me in my efforts. It
was amazing to see how our community
came together to help me collect diapers. I am proud to say we exceeded our goal of
collecting 75 packages of diapers. As a Catholic, this experience has made me more
aware of the needs of people who are less fortunate than I am. I can’t wait to plan my
next project. (Story by Shelsie Ramirez, sophomore at Juan Diego Academy in Mission)
Pennies for Pasta
Courtesy photo
This month’s Hope in Action youth Richard “Ricky” Hernandez from Mary, Mother of
the Church Parish in Brownsville, said, coming to church and helping youths are a
part of his life.
Talents/Gifts: I’d say I’m a
math whiz.
Best Movie Ever: The Harry
Potter Series and Lord of the Rings
Most Listened to Song on My
iPod?: Naive by the Kooks
TV Show I Never Miss: The
series is over now, but Breaking
Bad was a great show.
Book I’d Read Again (and
Again): The Giver by Louise
Lowry
Future Plans: I have a few
plans, but ultimately it’s where
God leads me that I want to be.
I’d like to be successful with a
good paying career in physics
engineering so that I can give back
to the church and make some sort
of positive change in the world.
Meaningful Quote: Romans
8:31 says “What, then, shall we
say in response to these things? If
God is for us, who can be against
us?” and “Life is short, eternity
is forever” these quotes give me
hope, it’s good to know I have
nothing to fear because God is
with me and I will hopefully be
with Him someday for eternity.
Who has made an influence
in their lives or who they admire
and why? Danny Lucio has been
a positive influence in my life.
He made coming to church fun
and enjoyable while still learning
about my faith. He made coming
to church and helping the youth
part of my life.
—
If you would like to nominate
a student to be featured in “Hope
in Action: A Spotlight on Youth,”
please email Angel Barrera,
director of Youth Ministry, at
[email protected].
Two new Texas bishops named
WASHINGTON (CNS) —
Pope Francis has named the vicar
general of the Diocese of Austin to
be bishop of
San Angelo
and the rector of Holy
Trinity Seminary at the
University of
Dallas in Irving, Texas,
to head the
Bishop-designate Sis Diocese of
Fort Worth,
Texas.
Bishop-designate Olson, 47, is
a Fort Worth diocesan priest. He
succeeds Bishop Kevin W. Vann,
who was named bishop of the Diocese of Orange, Calif., in September 2012.
The appointment was announced Nov. 19 in Washington
by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, apostolic nuncio to the United
States.
The pope appointed Msgr. Michael J. Sis, 53, an Austin diocesan
priest who has been vicar general
since 2010, to succeed San Angelo
Bishop Michael D. Pfeifer, 76, of
the Missionary Oblates of Mary
Immaculate and a native of Alamo.
The changes were announced
in Washington Dec. 12 by Archbishop Vigano.
7
Bishop-designate Olson, who
has been Holy Trinity’s rector
since 2008, will be ordained and
installed Jan. 29 at a Mass to be
celebrated in the Fort Worth Convention Center. He will become
the second youngest bishop in the
United States to lead a diocese. The
youngest bishop is fellow seminary
classmate Bishop Oscar Cantu of
Las Cruces, N.M. Both are graduates of the St. Mary’s Seminary in
Houston.
“I am very humbled and deeply
moved by Pope Francis’ appointment of me to serve as the bishop
of Fort Worth,” the newly named
bishop said
at a news
conference
at the Fort
Worth diocesan Catholic Center.
“In a very
special way, I
am delighted
to
return Bishop-designate Olson
home to the
Diocese of Fort Worth to serve the
priests, deacons, religious, and all
of the faithful as their bishop.”
He is the first priest of the Diocese of Fort Worth to be named a
bishop. He will lead a fast-growing
diocese of an estimated 710,000
Catholics in 90 parishes in the
28-county north Texas region.
Bishop-designate Sis will be
ordained and installed at a Jan. 27
Mass at the McNease Convention
Center in San Angelo.
At a news conference in San
Angelo, Bishop-designate Sis
called his appointment “a joy and
an honor and an undeserved privilege.”
The new bishop made some
remarks in Spanish, saying, “The
Church belongs to all.”
Bishop Pfeifer told him: “We
welcome you. We open our hearts
to you, and our hands.”
Bishop Pfeifer has been San
Angelo’s bishop since he was ordained and installed to head the
diocese July 26, 1985. Born in Alamo, he was ordained a Missionary Oblate of Mary Immaculate
in 1964. He served various assignments, including many years as a
missionary in Mexico.
He was elected provincial of
his order’s Southern province, and
while in that position, Blessed John
Paul II named him fifth bishop of
San Angelo May 31, 1985.
The San Angelo Diocese covers more than 37,000 square miles
spread across 29 counties in central
and west Texas. Catholics number
77,000 out of a total population of
about 860,000. The diocese has 47
parishes and 22 missions.
Courtesy
On Nov. 1, 2013, the Pharr Oratory Schools of St. Philip Neri participated in the 13th
annual Pennies for Pasta national fundraising campaign sponsored by Olive Garden
Restaurant in support of the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. The Oratory Schools of
St. Philip Neri raised more than $4,500.
»News Briefs
Third public dialogue
set for bishop, rabbi
Bishop Daniel E. Flores and
McAllen Rabbi Claudio J. Kogan
will once again model the art
of conversation during a public
dialogue on Monday, Feb. 3 at the
University of Texas-Pan American Student Union Building in
Edinburg.
The event is free and open to
the public.
Ora et Labora
weekend
The Benedictine Sisters of the
Monastery of the Good Shepherd,
welcome single Catholic women
ages 18-50 years young for an Ora
et Labora Discernment Weekend
which starts on Monday, Dec. 30,
2013 at 7 p.m. and concludes on
Wednesday Jan. 1, 2014 at 4 p.m.
For more information, email
[email protected] or call
(956) 486-2680
Mother-Daughter
event set for Jan. 26
Every year, the Family Life Office sponsors a Mother-Daughter
Program, which explores God’s special gift of human fertility and the
wonder of growing up and becoming a woman.
The event is scheduled for Sunday, Jan. 26 from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m.
at Our Lady of Refuge Church, 4 St.
Eugene de Mazenod Rd., in Roma.
The program, which is designed
for mothers and their daughters,
ages 10-12, will encourage girls to
appreciate their femininity, as well
as their changing bodies and personalities. The presentations emphasize respect and appreciation for
God’s gifts.
The cost of the program is $10
per family and reservations are required. The deadline for registration
is Jan. 20. For more information, call
the Family Life Office at (956) 7845012.
McAllen Pregnancy
Center gala
The date for the 2014 McAllen
Pregnancy Center gala has been set
for Friday, April 25.
The festivities will open with a
Mass at St. Margaret Mary Church
in Pharr followed by the gala at Valencia Events Center. The keynote
speaker will be Archbishop Joseph F.
Naumann of Kansas City, Kan.
The archbishop is a member of
the Committee on Pro-Life and the
Committee of Marriage and Family
Life of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The center is also accepting
nominations for two awards that will
presented at the gala. The awards are
named for two of the center’s late
benefactors.
The Carmen Adelina Guerra
Award honors a woman who demonstrates her love for family and
community. The Dr. Lauro Guerra
Award honors a humanitarian and
leader in the community. Last year,
Berta Guerra received the Carmen
Adelina Guerra Award and Dr.
Lawrence Gelman was given the Dr.
Lauro Guerra Award. Submit nominations to [email protected]
by March 1.
8
DIOCESE
The Valley Catholic -January 2014
New churches, renovations
Our Lady of Guadalupe
Mission
Photos by Eric Sanchez/The Valley Catholic
Bishop Daniel E. Flores blessed and dedicated an expanded and
renovated Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Mission on Dec. 1, 2013.
The church, which was built in 1927, is designated as a Texas Historical
Landmark.
Brownsville
St. Eugene de Mazenod
Photos by Amber Donaldson, Mobile Journalist /The Valley Catholic
St. Eugene de Mazenod Parish, the first in the world named for St. Eugene de
Mazenod, who founded the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate in southern
France in 1816, has a new home. Bishop Daniel E. Flores blessed and dedicated a
new sanctuary for the parish on Dec. 7, 2013. The new, 8,854-square-foot, Spanish
colonial-style church, seats about 550. A relic of St. Eugene de Mazenod’s heart
was placed beneath the altar.
St. John the Baptist
San Juan
Community members joined Bishop Daniel E. Flores on Nov. 24 as he celebrated a blessing and
dedication Mass for the new St. John the Baptist Church in San Juan. The 10,000-square-foot sanctuary
seats more than 900.
DIOCESE
Those Who Serve:
9
Brother André LeMay, OFM
Friar concocts heavenly treats
Homemade
chocolate teaches
lesson in patience
By ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
Franciscan Brother André LeMay, who is in ministry at Sacred
Heart Church in McAllen and Holy
Family Church in Edinburg, makes
and sells treats under the label
Brother Andy’s Candies during his
spare time. His motto is, “Homemade Chocolates With That Heavenly Taste.”
“I find that it is a nice pastime,”
Brother LeMay said. “I find it challenging, creative and a blessing
from God.”
Using recipes he learned from
his mother, Brother LeMay first
delved into making chocolate as a
way to express his gratitude. That
was more than 20 years ago.
“Other than saying, ‘I’m praying for you, which I do,’ I gave the
chocolate away as gifts,” he said.
“It’s a way of thanking people with
something and almost everybody
really likes chocolate.”
Brother LeMay, 64, who arrived
in the Rio Grande Valley in August
2012, took about a year off from the
chocolate business to settle into his
new ministries. He leads the praying of the Rosary at the Alfredo
Gonzalez Texas State Veterans
Home in McAllen, takes Communion to the homebound and
infirmed, ministers to the newly established Knights of Columbus circle at Holy Family Church and the
Altar Society at both Sacred Heart
Church and Holy Family Church,
among many other ministries,
“wherever I can be of help,” he said.
Brother Le May makes dark,
milk and white chocolate in small
batches in the kitchen at Sacred
Heart Parish. His chocolate treats,
which contain additions such as
nuts, raisins, cranberries, M&M’s
and Oreo cookies, start at just 50
cents for a large piece. Each piece
of candy is fresh and individually
wrapped.
“The key to good chocolate is
melting it slowly,” he said. “You
can’t be in a rush.”
The staff at Holy Family Church
in Edinburg regularly enjoys samples from Brother LeMay’s kitchen.
“I think we have become his official taste testers,” said Susie De la
Garza, director of religious education at Holy Family Church, who
named the white chocolate with
pecans as her favorite. “I would describe his chocolate as delectable.
We know how much work he puts
into it. He prides himself in making chocolate that looks good and
tastes good.”
Brother LeMay also offers caramel popcorn and snack mix with
his own special blend of seasonings.
Aside from bringing people joy
“The key to good chocolate is melting it slowly,” said Franciscan Brother André LeMay, who makes white, dark and milk chocolate
candies under the label Brother Andy’s Candies. He also makes party mix and caramel corn, pictured, upper left.
with his chocolate and other treats,
Brother LeMay has also made a
positive impact on the people he
serves in the Valley, said Father
Thomas Luczak, pastor of Sacred
Heart Church in McAllen and Holy
Family Church in Edinburg.
“He is a people person,” said
Father Luczak, who has known
Brother LeMay for more than 40
years. “He can very easily can relate
to people and listen to their cares
and concerns.”
Father Luczak said that Brother
LeMay has also been a welcome
addition to the McAllen/Edinburg
Friary.
“He’s a fun person to be with,”
Father Luczak said. “There is a great
sense of humor and levity to him.”
Brother LeMay was born and
raised in Appleton, Wisc. He was
drawn to religious life by the witness of the Franciscan Sisters who
taught him in school and by two
of his cousins. One was a Franciscan Sister and the other an Alexian
Brother.
“I wanted to go right after
eighth grade but my family want-
ed me to experience life,” he said.
“My junior year is when I kind of
questioned my vocation, but by my
senior year in high school, I knew
I had to give it a try. I went after I
graduated from high school and I
loved it.”
In 1966, Brother LeMay entered the Wisconsin-based Assumption of the Blessed Virgin
Mary Province of the Franciscan
Friars. He arrived in the Valley by
way of Las Vegas, where he was in
ministry for 23 years as a school
» Please see Brother LeMay, p.15
10
IN THE NEWS
The Valley Catholic -January 2014
World Day of Peace
Pope Francis
promotes fraternity
on 47th observance
Archdiocese of the Military
Services, USA
By CAROL GLATZ
VATICAN CITY — An overemphasis on “personal well-being” and general indifference have
eroded any sense of responsibility
toward others, especially toward
the poor, said a note from the
Vatican announcing Pope Francis’
choice of a theme for World Peace
Day 2014.
For the first peace day message
of his pontificate, the pope chose
the theme: “Fraternity, the foundation and pathway to peace,” said
a Vatican communique.
Announcing the theme for the
Jan. 1, 2014, celebration, the Vatican said Pope Francis’ message
will stress “the need to combat the
‘throwaway culture’ and to promote instead a ‘culture of encounter,’ in order to build a more just
and peaceful world.”
As children of one Father, all
human beings are linked to one
another in fraternity, and only efforts that are born from a sense of
fraternity can overcome the poverty, conflict, inequality, crime,
fundamentalism and other ills
‘It’s like
finally
being home’
Photo by Paul Haring/Catholic News Service
Young people hold up letters spelling out “shalom,” the Hebrew greeting meaning peace, during the World Youth Day vigil on Copacabana beach in Rio de Janeiro on July 27, 2013. World Day of Peace was introduced by Pope Paul VI and first observed on Jan. 1, 1968.
facing the world today, the Vatican
note said.
“The culture of personal wellbeing leads to a loss of the sense
of responsibility and fraternal relationship,” it said.
When people don’t see others
as “being like us,” then they are
often seen as competitors or enemies and treated like objects, it
said.
“Not uncommonly, the poor
and the needy are regarded as a
‘burden,’ a hindrance to development. At most, they are considered
as recipients of aid or compassionate assistance,” the note said.
Fraternity is both a gift and
a responsibility each human being receives from God the Father,
who calls people to fight against
“inequality and poverty that undermine the social fabric, to take
care of every person, especially
the weakest and most defenseless,
to love him or her as oneself with
the very heart of Jesus Christ,” the
Vatican communique said.
As the world becomes more
and more interdependent, mutual
responsibility becomes more essential in every field, “including
the economy, finance, civil society,
politics, research, development,
and public and cultural institutions,” it said.
“The globalization of indifference must give way to a globalization of fraternity,” it said.
The Vatican added that Pope
Francis’ message is “in continuity
with that of his predecessors,” and
“proposes to everyone the pathway of fraternity, in order to give
the world a more human face.”
Pope encourages
interrelgious dialogue
Preplanning your funeral
or cemetery arrangements
gives you and your loved
ones peace of mind.
Don’t wait.
Call now, and make
your plan today.
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — In
societies increasingly made up of
people of different cultures and
religions, people must learn the
art of dialogue and reach out to
others with respect and friendship,
Pope Francis said.
“Dialogue does not mean
renouncing your identity” or
“accepting compromises on faith
and Catholic morals,” the pope
told members of the Pontifical
Council
for
Interreligious
Dialogue.
Pope Francis said true
dialogue is not a negotiation, but
requires participants to share who
they really are and ask others to do
likewise.
“Interreligious dialogue and
evangelization are not mutually
exclusive,” the pope said, but they
actually strengthen each other.
“We don’t impose anything, we
don’t use some subtle strategy to
attract the faithful, but rather we
give witness to what we believe
in and who we are with joy and
simplicity.”
A relationship in which
people put aside what they believe
or pretend to believe differently
would not be authentic and would
help no one, the pope said.
Pope Francis said modern
societies are demonstrating fear of
other religions, but also fear of any
religion, which is another reason
why followers of different faiths
should meet, dialogue and work
together to promote the common
good and show others that faith
makes positive contributions to
society.
Religion, he said, is often seen
as “something useless or even
dangerous,” and in some countries
some Christians are asked to set
aside their religious convictions
if they want to exercise their
professions.
“The idea that peaceful
coexistence is possible only by
hiding one’s religious affiliation
is widespread,” Pope Francis said.
There again, he said, what society
is left with is something fake,
which cannot benefit anyone.
“Certainly, it’s necessary
that everything be done with
respect for the convictions of
others, including those who do
not believe,” the pope said, “but
we must have the courage and
patience to encounter others,
bringing who we are.”
A future of peace for everyone,
he said, will require “a coexistence
that is respectful of diversity,
not the homogenization of a
theoretically neutral” way of
thinking.
Full religious freedom is an
essential part of that respectful
diversity, he said.
The Catholic Church will
continue to press for religious
freedom and it will continue to
denounce the many situations of
political and economic tension
where the unscrupulous use
religious or cultural differences
to exacerbate fears, Pope Francis
said.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Father
Jerry Sherbourne, an active-duty
U.S. Army Chaplain, and former
Anglican priest, was ordained a
Catholic priest on Dec. 8 at the
Basilica of the National Shrine of
the Immaculate Conception by
the Most Rev. Timothy P. Broglio,
J.C.D., Archbishop of the
Military Services, USA.
Father
Sherbourne
becomes
a
Catholic
priest, incardinated
in
Father Sherbourne
the Personal
Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, a special Church jurisdiction
established by Pope Benedict XVI
for those of the Anglican heritage
entering full communion with the
Catholic Church while maintaining distinctive elements of their
theological, spiritual, and liturgical
patrimony.
More than 120 former Anglican
priests have been ordained Catholic
priests.
In preparation for his transition
from Anglican to Catholic, Father
Sherbourne underwent a two-year
formation program approved by
the Congregation for the Doctrine
of the Faith of the Holy See, a process that included his ordination
as a transitional Catholic deacon.
A married father of six, he also received a dispensation from Pope
Francis to be a priest without embracing celibacy. Father Sherbourne
and his wife Heather live with their
family in north Alabama where he
currently serves as deputy Garrison
chaplain at Redstone Arsenal.
Originally from Massachusetts,
Father Sherbourne, was ordained
an Anglican priest in 2000 and has
been a U.S. Army chaplain since
2005. He served on deployments to
both Iraq and Afghanistan.
Father Sherbourne says he decided to become Catholic following a conversion experience during
his deployment to Afghanistan in
2011. He told The Redstone Rocket
that he and a fellow serviceman
were talking with a Catholic priest
when the serviceman asked the
priest to explain the dogma of the
Immaculate Conception, the Catholic teaching that the Virgin Mary
was conceived free from original
sin. Sherbourne said he “groaned
inwardly,” wishing his comrade had
asked “anything but that, a concept
he thought he understood well and
did not believe in.” But to his surprise, the priest replied, “Oh, that’s
easy. It’s all very biblical. What does
“Hail Mary, full of grace mean?” Father Sherbourne told The Rocket it
was like a light went off in his head.
“All of a sudden I realized, ‘Wow,
that could be true.’”
Of his ordination to the Catholic priesthood, Father Sherbourne
said:
“All these years I’ve been waiting for this. It’s just wonderful for
me, even as a deacon, to be up
around the altar. It’s my environment. It’s what God made me to
do. It’s like being finally home, like
a fish in the water I was meant to
swim in for the first time.”
NOTICIAS EN ESPAÑOL 11
Enero 2014 - The Valley Catholic
Una marcha en contra del aborto
El Apostolado del
Respeto a la Vida:
“Queremos hacer
conciencia en la
esfera pública”
The Valley Catholic
El Apostolado del Respeto a la
Vida está organizando una marcha
en McAllen el domingo 11 de
enero. El evento comenzará con
oraciones de apertura a las 9 a.m.
en la parroquia de San José Obrero,
900 S. 23rd St., continuará en el
centro donde pasará por la clínica
local de aborto y terminará en la
parroquia del Sagrado Corazón,
306 S. 5th St. con una oración final.
La marcha se llevará a cabo
como indemnización por los más
de 55 millones de bebés que han
sido asesinados en los Estados
Unidos desde el fallo de la corte
Roe v. Wade el 22 de enero de 1973,
el cual legalizó el aborto. Activistas
pro-vida alrededor de la nación
están esperando el aniversario con
eventos de oración y acción.
En el 2013, la marcha se llevó a
cabo en el centro de McAllen por
primera vez y reunió más de 1,000
guerreros pro-vida.
“Queremos hacer conciencia
en la esfera pública,” dijo Cecilia
Batungbacal, una organizadora del
evento. “Debemos llevar el mensaje
que no nos vamos a quedar en
nuestras casas e iglesias orando
para el fin del aborto. Nos vamos a
The Valley Catholic
Cientos en el Valle del Río Grande están asiendo planes para caminar en una marcha en McAllen el domingo 11 de enero declarando el
apoyo por todas las vidas, incluyendo a los niños que aún no nacen y sus madres.
poner de pie ante los mandamientos
de Dios públicamente.”
Las instalaciones de aborto en
McAllen y Harlingen se encuentran
entre las clínicas en Texas que ya no
pueden ofrecer abortos legalmente
después de la nueva legislación. La
ley requiere que los proveedores
de servicios médicos que llevan a
cabo abortos tengan privilegios de
admisión en hospitales locales.
La instalación de McAllen,
sin embargo, está ofreciendo
referencias a otras clínicas de aborto
alrededor del estado, comentó
Diamantina Barba, una consejera
en el Centro de Embarazo en
McAllen, una instalación Católica
pro-vida.
Las llamadas y visitas al Centro
de Embarazo en McAllen también
han incrementado desde que la
nueva legislación tuvo efecto. El
centro se encuentra como a dos
cuadras de la clínica de aborto.
“Tenemos muchas mujeres que
nos llaman, ansiosas de tener un
aborto,” dijo Barba. “Desesperadas
porque no encuentran un lugar
para abortar. Hemos estado muy
ocupados. Por favor continúen
orando por nosotros, estas mujeres
y sus bebés.”
“Somos las únicas voces que
tienen estos bebés,” agregó Barba.
Aunque los abortos ya no se
llevan a cabo ahí, Barbara y otras
personas pro-vida continúan
visitando la banqueta afuera de la
clínica de aborto para orar y dar
consejo a las mujeres que entran y
salen de la instalación.
En Harlingen, el dueño
de la clínica de aborto ha sido
muy claro sobre su intención de
continuar asistiendo a las mujeres
que buscan abortos y refiere a las
mujeres a México para comprar
medicamento abortivo, según una
entrevista en la revista Slate.
Patty Edwards, una consejera
de banqueta y guerrera de oración,
continua visitando la banqueta
afuera de la clínica de aborto en
Harlingen.
“Esta batalla está lejos de
terminarse,” comentó Edwards.
“Necesitamos continuar orando.”
Para más información sobre la
marcha, llame al (956) 566-1999 o
al (956) 878-2836.
»Birthday & Anniversary Wishes
The list of birthdays and ordination anniversaries is provided so that parishioners may remember
the priests, deacons and religious in their prayers and send them a note or a card.
January
» Birthdays
1 Rev. Leo Francis Daniels, CO
3 Rev. Donald Kelley – retired
4 Rev. Rigobert Poulang Mot
6 Rev. Msgr. Louis Brum
9 Rev. Julian Becerril O de M
10 Rev. Eusebio Martinez
13 Rev. Alejandro Flores
22 Rev. Roberto Charlton, SS.CC
22 Rev. Horacio Chavarria
22 Rev. James Erving, OMI
22 Rev. Oscar Siordia
24 Rev. Ignacio Tapia
28 Rev. Robert Davola – retired
28 Rev. Bill Penderghest, SS.CC
2 Deacon John P. Kinch
4 Deacon Al Crixell
14 Deacon Paulo Escobar
18 Deacon Ramon G. Leal
19 Deacon Salvador G. Saldivar
23 Deacon Reynaldo I. Flores
23 DeaconRodolfo Sepulveda Jr.
24 Deacon Juan Valenzuela
28 Deacon Alejandro Flores
3 Brother Hoss A. Alvarez
4 Sister Emily Jocson, ICM
23 Sister Dianne Maresha
» Anniversaries
4 Rev.Thomas Kulleck
4 Rev. Manoj K. Nayak, SS.CC
16 Rev. Robert Charlton
28 Rev. Cesar Partida
30 Bishop Daniel Flores as priest
30 Msgr. A. S. Pacheco – Retired
25 Deacon Francisco D. Pon
February
» Birthdays
2 Rev. Mishael Koday
3 Rev. Thomas Pincelli
3 Rev. Alejandro Fajardo, SS.CC
11 Rev. Gustavo Obando
11 Msgr. Robert Davola - retired
16 Rev. James Pfeifer, OMI
19 Bishop Emeritus Raymundo J.
Peña - retired
26 Rev. Juan Victor Heredia
26 Rev. Thomas G. Kulleck
2 Sister Mary N. Vincelli, CSJ
2 Sister Esther Rodriguez, O.P.
3 Sister Anita Jennissen, OSF
14 Brother David Concannon
20 Sister Rosalia Fink, OSB
20 Sister Frances Salinas, OSB
20 Sister Denise Sausville, RSM
8 Deacon Amando Peña Jr.
11 Deacon Gilberto Perez
13 Deacon Hugo De la Cruz
15 Deacon Jose R. Castro
15 Deacon George M. Terrazas
17 Deacon Hector Perez
18 Deacon Luis F. Amador(Temp)
18 Deacon Pedro Sanchez
22 Deacon Alvino Olvera
» Anniversaries
2 Rev. Juan Victor Heredia
8 Rev. Gnanaraj Michael
11 Msgr. Robert Davola – Retired
15 Rev. Patrick Seitz
25 Rev. Marco Antonio Reynoso
NOTICIAS EN ESPAÑOL
12
The Valley Catholic - Enero 2014
»La Alegría de Vivir
Después de la infidelidad
E
n mis cincuenta años de
sacerdocio, como consejero y psicoterapeuta, he
escuchado de todo, pero un tema
recurrente es el de la infidelidad.
Muchos hombres y mujeres
se dejan llevar por la lujuria y en
un momento de locura se involucran sexualmente con algún
compañero de trabajo, un conocido, o a veces con un desconocido. Empiezan a vivir una doble
vida, escondiéndose y huyendo
de su pareja y su matrimonio.
A veces llegan a pasar por
desgarradores divorcios, e inevitablemente dañan a sus hijos
en el camino. Otras veces tratan
de aferrarse a su vida familiar
aunque ya la hayan hecho pedazos, lloran y se desesperan por
recuperar la confianza de su cónyuge, aunque eso es poco menos
que imposible. Ellos dicen que
fueron infieles por dejarse llevar
por la adrenalina que les produce
el hacer algo prohibido, que no
pensaron en las consecuencias,
que no recuerdan haber tomado
la decisión de desgarrar su vida
matrimonial por un momento
furtivo de placer sexual.
En muchos casos es cierto
que la primera vez que alguien
es infiel es por accidente, tal vez
habían tomado mucho, habían
tenido una gran pelea con su
pareja, estaban deprimidos, o
simplemente se dejaron llevar
por la emoción del momento y
no supieron parar, pero también
es cierto que hay personas más
propensas a los “accidentes” que
otras, y que a veces las personas
propician las ocasiones para
tener sus “accidentes”.
Después de la infidelidad
queda un sentimiento de culpa, a
veces el infractor confiesa su falta
para poder sentirse mejor él mismo, sin considerar el daño que le
hará a su pareja. Otros tratan de
justificar su acción echándole la
culpa al cónyuge, que si ya no les
ponían atención, que si estaban
demasiado dedicados a sus hijos,
etc., etc..
Son pocos los que se dan
cuenta del error que cometieron,
lo ven como lo que fue, un accidente que no volverá a pasar,
y deciden enmendar su error y
comenzar una nueva vida con
su pareja, esforzándose cada día
por ser un mejor esposo(a) y un
mejor padre que pueda servir de
Msgr. Juan
Nicolau
Pastor, Nuestra
Señora del
Perpetuo Socorro
modelo a seguir para sus hijos.
Otro tipo de infidelidad es
el romance extramarital, esto es
más peligroso, pues el infiel está
convencido que ha conocido a
alguien maravilloso (lo cual es
falso porque los seres maravillosos no se enredan con personas
casadas) y se dejan llevar por la
euforia de sentirse “enamorados”
llevándose entre las patas toda
una vida que han construido
durante años, y hacen daño a
sus hijos y a veces sus nietos,
pues muchas veces el objeto de
su deseo es alguien 30 o 40 años
menor que ellos.
Generalmente sus nuevas
parejas están llenas de problemas y ellos son los héroes que
resuelven todas las situaciones, lo
cual les levanta el ego y muchas
veces los amarra a esa situación
por más tiempo, pues se sienten
indispensables. Lo cierto es que
pronto esa emoción de “enamoramiento” acaba y ahí es cuando
el infiel se da cuenta de todo lo
que ha perdido y de todo el daño
que ha hecho.
Es muy cierto aquello de que
nadie sabe lo que tiene hasta que
lo ve perdido. Si alguien se siente
incapaz de sentir o expresar amor
por su cónyuge, no es una justificación para ser infiel, pues si hay
problemas en la pareja seguramente habrá más si se involucra a
terceros en la relación.
La traición puede perdonarse
pero es algo dificilísimo de
olvidar. Tomemos el ejemplo de
la Sagrada Familia, y que Jesús,
María y José sean ejemplo de
autoridad, fidelidad, obediencia
y respeto en nuestra familia. Y
recuerda lo que Jesús le dijo a
aquella mujer adúltera: “Estás
perdonada, vete y no peques
más”.
—
Mons. Juan Nicolau, Ph.D.
STL, es el pastor de la iglesia de
Nuestra Señora del Perpetuo
Socorro en McAllen. Es psicoterapeuta familiar y consejero
profesional con licencias.
ACI Prensa/EWTN Noticias
“La fraternidad, fundamento y camino para la paz” es el título elegido por el Papa Francisco en su primer Mensaje para la 47 Jornada
Mundial de la Paz que se celebra el 1 de enero de 2014.
Jornada Mundial de la Paz
‘La fraternidad es
una dimensión
esencial del hombre’
VATICANO — La Sala de
Prensa de la Santa Sede informó
que el Papa Francisco eligió “la
fraternidad” como tema para la
próxima 47º Jornada Mundial de la
Paz, la primera de su pontificado,
y con el cual reitera su llamado a
superar una “cultura del descarte” y
promover la “cultura del encuentro”
para avanzar en la consecución de
un mundo más justo y pacífico.
La Jornada Mundial de la Paz se
celebra el 1 de enero de 2014.
“La fraternidad es una dote que
todo hombre y mujer lleva consigo
en cuanto ser humano, hijo de un
mismo Padre. Frente a los múltiples
dramas que afectan a la familia de
los pueblos — pobreza, hambre,
subdesarrollo, conflictos bélicos,
migraciones, c o n t a m i n a c i ó n ,
desigualdad, injusticia, crimen
organizado,
fundamentalismos
El Papa: Dejen la comodidad y atrévanse
a llevar el Evangelio a todas las periferias
VATICANO — Con motivo
del octavo centenario de la muerte
del Fundador de la Orden de los
Trinitarios, San Juan de Mata, y
el cuatrocientos aniversario de la
muerte de san Juan Bautista de
la Concepción, reformador de la
misma Orden, el Papa Francisco ha
enviado una carta al Ministro General, Padre José Narlaly.
De esta forma, el Santo Padre se
une a ellos en su acción de gracias
a Dios y les hace llegar “este sencillo mensaje de aliento y cercanía
espiritual, con el deseo de que les
sirva de estímulo y compañía para
avanzar con entusiasmo y decisión
por el camino espiritual que ellos
trazaron para gloria del que es tres
veces Santo y bien de los que pasan
por pruebas diversas”.
El Papa ha recordado la vida
ejemplar de los santos que, al recibir la llamada de Dios, lo dejaron
todo por los más necesitados. “Todos estamos llamados a experimentar la alegría que brota del encuentro con Jesús, para vencer nuestro
egoísmo, para salir de nuestra propia comodidad y atrevernos a llegar
a todas las periferias que necesitan
la luz del Evangelio”.
“Los Trinitarios tienen claro, y
de ello debemos aprender todos –
continúa el Papa-, que en la Iglesia
toda responsabilidad o autoridad
debe ser vivida como servicio”.
“De ahí que nuestra acción ha
de estar despojada de cualquier deseo de lucro o promoción personal
y tiene que buscar siempre poner
en común todos los talentos recibi-
dos de Dios, para dirigirlos, como
buenos administradores, al fin para
el que se nos han concedido; esto
es, para aliviar a los más desfavorecidos. Ése es el interés de Cristo, y
por ello las casas de vuestra Familia
tienen la ‘puerta siempre abierta”
para la acogida fraterna’.
El Papa anima en su carta a “no
dejar de imitar nunca a Cristo y,
con la fuerza de su Espíritu, entréguense con humildad a servir al pobre y al cautivo. Hoy hay muchos”.
“No busquen, por tanto, para
sus obras e iniciativas apostólicas
otro fundamento que no sea ‘la raíz
de la caridad’ y ‘el interés de Cristo’,
que mi predecesor, Inocencio III,
consideró como los quicios esenciales de este modo nuevo de vida
que aprobaba con su autoridad
apostólica”.
—, la fraternidad es fundamento y
camino para la paz”, señala la Santa
Sede en una nota.
El texto advierte que “la cultura
del bienestar lleva a la pérdida del
sentido de la responsabilidad y de
la relación fraterna. Los demás, en
lugar de ser nuestros ‘semejantes’,
se convierten en antagonistas o
enemigos, y frecuentemente son
cosificados. No es extraño que
los pobres sean considerados un
‘lastre’, un impedimento para el
desarrollo”.
“A lo sumo -denunció-, son
objeto de una ayuda asistencialista
o compasiva. No son vistos como
hermanos, llamados a compartir
los dones de la creación, los bienes
del progreso y de la cultura, a
participar en la misma mesa de la
vida en plenitud, a ser protagonistas
del desarrollo integral e inclusivo”.
Por ello, “la fraternidad, don
y tarea que viene de Dios Padre,
nos convoca a ser solidarios contra
la desigualdad y la pobreza que
debilitan la vida social, a atender
a cada persona, en especial de
los más pequeños e indefensos, a
amarlos como a uno mismo, con el
mismo corazón de Jesucristo”.
“En un mundo cada vez más
interdependiente, no puede faltar el
bien de la fraternidad, que vence la
difusión de esa globalización de la
indiferencia, a la cual se ha referido
en repetidas ocasiones el Papa
Francisco. La globalización de la
indiferencia debe ser sustituida por
una globalización de la fraternidad”.
Finalmente, recuerda que “la
fraternidad toca todos los aspectos
de la vida, incluida la economía, las
finanzas, la sociedad civil, la política,
la investigación, el desarrollo, las
instituciones públicas y culturales.
El Papa Francisco, al inicio de su
ministerio, con un Mensaje que
está en continuidad con el de sus
Predecesores, propone a todos el
camino de la fraternidad, para dar
un rostro más humano al mundo”.
La Jornada Mundial de la Paz
fue iniciada por el Papa Pablo VI
y se celebra el primer día de cada
año. El mensaje elegido se envía
a las Iglesias particulares y a las
cancillerías del todo el mundo
“para destacar el valor esencial de
la paz y la necesidad de trabajar
incansablemente para lograrla”.
Protegiendo al pueblo de Dios,
reporte malas conductas
Como el pueblo de Dios,
cada uno de nosotros está llamado a celebrar, promover, y, si
es necesario, defender la vida y
la dignidad de todas personas.
Tenemos que tratar a cada persona con respecto, y hacer lo posible para asegurar que nunca se
dañe a los demás.
Una sospecha de mala conducta con los menores de edad,
cometida por el personal laico
de la iglesia, deberá reportarse al
párroco de la iglesia, al director
de la escuela, o al encargado de la
institución católica en cuestión.
Una sospecha de mala conducta
con los menores de edad cometida por un sacerdote, diácono,
o religioso deberá reportarse
directamente al Señor Obispo o
al Vicario General al (P.O. Box
2279, Brownsville, TX 785222279; 956-542-2501). Una for-
ma para un Aviso Confidencial
de Inquietud (Confidential Notice of Concern) puede obtenerse
a través del párroco local, del director de la escuela, del encargado de la institución, de la Diócesis, o puede bajarse de la página
oficial de Internet de la Diócesis
de Brownsville (www.cdob.org).
Por favor recuerde que hay
una ley estatal que cualquier
persona que sospeche el abuso
o la negligencia hacia un menor
de edad debe reportarlo a las
autoridades oficiales locales o al
Departamento de Servicios Familiares y Protectores de Texas
(Texas Department of Family and Protective Services) al
1-800-252-5400.
Nuestra fe nos asegura que
el mal no nos vencerá, pero que
venceremos al mal con el bien
(cf. Rm 12:21).
NOTICIAS EN ESPAÑOL 13
Enero 2014 - The Valley Catholic
Carta de
los obispos,
continúa de la pág. 2
perciben las condiciones exigentes que afectan a los inmigrantes y
sus familias, ni siquiera reconocen las contribuciones que los
inmigrantes aportan a nuestra
sociedad.
El núcleo familiar es esencial
en la vida de cualquier sociedad;
esto es verdad en la sociedad
moderna americana, así como
en las culturas de tradición
latinas. Siendo el lugar donde la
vida y las relaciones humanas se
nutren, la vida familiar merece
un cuidado pastoral especial de
parte de la Iglesia y el apoyo de la
comunidad social. Esto es cierto
especialmente en situaciones
donde la estructura familiar debe
sobrellevar la gran presión de las
fuerzas desestabilizadoras sociales, políticas y económicas.
Hoy, las familias hispanas
enfrentan serias amenazas. Entre
ellas, el incremento de violencia en sus países de origen, los
Charismatic,
hope the participants are inspired
to share the Good News with others.”
According to Catholic News
Service, the Charismatic movement began 46 years ago, when a
dozen or so Catholic students and
teachers at Duquesne University
in Pittsburgh came away from a
retreat saying their lives had been
changed.
Msgr. Joseph Malagreca, a
Brooklyn, N.Y, pastor who serves
as diocesan coordinator of the
Charismatic Renewal for Hispanics and Haitians, explained to
Catholic News Service that about
half of the two dozen Duquesne
retreatants felt a call in the middle
of the night to go to the chapel.
There they had an overwhelming spiritual experience that they
came to describe as having been
“baptized in the Holy Spirit.”
Peacemakers,
among you as one who serves”
(Lk 22:26-27). Every activity
therefore must be distinguished
by an attitude of service to
persons, especially those furthest
away and less known. Service is
the soul of that fraternity that
builds up peace.”
Bishop Daniel E. Flores reminds us often, “We are a people
of service.” As a people of service,
every encounter is an opportunity
for building peace.
However, we must begin with
ourselves and with our families.
Blessed Mother Teresa of Culcutta
provided a basic starting point for
each of us to consider when she
asked, “What can we do to promote world peace?” Her answer:
“Go home and love your family.”
Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI
reminded us as well during his
peligros de la propia inmigración,
una pobreza generalizada y el
desempleo que principalmente
afecta a la juventud. A nosotros
como pastores, nos confronta la
realidad de nuestros inmigrantes, especialmente en los lugares
fronterizos, y queremos defender
y ayudar a las familias mostrando,
especialmente, una preocupación por sus hijos. Como Iglesia
debemos trabajar juntos para
defender a la familia contra los
males que amenazan con socavar
la preciada y vulnerable fuente de
nuestra identidad católica e hispana, la cual está arraigada en el
valor de la vida familiar como en
la solidaridad que expresa la comunidad familiar. Como pastores
sirviendo tanto en México como
en Estados Unidos, les pedimos
que recuerden como las virtudes
y los valores de la vida familiar
históricamente han ayudado al
crecimiento y la grandeza de
ambas naciones. El mirar hacia
el futuro, respetar y preservar la
vida familiar es indispensable
para construir una vida más
segura para nuestros niños.
Existen muchas percepciones
erróneas sobre los inmigrantes
indocumentados y su contribución a la sociedad de Estados
Unidos. Por ejemplo, se dice que
no pagan impuestos; los estudios
indican que casi tres cuartos de
los inmigrantes indocumentados
pagan impuestos tanto estatales como federales. Además,
contribuyen a Medicare y
proporcionan aproximadamente
$7 billones anualmente al fondo
del Seguro Social a pesar de que
no cualifican con los requisitos
para recibir los beneficios. Los
inmigrantes indocumentados
contribuyen a la economía de
los Estados Unidos y de ninguna
manera agotan los recursos socioeconómicos del país. La Agencia
Agrícola Americana reportó que
sin estos trabajadores la economía
estadounidense perdería cerca de
$9 billones al año en producción
agrícola. 3
Their enthusiasm soon spread
to other U.S. college campuses,
parishes and around the world.
The Council on Faith in Action, a Latino evangelical organization, estimates there are more
than three million charismatic
Catholics in the United States involved in a wide range of ethnic,
national, community-based and
program-based
organizations.
The Cursillo movement, Life in
the Spirit seminars, ACTS, the
Kerygma and healing ministries
are among the tendrils of the
Charismatic Renewal.
“Another goal of the conference is to foster and promote
unity among all parish groups, especially the Catholic Charismatic
Renewal groups throughout the
diocese,” Deacon Gamboa said.
Gomez, who is involved in
ACTS, jail ministry and many
other ministries, said the Holy
Spirit motivates her to serve the
Church and her community with
vitality and enthusiasm.
She added that she has always
been a person of faith but through
Charismatic Renewal she now has
a personal relationship with Jesus.
“My life has been blessed in
many different and wonderful
ways,” Gomez said. “It’s the difference between going to Mass
because it’s part of the Sunday
routine and looking forward to
Sunday and longing to go to Mass,
longing for the Eucharist.”
Deacon Gamboa attributes his
vocation to the permanent diaconate to Charismatic Renewal.
“I believe it happened by participating in the events that the
Church offers, like retreats and
Cursillos,” he said. “I attended
these retreats to grow in my spiritual life and to be a better parent
and parishioner and my vocation
grew from there.”
For more information on the
conference, call St. Joseph the
Worker Parish at (956) 683-1351.
papacy, we must be a people of
prayer and live according to God’s
will. In his homily on New Year’s
Day 2013, he talked about inner
peace. He said, “It is peace with
God through a life lived according
to his will. It is interior peace with
oneself, and exterior peace with
our neighbors and all creation.”
McCann writes in his author’s
note for Let the Great World Spin,
“Literature can remind us that not
all life is already written down;
there are still so many stories to
be told.” Thus, the violence does
not have to continue, new stories
of people making a difference
wait. Our own stories wait.
In our October 2013 edition of The Valley Catholic, we
included a story about a religious
sister in the Congo who helped an
estimated 2,000 women including
women who have been forced to
leave their homes in the northeastern Congo because of the civil
strife. Sister Angelique Namaika,
La carta completa se puede encontrar en inglés y español en línea en
www.cdob.org
a member of the Augustine Sisters
of Dungu and Doruma, is making
difference. She received the 2013
Nansen Refugee Award from the
U.N. High Commissioner for
Refugees.
In each issue of our newspaper, we share stories of people
in our parishes who are making
a difference. This month in Our
Catholic Family feature, we learn
about Elisa Garza from Sacred
Heart Parish in Hidalgo, who
learned from her grandmother’s
example and is doing her share
now to pass on the faith to her
children and others. Our team at
The Valley Catholic will continue to share more stories in the
months ahead.
I look forward to this New
Year and the encounters that wait.
I pray that no matter how busy
the hours tick and how the deadline pressures push us forward,
that we remember people are
God’s graces in our lives.
Plan espiritual familiar
para el año nuevo
M
ientras comenzamos el
año nuevo, el año 2014
dC (Ano domini) el año
de Nuestro Señor, se nos recuerda
que la Iglesia tiene una larga y
hermosa historia. Como cristianos
creemos que el evento más importante y significante en la historia
de la humanidad es la llegada de
Nuestro Señor y Salvador, Jesucristo. Por eso es que comenzamos
un nuevo calendario hace 2,014
años que usamos hasta el día hoy.
Acabamos de celebrar el
nacimiento virgen del niño Jesús
desde diciembre 25 hasta Epifanía,
la celebración de los Tres Reyes
Magos. Muchos de nosotros celebramos esta gran conmemoración
con maravillosa comida cultural
como tamales, jamón, y muchos
dulces navideños. Y después empezamos a hacer resoluciones de
año nuevo, o por lo menos planes
para el año nuevo: plan de dieta,
planes para el hogar, planes financieros, planes de vacaciones, etc.
Tal vez sea un buen momento para
hacer un “plan espiritual familiar”.
Como familias Cristianas, tal
vez ese sea uno de nuestros roles
más importantes; ayudar a nuestra
familia en cualquier etapa que se
encuentre, continuar creciendo espiritualmente; continuar nutriendo
nuestra vida espiritual para poder
ser la persona que Dios quiere que
seamos.
Recientemente, estaba revisando algunos documentos de
la Iglesia que enfatizamos en un
curso titulado “Ministerio con
familias 101: una formación de
experiencia ministerial, cuyos
esfuerzos benefician a familias”. Es
una alegría leer algunas palabras
hermosas que han sido escritas por
nuestros líderes de la Iglesia a lo
largo de los años sobre nuestro rol
como familias Cristianas. Me gustaría compartir algunos extractos
de algunos de estos documentos
que nos recuerdan de este rol.
• Lumen Gentium, #11 (Constitución dogmática sobre la Iglesia, 1965) “…los padres de familia,
con su palabra y su ejemplo, son
los primeros anunciadores de la fe
con respecto a sus hijos.
• Gaudium et Spes, 48, 50,
& 52 (Constitución pastoral de
la Iglesia en el mundo moderno,
1963) La familia es, en cierto
sentido, una escuela del más rico
humanismo…
• Apostolicam Acutositatem,
#11 (Decreto sobre el apostolado
de los laicos, 1965) la familia ha
recibido su misión de Dios de ser
la primera célula vital de la sociedad. Llevará a cabo su misión si
demuestra ser el santuario domestico de la Iglesia a través del afecto
mutuo entre sus miembros y la
Lydia Pesina
Directora, Oficina
de Vida Familiar
oración en común que le ofrecen a
Dios, si toda la familia se encuentra en la adoración litúrgica de la
Iglesia y si provee una hospitalidad
activa y promueve justicia y otras
buenas obras para el servicio de
todos los hermanos necesitados.
• Evangelii Nuntiandi, #71
(Evangelización en el mundo
moderno, 1975) en una familia,
que está consiente de esta misión,
todos los miembros evangelizan y
son evangelizados.
• Familiaris Consortio, #17
(Exhortación apostólica sobre la
familia) Y dado que en el plan
de Dios se ha establecido como
una “comunidad intima de vida y
amor”, la familia tiene la misión de
ser más y más lo que es, es decir,
una comunidad de vida y amor
en un esfuerzo que encontrará
plenitud en el Reino de Dios… Por
lo tanto, la familia tiene la misión
de proteger, revelar y comunicar
amor, y esto es el reflejo vivo de
y un compartimiento real en el
amor de Dios para la humanidad
y el amor de Cristo nuestro señor
hacia la Iglesia.
• Familiaris Consortio, #49
… la familia Cristiana constituye
una revelación especial y una
realización de la comunión eclesiástica, y también por esta razón
puede y debe ser llamada “iglesia
doméstica”.
Nos recuerdan que es nuestro
rol como miembros de familia
ayudarnos unos a los otros en
nuestra jornada de vida. Hace
algunos años, Fray Matthias, quien
estaba dando servicio en la Basílica
mencionó que frecuentemente le
pregunta a las parejas comprometidas si tienen un Plan Espiritual, así que él y yo preparamos un
formulario simple para compartir
con las parejas comprometidas
como una guía para que ellos
escribas un Plan Espiritual para
su Matrimonio. Nuestra oficina
de Vida Familiar la ha adoptado
para distintos formularios, así que
comparto con ustedes un ejemplo
condensado sobre algunos de los
elementos que usted tal vez quiera
considerar al crear su Plan Espiritual Familiar.
Nosotros, la familia
_______________, reconocemos
que Dios nuestro Padre quien
creo nuestra familia ha mandado
» Por favor lea Año Nuevo, p.15
Libreria Católica J. C. Enterprise
www.jcenterprise.biz
[email protected]
MATERIALES SOBRE:
Evangelización, Catequesis para adultos y niños, Bíblico, Litúrgico,
Teología, Filosofía, Moral, Biblias Temáticas, Vida de Santos en DVD’S
Libros sobre Matrimonio, Familia, Educación a los hijos, Dinámicas,
Camisetas, Rosarios, Imagenes, Materiales para Bautismo, Confirmación,
Primera Comunión, Pro-Vida y Juegos Didácticos
EDITORIALES:
DESCLEE DE BROUWER, PATMOS, EUNSA, HERDER, EDIBESA,
MONTE CARMELO, SAN PABLO, RIALP, DABAR, COBEL, GOYA….
Algunos títulos Bilingues, Inglés, Español y Portugués
VENTAS: Brownsville, Texas
Enrique de la Cruz (956) 371-3923 Mary 465-9830 Nancy 459-3360
http://bishopflores.blogspot.com
[email protected]
[email protected]
[email protected]
14
DIOCESE
Blessing,
sion unveiled its newly renovated
and expanded sanctuary on Dec. 1.
On Dec. 7, St. Eugene de Mazenod
Parish in Brownsville opened its
new church.
At St. John the Baptist Church,
the ambo, altar, stand for the tabernacle, credence table and other
woodwork was crafted in a dark
mahogany by Juan Cantu, a carpenter from Weslaco.
The baptismal font is one of
the most prominent features of
the new church. Father Gerald W.
Frank, pastor of St. John the Baptist
Church, said it is modeled after the
fonts he read about in a book about
ancient baptismal fonts. The font is
six feet-long and three feet wide and
is in the shape of a coffin. The font
is large enough and deep enough to
perform baptisms by immersion.
“The shape of the font symbolizes that baptism celebrates our
triumph over death,” Father Frank
said.
During the homily, Bishop
Flores recalled visiting the new
sanctuary a few days earlier.
“There were things all over the
place,” the bishop said. “There were
many workers here laboring to get
ready for today.”
The bishop said that Father
Frank was, “a little nervous,” that
some of the finishing touches
would not be completed in time for
the blessing and dedication Mass.
But the bishop noted that the
work of the Church is never done.
“We will never finish in this life,
building up the temple of God,”
he said. “… We never finish building the kingdom of God and if it
is true -- and it certainly is -- that
the Church is the presence of God
amongst his people, and in his
people and through his people,
it is that temple that we must
keep building and that means
the great work of the Church, the
great work of St. John the Baptist Parish that has gone on since
1949.
“We’re just passing on the
faith to our children, teaching
adults who come to us to seek to
know more about Christ, to give
testimony to the presence of the
risen Christ Jesus amongst us -that’s the work that continues to
grow.”
San Juan urgently needed a
larger church to better serve the
community of San Juan said Father Frank, pointing to the latest
U.S. Census estimates.
“San Juan has a population of
more than 35,000 and only one
parish,” Father Frank said. “If
you take the total population of
any city in the Valley and divide
by the number of churches, our
parish serves more people than
any other parish. With these
numbers, we could actually use
two parishes in this area.”
St. John the Baptist Parish
provides pastoral needs, such as
religious education, weddings
and funerals, for the people of
San Juan. The nearby Basilica of
Our Lady of San Juan del ValleNational Shrine is a pilgrimage
site and does not offer those services.
The San Juan community
of faith dates back to 1908 when
a chapel dedicated to St. John the
Baptist was built on the riverbank
of the Rio Grande. A small wooden
chapel was built in San Juan in 1925
and the church was a mission of St.
Margaret Mary Parish in Pharr, according to the book The Catholic
Church in the Rio Grande Valley: A
Journey of Faith.
In 1940, Father Jose Azpiazu
The Feast of the Epiphany
Photo by Amber Donalldson/Mobile Journalist
Three men dressed as the Magi hand out toys in the streets of Nuevo Progreso, Mexico on Jan. 6, 2013. The word “epiphany” comes from
the Greek word epiphainen, a verb that means “to shine upon” or “to make known.” Thus, the feast celebrates the many ways that Christ
has made Himself known to the world, mainly the three events that manifested the mission and divinity of Christ: the visit of the Magi (Mt
2:1-12), the baptism of Jesus (Mk 1:9-11), and the miracle at Cana (Jn 2:1-11).
of the Missionary Oblates of Mary
Immaculate, became the pastor of
St. Margaret Mary Parish and St.
John the Baptist Mission Church
and promoted a devotion to the
Virgen de San Juan. With the bishop’s blessing, Father Azpiazu commissioned an artist in Guadalajara,
Mexico to create a reproduction of
the image venerated at San Juan de
los Lagos in Jalisco, Mexico.
St. John the Baptist Church was
established as a parish in 1949. As
the devotion to Our Lady of San
Juan grew, so did the need for a
larger church. The shrine was dedicated in 1954 before an estimated
crowd of 55,000, according to A
Journey of Faith.
After a plane crash destroyed
the shrine in 1970, the decision
was made to separate the shrine
from the parish. A parish church
was dedicated in 1975 and the new
shrine, now the Basilica of Our
Lady of San Juan del Valle-National
Shrine, was dedicated in 1980.
“This community has seen
many beautiful days and many difficult days and there’s no need to
recount the details of the difficult
days because this is a day to recognize that God has continued to
walk with this community and will
continue to do so,” Bishop Flores
said. “It is amazing what God can
do when we open ourselves to his
grace as we work together as a people.”
Immaculate Conception Cathedral
Gift Shop and Museum
1158 East Jefferson Street
Brownsville, Texas, 78520
Tel: 956-546-9927
OPEN 10AM-5PM
Monday - Saturday
The source for Catholic Religious Articles
sure to enhance your spiritual journey!
Books &DVD’s
Rosaries
Prayer cards
Statues
20% discount
thru Jan 31, 2014
DIOCESE 15
»Media Resource Center
» Calendar of Events
January
Recommended by SISTER MAUREEN CROSBY, SSD
Coordinator of the Media Resource Center - Diocese of Brownsville
»From the Bookshelf
»Worth Watching
The Other
Wise Man
The Fourth
Wise Man
Bible Stories:
God’s Special
People
Making the
Eucharist
Matter
1 New Year’s Day
Diocesan Offices
Closed
1 Mary Mother of God
3-5 Catholic Engaged Encounter
(Family Life Office)
9 Advisory Team
(Office of Catechesis)
Format:DVD also in VHS
Production: Paulist Press 1985
Length:72 minutes
The facts: The ripping story of one
man’s unstoppable search for the true
meaning of life. Artaban takes with him
three precious gifts to present to the
Messiah. Along the way, Artaban uses
his gifts to help people in dire need.
He now has nothing to present to the
Messiah when he finds Him.
Spiritual plan,
is conscious of this mission, all
the members evangelize and are
evangelized.
• Familiaris Consortio , #17
(Apostolic Exhortation on the
Family) And since in God’s plan
it has been established as an
“intimate community of life and
love”, the family has the mission
to become more and more what
it is, that is to say, a community
of life and love in an effort that
will find fulfillment in the Kingdom of God…Hence the family
has the mission to guard, reveal
and communicate love, and this
is a living reflection of and a real
sharing in God’s love for humanity and the love of Christ the
Lord for his bride.
• Familiaris Consortio, # 49
… the Christian family constitutes a special revelation and
realization of ecclesial communion, and for this reason too
it can and should be called the
“domestic church”.
They remind us that it is our
role as family members to assist
one another in our journey in
life. A few years ago, Fr. Matthias, who was serving at the
Format: VHS
Production:animation 1989
Original Story by: Henry Van Dyke
Length:30 minutes
The facts:Spend an evening with
your children and THE OTHER
WISE MAN and something good will
happen. Younger children will enjoy
the excitement and drama of Artaban’s
search through the desert, through
Egypt and throughout Judea. Older
children and adults will be inspired by
the deep spiritual message of the true
meaning of Christmas
Basilica mentioned that he often
asked engaged couples if they
had a Spiritual Plan, so he and I
prepared a simple form to share
with engaged couples as a guide
for them to write a Spiritual Plan
for their Marriage. Our Family
Life Office has adapted it in different forms, so I share with you
a condensed example of some
of the elements you might want
to consider in developing your
Family Spiritual Plan.
We, the __________Family,
acknowledging that God our Father who created our family has
sent us Jesus Christ to redeem
us, ask the Holy Spirit to guide us
on our spiritual path. We plan to
do the following daily:_____We
plan to do the following weekly:_____We plan to do the following yearly:_____Signatures:
________Date: _______
Examples: pray individually,
go to confession, pray as a family,
go to Mass, pray before meals,
serve the poor and the needy as
a family, pray the rosary, pray together at night, give one another
a blessing ,read a few minutes of
the Gospels
May the Holy Spirit continue
to lead our family as we strive to
become the people he created us
to be.
Bishop Emeritus Raymundo J. Peña’s
Jan. 3
7 p.m.
Talk at St. Frances Cabrini
Pharr
Jan. 5
9 a.m.
Mass @ Evins Juvenile Center
Edinburg
Jan. 6-9
All day
Region X Bishops’ Retreat
San Antonio
Jan. 12
9 a.m.
Mass @ Evins Juvenile Center
Edinburg
Jan. 29
2 p.m.
Ordination of Bishop Olsen
Fort Worth
On going:
Mass at St. Joseph Chapel of Perpetual Adoration, 727 Bowie St., Alamo
8 a.m. & 4 p.m. Mass at St. Joseph
Chapel of Perpetual Adoration, 727
Bowie St., Alamo
Holy Hour will be held Weekly every
Thursday at 7 p.m., 727 Bowie St.,
Alamo
Every Sunday: 6 p.m. & 9 p.m.
Confessions/Mass at UTPAEdinburg
1st: Vocations to the Consecrated
Life (active and contemplative) and
for the Sisters and Brothers in our
diocese and the success of their
mission
2nd: Vocations to the Permanent
Diaconate the deacons (permanent
and transitional) of the diocese and
their families
3rd : Vocation to Married Life: for
the welfare and sanctification of all
the families in the diocese and for
building up the Kingdom in our
domestic churches
4th: Vocations to the priesthood
and the priests of the diocese for the
success of their ministry
5th: Vocations to the Pro-Life
Intentions
Format: Hardcover
Length:317 pages
Author: Benziger
Publication: Benziger Publishing
Company, 1980
The facts: thousands of years ago, in
an out-of-the-way corner of the world,
God chose a small group of people to
be is special friends. Throughout the
centuries, God selected leaders, kings,
and prophets to guide his people and to
help them remember that he – the only
God - was their God and they were his
favored ones.
Joy of the Gospel,
continued from pg.5
the temptations of pastoral agents,
3) the Church understood as the
totality of the People of God which
evangelizes, 4) the homily and its
preparation, 5) the social inclusion
of the poor, 6) peace and social
dialogue, 7) and the spiritual motivations for the Church’s missionary
action.” (official vatican network
news.va).
In the final chapter, the Holy
Father dedicates it to the “spirit
filled evangelizers” whom he calls
“fearlessly open to the working of
the Holy Spirit” and who have “the
courage to proclaim the newness
of the Gospel with boldness in
every time and place, even when it
meets with opposition” (EG, 259);
“Only the person who feels happiness in seeking the good of others,
in desiring their happiness, can be
a missionary” (EG, 272).
The apostolic exhortation
Año nuevo,
continúa de la pág.13
a Jesucristo para redimirnos,
pedimos al Espíritu Santo que nos
guie en nuestro sendero espiritual. Planeamos hacer lo siguiente
diariamente: __________
Planeamos hacer lo siguiente
cada semana: __________ Planeamos hacer lo siguiente cada
año: _____________ Firmas:
__________ Fecha: ___________
Ethical directives,
continued from pg.5
efforts to treat her without desiring
to kill her child, even if the child
may end up dying as an unintended consequence of treating the
pathology.
The application of Catholic
moral teaching to this issue is
therefore directed toward two
important and specific ends: first,
the complete avoidance of directly
killing the child, and, second, the
preservation of the lives of both
mother and child to the extent
possible under the circumstances.
Life,
continued from pg.3
drugs, according to an interview in
Slate magazine.
Length:143 pages
Author: Frank Anderson, M.S.C.
Publication:Ave Maria Press, 1999
The facts: “Despite the best of
intentions and the hard work of many, the
bulk of people in Sunday congregations
are not particularly involved in the ritual
that is going on around them.” MAKING
THE EUCHARIST MATTER is ideal
reading for anyone who longs for a deep,
rich experience of the Eucharist.
10 Sponsor Couple Training - I
18 Convalidation Conference
14 Professional Day
23 Theology Class
24 Clases de Teologia
February
ends with the Holy Father asking
us to rely on the intercession of
our Blessed Mother, Mary the
Star of the New Evangelization.
“Contemplating Mary, we realize that she who praised God for
“bringing down the mighty from
their thrones” and “sending the
rich away empty” (Lk 1:52-53) is
also the one who brings a homely
warmth to our pursuit of justice.
She is also the one who carefully
keeps “all these things, pondering
them in her heart” (Lk 2:19). Mary
is able to recognize the traces of
God’s Spirit in events great and
small. She constantly contemplates
the mystery of God in our world,
in human history and in our daily
lives. She is the woman of prayer
and work in Nazareth, and she is
also Our Lady of Help, who sets
out from her town “with haste”
(Lk 1:39) to be of service to others
(EG, 288).
May the joy of the gospel fill
our hearts and lives every day until
the Lord comes again.
Ejemplos: orar individualmente, ir a confesión, orar en
familia, ir a Misa, orar antes
de comer, servir a los pobres y
necesitados en familia, rezar el
rosario, orar juntos en las noches,
darnos bendiciones unos a los
otros, leer el evangelio unos
minutos
Que el Espíritu Santo continúe
guiando nuestra familia mientras
nos esforzamos ser las personas
que él quiere que seamos.
Based upon these ends, the
Ethical and Religious Directives
of the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops provide important ethical
parameters for framing the appropriate treatment of both mother
and unborn child in high-risk
pregnancies, while simultaneously
safeguarding the fundamental integrity of medical practice in these
complex obstetrical situations.
—
Rev. Tadeusz Pacholczyk, Ph.D. earned
his doctorate in neuroscience from Yale
and did post-doctoral work at Harvard.
He is a priest of the diocese of Fall River,
MA, and serves as the Director of Education at The National Catholic Bioethics Center in Philadelphia.
“This battle is far from over,”
said Patty Edwards, a sidewalk
counselor and prayer warrior at the
Harlingen abortion clinic.
For more information about
the march call (956) 566-1999.
1
Believe and Be Free
(OLS KC Youth Conference)
1 Continuing Ed Session - Eng
2 Continuing Ed Session - Sp
7-9 Teen Sexuality and
Relationship Retreat
(Youth Ministry)
9 Catholic Committee on
Scouting Dinner
(Youth Ministry)
13 Professional Day
14 Valentine’s Day
17 Theology Class
18 Clases de Teologia
21 TOB for Teens Training
(Youth Ministry)
Please submit your schedule to be
published in The Valley Catholic by the
first Friday of each month by email at
[email protected] or fax: (956) 784-5082.
Brother LeMay,
teacher and as the designated “casino chip redeemer” at the Shrine
of the Most Holy Redeemer. The
shrine is located a block away from
the Las Vegas Strip.
Casino chips often appear in
the shrine’s collection baskets and
they are also used as currency in
the shrine gift shop. It was Brother LeMay’s task to cash them in,
which earned him the nickname,
“the chip monk,” from the shrine’s
rector.
Brother LeMay also sold his
chocolates at the shrine gift shop to
rave reviews. His candy and ministry as the shrine’s “casino chip
redeemer” garnered the attention
of the Las Vegas Review-Journal
newspaper, which published an article about him.
“People have been very responsive about the chocolate wherever
I’ve gone,” he said. “I think a lot of it
is that a friar is making it.”
For more information on
Brother Andy’s Candies, please call
Sacred Heart Parish at (956) 6867711.
16
DIOCESE
Our Catholic Family
A legacy of faith and service
Longtime catechist
inspires daughters to
teach the Good News
By ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
HIDALGO — “My grandmother
always used to say, “Nada vale la
pena mas que servir a Dios,” said
Elisa Garza, director of religious
education at Sacred Heart Parish
in Hidalgo. “She was my example
from the time I was born.”
Her grandmother, Guadalupe
Castro, often organized retreats
for her faith community in Guanajuato, inviting religious sisters to
lead them. Castro was, “very religious,” praying Rosaries, novenas
and attending Mass faithfully. More
importantly, Garza said, her grandmother proclaimed the Good News
of Christ Jesus with her actions, living her life at service to others.
“I always saw her work for the
Church and for the Gospel,” Garza
said of her maternal grandmother.
“After God, she was my pillar, my
strength. She provided the foundation for my faith life. She put me on
this path with the Lord.”
Father Mario Avilés, procurator
general of the Confederation of the
Oratory of St. Philip Neri and pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Hidalgo, said he was a seminarian when
he first met Garza and her “faithful
and dedicated” family.
“She has been working with the
Fathers of the Oratory for many,
many years,” he said. “She has been
a member of the lay Oratory for
more than 30 years. She has always
been working for the Church in
some capacity whether it is as a catechist or a church volunteer.
“She helped me build the religious education program in Hidalgo, which now has about 500
students. She is very humble in her
way of treating the students, the
parents and the other catechists.
I believe that is why she has been
successful as a catechist and as a
director.”
Garza, who has served as a catechist for 18 years, has instilled the
same strong faith and spirit of service in her own children. All three
of her daughters serve as catechists
alongside her at Sacred Heart Parish.
“Her daughters learned to serve
by her example,” Father Avilés said.
“When they were small, they were
always with her, helping her, accompanying her at the church. By
looking at their mother’s work and
To subscribe
Name __________________________________
Address _________________________________
City _____________ State ________Zip ________
E-mail address ____________________________
For more information call (956) 781-5323
Courtesy photo
Elisa Garza, far left, director of religious education at Sacred Heart Church in Hidalgo and her daughters, Elizabeth, Genesis and
Crystal all serve their parish as catechists.
dedication for the Church, they are
always willing to help.”
“My mother passed the faith
down to us,” said her daughter,
Elizabeth Garza, who has been
a catechist for 10 years. She also
serves as the secretary for the Family Life Office of the diocese. “If it
weren’t for her, we wouldn’t know
the Lord, we wouldn’t be catechists.
I grew up in a family where the
Catholic faith was the center of
our lives. Now, I’m trying to do the
same with my children.”
To receive a copy at home each
month mail your payment with
your contact information to:
700 N. Virgen de San
Juan Blvd.
San Juan, TX 78589-3042
$15 per year /
$17 outside of Texas
When Elisa Garza heard the
Lord’s call to serve as a catechist,
she, “didn’t think it was my time.”
“I wanted to be a catechist, but I
decided I would wait until my baby
at the time was in school, but God
had a different plan,” she said. “Just
when I was sure I should wait, the
director of religious education at
the time invited me to teach a class
and I accepted the invitation.”
Elisa Garza began her ministry as a catechist in 1995 at Capilla de Nuestro Señor del Sagrado
Corazón, which has since become
the parish of St. Frances Xavier
Cabrini. From 1997-2002, she
served as coordinator of religious
education there before moving to
Sacred Heart Parish.
She and Ismael, her husband of
35 years, have five children and
nine grandchildren
“I am thankful and humbled to
serve our Lord,” Elisa Garza said.
“I am honored that he has called
me to serve as a catechist, in such a
beautiful ministry.”

January 2014 - Catholic Diocese of Brownsville

Transcripción

Documentos relacionados

- St. Joseph Roman Catholic Church

saint pius x - St. Pius X Catholic Church

May 22, 2016

Week 4 - St. Mark the Evangelist

Saint Patrick Church