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Volume 3, Issue 12
Serving over 900,000 Catholics In The Diocese of Brownsville
Corpus Christi
The Holy Eucharist at the
center of feast day
3
Raising a
family alone
A Farewell
Oblates of Mary Immaculate
to leave Port Isabel
Mobile Journalists
6
Single father
only dad at
Muffins with Mom
By ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
Those Who Serve
Father Gregory T. Labus
named pastor of home
parish
9
En Español
Artículos sobre El Programa
de Protección para los Niños
de Dios, y de un padre
soltero de Weslaco
11-13
“VERBUM MITTITUR
SPIRANS AMOREM”
(“The WORD is sent
breathing love.”)
Bishops
call for a
special
period
of prayer
U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops
4
Diocese spearheads new
initiative
JUNE 2012
W
ESLACO
—
Francisco Diaz
recently attended a Muffins
with Mom event at his daugh-
ter’s elementary school in honor of Mother’s Day. As usual,
he was the only dad present
among the sea of moms.
For the last four years,
Diaz has played the role of
mother and father since his
wife, Margarita, died from an
intracerebral hemorrhage at
the age of 37.
“My heart sinks every
year when the school sends
that letter home about Muffins
with Mom,” said Diaz, a father
of five. “It hurts, but I have to
keep my chin up for my kids.
So I show up every year, eat my
little cake and drink my little
cup of juice.”
Diaz, 43, is one of an estimated 2.3 million men leading
a single parent household in
the United States, according to
statistics from the U.S. Census
Bureau. While women account
for the majority of single parent households (82.6 percent),
» Please see Single father, p.16
Protecting God’s Children
Program marks
10 years of keeping
children safe
By ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
The Protecting God’s Children program in the Diocese of
Brownsville is marking its 10th
anniversary in June 2012.
Since its inception, Protecting
God’s Children, which was started
in 2002 in response to the national
abuse scandal, has evolved into a
program where protocols are in
place to protect children from all
sexual predators given that the
evils of sexual abuse are not confined to the Church.
“The program has created
awareness on the part of the religious education teachers, more
awareness on the part of the
children and on the part of the
parents,” said Walter Lukaszek,
coordinator of Protecting God’s
Children for the diocese. “It is very
clear that if anybody is touched in
a way that makes them feel uncomfortable, they should come
forward.”
Bishop Raymundo J. Peña
appointed Lukaszek, a licensed
social worker with 27 years of
experience with Child Protective
Services, as the victim assistance
coordinator. Lukaszek serves as a
liaison to victims of sexual abuse
by clergy or other diocesan employees.
“The role of the victim assistance coordinator is to listen to
the victims, to let them know that
it is not their fault and that the
Church is there to help them heal,”
Lukaszek said.
Lukaszek said there were a
number of individuals that came
forward to report sexual abuse in
2002, 2003 and 2004, reports that
were all 20 years or older.
“There have not been any individuals with credible cases of clergy sexual abuse since then, which
is a blessing,” Lukaszek said.
A safety environment program was established in the Diocese of Brownsville in 2003 for
both adults and children to prevent and stop child sex abuse.
Anyone 18 or older in the
diocese who works with children, such as religious education
» Please see Protecting, p.13
The Ad Hoc Committee on
Religious Liberty of the U.S.
Conference of Catholic Bishops
(USCCB) issued a document, “Our
First, Most Cherished Liberty,” on
April 12, outlining the bishops’
concerns over threats to religious
freedom, both at home and abroad.
The bishops called for a
“Fortnight for Freedom,” a 14day period of prayer, education
and action in support of religious
freedom, from June 21-July 4.
Bishops in their own dioceses
are encouraged to arrange
special events to highlight the
importance of defending religious
freedom. Catholic institutions
are encouraged to do the same,
especially in cooperation with
other Christians, Jews, people
of other faiths and all who wish
to defend our most cherished
freedom.
The fourteen days from June
21—the vigil of the Feasts of St.
John Fisher and St. Thomas More—
to July 4, Independence Day, are
dedicated to this “fortnight for
freedom”—a great hymn of prayer
for our country. Our liturgical
calendar celebrates a series of great
martyrs who remained faithful in
the face of persecution by political
power—St. John Fisher and St.
Thomas More, St. John the Baptist,
SS. Peter and Paul, and the First
Martyrs of the Church of Rome.
Culminating on Independence
Day, this special period of prayer,
study, catechesis, and public
action would emphasize both our
Christian and American heritage
of liberty.
Dioceses and parishes around
the country could choose a date in
that period for special events that
would constitute a great national
campaign of teaching and witness
for religious liberty.
The document can be found at
http://www.usccb.org/issues-andaction/religious-liberty/our-firstmost-cherished-liberty.cfm.
2
DIOCESE
En agradecimiento
a los Oblatos de
María Inmaculada
San Eugenio
Recientemente visité la parroquia San Eugenio de Mazenod
en Brownsville para administrar el
sacramento de la confirmación. La
iglesia de San Eugenio, fundada en
1996, es una de las parroquias más
nuevas en la cuidad.
Es una parroquia atendida por
los Oblatos de María Inmaculada,
quienes, como ya saben, tienen
una larga y legendaria historia aquí
en el Valle del Rio Grande.
Hace algunas semanas realicé
la colocación de la primera piedra
para la construcción de una nueva
iglesia en San Eugenio. El ambiente
de la celebración fue asombroso ya
que el sacrificio que la comunidad
ha hecho por más de 16 años con
el propósito de construir una iglesia permanente fue todo un logro
en la ceremonia. Por lo tanto, la
construcción comenzará pronto.
La visita me da la oportunidad
para animar a aquellos que están
interesados en la vida de los santos
(y espero que sean casi todos
ustedes) a que pongan su mirada
en San Eugenio. Él es el santo fundador de los Oblatos de María Inmaculada y fue canonizado por el
Beato Juan Pablo II un poco antes
de que la parroquia fuera establecida. Pienso que nuestra parroquia
de San Eugenio es la primera en el
mundo en llevar su nombre. Algo
que es muy adecuado ya que fue el
mismo San Eugenio quien envió a
los primeros misioneros Oblatos al
Valle del Rio Grande hace más de
150 años.
San Eugenio vivió una vida
extraordinaria en tiempos extraordinariamente difíciles. Él y
muchos otros buscaban restablecer
la vida de la Iglesia después de los
devastadores efectos de la Revolución Francesa. San Eugenio fue
contemporáneo del Cura de Ars,
San Juan Vianney, pero nunca he
encontrado dónde se pudieron
haberse conocido. De seguro en
el cielo, si es que no sucedió en la
tierra.
Estoy agradecido de que el
Obispo Peña haya invitado a los
Oblatos a tomar el reto de establecer la parroquia de San Eugenio
Mazenod, y de que los Oblatos se
hayan dedicado tan generosamente
a construir la comunidad. Felicidades al Padre Timothy Paulsen
OMI, y a toda la parroquia por el
hermoso testimonio de fe, esperanza y caridad que han dado a la
Iglesia.
The Valley Catholic - June 2012
In gratitude to the Oblates of Mary Immaculate
I
recently visited Saint Eugene de Mazenod
Church in Brownsville for a Confirmation. Saint Eugene, founded in 1996, is one
of the newer parishes in the City. It is down
a ways on the east side as you head across
Paredes Line Road. It is a parish that is staffed
by the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, who, as
you know, have a long and storied history here
in the Rio Grande Valley.
I celebrated a groundbreaking for a new
and permanent Church some weeks ago at
Saint Eugene’s and the celebratory mood was
amazing, as over 16 years of community sacrifice for the purpose of building a permanent
church passed a mile-stone in the groundbreaking. Construction should begin soon.
The visit gives me a chance to encourage
those of you who are interested in the lives
of the saints (and I hope that is most all of
you) to look up Saint Eugene. He is the saintly
founder of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate
and was canonized by Blessed Pope John Paul
II shortly before the parish was established.
I think our Saint Eugene parish is the first in
the world to bear his name. And that is fitting,
since Saint Eugene himself sent the first Oblate missionaries into the Rio Grande Valley
over 150 years ago.
He lived an extraordinary life in extraordinarily difficult times, as he and so many
others sought to re-establish the life of the
Church after the devastating effects of the
French Revolution. He was a contemporary
of the Curé of Ars, Saint John Vianney, but I
have never run across where they might have
met each other. Surely in heaven, if not on
earth.
I am grateful that Bishop Peña invited the
Oblates to take up the challenge of establishing Saint Eugene de Mazenod parish, and that
the OMI’s have so generously dedicated themselves to building up the community. And
congratulations to Father Timothy Paulsen
OMI, and the whole parish for the beautiful
witness they give to the faith, hope and charity
of the Church.
San Pedro Mission
It so happens I was confirming candidates on May 5 at San Pedro Mission, also
in Brownsville, off Old Military Highway.
It is one of the oldest communities in the
sobre la vieja carretera militar. San
Pedro es una de las comunidades
más antiguas en el área. Recientemente ayudé a celebrar los 100
años de su establecimiento como
misión. La iglesia de San Pedro fue
parte del camino original de los
Oblatos cuando cruzaban por el
Valle de Texas desde Brownsville
a través de Mission, Río Grande y
Roma.
En esos viejos tiempos los
misioneros Oblatos montaban a
caballo para llevar el Evangelio y
los Sacramentos a los residentes de
los pequeños poblados y comunidades en los dos lados del río.
Misión San Pedro
Hoy en día, la iglesia de San
Sucede que el 5 de mayo tuve
Pedro es atendida por un sacerlas confirmaciones en la iglesia de
dote diocesano, el Padre Eduardo
San Pedro, también en Brownsville, Gómez, quien también sirve como
MOST REVEREND
DANIEL E. FLORES
BISHOP OF BROWNSVILLE
area. I recently helped them celebrate their
100-year anniversary as a mission. San Pedro
church was part of the original Oblate Trail
that stemmed from Brownsville up the Valley
through to Mission, Texas and Rio Grande
City and Roma. The Oblate missionaries
would ride horse-back in the old days to
bring the Gospel and the Sacraments to the
residents in the small towns and communities
up and down the river.
Today, San Pedro Mission is staffed by a
diocesan priest, Father Eduardo Gómz, who
also serves as rector of our diocesan House of
Studies next door to the Church. Each year
some of our seminarians live and pray and
study at the House of Studies, and participate
in the life of San Pedro Mission. The community of San Pedro is very hospitable and
friendly, and gives to our seminarians a generous community atmosphere to help nurture
their vocations to the Priesthood. Again, the
life of the Church shows great vitality in the
faces of the newly confirmed at San Pedro
Mission.
Both Saint Eugene parish and San Pedro
Mission remind us of how much of our
Church life in the Diocese of Brownsville has
been and continues to be nourished by the
work of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate.
Our Lady Star of the Sea, Port Isabel
Now, as some of you may have heard, the
Oblates recently announced that they are asking the Diocese of Brownsville to take over the
pastoral care of Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish in Port Isabel. This parish was also established by the Oblates, and – as you probably
know— it is the parish “on the way to South
Padre Island”. What you may not know is that
the parish was established formally in 1927,
rector de la casa de estudios de
nuestra diócesis, la cual se ubica a
un costado de la Iglesia. Cada año
algunos de nuestros seminaristas
viven, rezan y estudian en esta casa
de estudios, y también participan
en la vida de la iglesia de San
Pedro. Ya que es una comunidad
muy hospitalaria y amistosa,
brinda a nuestros seminaristas una
generosa atmósfera de comunidad
que ayuda a fomentar su vocación
al sacerdocio. Una vez más, la vida
de la Iglesia muestra una gran
vitalidad en las caras de los recién
confirmados en la iglesia de San
Pedro.
Ambas iglesias, San Eugenio
y San Pedro, nos recuerdan lo
mucho que ha sido y continua
siendo alimentada la vida de
though there had been a constant presence of
pastoral care by the Oblates for residents of
Port Isabel long prior to that.
What does this request of the Oblate
Missionaries mean? It means that the Oblate
Community has discerned that for them to
focus upon the missionary charism of the
Order, it is pastorally best that at this time
the Diocese of Brownsville supply the next
pastor to the parish. This frees the missionaries to focus upon other commitments that
they have in this diocese and other dioceses
where they continue to serve. I have accepted
their request and recommendation, and urge
all of the faithful to pray for vocations to the
Oblates of Mary Immaculate, and pray also
for the new pastor of Our Lady Star of the Sea
Parish.
It is never an easy thing for a religious
community to leave a parish they have served
for generations. And I know it will be difficult
for the parishioners to say farewell to the Oblate presence in their parish. I am grateful to
God for the work of the Oblates over the years
at Port Isabel, and particularly the work most
recently begun by Father James Erving, OMI,
the current pastor. But, despite the changes
necessitated by the current situation, we live
in the sure and graceful hope that the Lord
will continue to bless the growth of Our Lady
Star of the Sea, and that the hard work of the
Oblates in building up the life of the Church
in Port Isabel will serve as the solid foundation for greater growth in the days and years
to come.
In the name of all the generations of
Catholics here in the Valley, let us all acknowldge gratefully to enduring presence of
the Oblate Fathers in the Rio Grande Valle,
and let us thank God for for the dedication
and generosity He has inspired in them. As
bishop of this beautiful diocese, I am particularly thankful for their work in establishing so
many parish communities in the Valley, and
for the parish communities they continue to
serve here.
nuestra Iglesia en la Diócesis de
Brownsville por el gran trabajo de
los Oblatos de María Inmaculada.
Nuestra Señora Estrella del Mar,
Puerto Isabel
Ahora, como ya algunos de
ustedes habrán escuchado, recientemente los Oblatos pidieron a
la Diócesis de Brownsville que se
encargara del cuidado pastoral de
Nuestra Señora Estrella del Mar en
Puerto Isabel. Ésta parroquia también fue establecida por los Oblatos, y —como ustedes probablemente saben— es la parroquia que
se encuentra “camino hacia la Isla
del Padre.” Lo que probablemente
no sepan es que la parroquia fue
establecida formalmente en 1927,
aunque ha habido una presencia
Bishop Flores’ Schedule
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
ZBG Studio/Graphic Design
Terry De Leon
Circulation
The Valley Catholic e-mail:
Editor@cdob.org
The Valley Catholic, a publication
of the Diocese of Brownsville,
is published monthly.
Subscription rate:
$15 per year • $17 outside of Texas
$25 out of U.S.
May God Bless the Oblates.
Saint Eugene de Mazenod, pray for us.
June 4
2 p.m.
Brownsville
Administrative Council Meeting
June 5
6 p.m.
Harlingen
KMBH Board Meeting
June 7
All Day
Chicago
Catholic Extension Board Meeting
June 8
6:30 p.m.
Basilica, San Juan
Diaconate Ordinations
June 9
9 a.m.
Hidalgo
Confirmations at Sacred Heart
June 9
5 p.m.
Progreso
Confirmations at Holy Spirit
June 10
6 p.m.
Brownsville
Feast of Corpus Christi Mass
June 11-15
All Day
Atlanta
USCCB Spring Meeting
June 17
12 p.m. Rio Grande City Monastery
Closing Mass for Seminarian Retreat
June 18
9 a.m.
IW Convent, Corpus Christi
Mass of the Holy Spirit (to open Chapter of Affairs)
constante de cuidado pastoral de
los Oblatos para los residentes de
Puerto Isabel desde mucho tiempo
antes.
¿Qué significa ésta petición que
hicieron los Misioneros Oblatos?
Significa que la comunidad Oblata
ha discernido que para poder
enfocarse en el carisma misionero
de la orden, es pastoralmente
necesario que en este momento la
Diócesis de Brownsville asigne el
próximo pastor de la parroquia.
Esto libera a los misioneros de sus
responsabilidades para así enfocarse en otros compromisos que
tienen en la diócesis y otras diócesis en las que siguen sirviendo. Por
lo tanto, yo acepté su petición y su
recomendación, y les pido a todos
» Por favor lea Agradecimiento, p.15
June
June 19
7 p.m.
Confirmations at Christ the King
June 20
9:30 am
Presbyteral Council Meeting
June 20
6:30 p.m.
Finance Council Meeting
June 21
6 p.m.
Brownsville
San Juan
San Juan
Mission
Opening Prayer & Keynote Speaker at “The Golden Years” Gala Dinner
June 23
4 p.m.
St. Joseph, Edinburg
Sr. Kathleen Murray’s 50th Anniversary Mass
June 23
6 p.m.
San Juan
Mass & Talk for Valley Awakening
June 24
11 a.m.
Rio Grande City
Mass for Natural Family Planning Training Weekend
June 26
7 p.m.
Edinburg
Mass Segovia Unit Prison
June 30
11 a.m.
Brownsville
Mass for Villa Maria - Incarnate Word Academy Super Reunion
DIOCESE
June 2012 - The Valley Catholic
Corpus Christi Sunday
Father-son
time
scheduled
We are reminded
that Christ lives
among us still
The Valley Catholic
Catholic News Agency
The Solemnity of the Most
Holy Body and Blood of Christ
is also known as the Solemnity of
Corpus Christi, which translates
from Latin to “Body of Christ.”
This feast originated in France in
the mid-thirteenth century and
was extended to the whole Church
by Pope Urban IV in 1264. This
feast is celebrated on the Thursday
following the Trinity Sunday or,
as in the USA, on the Sunday
following that feast.
This feast calls us to focus on
two manifestations of the Body of
Christ, the Holy Eucharist and the
Church. The primary purpose of
this feast is to focus our attention
on the Eucharist. The opening
prayer at Mass calls our attention
to Jesus’ suffering and death and
our worship of Him, especially in
the Eucharist.
At every Mass our attention
is called to the Eucharist and the
Real Presence of Christ in it. The
secondary focus of this feast upon
the Body of Christ as it is present
in the Church. The Church called
3
The Valley Catholic
Bishop Daniel E. Flores will lead a Eucharistic procession through downtown Brownsville and celebrate Mass at the
Immaculate Conception Cathedral at 6 p.m. on Corpus Christi Sunday, which falls on June 10 this year.
the Body of Christ because of
the intimate communion which
Jesus shares with his disciples.
He expresses this in the gospels
by using the metaphor of a body
where He is the head. This image
helps keep in focus both the unity
and the diversity of the Church.
The Feast of Corpus Christi is
commonly used as an opportunity
for public Eucharistic processions,
which serves as a sign of common
faith and adoration. Our worship
of Jesus in His Body and Blood
calls us to offer to God our Father
a pledge of undivided love and an
offering of ourselves to the service
of others.
A Father-Son Program for fathers and their 10, 11, or 12 year
old sons will be held on Saturday,
June 16, the day before Father’s
Day, from 8:30 a.m. to noon at the
Bishop Adolph Marx Conference
Center in San Juan.
The conference center is located east of the Basilica of Our
Lady of San Juan del Valle-National
Shrine, across the street from the
Pizza Hut on N. Nebraska Ave. in
San Juan.
Dads are invited to spend a
morning with their son(s) reflecting on what it means to be a man
with Christian values, the move
into manhood, and on God’s plan
for the role of men in today’s world.
Topics include trust, respect,
the father and son bond and communication. The cost is $10 per
family and the registration deadline is Friday, June 8. To register
or for more information, please
contact the Family Life Office at
(956) 784-5012 or (956) 542-2501
ext.412.
Priest
assignments
announced
The Valley Catholic
Effective April 18
-Rev. Msgr. Gustavo Barrera, Member of RGV Educational Broadcasting, Inc. Board
Effective April 19
-Rev. (Joseph) Bikoula Ateba,
Chaplain for Hospital Ministry
program
-Rev. Daniel Hervé Oyama, Chaplain for Hospital Ministry program
New home for
Divine Mercy Parish
Courtesy photos
The Parish of the Lord of Divine Mercy in Brownsville, the newest
church in the Diocese of Brownsville, celebrated its first Masses on
Sunday, May 13, in its newly completed Place of Worship located at
650 E. Alton Gloor Blvd.
Bishop Daniel E. Flores and church pastor, Father Rodolfo Franco,
celebrated the first Mass at 8 a.m., a bilingual service.
The opening of the Place of Worship begins a new chapter for this
growing community in North Brownsville. Other Masses on Mother’s
Day included an English Mass at 10 a.m. and a Spanish Mass celebrated by Bishop Emeritus Raymundo J. Peña and Father Franco.
This Parish held its first Mass September 18, 2005 with about 100
people in the Burns Elementary School cafeteria. Today, more than
700 families are registered, accounting for about 2,000 parishioners who attend four Masses each Saturday and Sunday.
Effective May 1
-Rev. Msgr. Heberto M. Diaz, Jr.,
Member of the Grants Review and
Oversight Board
-Rev. Gerald W. Frank, Member of
the Grants Review and Oversight
Board
-Rev. Alfonso M. Guevara, Member
of the Grants Review and Oversight
Board
Effective May 8
-Rev. Roy Lee Snipes, OMI, Member of the San Juan Diego Catholic
Regional High School Board (dba:
Juan Diego Academy)
Effective May 18
-Rev. Gregory T. Labus, Pastor of
Saint Joseph Parish in Edinburg
-Rev. Cesar Uriel Partida, Chaplain
for the Serra Club in Harlingen
Effective June 1
-Rev. Martin de la Cruz, Pastor of
Saint Joan of Arc Parish in Weslaco
Effective July
-Rev. Jean Olivier M. Sambu, Pastor of Our Lady of Mercy Parish in
Mercedes
-Rev. Patrick K. Seitz, Pastor of
Our Lady, Star of the Sea Parish in
Port Isabel and its mission Laguna
Heights Chapel in Laguna Heights
4
DIOCESE
»Making Sense
Out of Bioethics
Tadeusz
Pacholczyk
Priest of the
Diocese of Fall
River
Powerlessness,
or the hidden
power in our
suffering?
I
n a 1999 study published in
the Journal of the American
Medical Association,
patients with serious illness
were asked to identify what was
most important to them during
the dying process. Many indicated
they wanted to achieve a “sense of
control.” This is understandable.
Most of us fear our powerlessness
in the face of illness and death. We
would like to retain an element
of control, even though we
realize that dying often involves
the very opposite: a total loss of
control, over our muscles, our
emotions, our minds, our bowels
and our very lives, as our human
framework succumbs to powerful
disintegrative forces.
Even when those
disintegrative forces become
extreme and our suffering may
seem overwhelming, however,
a singularly important spiritual
journey always remains open
for us. This path is a “road
less traveled,” a path that,
unexpectedly, enables us to
achieve genuine control in the face
of death. The hallmark of this path
is the personal decision to accept
our sufferings, actively laying
down our life on behalf of others
by embracing the particular kind
of death God has ordained for
us, patterning our choice on the
choice consciously made by Jesus
Christ.
When asked about the “why”
of human suffering, Pope John
Paul II once stated, with piercing
simplicity, that the answer has
“been given by God to man in the
cross of Jesus Christ.” He stressed
that Jesus went toward his own
suffering, “aware of its saving
power.” The Pope also observed
that in some way, each of us is
called to “share in that suffering
through which the Redemption
was accomplished.” He concluded
that through his only-begotten
Son, God “has confirmed His
desire to act especially through
suffering, which is man’s weakness
and emptying of self, and He
wishes to make His power known
precisely in this weakness and
emptying of self.” The Holy Father
echoes St. Paul’s famous passage:
“My grace is sufficient for you,
for my power is made perfect in
weakness.”
The greatest possibility we
have for achieving control, then, is
to align ourselves in our suffering
The Valley Catholic - June 2012
and weakness with God and his
redemptive designs. This oblation
of radically embracing our
particular path to death, actively
offered on behalf of others and in
union with Christ, manifests our
concern for the spiritual welfare
of others, especially our friends
and those closest to us. We are
inwardly marked by a profound
need to sacrifice and give of
ourselves, a need that manifests
our inner capacity to love and be
loved.
As no one had ever done
before, Jesus charted the path of
love-driven sacrifice, choosing to
lay down his life for his friends. He
was no mere victim in the sense
of being a passive and unwilling
participant in his own suffering
and death. He was in control. He
emphasized, with otherworldly
authority, that, “nobody takes my
life from me: I lay it down, and I
take it up again.”
Yet we see that his life was,
in fact, taken from him by those
various individuals and groups
who plotted his death and sought
his execution. His life was taken
from him by evil men, even
though, paradoxically, nobody
took his life from him, because
nobody had power over his being,
unless granted from above.
We experience a similar
paradox in our own deaths: while
it may seem that our life is being
taken from us through the evil
of a particular ailment or the
ravages of a particular disease,
we can reply that nothing takes
away our life, because nothing
has power over our being, except
what is ordained from above. In
his providence and omniscience,
years before the fact, God already
knows and foresees that unique
confluence of events that will
constitute our death, whether it
be by stroke or cardiac arrest, liver
failure or Alzheimers, or any other
means. By spiritually embracing
in God that specific path to death,
our freedom is elevated to new
heights; indeed, we “achieve
control” in the most important
way possible, through willed
surrender and radical gift in our
innermost depths.
Jesus foresaw that his greatest
work lay ahead as he ascended
Calvary to embrace his own
powerlessness and self-emptying.
Although we may feel condemned
to our powerlessness as we
receive help from others in our
sickness, and although we may
feel supremely useless as we are
“nailed” to our hospital bed,
our active, inward embrace of
the cross unleashes important
graces for ourselves and others,
and reveals a refulgent light
beyond the obscurity of every
suffering. Jesus’ radical embracing
of his Passion - and our radical
embracing of our own - marks the
supreme moment of a person who
achieves control over his or her
destiny through immersion into
the hope-filled and redemptive
designs of God.
--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. See www.ncbcenter.org
Oblates say goodbye
to parish in Port Isabel
Shortage of priests
leads to religious
order’s decision
The Valley Catholic
PORT ISABEL — After
more than 150 years of service to
the community, the Missionary
Oblates of Mary Immaculate order
of priests has decided to leave Our
Lady Star of the Sea Parish in Port
Isabel.
“The reason for this decision
is simply that we do not have
enough Oblates to fulfill our
commitments,”
said
Father
William M. Antone, provincial of
the Missionary Oblates of Mary
Immaculate United States Province
in a later dated April 26, 2012.
There are only 320 Oblate
priests in the United States
Province, 205 of which are over 70
years old, Antone noted. Seventyfour Oblates are between 50 and
70 years of age and 41 Oblates are
under the age of 50, including the
seminarians in vows.
Oblate Father Jim Erving,
who currently serves as pastor of
Our Lady Star of the Sea Church,
will be assigned to Our Lady of
Refuge Church in Roma to relieve
temporary parish administrator,
Oblate Father Bob Wright, who
must return to full-time work as
a professor at the Oblate School
of Theology in San Antonio by
August.
Bishop Daniel E. Flores
assigned Father Patrick K. Seitz,
a diocesan priest, as pastor of
Our Lady Star of the Sea Church,
The Valley Catholic
Father Patrick K. Seitz, a diocesan priest, will be the new pastor of Our Lady Star of the
Sea Church in Port Isabel, effective July 1. The Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate are leaving the parish due to diminishing numbers. Based in France, the Oblates
arrived in Port Isabel in 1849, establishing one of the religious community’s first
overseas missions.
effective July 1. Father Seitz is
currently the pastor of St. Pius X
Church in Weslaco.
“We are grateful to the Oblates
of Mary Immaculate for their long
care of Our Lady Star of the Sea
Parish, and are grateful they remain
in several other parishes in the
diocese,” Bishop Flores said.
Oblate priests remain at the
Immaculate Conception Cathedral
and at St. Eugene de Mazenod
Church in Brownsville, Our Lady
of Guadalupe Church in Mission
and at Our Lady of Refuge Church
in Roma.
Founded by Eugene de
Mazenod in France in 1816, the
first wave of Oblates landed in Port
Isabel on Dec. 3, 1849, sent to the
area by the founder himself. The
presence in Texas was one of the
first overseas missions ordered by
de Mazenod, who was declared a
saint in 1995.
Our Lady Star of the Sea
Church began as a small chapel
built by Oblate Father Jean Verdet
in 1854. A mission of Brownsville,
a priest visited twice a month for
weddings, baptisms and funerals.
In 1927, it was established as a
parish.
The Oblates went on to
establish more than half of the
churches in the Rio Grande Valley,
according to the book, A Journey of
Faith: The Catholic Church in the
Rio Grande Valley.
The number of Oblate
priests serving in the Valley has
dropped in recent years. Citing
diminishing numbers and an aging
membership, the Oblates also
opted to leave St. John the Baptist
Church in the Fall of 2010.
Transitional deacons to be ordained
The Valley Catholic
Bishop Daniel E. Flores will
ordain three seminarians to the
JUDE NJUMBE, 32, is the son of Godfred
transitional diaconate at 6:30 p.m.
Njumbe
Ngome and Odilia Ebude Njumbe and
on Friday, June 8 at the Basilica of
has five siblings. He is currently completing a
Our Lady of San Juan del Vallepastoral year at St. Joseph Church in BrownsNational Shrine.
ville.
The seminarians are Jude
NJUMBE
Njumbe of Yaounde, Cameroon;
Arturo Cardenas of Tuxpan, Jalisco, Mexico and Arturo Castillo of
Madero, Tamaulipas, Mexico.
ARTURO CARDENAS, 33, is the son of
Ordination to the transitional
Arturo Cardenas Sanchez and Maria Merdiaconate marks the final stage of
cedes Avalos and has two siblings, a brother
preparation for the priesthood. A
and a sister. He is completing a pastoral year
transitional deacon may proclaim
at Mary, Mother of the Church Parish in
the Gospel, preach at Mass, minBrownsville.
ister at the altar, distribute ComCARDENAS
munion and assist the bishops and
priests in the pastoral care of the
community.
During the ordination Mass,
the men will kneel before Bishop
ARTURO CASTILLO, 28, is the son of Jose
Flores, pledging obedience to him
Noe Castillo (deceased) and Isabel Jimenez. He
and his successors. They will also
has three siblings, two brothers and a sister. He
be vested with the stole and a dalis currently completing his third year of theolmatic, which the deacon wears
ogy at Mundelein Seminary in the Archdiocese
during liturgical services.
of Chicago.
Bishop Flores will also place
CASTILLO
the book of the Gospels in the
hands of the newly ordained deacon and proclaim, “Receive the
Gospel of Christ, whose herald you read, teach what you believe,
you have become. Believe what and practice what you teach.”
DIOCESE
June 2012 - The Valley Catholic
»Sunday
Readings
The Word of God in the Life
and Mission of the Church
JUNE 3
( The Solemnity of the Most Holy
Trinity)
Reading I DT 4:32-34, 39-40
Responsorial Psalm
PS 33:4-5, 6, 9, 18-19, 20, 22
Reading II ROM 8:14-17
Gospel MT 28:16-20
JUNE 10
(The Solemnity of the Most Holy Body
and Blood of Christ)
Reading I EX 24:3-8
Responsorial Psalm
PS 116:12-13, 15-16, 17-18
Reading II HEB 9:11-15
Gospel
MK 14:12-16, 22-26
JUNE 17
(Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time)
Reading I
EZ 17:22-24
Responsorial Psalm
PS 92:2-3, 13-14, 15-16
Reading II
Gospel
2 COR 5:6-10
MK 4:26-34
JUNE 24
(Solemnity of the Nativity of Saint
John the Baptist Mass during the Day)
Reading I
IS 49:1-6
L
Living in the Divine Will
iving in the Divine Will
is a reality that came into
my life not too long ago.
A few years ago a parishioner came from Florida where
she had attended a retreat on the
Divine Will. She gave me a book
entitled “Be Faithful and Attentive
– A Handbook for Living in the
Divine Will,” compiled by Robert
T. Hart. A year later Father Robert
Young, a Franciscan priest, came
to the Valley to direct a Divine
Will retreat in Rio Grande City at
the St. Benedictine Monastery.
I had wanted to attend this
retreat but was unable to do so because of my parish commitments.
However the day after the retreat
Father Young came to the McAllen Pregnancy Center to speak
about Divine Will and I attended.
He admitted that this Divine Will
spiritually had changed his life. I
remember him saying that it took
him several years to understand
and accept the power of the writings of Luisa Piccarreta on living in
the Divine Will.
Her writings were based on her
personal experiences of conversing with Jesus and the Blessed
Mother. Her writings fall under the
category of private revelations. The
faithful are not required to accept
private revelations. But if they are
approved by the Church they may
be read for their own edification.
(Luisa Piccarreta’s writings are
in the tradition of St. Therese of
Lixieux, Venerable Conchita of
Mexico, St. Maximilian Kolbe, and
St. Faustina.)
In January of this year, I got
an invitation to make a retreat for
priests at Gethsemane Monastery
Responsorial Psalm
PS 139:1B-3, 13-14AB, 14C-15
Reading II
Gospel
ACTS 13:22-26
LK 1:57-66, 80
The word of the lord abides for ever.
This word is the Gospel which was
preached to you” (1 Pet 1:25; cf. Is
40:8).
With this assertion from the First
Letter of Saint Peter, which takes up
the words of the Prophet Isaiah, we
find ourselves before the mystery of
God, who has made himself known
through the gift of his word.
This word, which abides for ever,
entered into time. God spoke his
eternal Word humanly; his Word
“became flesh” (Jn 1:14).
This is the good news. This is the
proclamation which has come down
the centuries to us today.
Disciples in Mission: Six Weeks
with the Bible
5
T
Father Alfonso
Guevarra
Vicar General
for the Diocese
of Brownsville
in Kentucky. It was a retreat on
living in the Divine Will. I immediately accepted this invitation
because I felt that God was calling
me to learn more about living in
the Divine Will. Before I knew it I
was on a plane flying to Kentucky.
What a treat! The place was so
conducive for prayer.
The fifteen priests who were on
this wonderful retreat came from
all over, including priests from
South American, Mexico, Canada,
and of course several parts of the
U.S. What was so wonderful was
these priests’ deep faith. Most
of them had been involved in
spreading the Divine Will message
according to the writings of the
Servant of God Louisa Peccarreta.
Since then I have started two
groups of Divine Will. On Fridays,
we meet at the McAllen Pregnancy
Center at 4:30 p.m. On Wednesdays we have a class in Spanish
at 10 a.m. St. Joseph the Worker,
McAllen. There are several other
Divine Will groups in the Valley.
Let me share some thoughts
about “living in the Divine Will” as
found in the writings of Louis Peccarreta. The Lord wants all of us to
be holy. He wants to teach us to
remain in Him so that all our acts
and thoughts are fused with Jesus’
humanity. While he was on earth
Jesus lived out the Father’s will.
Now, Jesus continues to live out
His Father’s will in and through us.
The following prayer helps me
understand living in the Divine
Will. “Lord Jesus, let my heart be
Your heart, let my thoughts be
Your thoughts, let my eyes be Your
eyes, let my ears be Your ears, let
my mouth be Your mouth, let my
hands be Your hands, and let my
feet be Your feet.”
Living in the Divine Will is
to believe that there are continuous moments in which God has
prepared us to act in Divine Volition. Jesus’ humanity is therefore
made manifest in our acting in
His Divine Volition. Living in the
Divine Will is fusing our wills to
the human will of Jesus.
Living in the Divine Will is
also uniting our sufferings to the
life and passion of Jesus in reparation for sins. It requires that we
be faithful and attentive to God’s
will. Jesus wants everyone to share
in His divine life. Pope John Paul
II said “that we are living in what
has been called a “fullness of time”.
Although everywhere we turn we
see violence and corruption St.
Paul assures us that “where sin
abounds, grace abounds all the
more. (Romans 5:20). The unprecedented evils of our time must be
swallowed up in an unprecedented
outpouring of the Holy Spirit.”
_
Father Alfonso Guevarra is Vicar
General of the Diocese of Brownsville and pastor of St. Joseph the
Worker Parish in McAllen.
TV: Friend and Foe
he USCC Committee for Communications United States
Catholic Conference
in Washington D.C. published a
“Family Guide for Using Media.”
In it they state: “The Second
Vatican Council called communication media “marvels” and “gifts”
from God, but it also recognized
that these gifts can be mixed
blessings, depending on how
they are used. The media’s impact
continues to grow, as computer
networks and the Internet add
powerful and easily accessible
means to the familiar forms of
mass communication- print,
television, radio, film, video, telephone and cable services.”
TV and all the other forms of
media can indeed be both friend
and foe. The rapid means of communication allows us to receive
important information that impacts our lives such as informing
us of impending natural disasters
or information which can assist
families to find assistance for
immediate needs following such a
disaster. And many of us use TV,
Internet, or other social media as
a form of recreation or relaxation.
According to a recent study by
the University of Pennsylvania’s
Annenburg School for Communication, children in the United
States are being exposed to
nearly four hours of background
television each day and there is
a strong correlation between TV
watching with poor performance
in cognitive and reading related
tasks. Another study finds that
20 percent of third graders have
cell phones and 90 percent, are
Lydia Pesina
Director, Family
Life Office
online while 83 percent of middle
schoolers own cell phones.
A Pew study found that “63
percent of all teens say they
exchange text messages every
day with people in their lives,
including their parents.” Television is still America’s number one
pastime, with an average of four
hours and 39 minutes consumed
by every person every day. The
authors at the research firm
eMarketer state that between TV
and mobile devices, the overall
time spent on major media comes
to 693 minutes per day which
translates to over 11 hours of
media.
There is no doubt that the
messages, whether positive or
negative, which we receive via any
of these forms of media impact
how we view the world, how we
form our values, how we make
decisions, and ultimately how
we treat one another. Perhaps a
question that we can ask ourselves as family members is “How
many minutes a day do we spend
sharing our values with others in
our family, especially children,
youth and young adults?”
I encourage you to write
that number down (number of
minutes) and compare it to the
above mentioned 693 minutes. I
believe that one of the challenges
for each of us is to find ways to
systematically articulate and
share our gospel values. Perhaps
this can be done through family
meals (without TV, phones, etc...)
through daily family prayer and/
or faith sharing, night time book
reading or book sharing and by
asking questions while watching a
TV program or viewing something online.
I have named this monthly
column “The Remember Series”
because I truly believe that one
of our major roles in life is to
“remind” one another about
what is truly important in order
to live our life as Our Heavenly
Father has ordained us to live it.
I believe that God has written in
our hearts all that we need to be
the best person He has created
us to be and to help build up
His Kingdom here on earth; but
we need to remind one another
of those truths. In some ways
we are the “commercials” that
advertise the Good News. Just as
we are reminded of some product
we had forgotten we needed or
desired until we see or hear the
advertisement; so too we need
to remind one another of what is
truly important.
If we do not lower the number
of minutes spent on major media
and raise the number of minutes
of one to one; eye to eye; nose
to nose time with one another,
especially our children and youth,
then we cannot blame the media
for being the primary teachers of
values of our children and we are
» Please see TV, p.15
Courtesy photo
A depiction of the saints from the
Church of Sts. Marcellinus and Peter in
Imbersago, Italy.
»Feast Day
- June 2
Spotlight on
Saints
Marcellinus
and Peter
Catholic News Agency/EWTN
Marcellinus was a priest,
and Peter an exorcist, both of
the clergy of Rome, and eminent for their zeal and piety.
In the persecution of Dioclesian, about the year 304, they
were condemned to die for their
faith. By a secret order of the
judge, the executioner led them
into a forest so that they would
be executed privately and no
Christians might be acquainted
with the place of their sepulcher.
The judge feared that their
martyrdom would encourage
the faith of the other Christians.
When they were brought
into a thicket overgrown with
thorns and briers three miles
from Rome, the executioner declared to them his sanguinary
commission. The saints cheerfully fell to work themselves,
grubbed up the brambles, and
cleared a spot fit for their sepulcher.
After they were beheaded,
their bodies were buried in the
same place. Some time after,
Lucilla, a pious lady, being informed by revelation, and assisted by another devout lady
named Firmina, took up their
bodies and honorably interred
them near that of St. Tiburtius
on the Lavican road in the Catacombs.
Pope Damasus assures us,
that, when a child, he learned
all these particulars from the
mouth of the executioner himself, and he has inserted them in
a Latin epitaph with which he
adorned their tomb. According
to legend, Marcellinus and Peter
viewed their time in captivity
as an opportunity to witness to
the executioner, as a chance to
convert him and his family to
Christianity.
The executioner ultimately
repented of the killings and became a Christian.
Sts. Marcellinus and Peter
share a feast day on June 2. They
were widely honored by the early Christians. The feast of these
two martyrs was first included
in the Roman Calendar of the
Saints in the year 555 by Pope
Vigilius.
6
DIOCESE
The Valley Catholic - June 2012
Diocese launches Mobile Journalist Project
New initiative
trains teens as
field reporters
By SUE GROVES
The Valley Catholic
Pope Benedict XVI in his Message for World Youth Day 2008
encouraged young people to “be
the bearers of the Good News.” He
said, “Those who allow themselves
to be led by the Spirit understand
that placing oneself at the service
of the Gospel is not an optional extra, because they are aware of the
urgency of transmitting this Good
News to others...I assure you that
the Spirit of Jesus today is inviting
you young people to be bearers of
the good news of Jesus to your contemporaries.”
Inspired by the message of Pope
Benedict, the Diocese of Brownsville’s Diocesan Relations Office is
launching a new initiative to train
teens and young adults as mobile
journalists.
Brenda Nettles Riojas, Director
of Diocesan Relations and Editor
of The Valley Catholic newspaper
for the Diocese of Brownsville, first
introduced the idea for a Mobile
Journalists Project a year ago.
“The concept for the Mobile
Journalist Project comes from a
need to engage teens and young
The Valley Catholic
These budding reporters and photographers from Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Raymondville are pioneers for the Diocese of Brownsville’s mobile journalist project. Through the project, youths in the diocese will serve their parish and hone their journalism skills as they
share the Good News of Jesus. From left to right, Jacob C. Solorio, Ralia Cortinas, Estrellita Lopez, Florinda Guzman, Celyna Vasquez,
Elena R. Vasquez, Rosa Angelica Barrera, Jose F. Treviño, Chelsi Tristan and Victor Villarreal.
adults in the life of the Church, and
to broaden our reach and coverage
of the Good News throughout the
Diocese,” Riojas said.
“The Holy Spirit is guiding us as
we develop the training and collaborate with the different ministries
and parishes.”
The diocese is starting the collaborative initiative with pilot projects at six parishes in the diocese
and hopes to expand as resources
allow.
Eight students and two adult
leaders from Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Raymondville are
among the first to complete the
initial training. The students were
“pinned” with their press credentials by Riojas on May 1. Training
sessions are being scheduled as
well in Mercedes, Brownsville, and
McAllen.
This project, funded by a grant
from The Kenedy Memorial Foundation, provides teens and young
adults with training via different
levels and tracks specific to each
area of communication – reporting, photography, graphic design,
radio, podcasting, video and television.
“Mobilizing this demographic
to help evangelize by reporting on
the life of the Church will result
in multifold benefits,” Riojas said.
“Teens and young adults will witness to their faith while shining a
light on what the secular media often ignores. By reporting on the life
of the Church and different ministries, teens and young adults will
gain a deeper understanding of the
work of the Church.”
“In reporting,” Riojas said,
“they become teachers.”
The training concentrates on
teaching the basic journalistic skills
of storytelling, as well as the technical aspects of shooting, editing
and uploading stories for both the
Diocese of Brownsville website and
The Valley Catholic. These “mobile
journalists” will receive a small stipend and byline when their photos
and/or articles are used.
Courses are led by local media professionals who lend their
expertise and mentorship to the
program, and they will continue to
guide the MJP students in their story development.and production.
CYAM hosts new
young adult retreat
By MIGUEL SANTOS
The Valley Catholic
The office of Campus and
Young Adult Ministry (CYAM)
will host Valley Awakening,
a diocesan retreat for young
adults ages 21 to 35 who are
not currently attending college
or university. The retreat will
take place June 22-24 at the
Diocesan Pastoral Center in San
Juan. Bishop Daniel E. Flores,
Bishop Emeritus Raymundo J.
Peña, Father Jorge A. Gomez,
and Lydia Pesina are among
those scheduled to participate
in Valley Awakening.
What is Awakening?
Awakening is a Catholic
retreat held at many colleges
and universities across the
country, as well as in a number
of dioceses. It is a weekend
retreat where young adults
grow closer to God, make
new friends, and experience
spiritual renewal. The retreat,
though focused on Catholic
teachings, is open to people
of different denominations
who wish to experience the
Christian message of hope and
love. Awakening invites young
adults to experience God’s
unconditional love through
a variety of talks, prayers,
songs, fellowship, and group
discussions.
How did Awakening begin
and how did it come to our
Diocese?
The very first Awakening
was held in 1974 at McNeese
State University in Lake
Charles, LA. The chaplain at
the time, now Bishop Sam
Jacobs, felt the need for a
different type of retreat. In the
words of Bishop Jacobs: “We
felt we had to first provide them
with a ‘conversion’ experience
before attempting a ‘catechesis’
experience.” As per the Diocese
of Brownsville, students from
UTPA travelled to Our Lady
of the Lake University in San
Antonio in 2004 to experience
Dillo Awakening first-hand.
They returned to the Valley
to organize and host the first
Bronc Awakening at UTPA
later that year. Currently, Bronc
Awakening, which is held biannually, is on its seventeenth
edition. Scorpion Awakening,
which is hosted by UTB has
completed its eighth.
Why Valley Awakening?
The Awakening retreat
has been a life-changing
experience for many young
adults. CYAM would like to
offer a similar opportunity for
all young adults who do not
have access to a college-based
Awakening. Ruby Fuentes,
one of the rectors for Valley
Awakening comments, “We
are aware that college may not
be an option or a choice for
everyone, or perhaps some
folks missed the opportunity
back in their college years - but
still wish to experience a retreat
with other young adults... here’s
a wonderful opportunity.”
--For more information regarding young
adult activities in the diocese, please
contact Miguel Santos: msantos@
cdob.org
DIOCESE
June 2012 - The Valley Catholic
Gearing up for faith
filled summer fun
7
First place softball team
Office of Youth
Ministry offers
full slate of activities
By J.D. LARIOS
The Valley Catholic
From sports to leadership
camp programs to service opportunities, the Office of Youth Ministry has some great programs
for Rio Grande Valley youth and
parish youth ministries this summer.
Summer Softball
This year promises to be a
great one for Summer Softball
programs. Games will take place
on Sundays during the month of
July. A final two-day tournament
will take place on Saturday and
Sunday, July 28-29. The registration fee is $100 per middle school
or high school team and $125 per
adult team.
Catholic Youth Renovation
Project: Catholic Youth Renovation Project (CYRP) is sponsored
by St.Paul’s Catholic Church and
was established to help repair
the homes of needy families in
the Mission area. The project is
a weeklong event that will take
place June 23-29. This event is
a life-changing experience for
youth and adults alike. Team
members will be asked to perform such tasks as building walls,
sheet rocking, constructing steps,
hanging doors, and painting.
YouthLeader: A Five-Day
youth leadership training program
Courtesy photo
The Valley Catholic
The Office of Youth Ministry has a full schedule for July. In this file photo, youths spend
time in prayer during a retreat in Weslaco.
YouthLeader scheduled July
23-27 offers a Monday through
Friday leadership experience in
a summer camp setting. YouthLeader focuses on helping young
people learn skills, gain insight
into Christian leadership, and
connect their values to their leadership roles. The cost for YouthLeader is $100 per person. This
cost includes the program content, meals and lodging at Cone
Oasis Baptist Camp in La Feria.
Parishes are encouraged to send
at least one to two youth and at
least one adult to represent their
church.
YouthServe: A Young Adolescent Adventure in Christian
Service
YouthServe, a service-learning program designed for teams
of adults and young adolescents
in the 7th and 8th grades in Catholic parishes and schools, will be
offered July 13-14. Teams must
include one adult for every five
youth. The adult can be a youth
minister, teacher, junior high catechist or involved parent.
As with any ministry to youth,
the three goals for the summer
programs align with those in Renewing the Vision: A Framework
for Catholic Youth Ministry:
•To empower young people
to live as disciples of Jesus Christ
in our world today.
•To draw young people to responsible participation in the life,
mission and work of the Catholic
faith community.
•To foster the total personal
and spiritual growth of each
young person.
For more information about
specific programs please contact
the Office of Youth Ministry at
(956) 781-5323. You can also
email Angel Barrera at abarrera@cdob.org with any questions
or visit the webpage at http://
cdobym.org for more information.
The St. Anthony Catholic School Eagles Varsity softball team completed an
undefeated season and finished in 1st place among private schools in the
Valley for Valley Interscholastic Association (VISA) competition. St. Anthony team members are, from left, front row: Mathew Vasquez, Luis Daniel
Muñoz, Jeremiah Gonzalez, Matthew Swartz, and John Ramirez; middle row:
Aniza Lazo, Mariel Calara, Andres Ibarra, Al Castillo, Gerard Cardenas, and
Arvin Noble; back row: St. Anthony Assistant Coaches Greg Rustico and
Adam Barajas (Alliance for Catholic Education teachers at St. Anthony’s,
from the University of Notre Dame), and Head Coach Manuel De La Cerda.
Mexican Consulate donates
books to Juan Diego Academy
Courtesy photo
Juan Diego Academy received more than 70 boxes of Spanish language
readers, resource books, and novels for use by students in developing
their Spanish language proficiency. Students will have access to the books
through both the school library, and their Spanish classroom. The selections
include everything from basic readers for beginning language students to
complex literature for advanced students. Officials from the Mexican Consulate in McAllen attended a ceremony at Juan Diego Academy on May 9 to
officially present the books to the school. Juan Diego Academy is a Catholic
high school located near La Lomita in Mission. The school is accepting both
freshmen and sophomores for the 2012-2013 school year. For more information, call (956) 583-2752 or visit JuanDiegoAcademy.org.
Sister Clara Amelia Pineda
April 13, 1921 – April 19, 2012
The Valley Catholic
ALAMO — Sister Clara Amelia Pineda, of the religious community Misioneras Eucaristicas Franciscanas (Missionary Eucharistic
Franciscans), died Thursday, April
19, 2012 at McAllen Nursing Center. She was 91.
Sister Pineda was born in Zirandaro, Guerrero, Mexico and
was the youngest of 14 children.
She entered religious life on April
13, 1946 and was instructor of novices of the religious congregation.
She joined the Diocese of Brownsville in 1980 and served parishes
in La Feria, Harlingen and Alamo.
While in Harlingen she founded
the Missionary Auxiliary Eucharistic Franciscans (MAEF), and
visited the sick in hospitals and at
home. She was an Extra-ordinary
Minister of Holy Communion and
was actively involved in comunidades de base.
She was preceded in death by
her parents, Pedro Pineda and Altagracia Pineda; six brothers; and
seven sisters.
Sister Pineda is survived by her
fellow religious sisters at the Alamo
convent, Sister Maria Inez Trejo,
Sister Ana Maria de la Torre and
Sister Margarita Vargas.
A rosary was held Friday, April
20, 2012, at Memorial Funeral
Home in San Juan. Funeral Mass
was celebrated April 21, 2012, at
Resurrection Catholic Church in
Alamo with interment at St. Joseph
Cemetery in Alamo.
8
DIOCESE
The Valley Catholic - June 2012
Class of 2012
Oratory Athenaeum motto: “Ex Umbris Et Imaginibus Ad Lucem”
The Valley Catholic congratulates the 190 graduating seniors
of the two Catholic high schools in the Diocese of Brownsville
with senior classes.
The Oratory Athenaeum for University Preparation of Pharr
will graduate 51 students at its commencement ceremonies
on June 1 at the Student Union Auditorium at the University
of Texas-Pan American in Edinburg. Valedictorian is Antonio
Jose Vielma (pictured, left).
St. Joseph Academy in Brownsville graduated 139 students
in its Class of 2012. Commencement exercises were held
on May 23 at the Jacob Brown Auditorium in Brownsville.
Valedictorian is Angelica Carrillo and Salutatorian is Duncan
Sudarshan (pictured, right.) Graduates from St. Joseph
Academy earned almost $10 million in merit scholarships.
Both Catholic high schools have 100% graduation,
college acceptance rates
St. Joseph Academy motto: “Ad Astra, Per Astra”
Courtesy Photos
DIOCESE
June 2012 - The Valley Catholic
Those Who Serve:
Father Gregory T. Labus
9
»Birthday
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.
JUNE
» Birthdays
Priest returns
to home parish,
alma mater
Home Again
By ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
E
DINBURG — Father
Gregory T. Labus attended St. Joseph Catholic School in Edinburg
for eight years, from kindergarten until he graduated from the
eighth grade in 1970. He was also
a parishioner at St. Joseph Church
from birth until he graduated
from Edinburg High School.
“I grew up in this parish,” he
said. “I was an altar server here, I
was in the choir, I played the organ
here.”
On May 18, Father Labus returned to St. Joseph as pastor of
the parish and school.
“Did I ever imagine that I
would be returning here as pastor?” he said. “Absolutely not.
Never, in my wildest dreams.”
In an interview conducted
from the principal’s office, Father
Labus commented on how much
the school has changed and grown.
“The school was run by the
Holy Ghost Sisters, now the Sisters
of the Holy Spirit and Mary Immaculate,” he said. “But this was
the principal’s office, even back
then.”
Father Labus, 56, is the first
new pastor at St. Joseph Parish
and School in more than 16 years.
Msgr. Robert Maher was the pastor there from Nov. 16, 1995 until
his death on Feb. 29.
“Msgr. Maher obviously laid
a very fine foundation in the faith
here at St. Joseph and I want to
Courtesy Photos
Father Gregory T. Labus began his service as pastor of St. Joseph Church and
School on May 18. In the family photos above, from left: the day of his First Holy
Communion on Dec. 8, 1963, outside of St. Joseph School in Edinburg; center: on
his 11th birthday; and right: as an altar server with his siblings Cynthia Brandt, Joe
Labus and Joan McDonald.
continue to build on that foundation,” said Father Labus, who also
serves as the director of the Office
of Liturgy & Worship for the diocese.
Father Labus was ordained a
priest for service in the Diocese
of Brownsville on May 27, 2006.
He was serving as associate director of music at the Corpus Christi
Cathedral when God called him to
the priesthood.
Father Labus had considered
the priesthood before but the call
was more intense and enduring
than ever.
“It was before the Jubilee Year
(2000),” said Father Labus, a composer, organist and pianist. “We
were planning a bunch of activities
at the cathedral and the thought
came to me again. What really
triggered it was that I had read,
Witness to Hope — Pope John Paul
II’s biography — and that is what
really pushed me over the edge.”
Father Labus was at a priest
ordination, sitting opposite of a
stained glass window depicting
Holy Orders, when he had a defining moment about becoming a
priest.
“I remember thinking to myself, ‘All right, you win, I’m going
to do it,’” he said.
The next question was where
he would serve. In the Diocese
of Corpus Christi, where he had
lived and served as a music minister for 17 years or in his home
diocese?
“So I had to discern and pray
about it and blood is thicker than
water,” he said, “All my family is
here. My friends were not happy
in Corpus Christi, but it became
clear that this is where I need to
be.”
Father Labus served as assistant to the rector at the Basilica of
Our Lady of San Juan del ValleNational Shrine, parochial vicar
of Immaculate Heart of Mary
Church in Harlingen, parish administrator of St. Mary Church
in Santa Rosa and pastor of Our
Mother of Mercy Church in Mercedes before being assigned to St.
» Please see Father Labus, p.15
Consecration to Jesus through Mary classes begin July 9
The Valley Catholic
Classes for Total Consecration
to Jesus through Mary begin the
week of July 9 at parishes in Harlingen, Mercedes, McAllen and
Mission.
Real Men Pray the Rosary
(RMPTR) has teamed up with
experienced consecration leaders who will coordinate classes
throughout the Rio Grande Valley
to the Marian devotion known as
“Total Consecration” according to
the writings of St. Louis de Mont-
fort.
Parishes who will be hosting the classes include St. Pius X
Church in Weslaco, Immaculate
Heart of Mary Church in Harlingen, Our Lady of Mercy Church
in Mercedes, Our Lady of Sorrows
Church, Holy Spirit Church and
St. Joseph the Worker Church in
McAllen and St. Paul Church in
Mission.
The 33-day preparation process will culminate on Aug. 15,
the Marian Feast day of The Feast
of the Assumption. A communal
Mass of Consecration will be held
at 2 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 19 at San
Martin de Porres Catholic Church
in Weslaco. Montfort Priest, Father Hugh Gillespie, SMM from
New York, will celebrate the Mass.
David and Valerie Calvillo,
founders of RMPTR, along with
many others, have gone through
the consecration process together
as a couple and find that it has
strengthened their marriage and
family.
“We encourage individuals,
couples and families to join the
classes to learn about and experience True Devotion to the Blessed
Virgin Mary,” David Calvillo said.
He added, “This is for those who
wish to consecrate themselves for
the first time or renew their consecration.”
For additional information call
(956) 664-1000, email valerie@
rmptr.org, or visit realmenpraytherosary.org. Information about
Total Consecration devotion is
also available on www.montfortspirituality.org and www.montfortmissionaries.org.
2 Rev. Michael Gnanaraj
3 Rev. Issac Erondu
8 Rev. Armando Escobedo-Retired
13 Rev. Felix Casarez
22 Rev. Albert Trevino
27 Rev. Fernando Gonzalez
28 Rev. Msgr. Pedro Briseno
29 Rev. Lee Dacosta
11 Deacon Ruben Lopez
23 Deacon Antonio M. Arteaga
» Anniversaries
3 Rev. Jose Villalon
4 Rev. Joaquin Zermeño
4 Rev. Manuel Alfredo Razo
5 Rev. Leo Francis Daniels
5 Rev. Msgr. Pat Doherty - Retired
6 Rev. Armando Escobedo-Retired
7 Rev. Eusebio Martinez
7 Rev. Felix Casarez
7 Rev. William Penderghest
8 Rev. Craig Carolan
8 Rev. Edouard Atangana
8 Rev. Jean Olivier M. Sambu
16 Rev. Lawrence J. Klein
16 Rev. Richard L. Lifrak
21 Rev. Eduardo Villa
22 Rev. Efiri Matthias Selembri
28 Rev. Msgr. Pedro Briseno
29 Rev. Fernando Gonzalez
30 Rev. Rigobert Poulang Mot
6 Deacon Guillermo G.
Castañeda Jr.
18 Deacon Gilberto Perez
27 Deacon Jesus Reyes
July
» Birthdays
2 Rev. Genaro Henriquez
4 Rev. Jose Luis Garcia
4 Rev. Gabriel Ezeh
8 Rev. Juan Pablo Davalos
9 Rev. Emmanuel Bialonik
18 Rev. Ernesto Magallon
19 Rev. Joaquin Zermeno
20 Rev. Amador Garza
21 Rev. Francisco Castillo
22 Rev. Terrence Gorski
27 Rev. Jose R. Torres, III
29 Rev. Richard Philion
2 Deacon Jose Luis Mendoza
3 Deacon Armandi Villarreal
6 Deacon Nicolas E. Trujillo
10 Deacon Augusto Chapa, Jr.
10 Deacon Rodolfo C. Salinas
17 Deacon Gilbert Guardiola, Jr
19 Deacon Peter Requeñez
23 Deacon Rene Villalon
1 Sister Norma Pimentel, MJ
1 Sister Maureen Crosby, SSD
31 Sister Ninfa Garza, MJ
» Anniversaries
5 Rev. Julian Becerril
9 Rev. Horacio Chavarria
» Please see Anniversaries, p.15
10
IN THE NEWS
Pope outlines
power of the
Holy Spirit
in prayer
CNA/EWTN News
VATICAN CITY — Pope
Benedict XVI says Christians
should avail themselves to the Holy
Spirit in prayer – particularly when
they cannot find the words or inspiration to pray.
“St. Paul teaches us that in our
prayer we must open ourselves to
the presence and action of the Holy
Spirit, who prays in us with inexpressible groanings, to bring us to
adhere to God with our whole heart
and with all our being,” the Pope
said May 16.
“The Spirit of Christ becomes
the strength of our ‘weak’ prayer,
the light of our ‘dimmed’ prayer, the
focus of our ‘dry’ prayer, giving us
true inner freedom, teaching us to
live by facing our trials, in the certainty we are not alone.”
Continuing his weekly catechesis on Christian prayer, Pope Benedict XVI used this week’s General
Audience to explore the theme of
prayer in the Letters of St. Paul, the
Apostle to the Gentiles, in the New
Testament.
He told over 11,000 pilgrims in
St. Peter’s Square to take on board
the advice of St. Paul to turn to the
Holy Spirit when “we want to pray,
but God is far away, we do not have
the words, the language to talk with
God, not even the thought.”
It is then, said the Pope, that “we
can only open ourselves up, make
time available for God” knowing
that this mere desire to get in touch
with God “is prayer that the Holy
Spirit not only understands, but it
brings, interprets before God.”
“In prayer we experience, more
than in other dimensions of existence, our weakness, our poverty,
our being creatures, because we are
faced with the omnipotence and
transcendence of God,” said Pope
Benedict.
The Valley Catholic - June 2012
We are family
Pope to give Catholic
families hope in
troubled times
By CAROL GLATZ
Catholic News Service
VATICAN CITY — Pope
Benedict XVI will meet with the
world’s families at a time when the
institution of the family is under
threat and many are still struggling with a worldwide economic
crisis and a lack of cultural and societal support.
As a sign of his deep concern
for bolstering the family based on
the lifelong union between a man
and a woman, the pope will travel
to Milan to meet with those attending the May 30-June 3 World
Meeting of Families.
The pope will arrive June 1
and will close the event with an
outdoor Mass. His three-day visit
is an extraordinary sign of how
much the pope wants to reaffirm
the importance of families built
on Christian values, Bishop Jean
Laffitte, secretary of the Pontifical
Council for the Family, told Catholic News Service.
“It’s as if the pope wants to say
‘I am giving the maximum importance to what you families live out
and I want to be near you; I believe in what you are experiencing
and want to renew this hope,’” the
bishop said.
The Milan gathering will be
the second world family meeting
that Pope Benedict has attended
in his pontificate. The meetings,
held every three years, are hosted
by different dioceses around the
world and are sponsored by the
Vatican’s council for the family as
a way for families to meet, discuss critical issues and grow in the
faith.
CNS photo/Mic Smith
The Tuncap family of Charleston, S.C., is hoping to catch a ride on a military
cargo flight to attend the World Meeting of Families May 30-June 3 in Milan,
Italy. Pope Benedict XVI will celebrate the closing Mass of the Catholic
gathering, which has been held every three years since 1997. Allen and Janell
Tuncap are pictured at a park in Charleston with their children, clockwise from
top left: Aveah, 6; Tobey, 3; Ethan, 10; Madden, 6 months, and Elyjah, 2.
Even though the pope missed
the sixth world meeting in Mexico
City in 2009, he has always been a
vocal advocate of families.
Almost all of his speeches to
visiting diplomats, heads of state
and the world’s bishops address
the need for governments and the
church to support this fundamental building block of society. It’s
the family where future generations are formed to be members of
a constructive, generous, hopeful
and peaceful world, the pope has
said.
The pope’s message “will certainly be a message of hope, that,
yes, it is worthwhile to live the fullness of the meaning of the family”
as God designed and intended, as
an indissoluble union between a
man and a woman, Bishop Laffitte
said.
The pope will meet with young
people at San Siro Stadium, attend
an evening celebration where he
will hear people’s testimonies of
faith, lead a Sunday morning out-
door Mass and have lunch with
event organizers and families. He
will pray with priests and religious
at Milan’s Duomo cathedral and
venerate the relics of St. Charles
Borromeo, patron saint of catechists, seminarians, learning and
the arts, and co-patron saint of
Milan.
The pope will also attend a
concert held in his honor at the
La Scala opera house, featuring
Beethoven’s 9th Symphony conducted by Daniel Barenboim.
The pope will have a chance to
get his message out to the wider
world when he meets with the
people of Milan and civilian authorities. It may be an opportunity
for him to weigh in on a major issue facing states in different parts
of the world: the ongoing push
to legalize or recognize same-sex
unions and marriage.
The pope has repeatedly called
on governments to respect and
defend the traditional definition
of marriage and urged the church
to promote the natural order in
the institution of the family.
Marriage between a man and a
woman “is not a simple social convention,” the pope told the world’s
ambassadors to the Vatican this
year. The family is the basic unit
of society and “policies which
undermine the family threaten
human dignity and the future of
humanity itself,” he said.
The pope’s approach has been
to win over people’s hearts and
minds, in part by having Catholics themselves serve as credible
witnesses to the joy and love that
come from living in accordance
with natural law.
The church needs to help people discover that its teaching not
only makes sense, but also protects human dignity and creates a
stable society, he has said.
In fact, on his way to his first
World Meeting of Families in
Valencia, Spain, the pope told reporters he was more interested
in highlighting what works and
makes families thrive than in lambasting opponents.
He said that stressing what is
positive about Christian living can
help people see “why the church
cannot accept certain things, but
at the same time wants to respect
people and help them.”
Bishop Laffitte agreed that the
church always tries its best to explain its position and to reach out
with pastoral concern to people of
good will, even if they cannot or
do not want to live a life founded
on natural law.
However, he said, when it
comes to people who are openly
hostile to the church’s contribution and propose changing laws in
regard to the traditional definition
of marriage, then the church must
“be very precise, firm and strong
in reiterating the principles” of
natural law.
June 2012 - The Valley Catholic
L
TV: Amiga
y enemiga
a Conferencia Católica en
Estados Unidos del Comité para las Comunicaciones en Washington D.C. publicó
la “Guía familiar para usar los
medios de comunicacion.” En
ella señalan: “El Segundo Concejo Vaticano llamó a los medios
de comunicación “maravillas” y
“regalos” de Dios, pero también
reconoció que estos regalos
pueden ser bendiciones mixtas, dependiendo en cómo son
usadas. El impacto de los medios
sigue creciendo, mientras las
redes de computación y el
internet aporten un poderoso y
fácil acceso a las formas familiares de comunicación- escrita,
televisión, radio, cine, video,
teléfono y servicios de cable.”
La TV y todas las otras
formas mediáticas pueden ser
tanto amigas como enemigas.
Las formas rápidas de comunicación nos permiten recibir
información importante que
impacta nuestras vidas, así como
informarnos de un desastre
natural cercano o información
que pueda ayudar a las familias
a encontrar asistencia para las
necesidades inmediatas después
de un desastre. Muchos de
nosotros usamos la TV, internet
u otros medios sociales a manera
recreativa y de relajación.
De acuerdo con un reciente
estudio por el departamento de
comunicaciones de la Universidad de Pennsylvania, los niños
en los Estados Unidos están siendo expuestos a casi cuatro horas
de televisión de fondo a diario, y
hay una fuerte correlación entre
ver TV y el bajo desempeño en
labores cognitivas y de lectura.
Otro estudio encuentra que 20
por ciento de los niños en tercer
año tienen celulares y 90 por
ciento están en línea mientras
que 83 por ciento de los niños en
secundaria tienen celulares.
Una encuesta hecha por la
Iglesia encontró que “63 por
ciento de todos los estudiantes
dicen que han intercambiado
mensajes todos los días con las
personas en sus vidas, incluyendo sus padres.” La televisión
todavía es el pasatiempo numero
uno de América, con un promedio de cuatro horas y 39 minutos
consumidos por cada persona
todos los días. Los autores de
la empresa de investigaciones
eMarketer dijeron que entre TV
y dispositivos móviles, el tiempo
total utilizado en los medios
resulta ser 693 minutos al día lo
que se traduce a 11 horas.
No hay duda que los mensajes, ya sea positivos o negativos, que recibimos a través de
cualquiera de estas formas de
comunicación tienen un impacto
en cómo vemos el mundo, cómo
formamos nuestros valores,
cómo hacemos decisiones, y
cómo nos tratamos unos a otros.
Tal vez la pregunta que nos tenemos que hacer como miembros
de familia es “¿Cuántos minutos
al día pasamos compartiendo
nuestros valores con los demás,
especialmente niños, jóvenes y
Lydia Pesina
Directora, Oficina
de Vida Familiar
adultos jóvenes?”
Te animo a que escribas ese
número (de minutos) y lo compares con el antes mencionado
de 693 minutos. Yo creo que uno
de los retos para nosotros es el
encontrar formas de sistemáticamente articular y compartir
nuestros valores evangélicos. Tal
vez esto puede lograrse a través
de las comidas familiares (sin
TV, teléfonos, etc.) a través de la
oración familiar diaria y/o la fe
compartida, lectura en la noche
o el intercambio de libros y al
hacer preguntas mientras ven la
televisión o están viendo algo en
línea.
He llamado a esta columna
mensual “Las Series para Recordar” porque en realidad creo
que uno de nuestros mayores
papeles en la vida es el recordarnos mutuamente sobre lo que
es realmente importante para
poder vivir nuestras vidas como
nuestro Padre Celestial nos ha
dispuesto hacer. Yo creo que
Dios ha escrito en nuestros corazones todo lo que necesitamos
para ser las mejores personas que
Él nos ha creado para ser y para
ayudar a construir su Reino aquí
en la tierra; pero tenemos que
recordarnos esas verdades unos
a otros. De algún modo nosotros
somos los “comerciales” que
anuncian las Buenas Nuevas. Así
como recordamos algún producto que habíamos olvidado que
necesitábamos o deseábamos
hasta que vemos o escuchamos el
anuncio; así necesitamos recordarnos unos a otros de lo que es
realmente importante.
Si no reducimos el numero
de minutos que pasamos en los
medios e incrementamos el numero de minutos unos con otros;
ojo con ojo, nariz con nariz,
especialmente con nuestros
niños y jóvenes, entonces no
podemos culpar a los medios por
ser los educadores primordiales
de valores para nuestros hijos
y estamos delejando nuestra
responsabilidad como maestros
y ejemplo a seguir.
Cuando nuestra hija, ahora
adulta joven, estaba en la escuela
hasta 8º grado, nuestra TV se
mantenía apagada de lunes a
jueves. Esta era nuestra regla
familiar y cada familia crea sus
propias reglas y rituales. Una
sugerencia de familia es el apagar
la TV por una noche a la semana
y reemplazarlo con tiempo familiar o noche de juego (no Ipad, no
celular, no teléfono; solamente
conversación y/o silencio). Hay
un filósofo que señala que “la
cultura es como el agua en la que
nada el pez.” Nuestros niños y
juventud solamente saben lo que
les rodea. ¿En qué tipo de agua
están nadando?
NOTICIAS EN ESPAÑOL 11
Criando a
una familia
Padre soltero
único padre en
celebración a Mamá
Por ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
W
ESLACO — Francisco Díaz asistió
recientemente al
evento Panecitos
con Mamá en la escuela primaria
de su hija en honor al día de las
madres. Como siempre, él fue el
único padre presente entre un mar
de mamás.
Por los últimos cuatro años,
Díaz ha desempeñado el papel
de madre y padre desde que su
esposa, Margarita, murió de una
hemorragia intracerebral a la edad
de 37.
“Mi corazón se hunde cada
año cuando la escuela manda la
carta para el evento Panecillos
con Mamá,” dice Díaz, padre de
cinco. “Me duele, pero tengo que
mantener la cabeza en alto por mis
hijos. Así que asisto cada año para
comerme el panecillo y tomarme
la tacita de jugo.”
Díaz, 43, es uno de los estimados 2.3 millones de hombres
guiando un hogar con un solo padre en Estados Unidos, de acuerdo con las estadísticas del Censo.
Mientras las mujeres cuentan con
la mayoría de hogares de madres
solteras (82.6 por ciento), los hogares de padres solteros están creciendo como situaciones familiares,
con un incremento de 60 por ciento en los últimos 10 años.
Dos de los hijos adultos de
Díaz, un hijo y una hija, se casaron y dejaron el nido. Christian,
16, Samantha, 13 y Erika, 11, continúan en la casa.
La familia Díaz sigue una rutina diaria que incluye quehaceres para todos. Después de hacer
el desayudo y mandar a sus hijos
a la escuela, Díaz va a trabajar.
Su fuente primaria de ingreso es
vender artículos en el mercado
local. También ha hecho otros trabajos.
“Tengo que haber terminado
de trabajar para cuando salen los
niños de la escuela,” dice Díaz. “Ellos son mi prioridad.”
Díaz era un padre involucrado y atento desde antes de la
muerte de su esposa, dice su hija
Samantha, 13, pero ahora lo es
más.
“Es un buen hombre y un
gran padre,” dijo Samantha Díaz.
“Siempre ha estado ahí para
nosotros pero ahora nos pone aun
más atención. Nos dice, ‘si necesitan algo, si necesitan hablar de
cualquier cosa, díganme. Soy su
mamá y su papá.”
Samantha Díaz añadió que su
padre les habla de manera franca,
abierta y honesta sobre todo, incluso, “cosas de niñas.”
“Él quiere saber qué es lo que
está pasando en nuestras vidas,”
dijo ella. “Nos protege mucho.
Quiere saber con quién estamos y
The Valley Catholic
Francisco Díaz, der., ha fungido como padre y madre de sus hijos durante cuatro años. En
la imágen, sus hijos Erika, 11, Christian, 16 y Samantha, 13.
qué estamos haciendo.”
Hoy en día, Díaz maneja su
casa con facilidad, pero eso no fue
siempre el caso.
“A principio fue una transición difícil,” el dijo. “Mi esposa
fue tan maravillosa. Hizo un gran
trabajo con los niños, un gran trabajo manteniendo todo en orden.
He podido encargarme de mi familia pero no es fácil. Incluso ahora, tengo días en los que me siento
tan abrumado, días en los que lloro y lloro cuando estoy solo.”
Díaz fue a la oficina Caridades
Católicas del Valle del Rio Grande
en San Juan para pedir ayuda para
pagar su cuenta de electricidad el
26 de abril.
“Mi primera impresión fue
que es un buen padre,” dijo Yesenia
Guzmán, una trabajadora social
en las Caridades Católicas del Valle del Rio Grande. “Menciono que
su madre le ofrece hacerse cargo
de sus hijos cuando va a trabajar al
mercado los fines de semana, pero
prefiere tenerlos con él. Con forme
hablábamos mas, supe que él y sus
hijos han pasado por muchas cosas. Me rompe el corazón. … Es
raro para nosotros ver a un padre
soltero pero es bueno saber que
hay padres como él en el mundo.”
El mundo de la familia Díaz
se volteó por completo cuando
Margarita, aparentemente saludable, sufrió una hemorragia.
Ella sobrevivió la operación pero
los doctores le dijeron a Díaz que
tenía muerte cerebral y que no
podían hacer nada más. Díaz dijo
que fue muy difícil dejar ir al amor
de su infancia y de su vida. Ella
tenía 14 y el 15 cuando empezaron
a enamorarse.
“Estuvo en el hospital por
algún tiempo,” dijo él. “Yo no la
quería dejar ir. Los doctores le
dieron transfusiones de sangre;
intentaron darle hipotermia terapéutica para bajar su temperatura…”
Mientras tanto, los doctores
presionaban a Díaz para que retiraran el soporte artificial.
Díaz dice que le pidió y rogó a
Dios, pidiéndole al Señor que mejor se lo llevara a él.
“Ella es su madre, nuestros
hijos la necesitan a ella más que
a mí,” recuerda haberle dicho a
Dios.
Un día, mientras rezaba en
la parroquia del hospital, Díaz se
puso de rodillas y con lágrimas le
dio su esposa a Dios.
“Finalmente me entregue a la
voluntad de Dios,” dijo él.
A Díaz le reconforta saber
que Margarita dio su vida para
otros, incluyendo un niño de 13
años, ya que sus fueron donados.
Con forme pasa el tiempo,
Díaz dice que extraña a Margarita
mas y mas, especialmente cuando
sus hijos celebran momentos importantes. Los recuerdos del tiempo que pasaron juntos y la promesa de verla de nuevo algún día,
dijo, son lo que lo hacen seguir.
“Cuando huelo su perfume o
escucho una canción que me recuerda a ella, me pone una sonrisa
en el rostro,” dijo. “Siento que está
conmigo… Camino con el Señor
todos los días porque quiero irme
al cielo para verla de nuevo.”
12
NOTICIAS EN ESPAÑOL
Protegiendo a
los niños de Dios
Por ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
El Programa de Protección
para los Niños de Dios en la
Diócesis de Brownsville celebra su
décimo aniversario en junio 2012.
Desde su comienzo, el Programa de Protección para los Niños de Dios, el cual empezó en el
2002 como respuesta al escándalo
nacional sobre el abuso, ha evolucionado a un programa donde los
protocolos son establecidos para
proteger a los niños de todos los
predadores sexuales dado a que la
maldad del abuso sexual no habita
solamente en la iglesia.
“El programa ha creado conciencia de parte de los maestros de
educación religiosa, más conciencia de parte de los niños y de parte
de los padres,” según Walter Lukaszek, coordinador del Programa
de Protección para los Niños de
Dios para la diócesis. “Está muy
claro que si cualquier persona es
tocado/a de alguna manera que
lo/la haga sentir incomodo, deben
reportarlo. “
El Obispo Raymundo J. Peña
nombro a Lukaszek, un trabajador
social con licencia y 27 años de
experiencia en los Servicios de
Protección para Menores, como
coordinador de asistencia para
victimas. Lukaszek como vínculo
para las víctimas de abuso sexual
por cleros o empleados diocesanos.
“El rol del coordinador para
la asistencia de victimas es el escuchar a las víctimas, explicarles
que no es su culpa y que la Iglesia está allí para ayudarles sanar,”
según Luzkaszek.
Lukaszek dijo que hubo un
número de individuos que reportaron abuso sexual en el 2002,
2003 y 2004, estos reportes fueron
de personas de veinte años o mayores.
“No han habido individuos
con casos creíbles de abuso sexual
por el clero desde entonces, lo cual
es una bendición, dijo Lukaszek.
Un programa de seguridad
ambiental fue establecido en la
Diócesis de Brownsville en el 2003
para adultos y niños para prevenir
y parar el abuso sexual de menores.
Cualquier persona de 18 años
o mayor que trabaja con niños en
la Diócesis, tal como maestros de
educación religiosa, líderes o ministros de jóvenes, son requeridos
someterse a una verificación de
antecedentes, llevar a cabo el programa de Protección para los Niños de Dios y firmar un código de
ética para una conducta responsable en el ministro.
El programa incluye una serie
de DVD de dos partes. La primer
parte enseña testimonios de niños
que han sido abusados que hablan
sobre su sufrimiento y el porqué
no habían querido hablar. También enseñan a predadores que
hablan sobre cómo se acercan a su
víctima y obtienen su confianza.
“Los predadores no tienen
conciencia, ni remordimiento,”
dijo Lukaszek. “La única manera
que podemos proteger a los niños
es manteniendo ese tipo de gente
lejos de nuestros niños.”
La segunda parte del programa
subraya cinco pasos para proteger
a niños del abuso sexual.
Más de 12,000 adultos en la
diócesis han completado el entrenamiento de Protección para los
Niños de Dios.
Los estudiantes en las clases de
educación religiosa, desde kínder
a doceavo grado, llevan a cabo un
conmovedor programa de seguridad adecuado a su edad cada año.
“La conmovedora sesión de
seguridad es muy importante y
útil para los niños,” dijo Oscar
Dayaon, director de educación
religiosa de la Iglesia San Martín
de Porres en Weslaco. “Les enseña
como protegerse y como decir ‘no’
si se llegaran a encontrar en esa
predicamento.”
El programa anima a que los
niños reporten los abusos sexuales
a un adulto de confianza.
Los padres de los estudiantes
de la Primera Santa Comunión y
Confirmación también son invitados a formar parte de las sesiones
informacionales de cómo mantener a sus hijos a salvo de predadores.
“A los padres, les abre los ojos
de que esto es un problema y que
es algo en que tenemos que tener
mucho cuidado,” dijo Mary Kyser,
directora de la educación religiosa
en Iglesia de San Antonio en Harlingen. “Le enseña a los niños y
padres a tener más cuidado, no
sólo en el territorio de la iglesia,
sino también en su vecindad, internet, escuela, conciertos, la playa
y cualquier otro lugar.
Kyser mencionó que en años
recientes, las pautas de seguridad
de internet también han sido incluidas en el programa.
“Los predadores en internet
también son otro peligro para la
seguridad de nuestros niños,” dijo
ella. “Tenemos que educarnos sobre el internet para mantener a
nuestros niños a salvo.”
Desde que los protocolos de
seguridad fueron implementados
en la diócesis, Lukaszek dijo que
recibe de 10 a 12 reportes al año
de niños que están siendo abusados sexualmente en sus hogares.
“Nuestro mensaje para los niños que hacen estos reportes es,
‘Confió que tu y yo te daremos
ayuda.’”
Lukaszek también es responsable de compilar el reporte anual
para la Conferencia de Obispos
Católicos en E.E.U.U (USCCB)
Secretaria de Protección de Niños
y Jóvenes.
Un proceso de auditoría es
usado para determinar si la diócesis está implementando las prácticas requerido por el Estatuto para
la Protección de Niños y Jóvenes.
El estatuto es un set de procedimientos comprensivos establecidos por el USCCB en Junio 2002,
el cual incluye lineamientos para
la reconciliación, alivio, responsabilidad y prevención para futuros actos de abuso.
Lukaszek confía de que la mejor manera para prevenir el abuso
sexual de menores es el mantener
programas como Protegiendo a
los Niños de Dios y el tener conversaciones frecuentes sobre la
seguridad con nuestros niños en
casa.
“Si no es algo continuo, empezara a quedarse en el olvido,”
dijo él. “Veo mi rol en mantener
esta red de seguridad firme para
que así sepan nuestros niños que
los vamos proteger de cualquier
daño.”
The Valley Catholic - June 2012
La Fiesta del Corpus
Celebramos al misterio
de la verdadera y real
presencia del Señor
Jesús dentro de su Iglesia
The Valley Catholic
La solemnidad del Santísimo
Cuerpo y Sangre de Cristo también se conoce como la Fiesta del
Corpus, lo que se traduce al latín
como “Cuerpo de Cristo.” Esta
celebración se origino en Francia a mediados del siglo trece y
se extendió a toda la Iglesia por
el Papa Urban IV en 1264. Esta
celebración tiene lugar el jueves
después del Sábado de la Trinidad, o como en los Estados Unidos, el domingo seguido de la
celebración.
Esta celebración nos llama
a enfocarnos en dos manifestaciones del Cuerpo de Cristo, la
Santa Eucaristía y la Iglesia. El
propósito principal de esta celebración es enfocar la atención
en la Eucaristía. La oración de
entrada en la Misa llama nuestra
atención al sufrimiento y muerte
de Jesús y nuestra adoración hacia a Él, especialmente en la Eucaristía.
En cada Misa nuestra atención es dirigida hacia la Eucaristía y la Presencia Real de Cristo
en ella. El enfoque secundario
es el festejo del cuerpo presente
de Cristo en la Iglesia. La Iglesia
lo llamó Cuerpo de Cristo por
la cercana comunión que Jesús
comparte con sus discípulos. Él
la expresa en los evangelios al
The Valley Catholic
El día del Corpus que se celebra este año el 10 de junio el Obispo Daniel E. Flores
encabezara una procesión por las calles de Brownsville y celebrara una Misa en la
Catedral de la Inmaculada Concepción a las 6 p.m.
usar la metáfora de un cuerpo
en el cual Él es la cabeza. Esta
imagen nos ayuda a mantener el
enfoque en la unidad y la diversidad de la Iglesia.
La celebración del Corpus es
usada comúnmente como una
oportunidad para procesiones
Eucarísticas públicas, las cuales
sirven como un símbolo de fe
en común y adoración. Nuestra
alabanza a Jesús en Su Cuerpo y
Sangre nos llama a ofrecer a Dios
nuestro Padre un juramento de
amor integro y nuestra ofrenda
al servicio de los demás.
Algunos mensajeros de esperanza y paz todavía
se enfrentan a persecuciones, dice el Papa
Por Catholic News Service
CIUDAD DEL VATICANO
– Algunas personas que difunden el Evangelio todavía se ven
sujetas a persecuciones, a pesar
de que llevan un mensaje de paz
y esperanza a un mundo marcado por crisis, ansiedad y desesperación, dijo el papa Benedicto
XVI.
“Sin embargo, a pesar de
problemas y realidades trágicas
de persecuciones, la iglesia no
se desanima y permanece fiel al
mandato del Señor”, a sabiendas
que los que presentan testimonio
y son mártires siempre han sido
numerosos e indispensables para
la evangelización, dijo.
El Papa habló el 11 de mayo
ante funcionarios de las Socie-
dades de Misiones Pontificias
que se reunieron en Roma.
El mensaje de Cristo “nunca
se rinde ante la forma de interpretación hecha por el mundo,
pues está compuesto de profecía
y de liberación; es la semilla de
una nueva humanidad que aumenta; y solamente al final de los
tiempos llegará a su completa realización”, dijo el Papa.
NOTICIAS EN ESPAÑOL 13
June 2012 - The Valley Catholic
Misa ofrecida a los migrantes
Especial para The Valley Catholic
La parroquia La Resurrección
en la ciudad de Álamo celebro una
Misa el 29 de abril en honor a todos
los migrantes que trabajan en la labor en diferentes regiones del país.
Esta Misa se llevo a cabo para
despedir a todas aquellas personas que durante la temporada del
invierno y la primavera vinieron
al Valle de Texas a trabajar en la
recolección de frutas v vegetales
como la cebolla, pepino, chile jalapeño, naranja, toronja, repollo
y lechuga; que día a día son consumidas en nuestra nación. Sin embargo, ya les ha llegado el momento
de partir a otros lugares del norte
de los Estados Unidos como California, Michigan, Idaho, Washington, entre otros; en busca de nuevos
trabajos, y es por ello que nuestra
iglesia ha celebrado esta misa para
encomendarle a nuestro Señor la
protección y la ayuda que todas
estas personas en su mayorías familias enteras necesitan por el gran
trabajo que realizan.
Para llevar a cabo esta Eucaristía, la organización y la participación de la comunidad fue
resaltante y excelente. Durante de
la celebración de la Misa, se resaltaron varios momentos importante como la danza de matachines
“Guadalupana,” quienes después
de la bendición del padre al iniciar la Misa ofrecieron su música y
Protecting,
continued from pg. 1
teachers, scout leaders and youth
ministers, is required to submit to
a background check, undergo the
Protecting God’s Children program and sign the code of ethics for
responsible conduct in ministry.
The program includes a twopart DVD series. The first part fea-
Foto de cortesía
Durante una Misa en la Iglesia Resurrección en honor a todos los migrantes, parejas
de matrimonios de la comunidad ofrendaron además del pan y el vino, canastas de
frutas y verduras como representación de lo que los migrantes recolectan durante su
trabajo en las labores.
baile a nuestra Señora la Virgen de
Guadalupe como señal de amor y
agradecimiento por su divina intercesión ante nuestro Señor.
Seguidamente, al momento de
las ofrendas, el coro de la Iglesia
interpreto la Danza del Ofertorio,
con la cual parejas de matrimonios de la comunidad ofrendaron
además del pan y el vino, canastas
de frutas y verduras como representación de los que nuestros migrantes recolectan durante su trabajo en las labores.
Después de la bendición final el
padre Emmanuel Bialoncik bendi-
jo todas las llaves de los carros de
todas las personas migrantes y de la
comunidad.
Por todo esto, la parroquia Resurrección se siente muy orgullosa
de contar con tantas personas que
sin condición alguna regalan parte
de su tiempo a servirle a nuestro
Señor uniendo de esta manera a todas la comunidad en el corazón de
la Iglesia. Por esta razón, exhortamos a todas las comunidades de la
Diócesis de Brownsville a conocer
nuestra parroquia y formar parte
de una comunidad de Amor y servicio a nuestro Señor Jesucristo.
tures testimonials from children
who have been abused talking
about the pain they have suffered
and why they had not talked about
it previously. It also features perpetrators who talk about how they
target the victim and gain their
trust.
“The perpetrators have no conscience, no remorse,” Lukaszek
said. “The only way we can protect
children is to keep those kind of
people away from our kids.”
The second part of the program
outlines five steps to protect children from sexual abuse.
More than 12,000 adults in the
diocese have completed the Protecting God’s Children training.
Students in religious education
classes, from kindergarten to 12th
grade, complete an age-appropriate touching safety program each
school year.
“The touching safety session is
very important and very helpful for
the kids,” said Oscar Dayaon, director of religious education at San
Católico dice que nación necesita oración,
por lo que crea ‘Rosary for the USA’
Por JOYCE CORONEL
Catholic News Service
PHOENIX — Mientras Manny Yrique oraba ante el Santísimo
Sacramento su corazón estaba
cargado de preocupaciones acerca de Estados Unidos y el nivel
de la animosidad en el discurso
estadounidense.
“Me arrodillé a orar y me sentí
abrumado por la sensación de que
Nuestro Señor quería que rezara
el rosario”, dijo Yrique. “Sentí que
me decía: ‘Llévaselo a mi madre’”.
Él sacó sus cuentas del rosario
y mientras comenzaba a orar fue
impactado por la consciencia de
que cada una de las 50 oraciones
Ave María del rosario podían ser
ofrecidas por uno de los 50 Estados Unidos.
Yrique dijo que siempre ha
tenido una fuerte devoción por
María. Él recuerda tener 8 años de
edad, arrodillado con su hermana
de 6 años para rezar el rosario
mientras su madre era sometida
a cirugía.
“No sabíamos si nuestra
madre regresaría a casa, así que
sacamos nuestros rosarios plásticos, nos arrodillamos ante la
estatua de la Virgen de Guadalupe que estaba sobre la cama de
mi madre y rezamos un rosario”, dijo Yrique a The Catholic
Sun, periódico de la Diócesis de
Phoenix. “Fue como ‘nada pasará
mientras María esté con ustedes”.
Martin de Porres Church in Weslaco. “It teaches them how to protect
themselves and how to say ‘no’ if
they are ever in that predicament.”
The program also encourages
children to report sexual abuse to a
trusted adult.
Parents of First Holy Communion and Confirmation students
are also invited to attend informational sessions about keeping their
children safe from predators.
“For the parents, it really opens
their eyes that this is an issue and
Yrique dijo que diseñó el Rosario por los Estados Unidos de
América a través de la oración,
frecuentemente despertando en
medio de la noche para componer las intenciones.
Él ya ha regalado o vendido
3,000 rosarios de cuentas rojas,
blancas y azul y ha ordenado
otras 2.000. Él tiene una sede de
Internet, www.magnalitecatholic.
com/usa_rosary.html. Junto con
el rosario las personas pueden ordenar un folleto de oración o una
tarjeta de oración que enumera
todas las intenciones, así como los
nombres de los 50 estados.
Cada una de las cinco décadas
tiene una intención designada.
Las tres primeras décadas son
rezadas por las ramas ejecutiva,
legislativa y judicial del gobierno.
La cuarta década está dedicada
a los gobiernos estatales y locales, así como a los policías y los
bomberos. La quinta década está
dedicada al personal militar estadounidense.
La convicción de Yrique sobre el amor de la madre de Dios
es algo que él dijo que puede ser
explicado parcialmente por la inquebrantable devoción de su propia madre por sus hijos.
“Creo que una madre tiene un
impacto tremendo en su familia,
lo vi en mi madre”, dijo Yrique.
“Sabíamos que no nos pasaría
nada mientras mamá estuviera
allí.
that it is something that we need to
be very careful about,” said Mary
Kyser, director of religious education at St. Anthony Church in
Harlingen. “It teaches children and
parents to be more aware, not just
on the church grounds, but in their
neighborhoods, online, at school,
at concerts, the beach, everywhere.”
Kyser noted that in recent years,
Internet safety guidelines have also
been included in the program.
“Online predators are yet another threat to the safety of our
children,” she said. “We have to be
educated about the Internet so we
can keep our children safe.”
Since the safety protocols were
implemented in the diocese, Lukaszek said he receives 10-12 reports a year from children being
sexually abused at home.
“Our message to the children
who come forward is, ‘I believe you
and I will get you help.’”
Lukaszek is also responsible for
compiling an annual report for the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Secretariat of Child
and Youth Protection.
An audit process is used to
determine if a diocese is implementing the practices required by
the Charter for the Protection of
Children and Young People. The
charter is a comprehensive set of
procedures established by the USCCB in June 2002, which includes
guidelines for reconciliation, healing, accountability, and prevention
of future acts of abuse.
Lukaszek believes that the best
way to prevent child sexual abuse
is to keep enforcing programs like
Protecting God’s Children and to
have regular conversations about
safety with our children at home.
“If it’s not an ongoing thing, it
will start falling off to the wayside,”
he said. “I see my role as keeping
this safety net in place so that our
children know that we will protect
them from harm.”
14
DIOCESE
The Valley Catholic - June 2012
Movies worth watching or not
The Valley Catholic
Going to the movies is a favorite summer activity year in and year
out but before heading out to the
theater, know that there is a credible
resource to help Catholics discern
whether a movie is worth watching
or not.
The U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops has been providing movie
reviews for almost 100 years. In the
past, the reviews came from the National Legion of Decency and the
Office for Film and Broadcasting.
Today, the reviews are produced
by Catholic News Service, which
reviews the artistic and moral content of films. Each film is also given
a rating.
“The films are rated based on
what we believe as Catholics is appropriate,” said Tony Spence, director and editor-in-chief for Catholic
News Service, in a telephone interview from his Washington, D.C.
office. “Generally, the movies we
target for review are movies that
you will find in your neighborhood
Cineplex, movies that people have
on their radar, whether they are
romantic comedies, action films or
dramas.”
Catholic News Service especially focuses on films whose target
audience is children and teenagers,
Spence added.
“Parents are the ultimate guides
to their children’s media consumption and they want to know if a film
is appropriate for their kids to see,”
he said.
The latest movie reviews from
Catholic News Service can be found
at www.catholicnews.com/movies
The Motion Picture Association
of America (MPAA) also provides
most films with a rating — G, PG,
PG-13, R and NC-17 — but those
ratings may not, and often do not,
reflect the views of Catholics.
“I think that there certainly is
a role for a staff of reviewers who,
from a specifically Catholic point of
CNS photo/ARC
Andy Garcia stars in a scene from the movie “For Greater Glory.” Garcia, a
Catholic, plays a Mexican Revolution-era general lured out of retirement a
decade later to fight his own government’s severe curbing of religious freedoms.
view, are looking for what parents
would be concerned about and also
answering the question, ‘how does
this relate to Judeo-Christian faith
and values?’” said John Mulderig, a
media reviewer for Catholic News
Service based in New York City.
Mulderig pointed to the 2009
film, “The Invention of Lying” as an
example.
“This movie had a very strong
— certainly the strongest of any
mainstream that I’ve ever seen —
message about atheism,” he said.
“The premise of the film is that the
existence of God and heaven was
a comforting lie that people had
made up.”
The MPAA gave, “The Invention of Lying” a PG-13 rating. Catholic News Service rated it morally
offensive for, “despicably belittling
core Judeo-Christian beliefs and
mocking both the person and the
teaching of Jesus Christ” and “pervasive blasphemy.”
Sister Maureen Crosby of the
Sisters of St. Dorothy and coordina-
CATHOLIC NEWS SErVICE rATING SYSTEM
The media reviewing division of Catholic News Service evaluates
films for artistic merit and moral suitability. The reviews include the
CNS rating, the Motion Picture Association of America rating, and a
brief synopsis of the movie. A large database of reviews is available on
the CNS website, www.catholicnews.com/movies
The CNS classifications are as follows:
A-I — general patronage;
A-II — adults and adolescents;
A-III — adults;
L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many
adults would find troubling. L replaces the previous classification, A-IV.
O — morally offensive.
Note: Some movies previously were designated A-IV. Older films
with this classification should be regarded as classified L.
»Review
tor of the Diocese of Brownsville’s
Media Resource Center agrees that
there is a need for reviews and ratings above and beyond the MPAA.
Sister Crosby manages a large collection of media, including religious
and secular material, reviewing
each piece for content before adding it to the diocesan library.
“They (the MPAA ratings) are
not a good measuring stick for
what an acceptable film is and what
is not,” Sister Crosby said. “The
MPAA has lowered their standards
because our morals as a society have
gone down. What’s acceptable to
them (the MPAA) may not be acceptable to me and other Catholics.”
Ratings, she added, are a good
starting point but they don’t tell the
whole story.
“The reviews are important
because they give people a broader
perspective of what the movie is all
about instead of just looking for the
trash,” she said.
Mulderig said that the role of a
Catholic film reviewer has evolved
beyond guiding the faithful about
making choices about film.
“There is a new catechetical
dimension to our work, of explaining, upholding and defending
the Church’s teachings,” he said.
“We have a generation of so many
Catholics who have been badly catechized so you have to explain to
them why the Church teaches ‘x’
and why, therefore the film, which
opposes ‘x’ is wrong and why.”
Though Catholic News Service’s
movie reviews are sanctioned by the
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the reviewers never condemn
films.
“It’s ultimately up to the person
to see the film or whether to allow
their child to see the film,” Spence
said. “We’re not telling anyone that
they can or cannot go to a particular
movie. What we are doing is giving
information about that film so that
they can make informed decisions
on their own.”
902West Harrison Av.
(956) 425 7018
Harlingen, Tx. 78550
Catholic News Service
NEW YORK — A powerful
historical drama, “For Greater Glory,” recounts the persecution of the
Catholic Church in Mexico during
the 1920s under the presidency of
Plutarco Calles (Ruben Blades)
and the popular reactions — both
peaceful (led by Eduardo Verastegui) and violent (led by Andy
Garcia) — it provoked.
As Garcia’s character, a religious
skeptic, becomes the unlikely commander of an army of the devout,
he gains inspiration from a saintly
adolescent volunteer (impressive
newcomer Mauricio Kuri).
Director Dean Wright’s epic
— which also features a brief turn
from Peter O’Toole as a wise and
venerable priest — gets off to a slow
start. But once the initially varied story lines laid out in Michael
Love’s script converge, their outcome packs an emotional wallop.
The Mexican government’s tyrannical interference with religious
liberty, while obviously far more
extreme than anything taking place
north of the border today, nonetheless carries a sobering resonance
with current events. If the film can
be taken as a cautionary tale about
where excessively zealous, overweening secularism can lead a nation, the warning is a stark one.
The fact-based, faith-quickening tale the movie tells is sufficiently valuable to warrant a younger
viewership than would normally be
advisable for fare of this kind. Probably acceptable for mature adolescents. Considerable action violence
with some gore, the torture of a
child and at least one mildly vulgar term. The Catholic News Service classification is A-III — adults.
The Motion Picture Association of
America rating is R — restricted.
The U.S. premiere date for the film
is Friday, June 1.
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770 W. Elizabeth St.
(956) 544 4806
Brownsville, Tx. 78520
“ La original y auténtica de las carnes marinadas”
DIOCESE 15
June 2012 - The Valley Catholic
»Media Resource Center
» Calendar of Events
Recommended by SISTER MAUREEN CROSBY, SSD
Coordinator of the Media Resource Center - Diocese of Brownsville
»Worth Watching
We Are
Catholic:
Sacramentals
You Will See
Format:DVD
Year of production: EWTN (2008)
Length:30 minutes
Format:DVD
Year of production: Family Rosary Inc
(2011)
The facts: Manuel, Phillip and Anita
Executive producer: Father Wilfred
learn about the power of sacramentals
such as the scapular and holy water.
I like this one because there’s not
too much material available about
sacramentals. Many children (and
even some adults) don’t know what
sacramentals are or that there is a
name for them.
»From the Bookshelf
Length:29 minutes
Raymond, CSC
The facts: A modern drama depicting
the Presentation in the Temple (the
Fourth Joyful Mystery), this is an
inspiring story about a belligerent
and rebellious teen who is required to
perform community service at a nursing
home to avoid jail time. A nursing
home resident challenges the teen to
be Christ to others. Touches upon the
issue of peer pressure.
Personal
Space Camp
Length: 32 pages, paperback
Author: Susan Sprague
Illustrator: Carrie Hartman
Publisher:National Center for Youth
Issues (2007)
The facts: Written with style and
humor, this book teaches children the
concepts privacy and personal space.
It addresses the complex issue of
respect for another person’s property
and physical boundaries. Includes a
teacher’s guide.
June
Making Peace
with Yourself:
15 Steps
to Spiritual
Healing
Length:145 pages
Authors:Sister Kathryn J. Hermes, FSP
Publisher: Pauline Media (2007)
The facts: This book doesn’t take the
place of a spiritual counselor but it sure
can help those who are searching for
inner peace. It reminds us that God is
present, even in life’s most challenging
moments. Life isn’t easy. We all face
disaster but can be sure that our best
interests are always at the heart of God’s
designs. The author provides real-life
narratives that offer hope and direction.
Poetry, prayer, and Scripture passages
provide a solid base for further reflection
and contemplation.
31-3
3
St Joseph, Edinburg
ACTS Retreat - (RGC)
Trinity Sunday
7-9 Summer Study Days
(Office of Catechesis)
7-10
St Joseph the Worker
ACTS Retreat - (RGC)
8–9
Catholic Youth
Conference (YA – Holy
Spirit, McAllen)
9-10
New Life Retreat
(Family Life Office)
10 Corpus Christi
Sunday
14 Flag Day
14 Advisory Team Meeting
(Office of Catechesis)
15 Catholic Youth Conference
(Youth Ministry)
15-17 Diocesan Discernment
Retreat for Men - (RGC)
Father Labus,
continued from pg. 9
Joseph Church in Edinburg.
The son of Emil John (deceased) and Cecilia Labus, Father
Labus is the oldest of five children.
His mother and all of his siblings,
Joan, Joe, Cynthia and Daniel, all
live in the Edinburg area.
“There was always the sense,
that when the time was right, he
might be a priest,” said his sister,
Cynthia Brandt. “When we were
kids, our grandparents had a little
sidewalk that led to a statue of the
Blessed Virgin Mary. He would
dress up as a priest and right there
on that little sidewalk, he would
give us (his brothers and sisters
and cousins) ‘Holy Communion.’
For the longest time, we used to
say he ought to be a priest.”
After graduating from high
school, Father Labus majored in
music at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth with an emphasis on liturgical music. He was
a parish musician at Holy Family Church in Fort Worth before
Bishop Rene Gracida of the Diocese of Corpus Christi invited him
to develop a music program at the
Corpus Christi Cathedral in 1984.
At one time, the cathedral had six
choirs and more than 200 people
in the choral program.
Sister Dorothy Carey of the
Sisters of the Holy Spirit and Mary
Immaculate, who was the director
of religious education at St. Joseph
Church when Father Labus was in
high school, remembers that, “he
was outstanding in his love of music, even way back then.”
Bishop Emeritus Raymundo J. Peña’s
June 1
5:30 p.m. Graduation Mass – GRMS
Brownsville
June 3
4 p.m.
Confirmations – Queen of Peace
Harlingen
June 5
7 p.m.
Confirmations – St. Francis Xavier Cabrini
Pharr
June 7
7 p.m.
Confirmations – Our Lady of Guadalupe
Mission
June 9
10 a.m.
Confirmations – Our Lady of the Holy Rosary Mission
June 9
4:30 p.m. Confirmations – St. Margaret Mary
Pharr
June 13
7 p.m.
Lyford
June 15
6:30 p.m. Confirmations – Sacred Heart
Escobares
June 17
10:30 a.m. Mass – Sacred Heart
Edinburg
June 20
7 p.m.
Confirmations – St. Theresa
Edcouch
June 22
2 p.m.
Confessions/Mass - Valley Awakening Team San Juan
June 24
2 p.m.
Confirmations – Sacred Heart
Confirmations – Prince of Peace
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
Every Thursday 11:30 am – 6 p.m
Mass at UTPA
Every Sunday 7 pm. Mass at UTPA
Holy Hour will be held Weekly every
Thursday at 7 p.m., 727 Bowie St.,
Alamo
Mercedes
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
“When nobody was in the
church, he would be there playing
the organ on his own initiative,”
Sister Carey said. “He was already
a beautiful organist, very adept
even then.”
As pastor of St. Joseph Church
and School, Father Labus plans to
continue to the highlight the importance of music to the liturgy,
which is sustained by a strong level of participation by the people.
TV,
continued from pg. 5
voluntarily abdicating our responsibility as teachers and role models.
When our now young adult
daughter was in school up to 8th
grade, our TV set was off Monday through Thursday. This was
our family rule and every family
creates their own rules and rituals.
Agradecimiento,
continued from pg. 2
los fieles que recen por vocaciones
para los Oblatos de María Inmaculada, y también que recen por el
nuevo pastor de la parroquia de
Nuestra Señora Estrella del Mar.
Nunca ha sido fácil para una
comunidad religiosa tener que dejar una parroquia a la que han servido por generaciones. Sé que será
difícil para los parroquianos decir
adiós a la presencia de los Oblatos
en su parroquia. Estoy agradecido
con Dios por el trabajo que los
Oblatos han hecho a través de los
años en Puerto Isabel, y particularmente el trabajo recién comenzado
por el Padre James Erving, OMI,
el actual párroco. Pero, a pesar de
los cambios que han sido necesarios debido a la situación actual,
vivimos en la segura y agraciada
esperanza de que el Señor continuará bendiciendo el crecimiento de
Anniversaries,
continued from pg. 9
16 Rev. Franciscus Yuantoro
16 Rev. Hector J. Cruz
17 Rev. Isaac Erondu
21 Rev. Mario Aviles
23 Rev. Gabriel Ezeh
27 Rev. Emmanuel Kowfie
17 Father’s Day
18-21 LOVE Teens Retreat La
Joya (Rio Grande City)
20 First day of
summer
22-25 BOMA NFP Training
(Rio Grande City)
23 CMD Course #1 - San
Antonio
3 Deacon Juan Barbosa
23-29 Catholic Youth
Renovation Project
(St Paul, Mission)
One family’s suggestion is to turn
the TV off for one night a week
and replace it with family time
or game night (no Ipad, no cell
phone, no land line; just conversation and/or silence). There
is a philosopher that states that
“culture is like the water the fish
swims in.” Our children and young
people only know what surrounds
them. What kind or water do we
want them to swim in?
23 Oldie and Opera Meal
Fundraiser - (RGC)
Nuestra Señora Estrella del Mar, y
que el arduo trabajo que los Oblatos han realizado al construir la
vida de la Iglesia en Puerto Isabel
servirá como una fundación sólida
para un mayor crecimiento en los
días y en los años venideros.
En nombre de todas las
generaciones de Católicos aquí
en el Valle, reconozcamos llenos
de agradecimiento la duradera
presencia de los Padres Oblatos en
el Valle del Rio Grande, y demos
gracias a Dios por la dedicación y
la generosidad que ha inspirado
en ellos.
Como obispo de ésta hermosa
diócesis, yo estoy particularmente
muy agradecido por todo el trabajo que los Oblatos han realizado
al establecer tantas comunidades
parroquiales en el Valle, y por las
comunidades parroquiales a las
que siguen sirviendo.
Que Dios Bendiga a los Oblatos.
San Eugenio de Mazenod ruega
por nosotros.
“En Pocas Palabras”
To read the bishop’s blog visit
http://bishopflores.blogspot.com
23 - 24 CMD Course #1 - San
Antonio
28- 1 Roma Men’s ACTS
Retreat (RGC)
July
1
Softball Game, Mission
4 Independence Day
(DiocesanOffices
Closed)
5-8 Queen of Angels Men’s
ACTS Retreat - (RGC)
6-8 Catholic Engaged
Encounter (Family Life Office)
8
Softball Game, Mission
9-12
SJDMI YM Level 1
San Juan
12-15 San Martin de Porres
Mens’ ACTS Retreat
(Rio Grande City)
14 Convalidation Conference
15 Softball Game, Mission
20-22 Vocations Discernment
for Women (RGCity)
22 Softball Game, Mission
26-29 Rio Grande City Men’s
ACTS Retreat (RGC)
28-29 Youth Summer Softball
Tournament, Mission
Please submit your schedule to be
published in The Valley Catholic by the
first Friday of each month by email at
tdeleon@cdob.org or fax: (956) 784-5082.
16
DIOCESE
Our Catholic Family
The Valley Catholic - June 2012
From a patient’s perspective
Time as nursing
home resident
motivates grant writer
By ROSE YBARRA
The Valley Catholic
SAN JUAN — “I felt like the
wounded soldier in that episode of
MASH, where the show was taped
from his point of view.”
That is how Nelly Dominguez
describes her time as a patient at
San Juan Nursing Home.
After a near-fatal car accident
in 2007, Dominguez spent part of
her recovery time at the nursing
home, where she was employed as
a grant writer.
Dominguez, 44, said her journey from nursing home employee
to patient and back again has given her a fresh perspective on what
it is like to live in a nursing home.
“To not sleep in your own bed;
to be in a wheelchair; to not be
able to bathe yourself, it’s humbling,” she said.
Dominguez has made a full
recovery from the accident and
recently returned to work at San
Juan Nursing Home, where she
writes grants and organizes fundraisers for the Catholic facility,
which operates under the guidance of the Diocese of Brownsville.
“I was very passionate about
the work the nursing home does
before the accident but now, multiply that by 10, by 100,” Dominguez said. “My past experience as
a resident motivates me to do ev-
Single father,
continued from pg. 1
single father households are the
fastest growing type of family situation, with a 60 percent increase
in the last 10 years.
Two of Diaz’s adult children,
a son and a daughter, have married and left the nest. Christian,
16, Samantha, 13 and Erika, 11,
remain at home.
The Diaz family follows a
daily routine that includes chores
for everyone. After making breakfast and sending his children off
to school, Diaz gets to work. His
primary source of income is selling items at local flea markets. He
also does odd jobs.
“I have to be done working
by the time my kids get out of
school,” Diaz said. “They are my
top priority.”
The Valley Catholic
Nelly Dominguez, a grant writer at San Juan Nursing Home, with her son, Mateo, 6. Dominguez, 44, was a resident of the facility
after she was critically injured in a 2007 car accident in San Luis Potosí.
erything I can to support this ministry, everything I can to improve
the residents’ quality of life.”
The nursing home is hosting
a gala on Thursday, June 21 at
Mario’s Banquet and Conference
Center in Mission. Bishop Daniel
E. Flores will deliver the keynote
address. The proceeds from the
fundraiser will go towards a new
sprinkler system, which the nursing home is required to install by
August 2013. The project will cost
about $130,000.
In the early morning hours of
Dec. 28, 2007, Dominguez and her
husband, Miguel and their twoyear-old son, Mateo, were traveling to San Luis Potosí in Mexico to
visit a priest friend.
“We went off a cliff and
dropped about 17 feet,” Dominguez said. “The accident happened
at about 2:15 a.m. and we were not
found until about 6 a.m., when a
passenger bus stopped to give us
aid.”
Her husband and son walked
away from the accident with
minor injuries but Dominguez
broke her back, maxilla (upper
jaw), arm, ribs and her foot. She
was taken to a hospital in Mexico
where she was told that her chances of survival were slim.
“They advised me to say my
goodbyes to my son and my husband,” she said.
Dominguez’s heart stopped
twice but the doctors were able to
revive her and she was returned to
the U.S. and hospitalized.
Diaz was an involved and attentive father before his wife died,
said his daughter Samantha, 13,
but is even more so now.
“He’s a nice guy and a great
dad,” Samantha Diaz said. “He’s always been there for us but he pays
even more attention to us now. He
tells us, ‘if you need something, if
you want to talk about anything
at all, tell me. I’m your mom and
your dad.’”
Samantha Diaz added that
her father talks to her and her
siblings very frankly, openly and
honestly about everything, even,
“girl stuff.”
“He wants to know what’s going on in our lives,” she said. “He’s
very protective of us. He wants to
know who we’re with, what we’re
doing.”
Today, Diaz runs his busy
household with ease but that
wasn’t always the case.
“It was a hard transition at
first,” he said. “My wife was so
wonderful. She did such a great
job with the kids, a great job keeping everything in order. I’ve managed to take of my family but it’s
not easy. Even now, I have days
when I feel so overwhelmed, days
when I cry and cry when I’m
alone.”
Diaz went to the Catholic
Charities of the Rio Grande Valley
office in San Juan to ask for assistance to pay his electricity bill on
April 26.
“My first impressions were
that he is a good father,” said
Yesenia Guzman, a case worker
at Catholic Charities of the Rio
Grande Valley. “He mentioned
that his mother offers to take care
of his children when he goes to
work at the flea market on the
weekends but he prefers to have
them with him. As we talked
more, I learned that he and his
children have been through a lot.
It breaks your heart. … It’s rare
for us to see a single father but it’s
good to know that there are fathers like him in the world.”
The Diaz family’s world
was turned upside down when a
seemingly healthy Margarita suffered the hemorrhage. She survived surgery but the doctors told
Diaz that she was brain dead and
that there was nothing more that
could be done for her. Diaz said
he had a hard time letting go of
his childhood sweetheart and the
love of his life. She was 14 and he
was 15-years-old when they began
their courtship.
“She was in the hospital for
quite a while,” he said. “I didn’t
want to give up on her. The doctors gave her blood transfusions;
they tried therapeutic hypothermia to lower her body temperature … .”
Meanwhile, doctors were
pressuring Diaz to withdraw life
support.
Diaz said he begged and
pleaded with God, asking the
To subscribe
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For more information call (956) 781-5323
To receive a copy at home each
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Once she was stabilized, she
was released from the hospital and
sent to San Juan Nursing Home
where she lived for six weeks.
“She was very sick and in a lot
of pain, but she was always very
optimistic,” said Isaura Garcia, a
certified nursing assistant at San
Juan Nursing Home. “She was
never in a bad mood and I think
that helped her recovery.”
Garcia said seeing a young coworker admitted into the nursing
home made her more aware of her
own health and mortality.
“It made me realize that young
or old, none of us are immune
from ending up here,” she said.
Dominguez’s sister, Eloisa Fernandez helped care for little Mateo, while she recovered.
“It was hard to see my little
sister in a nursing home,” Fernandez said. “It’s not something you
ever expect or want to see but she
was in very good hands. She was
also able to visit and bond with
her son. He was just a baby at the
time.”
Mateo, who is now six years
old, stopped by to visit his mom at
work one day after school recently,
peppering her with kisses.
“To see her walk again, to see
her play with her son, it’s like a
miracle,” Garcia said. “In her, we
see in vivid detail that that work
we do does make a difference in
people’s lives.”
For more information on San
Juan Nursing Home or the gala,
please call (956) 787-1771. Sponsorships and silent auction items
are still needed for the gala.
Lord to take him instead.
“She’s their mother, our children need her more than they
need me,” he recalls telling God.
One day, while praying in the
hospital chapel, Diaz fell to his
knees and tearfully gave his wife
to God.
“I finally surrendered to
God’s will,” he said.
Diaz takes some comfort in
knowing that Margarita gave life
to others, including a 13-year-old
boy, as her organs were donated.
As time passes, Diaz said he
misses Margarita more and more,
especially when their children
celebrate important moments.
Memories of the time they spent
together and the promise of seeing
her again someday, he said, keep
him going.
“When I smell her perfume
or hear a song that reminds me of
her, it brings a smile to my face,”
he said. “I feel that she is with me.
… I walk with the Lord every day
because I want to go to heaven so
I can see her again.”
ONLINE
For videos and photos of some of the milestones in the life
of the Church in the Rio Grande Valley, visit the Diocese of
Brownsville website.
www.cdob.org