South Texas Catholic - March 2015

2 SOUTH TEXAS CATHOLIC | MARCH 2015

MARCH 2015 | SOUTH TEXAS CATHOLIC 3

Publisher Most Rev. Wm.

Michael Mulvey, STL DD

Editor Alfredo E. Cárdenas

[email protected]

Theological Consultant Father Joseph Lopez, JCL

Associate Editor Mary E. Cottingham

[email protected]

Administrative Assistant Adel Rivera

[email protected]

Correspondents Rebecca Esparza, Luisa Scolari,

Dayna Mazzei Worchel

If you or someone you know would like to receive the South Texas Catholic

call us at (361) 882-6191Office Address: 620 Lipan

Corpus Christi TX 78401-2434 E-MAIL: [email protected]

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VOL. 50 NO. 3

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Si desea leer nuestros artículos escritos en Inglés en español, visite nuestro sitio web southtexascatholic.com y utilice el traductor de idiomas Google.

www.SouthTexasCatholic.com

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INSIDEVIDA CATÓLICA

VOCATIONS

VIEWPOINTS

PARISH LIFE

CATHOLIC EDUCATION

OUR FAITH

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Abuelos en la familia: Cuando los abuelos viven en el hogar

Parish mission will review ‘seven capital virtues’

Bishop installs seminarians into Ministry of Reader

Marriage is critical to healthy families, the Church and society

A new breed of grandparents play vital roles at schools

MASS: Gathering together to worship God

VATICAN NEWS

NATIONAL NEWS

Pope calls for solidarity with migrants

Work underway on Museum of the Bible

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Grandchildren love grand-parents ‘to Jesus and back’.Grandparents are

raising grand-children in greater numbers

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Sister Mary Elizabeth Rougeau, DCJ and residents, from left, Lavera Gregorcyk, Mickey Hardigree, Alice Cuevas and Pela Cazalas getting exercise by using

a balloon to play a game of paddle ball at Mount Carmel Home.Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic


VIEWPOINTS✝

Most Reverend Michael Mulvey is bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi.

Bishop Michael Mulvey, STL, DDSouth Texas Catholic

The vocation of marriage is critical to healthy fam-ilies, the Church and society. The Church has realized for centuries that the basic relationship

in the life of the Church is the covenant relationship between a man and a woman called marriage.

As a mother, the Church wants to bring us to the fullness of life; she wants us to live in conformity with the way God has created us, according to what God has written in our hearts, according to the natural law.

Mother Church teaches us that marriage is a covenant, a partnership for life between a man and a woman. That is the definition of marriage in the mind of God and revealed to us through the Scriptures. Christ reminds us that, “…from the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female…For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore, what God has joined together, no human being must separate (Mt 19:4-6).”

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that marriage is a “matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, and is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation and edu-cation of offspring …(CCC 1601).” The help that spouses give to one another is not only

focused on their time on earth, but also aimed at assisting each other to eternal life. Thus the first goal of the spouses is to help each other become saints.

The other goal of marriage is children. The union of husband and wife is oriented toward new life, the most precious gift of marriage. Children are the sacred gift of love. They are to be welcomed from the moment of conception. They are never to be disregarded, ignored or abused. They are to be accompanied through life, taught and cared for as children of God.

When a marriage is validly contracted as a covenant between a baptized man and woman in the Church it becomes a sacrament. And as a sacrament, the marriage relationship is holy and sacred. This sacramental nature introduces Jesus Christ–a silent partner–into the couple’s relationship.

His intimate presence in marriage cannot be bought. It is a gift that comes through the sac-rament. His presence, which is grace, is given as an underserved gift from God assisting the couple to respond to their vocation. The grace he offers helps them respond to all aspects of

Marriage is critical to healthy families, the Church and society


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being married from raising children to work and all the challenges they face each day.

In living their sacrament, husbands and wives should remember the words of Jesus: “I am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit, because without me you can do nothing (Jn 15:5).”

Married couples are not immune from temptations that can lead to sin and to a distortion of marriage, even to a breakdown of marriage. These temptations are part of our human weakness. They come from within. They surround us. They arise through our culture, our society, even governments try to impose laws that change and distort the meaning of God’s plan for marriage.

So many things challenge the relationship of mar-riage, but grace abounds in our lives if we cooperate with God’s plan and will to build up the relationship of marriage. We might ask how we can live in Christ in order to follow God’s plan.

St. Jerome said ignorance of the Gospel is ignorance of Jesus Christ. You cannot say you know Jesus and not know what he said and taught. By remaining in his word and letting his word live in us, we become a part of him and his life lives in us.

Married couples are not meant to close in on them-selves, to live their lives in a closed self-contained environment. Those living a sacramental life under-stand the nature of their relationship to Christ and his Church, they hear this silent partner telling them, to go and witness to the world. Go and be missionary disciples.

The Church also calls upon married couples to engage in ministry to others, to be involved in their parishes. They can share their experience with others by helping engaged couples prepare for a sacramental marriage. They can accompany couples that are hurting due to the loss of a spouse or divorce. Families can assist single parents who need the support of friends who can understand and inspire them. And let us not forget the ministry we owe to the elderly, especially grandparents.

Above all married couples should be on the front lines to help the Church to promote the dignity and respect for every human life: life in the womb, in prison, on the streets, the poor and young people who need an education.

May the holy family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph be the supreme model for all married couples and families.

Headlines from southtexascatholic.com

• Youth hold clothing drive for Mother Teresa Shelter

• Youth Choir of Corpus Christi Cathedral scheduled to be lead choir for Papal Mass

• Latin Mass Community celebrates Our Lady of Fatima First Saturday processions

• Girls perform volunteer service at Rainbow House

• Local television station KIII-TV aired “The Francis Effect”

• Catholic Charities hosts immigration workshop

• New program offers families free healthy living choices

• DeLeon listed among 40 under 40 to watch

• Thousands rally at state capitol for life

• Students to compete in district academic meet

• Mock trial team advances to state competition

• National Catholic Schools Week kicks off with Prayer Service

• Christ the King celebrated National Catholic Schools Week

• IWA Hosts Coastal Bend Blood Drive

◗ Bookmark our Web site to keep up to date on all the happenings in the Diocese of Corpus Christi.


Margaret Horseman cannot imagine living somewhere other than Villa Maria Senior Citizen Community. “There’s no place like Villa Maria. The staff is amazing and my fellow

residents are a joy to be around. Being here is a blessing,” she said.

A resident since 1993, Horseman had lived here with her husband, Deacon Malvin “Pete” Horseman, Jr., until he passed away in January 2013. Deacon Horseman had served at Most Precious Blood and Our Lady Star of the Sea, where he retired from active ministry.

“The staff here are amazing,” she marveled. “They keep us motivated and find fun things for us to do all of

the time. It’s a remarkable place to live.”

Patsy Cantu, executive director at Villa Maria, said the facility’s 48 apart-ments are consistently filled, and noted they currently have a waiting list of 180 names. Villa Maria accepts resi-dents 55-years of age and older. The

oldest current resident is 94-years-old.Villa Maria is located on Saratoga

Boulevard, next to Bishop Garriga Middle Preparatory School.

“We strive to make living here at Villa Maria a fun and enjoyable experience by hosting activities and social events that keep the residents

Villa Maria Senior Citizen Community

A place to call homeRebecca EsparzaCorrespondent

Residents Mary Zarate (left) and Geri Naylor take a few moments to pray a rosary in the community’s meditation garden.

Rebecca Esparza for South Texas

Catholic

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engaged,” she said.Some of those activities include

bingo, movie night and special potluck dinners centered on major holidays. Cantu said she makes a special effort to invite local entertainers to perform for the residents, like a barbershop quartet or guitar players.

“We’re always looking for those willing to volunteer

their talents and entertain our resi-dents, or even someone willing to come spend time with them playing games,” Cantu said.

Villa Maria was founded in 1984 by the Diocese of Corpus Christi and

fosters the spiritual life of the elderly by planning and providing programs that nurture love for Christ. It serves the needs of senior citizens by provid-ing a dignified residential facility with a Catholic environment.

Geri Naylor, 9-year resident at Villa Maria Senior Citizen Community, enjoys playing her favorite religious songs on the piano.


Catholic

Patsy Cantu displays the popcorn machine, which was given to them by an anonymous donor.


Catholic


Mass is held at Villa Maria’s chapel three times during the week and once on Sunday. There is a meditation garden with a Marian shrine outside and Stations of the Cross indoors.

The Community Building features a large lounge area with a fireplace and TV, a dining area and kitchen for special events.

“We couldn’t do as many activities as we do without the help of great friends and family, including children of the residents, who all volunteer their time,” Cantu said. “But more volunteers from the community are always welcomed and needed.”

Cantu added donations for special events are also needed.

“Our residents love their bingo,” she said, with a chuckle. “We can always use door prizes for residents, which are given away during bingo. Some great prizes include reg-ular household and personal care items.”

Since Villa Maria is a non-profit, it relies on nominal rental fees only to help sustain

the facility. “We look for the occasional grant, as well

as monetary donations to help with the day-to-day operations of our facility, which not only includes maintenance, but also a staff of five,” Cantu said.

Sometimes Villa Maria receives anonymous donations, which benefit all residents, like the popcorn machine that is used for movie nights.

“Since we are a non-profit, we appreciate anything and everything: volunteers, monetary or in-kind donations and even personal visits from local entertainers. It all helps us provide excellent care to our residents year-round,” she said.

Margaret Horseman added living at Villa Maria is like living with family.

“If you are sick, people are always checking on you or they will bring you something to eat. It’s wonderful. Patsy and her staff put in a lot of hours making sure we have a fun, safe and enjoyable place to live. I’m blessed to call Villa Maria home,” she said.


Villa Maria resident Mary Zarate enjoys playing bingo.Rebecca Esparza for South Texas Catholic


Dayna Mazzei WorchelCorrespondent

Eleven-year-old Danny Puebla is like most boys his age. He loves football, basketball, swimming and his dog, Bella. But the two most important

loves in this fifth-grader’s life are his grandparents, Joey and Margaret Diaz Mitchell.

Grandchildren love grandparents ‘to Jesus and back’

Eleven-year-old Danny Puebla enjoys spending time with his Grandparents Joey and Margaret Diaz Mitchell, who are his legal guardians and have been raising him since he was three.

Dayna Mazzei Worchel for South Texas Catholic


Danny, whose family has nicknamed him “Danny Boy,” has lived with the Mitchells in their comfortable Corpus Christi home since he was three. When asked about the best part of living with his grandparents, he replied, “being with Papo,” the name all of the grandchildren call Joey Mitchell.

The boy’s father, one of Margaret Mitchell’s three grown children, was not married to Danny’s mother, and was unable to care for the child. He made the decision for Danny to live with his grandparents, with whom he used to stay on weekends, because he cried for them.

“I can’t turn my back on these kids,” said Margaret Mitchell, who had five grandchildren living with her at one point.

The Mitchells are not alone in their situation. In Texas, 349,000 or five percent of children under the age of 18 lived with grandparents in 2013, according to figures provided by the Kids Count Data Center. And there are 253,000 children in Texas under 18, or four percent who lived with other relatives besides grandparents in 2013.

“Grandparents face financial, health, social challenges, usually because of a traumatic event,” said Felipa Lopez Wilmot, a family caregiver program specialist with the Area Agency on Aging of the Coastal Bend, which serves 12 counties in the area.

Wilmot facilitates a support group for grandparents, which meets from 10-11:30 a.m. on the second and fourth Tuesday of each month at the Greenwood Senior Center, 4040 Greenwood Drive, in Corpus Christi. Speakers talk about grandparents’ rights, grandparents share coping skills and they learn about resources in the community, said Wilmot, who facilitates the support group.

“It’s very empowering for them because there are so many barriers they face,” she said.

Wilmot said State Rep. Abel Her-erro helped change Texas law in 2009 to allow grandparents or other rela-tives to obtain medical treatment for

children in their care. The Mitchells are Danny’s legal

guardians, which means they can authorize his medical treatment and make decisions about his education, they said. The guardianship does not take away parental rights and is not


Danny Puebla serves as an altar boy at Our Lady of the Rosary Church. Father Varghese Kolencheril Ethappiri is giving communion.

Contributed Photo

“We are teaching them our faith. We want to instill moral values in them, because without it, they would be lost.”

–Margaret Mitchell


the same as an adoption, they said. The Mitchells have been very happy

with the emotional support they received while going to the support group, and had started their own eve-ning support group for about a year at St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles parish in Calallen. But their work schedules prevented them from continuing it.

“I highly recommend support groups–they suggest ways for you to take care of yourself,” Margaret Mitchell said.

The Mitchells, who attend Our Lady of the Rosary Church, credit their faith with helping them get through the tough times. Father Gabriel Coelho, their parish priest, is also a psycholo-gist and works well with parents and grandparents there, they said.

“We are teaching them our faith. We want to instill moral values in them, because without it, they would be lost,” Margaret Mitchell said.

They pray the rosary once a month and the youngest of her eight grand-children, who range in age from four to 16, now participate. They have one grandchild in heaven, Marga-ret Mitchell said, after they lost a 7-month-old grandbaby recently. It is important to teach the grandchildren the power of prayer, she said.

Margaret Mitchell said the fact that she and her husband work as a team is the reason for their success in raising their grandchildren.

“It’s overwhelming, but you just do it,” she said.

She and her husband spoke openly about how much they love their grand-children. Joey Mitchell helps Danny with his homework and cooks, includ-ing making a big breakfast on Sunday morning. Margaret Mitchell cleans the house and takes care of making sure the cookie jar is always full.

“My biggest fear is that I will fail him. I’m not as hard on him as I was with my own kids. I just want to spoil him,” Margaret Mitchell said.

Her own children tell her she never would have let them get away with the behavior she allows in the grandchil-dren. She loves all of the grandchildren the same, she said.

Margaret Mitchell said she wishes she had more stamina to keep up with Danny.

Above all, the couple stresses edu-cation for their grandchildren.

“I don’t want them to work 14 hours a day, I want them to own the com-pany,” said Joey Mitchell, a branch manager for a trucking outfitter.

We tell them to shoot for the stars and not take the easy way out, his wife said.

Having her grandchildren in her home has not been a burden, despite the challenges, the Mitchells say.

Sometimes people will ask them why they do it and tell them their grand-children are not their responsibility.

“My response is why wouldn’t we want them?” Margaret Mitchell said, adding that they are children of God.

What makes the effort worth it is when the grandchildren tell them how much they love them.

“They always say ‘I love you to Jesus and back,’” Margaret Mitchell said.

(For more information on the grandpar-ents support group or other resources, contact the Area Agency on Aging of the Coastal Bend at (361) 883-3935 or toll free at (800) 817-5743.

Danny Puebla plays with his dog, Bella at his grandparents home where he has been living since he was three.

Contributed Photo





Today’s grandparents are taking on increasing roles of respon-sibility, from volunteering several days a week at their grandchildren’s schools, to paying Catholic school tuition or

even raising their grandchildren in the absence of biological parents.

“Grandparents at our school play an integral role in their grandchil-dren’s education,” said Evelyn Burton, principal at St. Patrick School. “Many times they sent their children to Cath-olic schools and are now helping with their grandchildren’s Catholic educa-tion, either by picking them up after school, dropping them off, volunteer-ing or even paying tuition.”

Burton added the school has two faculty members whose grandchildren also attend St. Patrick.

“It was heartwarming to see all the grandparents at Mass during Catholic Schools Week recently. The children were surrounded by so many loved ones, you could tell they absolutely loved it,” she said.

Yvonne Brown, secretary at St. Patrick, said some parents would not be able to bring their children to St. Patrick School without the support of grandparents.

“The pride and love I see from

grandparents every day is truly amaz-ing,” Brown said.

Sixth grade teacher Susan Buquet’s three daughters are all graduates of St. Patrick and now she has a grand-daughter in pre-K3.

“I get to see her every morning. She makes sure to stop by my room on her way to class. Not only do I work at St. Patrick, but I also volunteer, as well. Grandparents add a special level of attention for their grandchildren and for me, it’s about providing for the extra things,” Buquet said, who cele-brates 20 years at St. Patrick this year.

Grace Moore’s grandson, Holton Robinson, has attended St. Patrick since kindergarten and is now in fifth grade. She volunteers three times a week at the school’s library, assisting with checking out books and keeping the library tidy.

“I volunteer because giving back makes me feel good,” she said. “You can tell the kids are loved here and it’s

Grandparents Elma and Raul Ramos (at right) attend Mass with their grandchildren during recent Catholic Schools Week festivities honoring grandparents and others who play a special role in the school children’s lives. Elma Ramos is holding future Shamrock Yssa Garza. Also pictured are first grader Becca Garza and Aryanna Garza, who attends pre-K4 at St. Patrick.

St. Patrick School for South Texas Catholic

Rebecca EsparzaCorrespondent



one big, happy family. I wish more grandparents volunteered. Not only does it make your heart feel good, but you get to spend extra time with your grandchildren, too!”

Moore, who is retired and travels

to the school from Port Aransas, also pays tuition for her grandson and said the investment has already paid off in dividends.

“The basic values and respect for others has been instilled in him at

school from the very beginning. There is no replacement for teaching life les-sons at an early age. It becomes a part of their daily lives and part of their being,” she said.

Janie Ortega-Garcia worked for

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the Corpus Christi Independent School District for 31 years as a school secretary. After retiring, she knew she loved that job too much to say goodbye forever, so she decided to volunteer a few days a week at Ss. Cyril & Methodius School. Her granddaughter Brooke Garcia is cur-rently in first grade at the school.

“It feels so good to volunteer at her school, providing clerical assistance in the office. Thanks to God, I am retired, but I love volunteering and being near my granddaughter. I have lunch with her often and she knows I’m more than likely here if she needs me. To me, that sense of security is a priceless gift I can give her,” Orte-ga-Garcia said.

Lilly Samaniego, principal at Ss. Cyril & Methodius School, said grandparents play a major role in the lives of students.

“Nowadays, both parents must work and duties like picking up kids at the end of school or bringing them lunch in the middle of the day are left to grandparents. I know this first-hand, because as a working mother, I count on my own mother to do the same for my children,” she said with a chuckle.

Samaniego said several grandpar-ents at her school pay tuition for their grandchildren and there are at least two couples raising their grandchildren.

“One of the grandparents raising her grandchildren said to me the other day, ‘This isn’t what we had planned for this stage of our lives, but we wouldn’t change a thing.’ Grand-parents today have evolved to being second parents to their grandchildren and that is beautiful because it just means more people to love these chil-dren,” she said.

Susan Buquet, 6th grade teacher at St. Patrick School, works with her granddaughter JonMarie Martin, 4, during her computer lab time. JonMarie attends K3 at St. Patrick and Susan sometimes spends time with her between classes.

Rebecca Esparza for South Texas Catholic

Grace Moore (right) volunteers at St. Patrick School three times a week, which includes checking books out to students in the school library. Her grandson, Holton Robinson (left), attends 5th grade at the school.

Rebecca Esparza for South Texas Catholic

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Sister Annette Wagner, IWBSContributor

One of the essential elements to consecrated life is the vows that each member makes. In fact, it is the making of these vows that suggests the term

“consecrated life” and designates someone as a recognized member of a religious order.

To consecrate is to dedicate something formally to a reli-gious purpose. The original meaning of the term “sacrifice” also points in the same direc-tion. To sacrifice is to offer or dedicate something or some-one to the service of God. In a sense, we have all been “sac-rificed” at our Baptism. All baptized irrevocably belong to God. So what can be added to this dedication?

The choice of how one lives out that sacrifice or dedication is often referred to as a person’s vocation–the personal response to the call already offered at Baptism. Those who choose

to respond by living a conse-crated life officially formalize that choice in making the vows of poverty, celibate chastity and obedience.

The vow of poverty offers to God our human right to per-sonal property and control of our financial standing. Every family experiences a dynamic similar to the basics of religious poverty. Any material goods one receives or “earns” is put to the use of the whole. Any need of one member is provided for by the whole. The combined resources are put to the use of the community and its mission; the designated authority makes

final decisions. Poverty focuses past the dis-

tractions of material goods to community resources that include far more than physical wealth; resources, such as the gifts and talents of the indi-vidual, the combined abilities of all members to contribute to community life and com-munity mission, the wealth of relationships that abound in community. In this way, poverty frees the individual and com-munity to be more conscious of relying on God’s providence rather than wealth.

The vow of celibate chastity is a variation of the chastity

Sister Annette Wagner, IWBS is director of the Office of Consecrated Life for the Diocese of Corpus Christi.

Celebrating Consecrated Life:

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Suffering for vocationsFather Joseph Lopez, JCLContributor

Can we promote voca-tions through our suffering?

Most of us do not think of our lives as full of suffering, but the reality is that we have plenty of little things every day that we endure. It may be spilled coffee, or a bothersome co-worker; maybe a particularly needy child is trying your patience at home. In 10 seconds, you can prob-ably come up with 10 things you have already suffered through today.

Sometimes we endure it well, and sometimes badly. But do we think about these little–or big–points of suffering as an opportunity to gain graces for those discerning a vocation to priesthood or consecrated life?

Redemptive suffering is a longstanding tradi-tion in the Church, from our Lord’s acceptance of the cross as the supreme redemptive act of suffering to the humiliations, tortures and trials which the saints endured for their salvation and that of their brothers and sisters. God calls us to take a part in this, to willingly accept and offer up our own suffering in union with the Son of God for the good of souls.

While it is probably most common to offer up suffering for those in great need, consider that an increase in vocations to priesthood and consecrated life is also a great need. If we help more people to gain the grace of accepting and living their vocations in a consecrated way, many more of these grave needs will be met.

Let us promote vocations through redemptive suffering. Offer up your suffering as a sacrifice for our future priests, brothers and sisters–God will not be outdone in generosity!

that all Christians are expected to live. Chastity, as safeguarded by the sixth and ninth com-mandments, addresses the proper use of the gift of sexuality according to one’s life vocation. Chastity for those in consecrated life includes the commitment to celibacy. Through this vow, the human right to belong to a supportive com-munity is experienced through relationships in and availability to a group larger than the family unit. This vow offers God the love and energy usually expressed in the exclusive inti-macy of marriage and children so that they can be dedicated to other expressions.

Celibate chastity focuses beyond the small community of the family to the larger commu-nity of the Church. Free from the responsibilities involved in providing a stable home for chil-dren, the vowed member is available to go where his or her gifts are most needed, and perhaps to spend more hours in the day in that needed service.

The vow of obedience involves the human right to self-determination. The making of this vow is the individual’s self-determination of the life that is to follow. This vow offers to God the person’s availability to serve in the way that is most needed by the community and the Church. It requires the individual’s conscientious con-tribution to the process of decision-making, as well as acceptance of the final decision made by the leadership who carries this responsibility.

Obedience focuses beyond the individual view to a broader vision. Personal preferences and comfort zones must sometimes be put aside out of concern for the needs of community life or mission. Such a response often frees the indi-vidual from limited expectations of self and calls forth unsuspected talents.

Poverty, celibate chastity, obedience; these three vows can be misunderstood as merely cases of self-denial. Yes, in every Christian life, self-denial is an element of the expressions of love. But to consider the vowed life as only a life of self-denial is to miss the bigger picture. Living these vows whole-heartedly is living a life of freedom, often a life of adventure and discovery, always a life of love.

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Father Joseph Lopez, JCL, is vocations director for the Diocese of Corpus Christi.

Mary CottinghamSouth Texas Catholic

For 50 years Sister M. Amalia Mata, ISSM has been serving Texas with love, as expressed through the Schoenstatt Sis-

ters of Mary whose mission is “to renew the world from within.”

Sister Amalia’s vocation began on March 27, 1965, when she was received into the Schoenstatt religious family. She took her final vows and ring eight years later at Sacred Heart Church in Rockport.

Born to Mateo and Benita Mata in Guanajuato, Mexico in 1943, the family of seven moved to La Feria, Texas when she was just a little girl. It was at St. Francis Xavier Church that she was first introduced to the Schoen-statt Movement. The parish priest had hired two sisters who belonged to the movement.

When the sisters were hired to work in the parish they taught groups of boys and girls for specific formation in the spirituality of Schoenstatt.

“We were called the Schoenstatt girls,” Sister Amalia said.

The sisters brought something new to the young girls, “they offered spirituality and practical points of spirituality. Back then, the priest gave basic religious instruction, much of it included memorization. It was not possible for him to do everything,” she said.

When she was 18 she joined the

Schoenstatt group and a year later one of the sisters asked her about enter-ing into a religious vocation. “I said I guess I could. It’s interesting because back then you went in without reser-vations. They told you and you just went,” she said.

It was a time of spiritual growth for her. She got to know the commu-nity by living with them. She spent eight years training and invested with the same group of girls that she had entered with. During those eight years she was there because she wanted to be there. From the time she entered until she received the ring, she was free to decide.

After a few years of living her voca-tion, which included instructing and nurturing others who wanted to join the movement, Sister Amalia enrolled in Del Mar College to study nursing.

For 10 years she worked part-time as a licensed vocational nurse in a Laredo hospital. While continuing her schooling and working part time, she received her license as a registered nurse. She then moved to Austin and worked another 16 years as an RN on the Medical Surgical Floor, all the

while living according to the spirit of her vows.

“Our Father said our first vocation is to love,” she said.

For many years Sister Amalia cared for patients who had all kinds of illnesses. “It was sometimes a very stressful and demanding job,” she said. “But I managed to do it for 26 years.”

Now retired, Sister Amalia lives in Lamar on the grounds of the Schoen-statt Shrine, in the provincial house. She still keeps busy by caring for the sick and older sisters. One sister in her group had cancer. She cared for her up until she died. She helps out in the community wherever there is a need. “Right now I’m doing laundry and I love to garden,” she said with a chuckle. “If you love something you put yourself into that.”

Sister Amalia strives to live Schoenstatt spirituality

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Charism: The soul of religious lifeFather Joseph Lopez, JCLContributor

Religious Life can be shrouded in mystery, making the religious life seem almost like another-worldly state of being. And in some sense it is. This discussion of some important aspects

of discerning the religious life will hopefully dispel some of the mists for clearer understanding and discernment.

One of the most important things to know about religious communities is that each one has a distinct charism. In a general sense, a charism is a gift from God that helps build up the Church. For religious communities a charism is the soul of the com-munity, that which gives it purpose, motivation and animates its action. A community’s charism involves its history, traditions, rule of life, aposto-late and spirituality, all of the heritage, which makes it what it is.

All of these elements of commu-nity heritage work together to help lead the members to holiness, to lead them to a close relationship with the Holy Trinity, and more generally, to help them be a sign of God’s presence and love in the world for the work of evangelization. The charism of a particular community is its distinctive manner provided for its members to live the evangelical counsels.

Let us look at four aspects of charism, which make good starting points to getting to know a religious community: spirituality; apostolate; rule of life and community, and active versus contemplative.

SpiritualityA religious community’s spirituality

is the character of its prayer as a com-munity, liturgical and devotional.

Spirituality includes traditions handed down by a founder or influ-ential member of the community, or other practices which developed in their history. For example, members might stop every hour and take a moment to pray; they might make a daily examination of conscience according to a particular method; some communities make a monthly day of recollection.

For some communities, the manner in which they celebrate the liturgy is an essential part of their spirituality. Some orders even have liturgical texts and rubrics particularly adapted to their order; some celebrate the Mass in the Extraordinary Form as part of their spirituality; some chant or sing the Divine Office.

Spirituality often also includes devo-tional practices. For example, it may be devoted to the Immaculate Con-ception. They might have community prayers, which reflect this; they may choose to celebrate optional liturgies devoted to the Blessed Virgin; their apostolate could even be influenced by this devotion, for example, educating the faithful about Our Lady’s appear-ances at to St. Bernadette at Lourdes.

The spirituality of a religious com-munity pervades its whole life–it is an essential part of the charism, which gives each its distinct character.

ApostolateOne of the most easily recogniz-

able elements of a charism is the apostolate, or external work, that the community does. Quite often charism and apostolate are seen as the same, and though the apostolate is a necessary part of the charism, it is only a part. However, it does play quite an important role, and is one of the main things to consider when discerning religious life.

The apostolate is the mission, what it has been “sent” to do in the world. The apostolate may be some sort of work directly with people. It could be concerned with basic physical needs like food, shelter or healing. It could be more spiritual or intellectual, like teaching or preaching, counseling, spiritual direction or public prayer and liturgy. It could also be a hidden apostolate, such as prayer or penance for the conversion of the world.

In addition to the apostolate, some communities will have work that they do which is primarily for their liveli-hood. Religious have bills to pay, too.

✝ VOCATIONS


But even this is usually worked into their apostolate.

Rule of life and community

Every religious community has a rule, which helps to define what the community is and how it lives. The rule gives guidelines on every aspect of community life, from their habit, spirituality and apostolate to even such things as how meals should be taken.

A religious community is a family, and its life flows from living its charism. The manner in which its members live, together and as indi-viduals, gives the community its distinctive family characteristic. As with any family, there are little things that make living in it a joy for its members. There are also quirks, and things that bother its members. No community is perfect.

But that is part of what helps the members to become holy, as they work

out their differences and learn to for-give annoyances. St. Therese became a saint precisely because she endured a sister from her community splashing her face with dirty wash water. But she also became a saint by experiencing the joys of community life.

Active and contemplative

The question of an active versus a contemplative community touches on all aspects of the community’s charism. All religious communities will have a bit of both. Work must be done, and the foundation of the spiritual life is prayer. But a commu-nity is usually identified more with one or the other, and generally this is defined by its apostolate.

If the apostolate is some work in the world, the community is generally considered active; a contemplative community focuses on the interior life of prayer.

DiscerningThe most important question for

anyone discerning a religious vocation is this: Do I fit? This is admittedly a complex question. It necessitates a close look at one’s life: one’s experi-ences, gifts, personality, inclinations, and interests.

Just as a couple who is discern-ing marriage spends time together to get to know each other, and to determine whether their lives “fit” together, discerning the religious life requires that one “gets to know” some communities.

Start where you are attracted. Find out as much as you can about those communities, and contact them. Get to know them–visit, experience their spirituality, their community life, their apostolate. As you get to know a few communities, and with good spiritual direction, God will make it apparent whether, and where, he is calling you.

Religious in the Diocese of Corpus Christi represent a number of orders with distinct charisms. Those interested in religious life have ample examples to explore.

Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic

✝ VOCATIONS


✝ VOCATIONS

Bishop installs seminarians into Ministry of ReaderAlfredo E. CárdenasSouth Texas Catholic

Three seminarians from the Diocese of Corpus Christi were installed in the Ministry of Reader at Assumption Seminary in San Antonio on Saturday, Feb. 14. The Ministry of Reader

is a step along the way to priestly ordination.

Bishop Michael Mulvey installed Oscar F. Chaparro, Richard Gutierrez

and James A. Andrew Hernandez, who are completing their first year of

theology. They were among 10 semi-narians instituted into the Ministry of

Bishop Michael Mulvey installed three seminarians from the diocese into the Ministry of Reader on Saturday, Feb. 14, at Assumption Seminary in San Antonio. Pictured above (from right) are Oscar Chaparro, Deacon Ron Martinez, James Hernandez, Deacon Armando Sanchez, Bishop Mulvey, Richard Gutierrez, Deacon Arnoldo Marcha and vocation director Father Joseph Lopez, JCL.

Photos by Assumption Seminary


Bishop Mulvey installs seminarian James Hernandez into Ministry of Reader.

Photos by Assumption Seminary

Reader and Ministry of Acolyte.In his homily, Bishop Mulvey said

these two ministries represent two “fun-damental sources of Christ’s presence in the Church today.”

“Christ said ‘I am with you always.’ We sometimes act as if God is not pres-ent, but that we are in charge. That is heresy from its roots. Christ Jesus is in charge, he is the head of his Church, we are his servants,” Bishop Mulvey said.

The seminarians accepted as Readers are servants of the Word and of God, the bishop said. They do not possess these ministries but are servants to them. Acolytes are servants of the altar, of the Eucharist.

“You are not servants of priests or deacons, but servants of Jesus Christ,” the bishop said. These ministries only assist the bishop, priests and deacons in order to build up the Church in holiness and salvation.

“Jesus never intended for the Church to take possession of his body and blood or the possession of his word, as if we are the ones to take charge of his word. We are to be instruments…together…to seek life of the Holy Spirit in order to build up the people of God and have them come into contact with their Lord and Savior,” Bishop Mulvey said.

He told the seminarians that their relationship with God’s word and with the Eucharist at this point in their journey in life and in this part of their priestly formation will take on a new character. He urged them to spend time

with the word of God and with Jesus in the Eucharist, both at Mass and outside of Mass.

“Allow yourself the luxury to spend time with his word, to spend time with Jesus to know him, to absorb what he says and to live the word, be trans-formed by the word,” Bishop Mulvey said.

Citing the frequent words of Pope Francis, Bishop Mulvey said, what the Lord needs to see in the Church are two things: wisdom and humility.

“You must show that you love the Word and that you want to share it with others,” Bishop Mulvey said to those installed as Readers. “How can you give what you don’t have? Your life must be rooted in the Word in order to share it.”

He said they also needed to show

humility. There is no more humble act than Jesus crucified. The bishop pointed out to the seminarians that they live in a world where so many things attack the truth, detract them from holiness, tempt them away from Jesus Christ. He directed them to follow the example of the apostle Paul who said, “I never boast except in the cross of our Lord…”

“How can we boast when Jesus Christ is on the cross?” the bishop asked. “If he can give us his life, than you and I can give up our life for our sisters and brothers. Our life is not about boasting of who we are, we don’t have merit badges, we have crucifixes hanging around our necks.”

The bishop urged the seminarians to rejoice and celebrate with their families but to remember that God had asked them to give up their lives to serve.

✝ VOCATIONS


Mary CottinghamSouth Texas Catholic

Residents at Mount Carmel Home have been through wars, the Great Depression and raised families.

“They are our living history, a first hand account. You get that in so many differ-ent encounters,” said Sister Ann Elizabeth Cronin, DCJ, LVN, executive director of Mount Carmel Home.

Mount Carmel Home is a non-profit, Christian assisted living home, located at 4130 South Ala-meda Street in Corpus Christi. It is owned an operated by the Car-melite Sisters of the Divine Heart of Jesus whose convent is located on the same grounds.

Currently, there are 52 elderly residents living at Mount Carmel Home.

The Carmelite Sisters and the 21 hired staff members strive to provide residents with the highest level of care with dignity. Accord-ing to their mission statement, they are “dedicated to the ideal of seeing, serving and loving God in all residents.”

“When our congregation was established, our foundress said time and time again: ‘no facility, no institution.’ The goal is to preserve

the dignity of the person. We defi-nitely want to provide a home,” Sister Ann Elizabeth said.

“The employees are wonderful. They have been here for so many years…so long,” she said. One employee has been there for more than 50 years. Many others have worked at Mount Carmel, 20 and 30 years.

“Once the elderly become part of your family, so to speak, you’re hooked… you’re personally invested,” Sister Ann Elizabeth said.

Residents’ spiritual needs are provided for through daily Mass at 7 a.m. and Sunday Mass at 9 a.m. Some of the residents meet every day for devotions or to pray the Divine Mercy at 3 p.m. They also have Bible study and movies with religious or spiritual themes.

Mount Carmel staff, dedicated to ideal of seeing, serving and loving God in all residents

Sister Ann Elizabeth Cronin, DCJ, LVN is executive director of Mount Carmel Home.


“When our congregation was established, our foundress said time and time again–no facility, no institution. The goal is to preserve the dignity of the person.”

–Sister Ann Elizabeth Cronin, DCJ


Mount Carmel Home offers a wide variety of services. The residents have 24-hour care, with licensed vocational nurses on staff, medica-tion management and regular health monitoring. They get three meals a day and snacks. They also receive help with bathing and grooming and weekly housekeeping.

They have a Lifeline, private mail-boxes, exercise rooms, garden areas, linen service and utilities, including cable. There is an on site beauty and barbershop and a hairdresser who comes once a week. In addition the staff provides transportation to residents for doctors appointments, banking, outings or shopping.

Activities include, games, resident council meetings, birthday parties and socials. Local musicians give of their time and talent for the enjoy-ment of residents.

“Many residents are actively engaged in outdoor, weekly trans-portation trips and the indoor activities are buzzing with laughter and there is a very happy compan-ionship between residents,” said Sister M. Barbara Leary, DCJ who recently returned to Corpus Christi after a three-year term working in an assisted living home in La Mesa, California.

Mickey Hardigree, 85, stays phys-ically fit by walking the grounds of Mount Carmel, as do many other residents. Hardigree has been at Mount Carmel since May and she stays busy. She tries to stay fit every-day by participating in a variety of

different games with other residents like bowling, paddleball and kick-ball. She also walks the home’s halls.

“I like to play games to keep my body and mind going,” she said.

A new resident Alice Cuevas said she looks forward to living at Mount Carmel Home. She lived in a neigh-borhood where people she knew were moving out and the house she lived in was getting harder and harder to maintain. She recently left her home in Tynan, Texas and came to live at Mount Carmel Home. “It’s a new adventure for me,” she said.

Margaret Kaizen recently lost her husband. Three years ago they came from San Antonio and decided to make Mount Carmel their new home. She misses her husband, but she knows she still has a family at Mount Carmel.

According to Sister Ann Elizabeth

Mount Carmel staff, dedicated to ideal of seeing, serving and loving God in all residents

Sister Mary Elizabeth Rougeau, DCJ gives out meds to Alicia Longoria.Mary Cottingham, South Texas Catholic

Mickey Hardigree, 85, stays physically fit by walking the grounds of Mount Carmel, as do many other residents.



there are some misconceptions regarding the elderly. Many people, even some of the res-idents themselves, think they are just here to die. Some residents, because of the disease of dementia or Alzhei-mer’s, lose much of their personalities.

“They need to know they are not going to be forgot-ten. These are very real fears for them,” she said.

She said that the residents need to feel they are still worthy of attention, time, effort and care and “they need to know they are not a

burden and that they are still loved.” “What is really tragic is when the person

themselves think they are not neces-sary. That happens quite a bit. I think if we can do nothing more than just con-vince that person that they still have worth, even if they can’t do anything–simply by being here–they are still worthy. They teach me every day to be

more kind. You have to have a lot of patience–and they deserve it,” Sister Ann Elizabeth said.

Residents, from left, Lucille Grey, Frances McEvoy, Kay Bohrer and Elizabeth Freeman have fun tossing, kicking and spiking the ball as Sister Mary Elizabeth Rougeau, DCJ tries to get out of their way.


“Once the elderly become part of your family, so to speak, you’re hooked… you’re personally invested,”

–Sister Ann Elizabeth Cronin, DCJ


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If you or someone you know is in need of such services, call Stephanie Bonilla, Director of the Office for Child and Youth Protection, (361) 693-6686 (office) or (361) 658-8652 (cell) for immediate assistance.

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Help Us Prevent Financial AbuseThe Diocese of Corpus Christi at the recommendation of the Diocesan Financial Council and Presbyteral Council have furthered their commitment to good stewardship and nancial accountability on behalf of generous donors by instituting a nancial abuse hotline.

The Diocese of Corpus Christi has selected an independent third party, The Network, to provide you with a new way to anonymously and con dently report nancial abuse and fraud. Employees, parishioners, volunteers, vendors and other interested parties will be encouraged to report concerns they have regarding nancial misconduct within the Diocese of Corpus Christi. All inquiries will be treated promptly and discreetly. Callers will have the right to remain anonymous.

Call 1-877-571-9748

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✝ PAR

ISH LIFE

Parish mission will review ‘seven capital virtues’Mellie SmithwickContributor

St. Elizabeth of Hungary in Alice will present a parish mission entitled “Seven Capital Virtues: Overcoming the Seven Capital Sins” over five consecutive days from March 1–5, at 7 p.m.,

at the parish. The mission will be followed by Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament and confession.

St. Elizabeth of Hungary parish is located at 603 E. 5th St. in Alice.

A parish mission is a special event for Catholics in which all parishioners, as well as members of the neighboring communities, are invited to take part in several days of activity and prayer, all focusing on faith enrichment.

“Those who attend a parish mis-sion often experience a new spiritual awakening, bringing about a deeper love for God, and a revitalization of their personal relationships,” pastor Msgr. Leonard Pivonka said.

St. Elizabeth invited Father Ben Cameron, CPM, of the Fathers of Mercy, headquartered in Auburn, Kentucky, to lead this Lenten mis-sion. Father Cameron was born in Kokomo, Indiana, and grew up as a member of St. Patrick Church in that city.

During his junior high and high school years, he attended a small Christian school that was operated by a local Baptist church. It was in that non-Catholic environment, where his faith was often challenged, that he began to study the Catholic

faith. Father Cameron is a 1991 gradu-

ate of Christendom College, a small Catholic liberal arts college in Front Royal, Virginia, where he became involved in a lay apostolate known as the Legion of Mary, which awak-ened his desire to share his Catholic faith with others. Upon receiving his degree in political science and history, Father Cameron planned a career in the political arena, but soon found that God had other plans.

He joined the Fathers of Mercy

in 1992, studied theology at Holy Apostles Seminary in Cromwell, Connecticut, and was ordained a priest on May 31, 1997. He has served as vocation director, treasurer, web master, and parish mission preacher during his priesthood. He currently serves as the assistant gen-eral of the Fathers of Mercy, and the director of its mission band.

The primary apostolate of the Fathers of Mercy is to conduct parish missions and retreats, which are now given throughout the United States, Canada and Australia. For more than 200 years, the Fathers of Mercy congregation of priests have evangelized and strengthened the faith of parish communities. They strive to enrich the faith-life of all who attend, including those who are already very devout, as well as those who may just be very doubtful.

For people who are not Catholic, the parish mission is an opportu-nity to hear clear presentations on exactly what Catholics actually believe, as opposed to what many may mistakenly think they believe.

The mission priests associate their

Father Ben Cameron, CPM


✝ PARISH LIFE

Father Jesus Francisco Lopez blesses portrait and relic of Blessed Jose Sanchez Del Rio.

Immaculate Conception Church

Taft parish prays for canonization of Blessed Jose Sanchez Del Rio

On Sunday, Feb. 8, Father Jesus Francisco Lopez of Immacu-late Conception Parish in Taft celebrated a Mass in memory of Blessed Jose Sanchez Del Rio. The Mass included a pro-

cession with a first class relic of Blessed Jose that is encased at the parish.

work with a Scripture passage from the Gospel of St. John, in which Jesus spoke to those who desired to be His fol-lowers. Jesus turned, and saw them following, and said to them, ‘What are you looking for?’ And they said to Him, ‘Rabbi’ (which means “teacher”), ‘where are you going?’ He said to them, ‘Come and you will see’ (Jn 1: 38-39).”

During the mission, Father Cameron will encourage and challenge the parish community to make a stronger, deeper

personal commitment to Jesus Christ and his Church. He will speak on “Seven Capital Virtues: Overcoming the Seven Capital Sins,” and how they apply to the lives of Catholics today.

Msgr. Pivonka and the Fathers of Mercy, invite everyone interested to attend the parish mission, so that they may come and know Jesus better through living the “Seven Capital Virtues.”

Members of the Knights of Columbus, Cath-olic Daughters of the Americas, Junior Catholic Daughters of the Americas and Guadalupano Society, along with parishioners and invited guests, joined in prayer and celebration with the faithful. They prayed to God that, if it is his will, Blessed Jose would soon be counted among his saints.

All of the information needed by the Vatican regarding the required miracle performed by God through Blessed Jose has been acquired. The mir-acle, which will be sent to Rome, is the case of a newborn infant girl born on Sept. 8, 2008, which from birth was in a serious state of health that doctors had given the family no hope of recovery. Devotees of the child martyr Blessed Jose, whose intercession before God they sought joined the family of the infant in supplications to God.

The girl was miraculously cured and is now six years old and living a normal life. The case will be sent to the Holy See in Rome for their analysis and final approval for canonization.


✝ VID

A CATÓ

LICA

El respeto a los padres es algo fundamental contenido en uno de los mandamientos de Dios: “Honrarás a tu padre y a tu madre.” Ellos cuidaron y protegieron a su familia con el amor

y cariño que existe de los padres hacia los hijos, ahora les toca a los hijos corresponder de la misma forma.

El señor Vicente Vázquez, quien esta al cargo de su hija Rachel debido a su edad y enfermedad, dice que hay que apreciar lo valioso que tenemos como cultura, ya que el núcleo familiar entre los hispanos no se limita a padres e hijos, sino que se extiende a los abuelos, tíos, primos y nietos.

“Los abuelos forman el pilar de la familia, son el centro de reunión en fechas importantes como la Navidad, llenando de tantas historias y recuerdos vividos y que llenan de nos-talgia nuestras vidas,” dijo el señor Vásquez. “Son una fuente de amor y cariño acompaña-dos de historias, consejos y enseñanzas que compartir por la sabiduría que los años dan para los nietos.”

Rachel Vásquez dijo que siempre a vivido con su papá, y la enseñanza más grande que recibió de sus padres es el respeto y siempre estar al pendiente de sus familias y sus necesidades y el compromiso

Abuelos en la familia: Cuando los abuelos viven en el hogarLuisa ScolariCorresponsal

El señor Vicente Vásquez y su hija Rachel, que cuida de él en su edad avanzada y la mala salud.

Luisa scolari para el South Texas Catholic


Ayudenos a Prevenir el Abuso Financiero

La Diócesis de Corpus Christi por medio de la recomendación del Concilio Diocesano de Finanzas y el Concilio Presbiteral han llevado su dedicación mas allá para la buena administración y responsabilidad nanciera en nombre de donantes generosos al instituir un “hotline” para reportar el abuso nanciero.

La Diócesis de Corpus Christi ha seleccionado un tercer partido independiente, La Red, para proporcionarle a usted con una manera para reportar anónima y con dencialmente el abuso nanciero e fraude. Los empleados, los parroquianos, los voluntarios, los vendedores, y otros partidos interesados estan impulsados para reportar las preocupaciones que tengan respeto a la conducta de påca ética nanciera dentro de la Diócese de Corpus Christi. Todas las investigaciones serán tradas inmediatamente y discretamente. Personas que llamen tienen el derecho de mantenerse anónimas.

Llamada 1-877-571-9748

de ayudar a la Iglesia. “El poder atender a mi padre me hace sentir mucha

alegría, ya que él siempre ha trabajado muy duro para poder tener lo que tenemos y para poder ayudar a la Iglesia. Es un honor tener ese ejemplo en nuestras vidas,” dijo Rachel Vásquez.

El señor Vásquez quedo viudo hace 29 anos cuando su esposa María falleció. Recientemente el señor Vásquez perdió una de sus piernas a causa de la diabetes. Debido a esta incapacidad pasa sus días en una silla de ruedas y depende en su hija para que lo cuide.

Laboralmente pasó por muchos trabajos, entre ellos empacando ejote y rábano para HEB, cargando naranja y descargando manzana del ferrocarril y por 12 años haci-endo pacas de algodón, hasta que el dinero no alcanzaba ni trabajando 72 horas a la semana. Ya que a medida que la hija crecía las necesidades también crecían y en 1967, siempre con el fin de cuidar y proveer a su familia comenzó a trabajar en Coastal States Petroquímica en donde permaneció por 20 años.

Durante todo este tiempo participo como miembro activo en la Iglesia de San José. Durante 35 años era miem-bro de varias organizaciones y ayudaba con la Jamaica y el Bingo para obtener los fondos necesarios para com-prar los terrenos en donde posteriormente se construyó la escuela, el gimnasio y el Centro para Catequesis. Durante 15 años, fue lector de la misa de español.

“Proclamar la palabra de Dios me sale del corazón,” dijo el señor Vásquez. “Es lo que más me gusta y lo hice hasta que mi trabajo ya no me lo permitió en el 2010.”

Rachel Vásquez dijo que su padre siempre ha sido el proveedor de la familia. “Ahora le cuesta trabajo salir adelante, se esfuerza para poder ayudarme en lo que puede, no se queda quieto, a pesar de su incapacidad,” dijo su hija.

Sin embargo, dijo Rachel Vásquez, su papá prepara su café y hasta le ayuda a lavar la ropa. Trata de servir y ayudarle siempre.

“Esa formación y ejemplo nos los ha trasmitido a mí y a mi hijo Daniel, que también creció en este hogar,” dijo Rachel Vásquez. “Cuando mi hijo vivía con nosotros era más fácil ya que me ayudaba dándole las comidas y llevándolo a sus citas con el doctor, pero ahora que se ha casado y nació su bebé, ya no tiene tanto tiempo para ayudarme, aunque sigue dándole sus vueltas y llamándolo para estar al pendiente.”

Rachel da gracias que su patrón, el padre Pete Elizardo, le da permiso para poder llevar a su padre a sus citas médicas.

“Sí es un poco mas pesado el tener que levantarme más temprano para dejarle listo el almuerzo antes de irme al trabajo, pero también es una satisfacción el cuidarlo y atenderlo y llevarlo al Bingo y sacarlo a pasear. Siento un gran orgullo y es un honor tener su ejemplo en nuestras vidas.”

“Tengo una hija muy buena que no me deja, siempre está al pendiente de mis necesidades,” dijo el señor Vásquez. “Me cuida que no baje el pié, que lo tenga levantado, que no camine…me lleva al doctor y me trae mis medicinas y debido a mi circunstancia ella tiene que hacer mas de la cuenta ya que la obligo a que me lleve a misa muy temprano para que le quede mas tiempo.”

Dijo que se siente muy afortunado por tener a alguien que esté al pendiente de el, y le pide a Dios que le dé alivio en su pié para poder ayudarle en el quehacer.

“Yo hago lo mejor que puedo para darles un buen ejem-plo, como familia unida y con el compromiso a nuestra Iglesia,” dijo el señor Vásquez.

Si la paciencia es una característica necesaria en la cri-anza de los hijos, es igualmente necesaria en la atención a los padres, y aunque no es tarea fácil, el amor hace que sea más llevadero y cuando se ofrece a Dios, la fuerza espiritual hace que la carga sea mas ligera y adquiera un valor espiritual.

“Si eres bendecido y tienes un abuelo o abuela, o tu padre o madre, llámalo, visítalo y siente el amor de Dios en su abrazo,” dijo el señor Vásquez. Y su hija, agrego “Cuiden a sus padres con cariño y no los abandonen, ya que con la vara que midas serás medido.”

✝ VIDA CATOLICA


Programa de Radio en Españolen KLUX 89.5 HD-1

y “Listen Live” en KLUX.orgDomingos a las 7:00 a.m.

con elP. Juan Fernando Gámez

P. José Naúl Ordóñez

W W W . L A T I E N D I T A R E S A L E . W E B S . C O M

4906 Everhart Rd. @ McArdle | 361.993.3300New Hours:

Tuesday - Friday 11 a.m. - 6 p.m.

La TienditaA unique shopping experience!

Pleasurable surroundings for clever minds hunting for bargains and treasures!

Christian and Resale Shop

Si usted o alguien que usted conoce está en necesidad de estos servicios, llame a Stephanie Bonilla, Director de la Oficina de Protección de Niños y Jóvenes, (361) 693-6686 (oficina) ó (361) 658-8652 (celular) para asistencia inmediata.

Obispo Michael Mulvey y el personal de la Oficina de Protección de Niños y Jóvenes se comprometen a ayudar en el proceso de curación de las víctimas y sobrevivientes de abuso.

The Office for Child and Youth

Protection

El enlace a la buena salud:CHIPmedicaid.org

CHIP/Children’s Medicaid cubre cuidado dental, anteojos, recetas médicas, y visitas al doctor.

Con $50 o menos asegura a todos sus niños por un año. Para saber si califica, visite CHIPmedicaid.org el enlace a la buena salud para su familia.

Solicite por Internet o llame a cualquier hora.CHIPmedicaid.org 2-1-1

HHSC-0459_SouthTexasCatholic_3n6x2n3_SPAN_V2.indd 1 2/4/15 10:12 AM


4601 Calallen Drive • Corpus Christi, TX 78410

6 p.m. on Friday - 5 p.m. SundayPax Christi Liturgical Retreat Center

Teens Open Up to God’s Holiness Youth Retreat

TOUGH is sponsored by the Diocese of Corpus Christi Office of Youth Ministry

(361) 882-6191

To register go to: www.diocesecc.org/youth

and return registration form to:Diocese of Corpus Christi,

c/o Office of Youth Ministry620 Lipan St.

Corpus Christi, TX 78401

High School age Youth Retreat (9-12 grades)

July 24-26, 2015

for the whole weekend with food, lodging, prayer, Reconciliation, Adoration, Holy Mass, fellowship and the opportunity to reflect on God’s Holiness for each one of us.

No cell phones allowed

$50 Just

Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, be

courageous, be strong.– 1 Corinthians 16:13


St. Joseph students help with Nathaniel’s Prayer Garden.Eddie Perez for South Texas Catholic

St. Joseph’s builds Prayer Garden

Nathaniel Seth Dominguez, a kindergarten student at St. Joseph School in Alice, passed away on June 8, 2014. A prayer garden to be named Nathaniel’s Prayer Garden began in January 2015 and has been completed.

The school is conducting a fund raising project to pur-chase and install benches at the garden, which will be dedicated later this year. To contribute to this project call the school at (361) 664-4642.

Nathaniel Seth Dominguez

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The Amazing Parish slates mini-conference in diocese

On March 19, the Diocese of Corpus Christi will host the first-ever, one-day Amazing Parish conference at the Omni Hotel in Corpus Christi. The conference will equip parish leadership teams to better lead their parishes.

“Since the beginning of my ministry in the Diocese of Corpus Christi, I have tried to focus attention on rein-forcing and invigorating parish life,” Bishop Michael Mulvey said.

By the end of the conference, participants will have a clearer sense of where they want to lead their parish. Bishop Mulvey requests that every pastor attend and bring a team of 2-4 parish leaders.

Bishop Michael Mulvey celebrated Mass for the 2015 World Day for Consecrated Life on Feb. 1 at Corpus Christi Cathedral. During the Mass those in Consecrate Life renewed their commitment and jubilarians celebrating anniversaries ranging in length from 25-70 years were acknowledged with gratitude.

Jubilarians honored on World Day for Consecrated Life

Women and men religious from throughout the diocese celebrated World Day for Consecrated Life at Corpus Christi Cathedral on Feb. 1.


Youth Spectacular: Rooted in Family; Grounded in Faith

The Diocese of Corpus Christi Office of Youth Ministry is hosting a Mini-Youth Spectacular on March 28 at St. Frances of Rome, located at 410 Simmons St. in Agua Dulce.

This event is for high school and middle school youth and will contain all the normal elements of a Youth Spectacular including dynamic speakers, praise music, adoration and Mass.


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Work underway on Museum of the BibleNate MaddenCatholic News Service


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This architectural rendering shows how the Museum of the Bible will look. Opening in 2017, the eight-story, 430,000-square-foot museum is being designed by the lead architect group that created the International Spy Museum, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian, and the soon-to-open National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Catholic News Service


✝ VATICAN

Pope Francis once again urged solidarity with migrants who risk their lives crossing

the Mediterranean Sea for Europe, and assured prayers for the vic-tims of a deadly crossing in early February.

During his general audience Feb. 11, the pope called for a spirit of solidarity with migrants “so that no one lacks necessary aid.”

He said he was following the news coming out of Lampedusa “with concern.” Lampedusa is a southern Italian island that serves as a port of entry for many of the migrants illegally entering Europe by sea.

The pope was responding to reports Feb. 9 that 29 migrants had died of hypothermia after being rescued by the Italian coast guard; they were part of a group of 105 African migrants whose raft had capsized in the Mediterranean. Their raft had set off from Libya Feb. 7.

Later, the office of the United Nations High Commis-sioner for Refugees reported that the loss of life in the Mediterranean over the weekend of Feb. 7-8 was feared to be as high as 300 people, including children.

The revised report came after nine more migrants, who were saved from the Mediterranean Feb. 9 and arrived in Lampedusa Feb. 11, said that a total of four boats had set off together from Libya. The 29 who died of hypo-thermia were on the first boat. But, the nine survivors said, the other three inflatable rafts each had about 100 people on board and the nine saved were the only ones who survived.

Several church organizations have responded to the tragedy by once again issuing a call for better search-and-rescue operations in the Mediterranean, migration reform and joint government cooperation in Europe.

So long as “Europe looks the other way and pretends

AT THE OSO BEACH MUNICIPAL GOLF COURSE

5801 S. ALAMEDACORPUS CHRISTI

In Loving Memory

FATHER THOMAS FRANCIS SHOWALTER, SOLT

Sept. 6, 1957 – July 13, 2013

Proceeds Benefit Our Lady of Corpus Christi

www.olcc-golf.eventbrite.com

For more information call or Email: Al Lujan

(361) 215-8173 [email protected]

or Carlos Trujillo

(361) 742-2946 [email protected]

Take a Swing for a Good Cause at the

OLCC GOLF TOURNAMENT SATURDAY, MAY 16 FROM 8AM-12 PM

Pope calls for solidarity with migrantsLaura IeraciCatholic News Service


✝ VATICA

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not to understand that Italy is really the door to Europe and that what happens in Italy belongs to every-one, things will continue like this, with these tragedies at sea,” Cardi-nal Angelo Bagnasco of Genoa told L’Osservatore Romano, the Vati-can newspaper. The cardinal serves as president of the Italian bishops’ conference and vice president of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences.

In a statement Feb. 11, Jesuit

Refugee Service said the latest deaths demonstrate “the failure of European border policy” and “may have been avoided if the European Union had implemented a search-and-rescue operation of the same size and scope as the former Italian rescue program, Mare Nostrum.”

The EU’s Operation Triton, which replaced Mare Nostrum, is “vastly under-equipped and focuses almost exclusively on border security and surveillance,” the statement said.

JRS also accused European states of setting up “legal obstacles” to those fleeing conflict in Africa and the Middle East and of not taking “the necessary measures to save lives in the Mediterranean.”

“We will not and cannot accept that the Mediterranean continues to be a migrant graveyard,” said Jesuit Father Camillo Ripamonti, director of JRS Italy. “It is crucial that the EU and its member states swiftly act to ensure the safety of refugees.”

Pope calls for solidarity with migrantsPope Francis tosses a wreath of flowers into the Mediterranean Sea off the Italian island of Lampedusa to honor the memory of immigrants who have died trying to cross from Africa to reach a new life in Europe. The pope said the tragic deaths of thousands searching for a better future should trigger compassion and action, not indifference.

Catholic News Service


Sister Guadalupe Maria Cervantes, PCIis a member of the Pax Christi Institute.

MASS: Gathering together to worship GodSister Guadalupe Maria Cervantes, PCIContributor

In the procession, the priest, deacons, servers and other ministers enter, preferably while a hymn is being sung. The act of processing can serve as a symbol

of gathering together to worship God. Entrance song, procession

The entrance hymn serves two purposes. One, it gives praise to God. Secondly, by the act of all the people singing it together, it promotes the unity of the congregation. The congrega-tion should not be seen as a group of individual people but rather as a people gathered together as one.

Do not be distracted by this, but rather realize that all of this is helping you to let go of yourself and to be open to God.

The sign of the cross and the greeting

When they reach the sanctuary, the priest, the deacon and the ministers reverence the altar with a profound bow. As an expression of ven-eration, moreover, the priest and deacon then kiss the altar itself. As the occasion suggests, the priest also incenses the cross and the altar.

After the entrance chant is concluded, the priest stands at the chair and, together with the whole gathering, makes the sign of the cross. Then he signifies the presence of the Lord to the community gathered there by means of the Greeting. By this Greeting and the people’s response, the mystery of the Church gathered together is made manifest.

The sign of the cross reminds us of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and how he died for us on the wood of the cross. It is a sign of God’s love for

us, that while we were sinners, he sent his Son to save us, from our sins. We remind ourselves that Jesus by his cross has overcome the powers of sin and death.

Penitential riteIn the Penitential Rite, we are called to reflect

on the fact that we are not perfect in and of ourselves. Rather, we rely on God’s help and seek his mercy for those times when we stumble and fail to do good–God’s will. While this rite does not replace the sacrament of reconciliation, it does remind us that even when we are in the state of grace, we are still prone to sin and need God’s protective mercy.

A period of silence follows. We are given time to think and reflect. It is interesting that along with a declined sense of sin, people have grown uncomfortable with silence. We live in a world where we are bombarded with noise in almost every waking moment. But in silence, God speaks to us. “Be still, and know that I am God (Ps 46:10).” Noise often keeps us from hearing God’s pleas spoken to our hearts.

At the words “through my fault,” we strike our breast. Why? In the ancient world, striking one’s breast was a sign of mourning. At Jesus’s death on the cross, the Gospel of Luke recounts that the crowd returned to their homes “beating their breast (Lk 23:48).” We beat our breast as we declare our sinfulness in imitation of the tax collector who “standing far off, would not

... “Amen!” ...is ...an important

part of our participation in the Mass. It is our way of saying that we agree with the prayer made by the

priest, and that it is in fact our prayer, too.

✝ OUR FAITH


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even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be mer-ciful to me a sinner’ (Lk 18:13).”

The Church believes that when we gather to pray as a Church, the group that gathers is more than meets the eye. Literally, heaven comes down to this spot, and all of its inhabitants–the angels and all the saints–join us. As we ask them to join our prayer, we should be mindful of the purity of their prayers. Bowing our head as the priest says the general prayer of absolution is one way to accept the mercy of God that is given by the Church through the merits of Jesus Christ.

Lord have mercy (Kyrie)

Saint Paul said that it is only in the Spirit that we can acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord. The words Kyrie eleison are taken from the Greek lan-guage and mean “Lord, have mercy on us.” This threefold petition to each Person of the Holy Trinity is expressive of the earnestness with which we implore the Divine mercy.

We call upon the Father to be mer-ciful to us through his omnipotence;

upon the Son, to be merciful to us through his goodness. We implore mercy because we have often offended the Heavenly Father, who in his power has created us; because we have often offended the Eternal Son, who through his wisdom

has endured such great suf-fering to redeem us; because

we have often offended the Holy Spirit, who through his goodness

has sanctified us. We can open ourselves up to a

powerful encounter with God at the celebration of the Mass if we admit that without the help of God we do not know what we are doing. Like the blind men on the side of the road, we need the Lord to heal our blind-ness so that we too might recognize him: “Lord have mercy on us (Mk 10:46-52).”

Gloria in excelsisConfident that the Lord will for-

give us our sins, we now sing out, giving praise to God in imitation of the angels in heaven. This prayer of the Mass is actually an ancient hymn in which the Church, gathered together in the Holy Spirit, glorifies and entreats God the Father.

This hymn of praise contain three parts, the first part is the song that the shepherds heard sung by the heavenly choir of angels at the birth of Christ. The second part praises God by recalling all of his attributes. The third part prays to Jesus, asking him to save us from our sins.

The Gloria is a sublime hymn of praise, and we should repeat it in the spirit of a joyful welcome to our Savior. Jesus is present in the Blessed

Sacrament as truly as he was in the grotto, though in a different form. Let us join with the angels in praising him, with the shepherds in adoring him and with the Magi in glorifying him.

CollectWith the words, “Let us pray,”

the priest invites the congregation to join in his supplication, indicat-ing by these words the union of his heart with that of the congregation. Then follow the Collects, or col-lective prayers for the day, which, for conciseness of form, richness of expression and depth of meaning, have never been equaled.

They are called collective prayers because they sum up all the inten-tions and needs of the Church and of her children, both spiritual and temporal, which are laid before God by the priest. The priest extends his hands and then folds them as a mark of humility, acknowledging that we can do nothing of our own strength and that we must put all our trust in God. Afterwards he extends them once more in an attitude of appeal, in memory of our Savior who, with arms extended upon the cross, inter-ceded with his Heavenly Father for the whole human race.

Nearly all these prayers conclude with the words “Through Jesus Christ our Lord,” for the Heavenly Father has given us the promise that he will refuse nothing which we ask in the name of his beloved Son, Jesus.

At the close of the prayer, the con-gregation replies with an “Amen!” This is a response we give throughout the liturgy and an important part of our participation in the Mass. It is our way of saying that we agree with the prayer made by the priest, and that it is in fact our prayer, too.

... “Amen!” ...is ...an important

part of our participation in the Mass. It is our way of saying that we agree with the prayer made by the

priest, and that it is in fact our prayer, too.


Sister Kathleen McDonagh, IWBS is a member of the order of the Incarnate Word of the Blessed Sacrament.

According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the study of the sacred pages of Scripture “should be the very soul of sacred theology (CCC 132).”

Scripture is central to our spiritual growth; we, therefore, need to be most attentive to its content and unity.

Father George Montague, a Marianist Biblical scholar, in a work entitled Reading and Study Scripture raises important questions. He begins by asking, “What am I searching for?” We too must ask ourselves this question: “What are we searching for?” Are we looking for “nice” stories about Jesus? Are we search-ing for the poetry of the Psalms? Are we historians who are checking to see whether or not Scripture agrees with the details we have learned through general history?

All of the above can be noted as we read Scripture. They should not, however, be the most important aspect of our study. Hopefully, through our Scriptural study, we are searching for God’s direct message to us because, although in relation to almost each book of the Bible a human author is named, ultimately the author of each is God.

An important approach to reading and coming to know the Scriptural texts is to read the actual texts before reading about them. As we read the actual texts in our personal Bibles, let us question ourselves concerning what is described. Are these texts really familiar to us? Many of them are. In a few cases, we have even gone beyond reading to reflect on them.

But then we come across one that we have not

noticed before. Why not? Is it saying something to us now that did not seem important to us pre-viously? Do we understand what it is saying to us now? Then it is helpful to have someone with

whom we can discuss this experience. And hopefully this will lead us to widen our whole approach to Scripture.

Going beyond dis-cussion with someone

who is willing to help us understand, we may come to learn about scholarly scriptural help–book length scriptural commentaries which lead us through a discussion of scriptural passages. Then we have to slow down, read and reflect on the commentaries, apply the result of our reading and reflect to the scriptural text.

Is it important to us in the present state of our spiritual life? Are we willing to respond posi-tively to it in the light of our free choice? Is there someone in our life with whom we can share this text? When we find someone who has a good understanding of scriptural texts, we should try to share with that person or persons on a reg-ular basis.

Over a period of time, let us reflect on how we can put into practice in our ordinary lives what the text says to us. Let us ask God to open up new avenues of prayer for us in the light of scriptural teaching.

Our study of ScriptureSister Kathleen McDonagh, IWBSContributor

✝ OUR FAITH

“What am I searching for?”


Imagine a post-apocalyptic world, which has been decimated by the unleashing of tremendous forces of destruction. Imagine this world inhabited by wounded

and traumatized survivors who face innumerable chal-lenges, including the need to protect themselves from evil, mutated creatures actively seeking their annihilation. Visu-alize the landscape and atmosphere, heavy with unknowns and potential dangers.

The fall of man in the Garden of Eden at the beginning of time can be likened somewhat to this. What existed in unimaginable beauty, harmony and perfection was blown apart and scattered with such force that we are still, many thousands of years later, reeling from the effects. We live in a wasteland by comparison to what was originally given to us.

The fall was something like a nuclear reaction, which began as an internal chain of events. It resulted in a massive, life-shattering explosion. The damage did not stop after the initial blast but continued in the form of long-lasting fall-out that weakens our inner being, our will and understanding, and affects all of creation. This was the first sin.

We are all born into this fallen world. We compound the difficulties already present, with our own personal sins, further fragmenting our lives. Because of this, everyone and everything needs healing. From the pope down to the tiniest baby, from the mega galaxies to the most hidden crevices of creation, there is need for healing. All creation labors under the weight of a brokenness that was not a part of our origins in God.

In the beginning, there was no need for healing.“For in Christ were created all things in heaven

and on earth, the visible and invisible, whether

thrones or dominations, or principalities or powers, all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things and in him, all things hold together (Col 1: 16-17).

In Christ, all things hold together. Apart from Christ, all things fall apart. Adam and Eve quickly and tragically discovered this when they decided to do their own thing rather than follow an order that God had established for them to live in. The brokenness found in our world today is nothing more than being separated from the One who holds all things together in himself.

There is nothing God wants more than our healing. In fact, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said, “Healing is an essential dimension of the apostolic mission and of Christianity. When understood at a sufficiently deep level, this expresses the entire content of redemption (Jesus of Nazareth, 176).”

Jesus is the only one who knows how to put the pieces of our lives back together as they are meant to be. And where he cannot use the broken pieces, he gives us new ones: new hearts, new minds, new lights, new visions, new courage, new hope, new strength, new or renewed rela-tionships and so much more. Our unhappiness always comes from not being able to live as we were created to live, in a communion of life and

Who needs healing?

Sister Anne Marie Walsh, SOLT is a member of the order of the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity.

Sister Anne Marie Walsh, SOLTContributor

✝ OUR FAITH


1 | SUN | SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT | violet | Gn 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18/Rom 8:31b-34/Mk 9:2-10 (26) Pss II

2 | Mon | Lenten Weekday | violet | Dn 9:4b-10/Lk 6:36-38 (230)

3 | Tue | Lenten Weekday | violet [Saint Katharine Drexel, Virgin] Is 1:10, 16-20/Mt 23:1-12 (231)

4 | Wed | Lenten Weekday | violet [Saint Casimir] Jer 18:18-20/Mt 20:17-28 (232)

5 | Thu | Lenten Weekday | violet | Jer 17:5-10/Lk 16:19-31 (233)

6 | Fri | Lenten Weekday | violet | Gn 37:3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28a/ Mt 21:33-43, 45-46 (234)

7 | Sat | Lenten Weekday | violet [Saints Perpetua and Felicity, Martyrs] Mi 7:14-15, 18-20/Lk 15:1-3, 11-32 (235)

8 | SUN | THIRD SUNDAY OF LENT | violet | Ex 20:1-17 or 20:1-3, 7-8, 12-17/1 Cor 1:22-25/Jn 2:13-25 (29), or, for Year A, Ex 17:3-7/Rom 5:1-2, 5-8/Jn 4:5-42 or 4:5-15, 19b-26, 39a, 40-42 (28) Pss III

9 | Mon | Lenten Weekday5 | violet [Saint Frances of Rome, Religious] 2 Kgs 5:1-15b/Lk 4:24-30 (237)

10 | Tue | Lenten Weekday | violet | Dn 3:25, 34-43/Mt 18:21-35 (238)

11 | Wed | Lenten Weekday | violet | Dt 4:1, 5-9/Mt 5:17-19 (239)

12 | Thu | Lenten Weekday | violet | Jer 7:23-28/Lk 11:14-23 (240)

13 | Fri | Lenten Weekday | violet | Hos 14:2-10/Mk 12:28-34 (241)

14 | Sat | Lenten Weekday | violet | Hos 6:1-6/Lk 18:9-14 (242)

15 | SUN | FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT | violet/rose | 2 Chr 36:14-16, 19-23/Eph 2:4-10/Jn 3:14-21 (32) or, for Year A, 1 Sm 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a/Eph 5:8-14/Jn 9:1-41 or 9:1, 6-9, 13-17, 34-38 (31) Pss IV

16 | Mon | Lenten Weekday6 | violet | Is 65:17-21/Jn 4:43-54 (244)

17 | Tue | Lenten Weekday | violet [Saint Patrick, Bishop] Ez 47:1-9, 12/Jn 5:1-16 (245)

18 | Wed | Lenten Weekday | violet [Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, Bishop and Doctor of the Church] Is 49:8-15/Jn 5:17-30 (246)

19 | Thu | Saint Joseph, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary | white | Solemnity | 2 Sm 7:4-5a, 12-14a, 16/Rom 4:13, 16-18, 22/Mt 1:16, 18-21, 24a or Lk 2:41-51a (543) Pss Prop

20 | Fri | Lenten Weekday | violet | Wis 2:1a, 12-22/Jn 7:1-2, 10, 25-30 (248)

21 | Sat | Lenten Weekday | violet |

Jer 11:18-20/Jn 7:40-53 (249)

22 | SUN | FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT | violet | Jer 31:31-34/Heb 5:7-9/Jn 12:20-33 (35) or, for Year A, Ez 37:12-14/Rom 8:8-11/Jn 11:1-45 or 11:3-7, 17, 20-27, 33b-45 (34) Pss I

23 | Mon | Lenten Weekday7 | violet [Saint Turibius of Mogrovejo, Bishop] Dn 13:1-9, 15-17, 19-30, 33-62 or 13:41c-62/Jn 8:1-11 (251)

24 | Tue | Lenten Weekday | violet | Nm 21:4-9/Jn 8:21-30 (252)

25 | Wed | The Annunciation of the Lord | white | Solemnity | Is 7:10-14; 8:10/Heb 10:4-10/Lk 1:26-38 (545) Pss Prop

26 | Thu | Lenten Weekday | violet | Gn 17:3-9/Jn 8:51-59 (254)

27 | Fri | Lenten Weekday | violet | Jer 20:10-13/Jn 10:31-42 (255)

28 | Sat | Lenten Weekday | violet | Ez 37:21-28/Jn 11:45-56 (256)

29 | SUN | PALM SUNDAY OF THE PASSION OF THE LORD | red | Mk 11:1-10 or Jn 12:12-16 (37)/Is 50:4-7/Phil 2:6-11/Mk 14:1—15:47 or 15:1-39 (38) Pss II

30 | Mon | Monday of Holy Week | violet | Is 42:1-7/Jn 12:1-11 (257)

31 | Tue | Tuesday of Holy Week | violet | Is 49:1-6/Jn 13:21-33, 36-38 (258)

love with God, others, ourselves and all of creation.

What can be done? The answer is relatively simple. Draw near to Christ. More importantly, let him draw near to you. He is like a magnet that begins to pull all the fragmented pieces of your life back together into a beautiful recreation and restoration of God’s first intentions for you.

Approach Christ in the sacraments, in the Mass, in prayer, in adoration, in the love you share with others. Let him encounter you. Take time out for retreats. Allow him to pour his healing grace into your life. Trust Him.

Do not worry about distractions.

✝ OUR FAITH

March LiturgicaL caLendar

Our Lady of Corpus Christi Retreat Center offers Healing Retreats, led by Father Dan Estes, SOLT, Sister Anne Marie Walsh, SOLT and Deacon Bob Allen. The 2015 schedule of retreats includes March 27-29, May 29-31, Aug. 7-9, Oct. 23-25 and Dec. 4-6. The OLCC Retreat Center also offers retreats for healing from domestic violence and abuse. Call (361) 289-9095, ext. 321 for more information.

Jesus will work. He needs only the smallest invitation. He will come with delight to attend you and shower your

life with blessing. Let him come in! You will not be sorry! In the end, even creation will rejoice with you.

Pilgrimage to Lourdes, Fatima, Lisbon

Summer 2015Join Father Angel Montano for a

pilgrimage July 7-16, 2015 to visit these three sanctuaries. Participate in the

submerging of the miraculous baths, procession of the sick, of the Blessed

Sacrament, of the candles and the Rosary.

For complete information call Dora Hidalgo at

(361) 510-1411 or [email protected]


OLPH Annual Fish FryEvery Friday during Lent from March 2-27 from 4-7 p.m. at Our Lady of Perpetual Help (5830 Williams Dr.) in Corpus Christi. Donation of $8 per plate (includes: 2 fish fillets, 3 shrimp, french fries, cornbread, coleslaw and tea.) For more information call (361) 991-7891.

Momentum of Mercy Awards Banquet 2015March 6 at 6 p.m. at the Solomon Ortiz Center. The event will benefit Mission of Mercy. For more information and to purchase your tickets call (361) 883-5500 or go to: www.amissionofmercy.org.

Women’s ConferenceEntitled ‘Woman Fully Alive: Mary as Our Model’ will be on March 7 from 8:30 a.m.-12 p.m. at St. Theresa Parish Hall (1302 Lantana) in Corpus Christi. The conference is sponsored by Catholic Daughters of America Court #2433. Donation of $5. For more information call Connie Nolte at (361) 510-5297.

Leadership Training for ACTS LeadersMarch 7 from 9 a.m.-4:30 p.m. at St. Paul the Apostle Parish Hall in Flour Bluff (2233 Waldron Road) in Corpus Christi. This training is required for all persons serving as directors, co-directors, and spiritual companions on upcoming ACTS retreats. Core members are also encouraged to attend. Cost for the workshop is $40 and lunch is provided. For more information call Laura Hebert at (361) 960-1758 or email: [email protected].

Confirmation RetreatMarch 7 from 8:30-4 p.m. at Pax Christi Liturgical Retreat Center (4601 Calallen Drive) in Corpus Christi in St. Joseph Hall. Registration begins at 8 a.m. Open to Confirmation candidates and their sponsors.

Women of the Word Bible StudyEvery Saturday in March (first Saturday is March 7) in the Youth Center at St. Anthony in Robstown. The study group begins with 8

a.m. Mass followed by Fellowship and learning. Will be in English and Spanish. For more information call (361) 387-2774.

St. Anthony’s 36th Annual Fiesta MexicanaBegins Saturday, March 7, from 1-8 p.m. and continues Sunday March 8 from 10:30 a.m.-8 p.m. at Richard M. Borchard Regional Fairgrounds in Robstown. The festival will kick-off with a parade downtown Robstown. Live entertainment, food and games for the whole family.

Lenten Parish MissionDuring the season of Lent, March 9-13, St. Anthony of Padua Parish (204 Dunne Street) in Robstown will present a five-day series of talks focusing on healing with Father Dan Estes, Deacon Bob Allen and Sister Anne Marie Walsh. All are welcomed. For more information call Cynthia Espinoza at (361) 387-2774 or email: [email protected]

40 Hours of AdorationFrom March 11-March 14 at 8:30 a.m. following Mass at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church (7522 Everhart Rd.) in Corpus Christi. Holy Hour will be on Wednesday-Friday at 7 p.m. with Father Pete Elizardo. Closing Mass will be on Saturday, March 14, at 4:30 p.m. with Bishop Michael Mulvey.

Women’s Retreat at OLCCMarch 12-15. A weekend to go deeper in a relationship with the Lord through the power of prayer and silence. Register www.ourladyofcc.org or call (361) 289-9095, ext. 321.

Corpus Christi Cathedral Rummage SaleMarch 13-15 from 8 a.m.-6 p.m. at Corpus Christi Cathedral (505 N. Upper Broadway) in the parish hall located in the basement of the Cathedral. The sale will feature quality furniture, housewares, appliances, toys, sporting goods, hardware and much more. Proceeds from the sale will benefit the Cathedral Parish building maintenance fund. For more information call Donald Harris at (361) 883-4213, ext. 27.

Our Lady of the Rosary Fish FryMarch 13 and March 27 from 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. and 6-8 p.m. at Our Lady of the Rosary Church (1123 Main Dr.) Donation of $8 (includes: plate of tilapia fish, cole slaw, hush puppies and french fries. Free delivery on 10 or more plates. Main Dr. is located off of Leopard Street between the Taqueria Banda #2 Restaurant and Orkin Company. For more information call (361) 241-2004 between the hours of 9:30 a.m.-12:30 pm, Monday-Friday.

Lent Retreat at St. Martin of ToursMarch 14 from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. at St. Martin of Tours Parish Hall (504 E. Ella) in Kingsville. Speaker will be the Bishop Ricardo Ramirez, CSB, Bishop Emeritus of the Diocese of Las Cruces, New Mexico. All are welcome. For more information call (361) 592-4602 or email: [email protected].

Shamrock Shuffle 5K Run/WalkMarch 14 at 5 p.m. at the Water Gardens (1900 N Chaparral St.) in Corpus Christi. Event will be more than a 5K race but a family-friendly afternoon celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with a costume contest, Irish dancing, bagpipes, children’s choir, face painting and door prizes. Funds raised will go to St. Patrick School.

St. Patrick’s Day Irish Festival and BrunchMarch 15 from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. at St. Pius X Church (5620 Gollihar Road) in the parish hall. The St. Pius Leprechauns will cook and serve their traditional Irish Brunch. “Gravel Walk” will present their favorite Irish tunes and Irish dancers will provide entertainment. There will be special items available for bids. Funds raised will be used to purchase the Holy Family Nativity for St. Pius X Church. All tickets are pre-sold. For ticket information call St. Pius X Rectory at (361) 993-4053 or Sue Dougherty at (361) 851-8541.

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✝ MARCH CALENDAR

The United States Naval Academy Women’s Glee ClubTuesday, March 17 at 7:30 p.m. at Corpus Christi Cathedral (505 N. Upper Broadway). For VIP memberships for priority reserved seating and more information call (361) 888-7444.

Confirmation RetreatMarch 21 from 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m. at Pax Christi Liturgical Retreat Center, (4601 Calallen Drive) in Corpus Christi in St. Joseph Hall. Registration begins at 8 a.m. Open to confirmation candidates and their sponsors.

Day of Prayer and ReflectionMarch 21 from 8 a.m. - 2:30 p.m. at Sacred Heart Parish in Falfurrias (304 S. Caldwell St). Come learn the power of prayer and silence. Go deeper in this relationship of prayer. All are welcome. Day begins with

Mass. Light breakfast and lunch provided. The day will be led by members of Our Lady of Corpus Christi Retreat Center. Register www.ourladyofcc.org or call (361) 289-9095, ext. 321.

Retiro de Cuaresma en Espanol21 de marzo de 8:30 a.m.-3 p.m. En el salón de la parroquia de San Martín de Tours (504 E. Ella) en Kingsville. Los sacerdotes son: Fernando Gamez Jairo Motta y José Naul Ordonez. Para obtener más información, llame al (361) 592-4602 o por correo electrónico: [email protected].

St. Patrick’s Mission Annual BarbecueMarch 22 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at St. Patrick Mission (FM 666) in San Patricio. March 22 from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. at St. Patrick Mission (FM 666) in San Patricio. Barbecue Includes 1/2 chicken,

beans, potato salad, dessert and all the trimmings. Live auction starting at 12:30 p.m. Country Store with kolaches, buhtas, cakes and homemade Items.

Healing Retreat at OLCCMarch 27-29 from Friday 4:30 p.m. - Sunday 4:30 p.m. at Our Lady of Corpus Christi Retreat Center (1200 Lantana St.). Discover the ways we block God’s grace in our life and remove obstacles that prevent us from growing in our prayer life. Weekend consists of a series of talks on healing, periods of reflection and concludes with a healing service. Register www.ourladyofcc.org or call (361) 289-9095, ext. 321.

KOC Annual Fish Fry at St. Theresa HallCouncil #4157 Knights of Columbus Fish Fry on March 27 from 5-7 p.m. at St. Theresa Hall (1302 Lantana St.) in Corpus Christi. Carry out or dine in.

Sponsored byDiocese of Corpus ChristiOffice of Youth Ministry(361) 882-6191

Week of July 19-24For Ages 7-16 years

Register now! Limited space available.

To register go to: www.diocesecc.org/youth and return registration form to:Diocese of Corpus Christic/o Office of Youth Ministry620 Lipan St.Corpus Christi, TX 78401

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Saturday, March 28

Rooted in FamilyGrounded in Faith

Mini-Youth Spectacular

KARA KLEIN is a six-time award winning Catholic artist, including “Best Female Vocalist” (2008 UCMVA). She is also an inspirational speaker as well as a dynamic retreat and worship leader.

About the Speaker

Middle & High School Teens InvitedCost is $10 (includes lunch)

Doors open at 8 a.m.St. Frances of Rome

410 Simmons St.• Agua Dulce

For more information call the Diocese of Corpus Christi Office of Youth Ministry at (361) 882-6191To view schedule or register, go to: www.diocesecc.org/youth and return registration packet to: Diocese of Corpus Christi, c/o Office of Youth Ministry, 620 Lipan St., Corpus Christi, TX 78401

Registration Deadline is March 20

Adoration, Confession, Praise & Worship, Teen skits and much more!

SOUTH TEXAS CATHOLICP.O. Box 2620Corpus Christi, TX 78403(361) 882-6191

March 2015 Issue

Fat Tuesday, Ash Wednesday,Valentine’s and Good Friday.

Sounds like seafood season to me.Groomer Seafood features the largest selection of premium quality seafood in

South Texas. Stop in and check out our expanded fresh fish and seafood market.Our seafood is so fresh you’ll feel the ocean breeze with every bite.

Fresh Seafood Daily • Over 700 Seafood Items • Wholesale or RetailSpecial Orders Available • 1 lb or 100 lbs • 100 Years in South Texas

(361) 730-1514 • www.groomerseafood.com4002 E Causeway Blvd Corpus Christi, TX

Documents

South Texas Catholic - March 2015