JUNE 26, 2022 ELEVEN-YEAR-OLD JOHN HENRY HITS THE BALL DURING TENNIS PRACTICE AT JSERRA HIGH SCHOOL IN SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO ON FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2022. PHOTO: DREW KELLEY LEADING THE WAY JSERRA’S ADAPTIVE TENNIS PROGRAM SHOWS NO LIMITS PAGE 8 THE OFFICIAL NEWSPAPER OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF ORANGE n OCCATHOLIC.COM HOPE, BLESSINGS AND DINNER PAGE 10
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ORANGE COUNTY CATHOLIC MISSION STATEMENT
REST AND REJUVENATION
The summer season brings opportunities for nurturing our minds, bodies and souls.
ORANGE COUNTY CATHOLIC
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VOCATION FULFILLED
After 44 years of service to the Diocese of Orange, Father Enrique Sera is retiring.
The community needs to adapt the message of faith to the new ways of communicating today, without changing the fundamental meaning.
Art Director: Kenneth Abbott
Publisher: The Most Reverend Kevin W. Vann, Bishop of Orange
Executive Editor: Monsignor Stephen Doktorczyk
The Orange County Catholic Newspaper seeks to illuminate and animate the journey of faith for Catholics within the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange – building solidarity among the faithful and inviting a deeper understanding and involvement in the mission of Christ – through the timely sharing of news, commentary and feature content in an engaging, accessible and compelling format.
Managing Editor: Caitlin Adams
Editor: Patricia Mahoney, editor@occatholic.com
JUNE 26, 2022 1467
It would never have occurred to me that the word had some connection to me or anyone who was already a believing Catholic. All these years later I now see how evangelization is the very grounding of Catholic life.
Evangelization is the proclaiming of the gospel of salvation, of Jesus Christ. We evangelize by word and by good works. It is the central mission of the Catholic Church and the calling of every disciple of Christ. We might even say that it is one of the measurements of discipleship and the indwelling of the
PROCLAIMING THE GOSPEL OF SALVATION
S A YOUNG MAN, when I heard the word evangeliza tion, I thought of far away places where missionaries were preaching the Gospel often at great threat to their lives.
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The Diocese of Orange, through OC Catholic newspaper, presents local, national and world news about the Catholic Church. Our intention is to give our readers access to a variety of perspectives in order to help them to process the information within the frame work of our Catholic faith, but also to better understand the perspectives of those with opposing view points. We hope that ultimately our readers will be better equipped to have thefurtherconversationsconstructivethatthegrowthofCatholicChurch.
FATHER AL BACA COURTESY OF THE DIOCESE OF ORANGE
A
BY FR. AL BACA
All of us have had friends and family members who have left the Catholic
GUEST COLUMN
A CALL TO EVANGELIZATION HolyWhenSpirit.the apostles were gathered in the Upper Room they were paralyzed with fear. Christ had been crucified and there was every good reason to believe that they would be arrested next. Then Pentecost happened. Sealed with the Holy Spirit, the Apostles had an irre pressible need to share their experience of Christ. It is this same confidence of faith that every Catholic longs for. Bishop Vann established the Office for Evangelization to provide parish es, ministries and all Catholics with support and resources connected to evangelization. More importantly, it represents a concrete commitment of the Diocese of Orange to foster in all of us a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and the Church.
I
AM 3:1-8; 4:11-12; PS 5:4B-8; MT 8:23-27
“ The church is mother and calls together all of her children.”
IS 66:10-14C; PS 66:1-7, 16, 20; GAL 6:14-18; LK 10:1-12, 17-20 [1-9]
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PHOTOS: CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE, SHUTTERSTOCK
N TODAY’S FIRST READING, God tells the prophet Elijah to prepare Elisha to succeed him. Succeeding Elijah will be no easy task; he has spent his life facing threats from the kings he has confronted about their infidelity to the God of Israel. The psalm illustrates the emotional and spiritual distress that the prophets’ stead fast faithfulness to God brought them. Paul’s description of the Christian’s freedom from the law as opposed to “the desire of the flesh” puts this struggle at the very heart of Christian identity. The reading from Luke’s Gospel re counts Jesus’ decision to journey toward Jerusalem, where he knows he will meet his earthly fate. Following Jesus— like succeeding Elijah as prophet—will now become more difficult. Unlike his calls to the first disciples, Jesus en counters those who are not ready or are not strong enough to journey with him.
— Pope Francis
AM 2:6-10, 13-16; PS MT50:16BC-23;8:18-22
DISCIPLESHIP’S COSTS
THURSDAY
READINGS FOR THE WEEK
SAINT PROFILE
SUNDAY
FRIDAY
WEDNESDAY
AM 9:11-15; PS 85:9AB, 10-14; MT 9:14-17
Copyright © J. S. Paluch Co. C 26,
SATURDAY
INTHIRTEENTH2022SUNDAYORDINARYTIME
VIGIL: ACTS 3:1-10; PS 19:2-5; GAL 1:1120; JN 21:15-19,DAY: ACTS 12:1-11; PS 34:2-9; 2 TM 4:6-8, 17-18; MT 16:13-19
JUNE
MONDAY
CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA
TUESDAY
JUNE 26 2022 n OC CATHOLIC 5 DAILY READINGS AND REFLECTIONS
YRIL WAS BORN IN ALEXANDRIA, Egypt, and was the nephew of its patriarch, Theophilus. Classically educated, he was ordained by his uncle, whom he succeeded as patriarch in 412. He had helped Theophilus discredit and depose St. John Chrysostom from Constantinople, in what may have been a rivalry between the two ancient sees. As patriarch, he exercised his authority hastily and violently, drawing severe criticism, and was embroiled in heretical controversies, chiefly against Nestorius of Constantinople, who taught that Mary was not the mother of God. Cyril’s orthodoxy eventually was upheld by pope and emperor. This most brilliant theologian of the Alexandrian tradition was declared a doctor of the church in 1882; he is the patron of Alexandria. C
AM 7:10-17; PS 19:8-11; MT 9:1-8
AM 8:4-6, 9-12; PS 119:2, 10, 20, 30, 40, 131; MT 9:9-13
376 – 444 –
FEATURE
“If I was going to be enculturated in the American culture,” he said, “that was the best place to do it.”
ADVENTURES IN MINISTRY
never actually retire from ministry, but only from administration, Father Sera noted. He is hoping to spend his first five or six months of retirement on sabbatical and then looks forward to focusing on the ministries that originally attracted him to the priesthood.
“Even as a kid, I had problems with the communists, because I wouldn’t shut up,” he recalled. “I said (to my mother), ‘You know I want to be priest; you know I’m not going to be happy here.’ And she said, ‘Yes, I know.’”
ment.Priests
BY BILL QUINNAN
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His parents arranged to get him an exit visa through Operation Peter Pan, a covert program led by Father Bryan O.
had its own state university and was home to the biggest rodeo in the northwest.
Father Sera’s first assignment as a priest was at St. Joseph in Catholic Church in Placentia, a smaller parish at the time comprising a variety of cultures. As the Spanish-speaking priest at his parish, he was highly involved in
As the political climate changed in Cuba, his vocation created an added incentive for his parents to get him into the United States.
DIOCESE’S FIRST ORDAINED PRIEST TO RETIRE
JOURNEY TO FREEDOM
“Ever since I was a little boy, my mother would take me to church. I guess I was mesmerized by the whole mystery of the bells and the smells and all that kind of stuff,” he said. “I had a very good exposure to the catechetical faith through the (De la Salle) Christian Brothers in Havana ... and so I knew that my Catholic faith was strong.”
Father Sera was born in Cuba in 1950, nine years before the rise of Fidel Castro’s regime, and discovered his priestly vocation at a young age.
“But I never want to attend another HR meeting; I never want to attend another budget meeting,” he said. “They can run that without me.”
Walsh in Miami that enabled approxi mately 14,000 unaccompanied children to escape from Cuba into the United States from 1960 to 1962.
FATHER ENRIQUE SERA WAS THE FIRST PRIEST ORDAINED IN THE DIOCESE OF ORANGE 44 YEARS AGO. PHOTO: DREW KELLEY
FULFILLEDVOCATION
HE FIRST PRIESTLY ordination is a major milestone for any diocese. When the Diocese of Orange held it first ordination in 1978, Father Enrique Sera had the privilege of being the first priest ordained in the two-year-old diocese. Forty-four years later, he is ready to retire.
CONTINUES ON PAGE 7
Father Sera asked his parish, St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Fullerton, not to make a big deal of the event. How ever, the parish will extend a farewell to him with a Night of Baseball event Wednesday, June 29, at Angel Stadium of Anaheim, the night before his retire
While Father Sera arrived in the United States in 1962, his parents were not able to join him until 1966. In the meantime, he was sent to a foster family with six children of their own in Ellins burg, Washington.
6 OC CATHOLIC n JUNE 26, 2022
“It was just wonderful,” Father Sera said. Although Ellinsburg was a small town of about 6,000 people at the time, it
I
My husband and I just returned from a whirlwind trip to the Bay Area. We were there to visit our middle son and his girlfriend, but we also explored Golden Gate Park, Twin Peaks, the Pal ace of Fine Arts and more.
tours makes each trip more special. We still talk about the bus tour we took from London to the Cotswolds and the hop on, hop off bus that drove us through Weallwe’dwedding,justindulgentmyobligationshome,whenmeditateIt’srechargepursuitsitasinnitytechnology,changeourprovideVacations,Boston.ofcourse,escapefrombusyworklives,thetounplugfromtheopportutoindulgeourselvesmassagesandmargar–whateverleisureallowustoandrejuvenate.commonformetoandpraymoreI’mawaythanatwheremyeverydayarecalloutforattention.Oneofourmostvacationswasafterouroldestson’swhenweknewbetappedoutfromthestressandactivities.bookedanall-inclusivestayattheHotel
JUNE 26 2022 n OC CATHOLIC 7 FEATURE / CATHOLIC FAMILY LIVING CONTINUED FROM PAGE 6
“It was really fun, because I was working with high type-A personal ity guys in the construction business and architecture,” he said.
Our time was spent talking and eat ing, whether we were in their apartment or at their favorite Italian restaurant. Vacations usually mean I lose a few pounds, but not this time. Our son believes that life is all about the food.Vacations – even short weekend getaways – are among my favorite things. I love having a trip to look forward to, and having no trips on the books was, for me, one of the worst parts of the coronavirus pandemic.Forme, vacations mean exploring. Regional food, national mu seums, state parks and historic hotels are just some of the attractions I love. Reading about a city ahead of time and booking some events, activities and
VISITORS WALK THE GROUNDS OF HISTORIC MISSION SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO. PHOTO COURTESY OF MARISA TRUJILLO/DIOCESE OF ORANGE.
Encantada resort in Cabo San Lucas, and never left the property. It offered five different swimming pools, private villas stocked with drinks and with full kitchens, and at least a half-dozen restaurants, some of them fancy and others dedicated to local cuisine. We were never without drinks in our hands and relied on our personal butler to drive us to appointments at the spa or dinner reservations. On that trip, we experienced how the other half lives; it was a revela tion to return home to our usual lives –
REST AND REJUVENATION
Every Catholic community worships universally, but still there are neighbor hood and regional traditions and each parish has its own personality.
“It made me much more facile in dealing with human problems –much more open,” he said.
the ones that include laundry and bills Getaways are good, but staycations can be fulfilling, too. Sharing afternoon espresso breaks on the front porch glider allows my husband and I to observe the birds, butterflies and bees. It’s refresh ing to body and soul alike. Hiking one of Orange County’s many trails, in the foothills or at the ocean, provides the eye with new vistas and the soul with fresh opportunities to appreciate God’s gifts to us, including the natural worlds of plants and animals, sunsets and moonrises.
He served as a Navy chaplain from 1986 to 1999, taking him to destinations including Puerto Rico, Panama and “EveryoneBermuda.elsesawit as work.
“Today we are very much aware that we are a brotherhood,” he said. C
Summer provides students with a break from the classroom and adults a change of pace. I pray that this summer offers you the opportunity to take a deep breath, relax and rest – and the chance to reconnect with your soul. C
Father Sera expressed his appre ciation for Bishop Kevin Vann’s Di ocesan leadership and the concen trated effort within the Diocese to foster fraternity among the parishes.
I saw it as the greatest amount of fun I was having – all these sailors and Marines and everyone else and going to all these different places.”
SUMMERTIME
Several building projects were completed under Father Sera’s watch, including the construction of a new $4 million church building at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catho lic Church in Santa Ana and an $8 million renovation at Saint Joachim Catholic Church in Costa Mesa.
ministering to the Hispanic com munity. He also enjoyed getting to know a few of the professors from California State University, Fuller ton, who were parishioners at St. Joseph.“Itwas a good place to cut your teeth in terms of pastoral ministry,” said Fr. Sera.
BY CATHI DOUGLAS
T SEEMS STRANGE TO non-Cath olics, but one of my favorite parts of summer vacation travel was Sunday mornings when we would attend a local church.
As a priest at St. Mary’s a few years later, Father Sera received permission from the pastor to study marital counseling at CSU Ful lerton. Although he initially only planned to take the classes that would be most relevant to minister ing to married couples as a priest, he eventually earned a master’s degree and a marriage and family therapist license.
ANDFAMILIES,TOOPPORTUNITIESOFFERSNURTUREOUROURSELVESOURSOULS
BY LOU PONSI
The Santa Margarita High School freshman removes her prosthetic leg while in the wheelchair.
J
it’s great. I just think it is very inspiring to watch them. It really makes you want to do your best as well and they are just the sweetest kids. I think by them coming her every single day and trying is amazing.”Senior Natalie Walters said she want ed to help as soon as she heard the Ora hoods were starting the program and has built an Instagram page to promote the“It’sclasses.areally good feeling, just being
brothers Keith and Kurt Ora hood, longtime tennis coaches at JSerra, recently started an adaptive wheelchair youth tennis program for players with disabilities.Theprogram, which the brothers run through their club program, T3Tennis, serves youngsters ages 8 to 18 and is be lieved to be the first of its kind in south OrangeKeithCounty.Orahood,
8 OC CATHOLIC n JUNE 26, 2022 FEATURE CONTINUES ON PAGE 9
One of the participants, Gianna Mantucca, 14, is already a competitive swimmer and water polo player and is taking up tennis for the first time.
JSERRA’S ADAPTIVE TENNIS PROGRAM SHOWS NO LIMITS
tification in wheelchair tennis with the United States Tennis Association and the brothers launched the first six-week session in April. The second session just got underway, with instruction taking place each Wednesday.
“This is the first experience I’ve ever had with tennis,” Mantucca said. “It’s a lot of fun learning new things and meeting other people who also have disabilities.”JSerra’stennis players are also in volved, serving as volunteer coaches.
In May, Sachs competed in his first ever USTA Wheelchair Tournament, fin ishing first in the 18 and under division.
The California Interscholastic Feder ation, the governing body of high school sports in the state, allows players in wheelchairs to compete against players with no disabilities under slightly modi fied rules, Orahood said.
“When Landon agreed to play tennis here and when I saw the smile it brought to his face on a daily basis, I thought that magic could go on with other kids,” Keith Orahood said. “I had the heartstrings tugged on and thought I want to do something - I want to give back to the community and to some kids.”Keith went on to earn coaching cer
“It’s a great program and great coaches,” said Viana Poggi, who played for the Lions’ frosh-soph team last season. “I love the team environment. The fact that they are doing this for kids who really want to enjoy tennis, I think
SERRA HIGH SCHOOL in San Juan Capistrano is on a path towards becoming the school of choice for athletes with special needs.Twin
JSerra’s assistant coach under Kurt, was inspired to start an adaptive tennis program after coach ing Lions’ sophomore Landon Sachs, a wheelchair bound member of the school’s tennis team.
THELEADINGWAY
COACH KIRK ORAHOOD, CENTER, LEADS PRACTICE WITH GIANNA MANTUCCA, LEFT, AND LANDON SACHS, RIGHT, AT JSERRA HIGH SCHOOL IN SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO ON FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2022.
“They all have a good stick to stickto-itiveness,” Kempf said. “They are all amazingJSerraathletes.”athleticdirector
is excited about this next step,” Ledyard said. “We’re taking our time. It’s going to take a while, but we want to become a school where we know we can have kids wrestling in the CIF, going right after whatever, it is they want to JSerraachieve.”parents and board members have provided the funding for the spe cially designed wheelchairs, which cost $3,000Outsideeach.donations are also helping.
able to be out here to help them play, just because you can tell they love to be out here,” Walters said. “They are so fun to be around. I walk out of here feeling like a way better person than when I cameJSerrain.” tennis player Christopher Kempf said the budding tennis players improve with each session.
JUNE 26 2022 n OC CATHOLIC 9
LANDON SACHS RUNS TENNIS DRILLS DURING PRACTICE AT JSERRA HIGH SCHOOL IN SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO ON FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2022. PHOTO: DREW KELLEY
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ties, and not disabilities,” Hemphill said. “And it has made our own students realize how much harder it is for a student with a disability to play a sport that they just take for granted.”
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8
JSerra dean of athletics, Amy
“This has allowed us to grow, in the fact that these kids have so many abili
youth. They want to continue to grow this program and that is what we want to do is help these new programs get off the ground. We’re super proud of them.”
“We’re hopeful to partner with them and see what else we can do to help them,” Tennis Serves Others CEO Kelley McBride said. “We are driven to help
Chris Led yard said the adaptive tennis program is the first step to bringing additional adaptive sports such as wrestling, track and field and swimming.
“Right away, we said we are total ly open to this,” said Ledyard, when approached by Keith Orahood about having a complete program of adaptive sports. “That would be really cool to have kids come here and know that they can play a sport right now, while they areOncehere.”established, JSerra would be able to compete against other adaptive sports“Everybodyteams.
Hemphill, said the adaptive tennis pro gram “is the absolute best thing that has happened to JSerra this year.”
FROM LEFT, GIANNA MANTUCCA AND LANDON SACHS RUN TENNIS DRILLS DURING PRACTICE AT JSERRA HIGH SCHOOL IN SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO ON FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2022. PHOTO: DREW KELLEY
FEATURE
Tennis Serves Others, an Orange County nonprofit which sponsors a vari ety of tennis themed activities, recently donated $3,000 to the adaptive tennis program.Fourmembers of the nonprofit are also JSerra parents.
FROM RIGHT, CRUZ WILKINSON GIVES TEN-YEAR-OLD MILES MCINTOSH TIPS ON IMPROVING HIS SWING DURING TENNIS PRACTICE AT JSERRA HIGH SCHOOL IN SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO ON FRIDAY, MAY 20, 2022. PHOTO: DREW KELLEY
WELCOME INN PRESIDENT DON LEMLY (BLUE SHIRT) DISTRIBUTES PREPACKAGED FOOD TO CLIENTS AT DOHENY STATE BEACH IN DANA POINT AS CLIENT JOE PEREZ LOOKS ON. PHOTO COURTESY OF SPENCER GRANT.
“I was very lucky, he said. I got my job back but thank goodness you had those meals. They kept me going when I didn’t have a job.”
10 OC CATHOLIC n JUNE 26, 2022 DIOCESAN NEWS
“When you provide food, you provide hope,” added Lemly. “Our goal is that Welcome INN would be delighted to show up to serve dinner some evening and nobody shows up because they’ve all been taken care of. Numbers have gone down and that’s thrilled us.” C
“I have cerebral palsy but I’m Catholic and I say prayers every day before we eat,” he said. “I’m not homeless but there’s a lot who are, so I volunteer to come down andInhelp.”theparking lot along with Welcome INN is iHope or Interfaith Homeless Outreach for Empowerment. Volunteer Lana Fiore explained that they collab orate with case workers in both Dana
cating with families.
in Dana Point, Corpus Christi in Aliso Viejo, Catholic Charities and the Boy Scouts.Another organization present at the dinner is Safe Room, which pro vides shelter and phones for homeless youth.“It’s really nice to meet people who are hungry and be able to tell them to come down to Doheny Park and you’ll be fed,” explained Margie Herzing of Safe Room. “It’s so much fun to have somebody walk away and know their life’s changed because of this vehicle for Welcomehelp.”
A CLIENT PLAYS A SONG FOR HER COMPANIONS DURING DINNER CO-SPONSORED BY WELCOME INN AT DOHENY STATE PARK IN DANA POINT. PHOTO COURTESY OF SPENCER GRANT.
“We have food coming in from various sources, Rainbird said. “It’s my job to make it into some sort of palatable meal.”
Joe Perez, another client, said he’s been coming to the dinners for 10 years because he has physical disabilities and it’s hard to cook food.
INN president Don Lem ly said he is grateful for the 40-plus contributors including community organizations, retailers and concerned individuals who help make the program such a success.
HOPE, BLESSINGS AND DINNER IN DANA POINT
F
The organization is 100% volunteer.
Jeanne Karcher is with Welcome INN – which stands for Interfaith Needs Network, one of the organizations im plementing the program, now in its 20th year.“We don’t ask for ID, we don’t ask for anything,” she said. “We let anybody who wants a meal get a meal.”
Other participants include St. Edward’s
Speaking of the clients, he said, “The mix is about 40% people who are housed, but they’re mostly day laborers.”Lemly pointed to the high rents in Orange County as a major problem facing day laborers in the area.
“They do the hard stuff,” added Karcher. “We just help them get a meal.”
It’s not just meals that Welcome INN supplies. As client Jimmy Pockets ex plained, “I’m so grateful these people are here. It’s a real blessing. Last week they gave me a Pocketsshirt.”saidhe’s been coming to the dinners for two years now. He learned about the program when he came to Or ange County and money got tight.
“Five guys might be staying in one room and if they can save five bucks on dinner, it’ll help them make their rent.”Lemly recalled the story of a guy who stopped coming to the dinners back in 2008.
One day he ran into him at Costco and asked where he’d been.
Point and San Clemente to offer help with housing, doctor appointments, emergency financial assistance, food stamps, weekly showers and communi
Jan Rainbird does a lot of cook ing at St. Timothy’s Church in Laguna Niguel where he cooks for the homeless and working poor who gather each afternoon in a parking lot at Doheny State Beach in Dana Point. There, folks who have fallen on hard times find food, blessings and hope.
“Now I’m living on SSI [Supplemen tal Security Income]; before I got that, things were really bad.”
ORMER ENGLISH PROFESSOR
BY SPENCER GRANT AND MARA CASEY
ORANGE.BISHOP
CHRIST SUCCESSFULCAMPUSCATHEDRALHOSTSDIAPER
OURAROUNDDIOCESE
KEVIN W. VANN BLESSES
Participants drove onto the campus, some in large trucks, to bring boxes of diapers and other supplies
THE ORANGE.DIOCESEGEORGES/OFCOURTESYON.CORDEROMODESTO10,ONWRIGHTHAZELORGANFRIDAY,JUNEASDEACONLOOKSPHOTOSTEVENOF CONTINUES ON PAGE 12
DRIVE
BLESSING OF THE HAZEL WRIGHT ORGAN
BISHOP KEVIN W. VANN PLAYS THE HAZEL WRIGHT ORGAN PRIOR TO ITS BLESSING ON FRIDAY, JUNE 10. PHOTO COURTESY OF STEVEN GEORGES/DIOCESE OF
Bishop Kevin W. Vann blessed Christ Cathedral’s Hazel Wright Organ on Friday, June 10 during a special ceremony that included music, a 100-person choir and biblical read ings. Pope Francis also sent a special apostolic blessing from Rome. The day also featured a special appearance from Josep Solé Coll, principal organ ist of St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City and organist for the liturgical celebrations of Pope Francis.
JUNE 26 2022 n OC CATHOLIC 11 DIOCESAN NEWS
BY STAFF
“The purpose of music in the liturgy is, above all and before all else, to give glory to God and to lead us to holiness,” said Bishop Vann, who played organ while growing up in Springfield, Illinois. “Thus, the music of the organ wonderfully expresses the new song that Scripture tells us to sing to the RestorationLord.”of the Hazel Wright Organ, which is the world’s fifth largest, was finished earlier this year. It cost $3 million and took nearly a decade. The process included sending the complex instrument to Italy for a full restoration, individual tuning of every pipe, and adding temperature controls to the cathedral.
The Christ Cathedral campus hosted its annual Diaper Drive Thru Drop-Off on Friday, June 10, an event organized by HomeAid Orange Coun ty with help from corporate sponsors.
OUR LADY OF FATIMA PARISHIONERS, ALONG WITH RETIRED PARISH PRIEST FATHER JIM RIES, PARTICIPATED IN A WALK FOR LIFE EVENT ON MAY 21 AT DANA POINT HARBOR. PHOTO COURTESY OF OUR LADY OF FATIMA PARISH.
ADORATION CHAPEL
that will be donated to needy families. Various public safety agencies were also on hand to help in the drive.
Will you come spend an hour with me? The 24-hour Adoration chapel will be open on Wednes day, June 29, St. Angela Merici Church, 585 S. Walnut St. Brea. More information will be available at the church over the weekend of June 26, or email ochapel@stangelabreachurch.org.adoration.register,visit tionpro.org/angelabreahttps://adora
FORPARTICIPATEPARISHIONERSFATIMAINWALKLIFEEVENT
VOLUNTEERS SET UP DURING THE ANNUAL DIAPER DRIVE THRU DROP-OFF EVENT HELD AT CHRIST CATHEDRAL CAMPUS ON FRIDAY, JUNE 10. PHOTO COURTESY OF IAN TRAN/DIOCESE OF ORANGE.
12 OC CATHOLIC n JUNE 26, 2022 DIOCESAN NEWS
ST. ANGELA MERICI CATHOLIC CHURCH, BREA. PHOTO COURTESY OF JOSHUA SUDOCK/DIOCESE OF ORANGE.
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OUR LADY OF
Our Lady of Fatima parish recently participated in the May 21 Walk for Life in Dana Point Harbor to benefit the San Clemente Pregnancy Resource Center (PRC). Thirty-eight parishioners attended the event, including retired parish priest Father JimThanksRies. to the participa tion of Our Lady of Fatima parishioners – as walkers, sponsors, or donors - a total of $6,030 was raised to sup port the Pregnancy Resource Center. C
A few groups also made struc tures out of diaper boxes that were themed.
Of the many resources and support that are offered through the Office of Evangelization and the Office of Faith Formation, the annual Evangelize Now Conference (formally DMC) is a powerful day of prayer, education and renew al. We invite you to attend on October 15 on the Cathedral Campus. C
by three presenters in three different languages: English, Vietnamese and Spanish. The day ends at 4 p.m. with Benediction in the Cathedral. The theme for each year centers on evan gelization and deepening our commit ment to Jesus Christ.
This year, we will welcome Sr. Re gina Marie of the Carmelite Sisters of Los Angeles as our speaker in English.
faith. Some leave for another Christian faith, others simply stop going to any church at all. When asked what has happened, the response is often along the lines, “I’m spiritual, not religious.” Suppose to be words of comfort they leave us frustrated and saddened.
In Spanish, we welcome Fr. Miguel Angel Sanchez, pastor of Christ the King Church in the Archdiocese of Tijuana.Thisyear, we have a special series of three presentations to our Vietnam ese youth and young adult Catholics on dealing with the challenges and frustrations of life. Navigating a path through today’s world can be exhaust ing. We are blessed to have a team of presenters who will help give our youth advice on how to cope with unique stresses they live under.
Every October, the Diocese of Orange hosts a one day event on evangelization, Evangelize Now, at Christ Cathedral Campus. We begin with Holy Mass cel ebrated by Bishop Vann accompanied by Bishop Freyer, Bishop Nguyen and attending priests and deacons. At the close of Mass, the Blessed Sacrament is taken in procession to the Shrine of Our Lady of La Vang. For the rest of the conference, the Blessed Sacrament is in the Large Gallery for private prayer. Three presentations are then given
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The truth is that all of us are tested from time to time. This is an import ant part of the spiritual life and helps the soul to mature. Often though, the believer can mistakenly think that they are losing faith. Without guidance, they might lose their way and leave the Church. I often think that with a little spiritual support and attention, many people would still be with us and stron ger than ever in their faith.
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AN INTERIOR VIEW OF CHRIST CATHEDRAL. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE DIOCESE OF ORANGE.
The seminary staff were in Rome as part of their celebration of the 150th anniversary of the seminary’s theology journal, which Pope Francis described as being “a bit like a store window, where a craftsman displays his work, and you can admire his creativity.”
THEOLOGIANS FIND NEW WAYS TO
In the text, the pope had written that the church needs theologians who know how “to communicate the truths of faith to day, taking into account linguistic, social, cultural changes and competently using the media, without ever watering down, weakening or ‘virtualizing’ the content.”
“What has matured in the workshops of academic classrooms, in the patient exer cise of research and reflection, of debate and dialogue, deserves to be shared and made accessible to others,” the pope said in his written text.
POPE MILAN THEOLOGY MEETING VATICAN. POPE FRANCIS AND A BABY LOOK AT EACH OTHER DURING AN AUDIENCE AT THE VATICAN WITH THE STAFF OF MILAN’S ARCHDIOCESAN SEMINARY AND ITS THEOLOGY JOURNAL JUNE 17, 2022. (CNS PHOTO/VATICAN MEDIA)
14 OC CATHOLIC n JUNE 26, 2022 CATHOLIC NEWS AROUND THE WORLD
To truly support evangelization today, the pope said, theology must know how and show others how to “dialogue with the world, with cultures and religions.”
“A theology that evangelizes is a theolo gy nourished with dialogue and wel come,” he said. “Dialogue and a living memory of the witness of the love and peace of Jesus Christ are the paths to follow to build together a future of jus tice, fraternity and peace for the whole human family.”
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the sermons or catechesis we hear are mostly composed of moralism and are not ‘theological’ enough, that is, able to speak to us about God and to answer the questions of meaning that accompany people’s lives, and which we often do not have the courage to formulate openly.”
Pope Francis also used his text to talk about the role of seminary staffs today in identifying and nurturing those who
have a vocation to the priesthood or religious life.
BY CINDY WOODEN CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
MUST
“The community needs the work of those who attempt to interpret the faith, to translate and retranslate it, to make it understandable, to expound it in new words; it is a work that must be always done again, in every generation,” the pope told staff from Milan’s archdiocesan seminary in a text given to them June 17.
The Vatican press office said the pope handed his prepared text to the staffs of the seminary and the journal, but it provided no information about what he discussed with them.
“The church encourages and supports the effort to redefine the content of faith in every age, in the dynamism of tradi tion,” he said. “That is why theological language must always be alive, dynamic, cannot help but evolve and must work to make itself Unfortunately,understood.”hesaid,“sometimes
VATICAN CITY (CNS) —The Catholic Church needs theologians who know how to transmit the truths of faith in a way that will speak to people today, help them live the faith in their daily lives and inspire them to share the Gospel with others, Pope Francis wrote.
experience this joy and restlessness. That is, the more we are ‘disciples.’”
“Those who are called are not mush rooms that sprout spontaneously,” he said. Each person is “an immense mys tery” and comes with a range of personal experiences and a past molded by family, community and parish.
“Seminarians and young people in for mation,” the pope wrote, “must be able to learn more from your life than from your words; to be able to learn docility from your obedience, industriousness from your dedication, generosity with the poor from your sobriety and availability and fatherhood from your chaste and nonpossessive affection.”
EXPRESS, SHARE THE FAITH, POPE SAYS
At the same time, he said, they also must have “a healthy restlessness, that quivering of the heart before the mystery of God. And we will know how to accom pany others in the search the more we
To be of real service to the church and its members, he said, theologians must “always keep in mind the link between faith and life” and “cherish and commu nicate the joy of faith in the Lord Jesus.”
Bishop Kevin W. Vann is pictured with Auxiliary Bishop Thanh Thai Nguyen and Auxiliary Bishop Timothy Freyer during the special blessing event for the Hazel Wright Organ celebrated on Friday, June 10. courtesy of the Diocese of Orange
JUNE 26 2022 n OC CATHOLIC 15 Send your photos that capture Catholic life in your parish community to: editor@occatholic.com
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