Texas Catholic Herald - October 25, 2022

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Steps for Students

Simple steps with the Rosary bring serious spirituality

HOUSTON — With October being a month dedicated to the Mother of God and the Rosary, these last few weeks before Advent offer a special opportunity to spend some time with the Blessed Mother.

The idea of praying the Rosary might be daunting for some, but Father Lawrence Lew, OP, the general promoter of the Rosary for the Dominican Order, said it doesn’t have to be.

LIVING A LIFE OF PRAYER

In Houston for Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Midtown’s celebration of the Oct. 7 feast of the Holy Rosary, Father Lew shared a handful of tips to keep the Rosary close at hand.

“Begin praying the Rosary slowly,”

See ROSARY, page 7

MINISTRIES

Now is the time to act to protect the planet, advocates say

BY ANNETTE BAIRD Herald Correspondent

HOUSTON — Scientists and local leaders at recent Archdiocesan conference on environmental issues said the Church must do more to heed the call of Pope Francis’s environmental encyclical “Laudato Si’” to mitigate and prevent the dire consequences to human life stemming from climate change caused by human activity.

Quoting the encyclical, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo opened the event by emphasizing that the call to action and solidarity by all to be responsible for the care of “God’s handiwork is not an optional or secondary aspect of our Christian experience.”

More than 100 people attended the “Faith in Action for Our Common Home” conference held at St. Dominic Center

From Agnes to Zélie, relics of 150-plus saints to tour Archdiocese

Make ‘Ordinary Time’ a little less ordinary by visiting this upcoming relic exhibit

BY JAMES RAMOS Texas Catholic Herald

HOUSTON — Josephine was a former slave who endured being trafficked and still found freedom in God’s love. Carlo was a teenager who played video games and developed websites to evangelize the Internet, even in the face of leukemia. Catherine survived a plague and rejected her family’s calls for marriage and devoted herself to God and called others to do the same.

Paul was a Japanese Jesuit who preached the Gospel in his homeland and was martyred. Zélie was a loving mother, and her faith helped inspire her daughter Thérèse to, quite literally, become a saint.

These are the extremely brief stories of saints St. Josephine Bhakita, Blessed Carlo Acutis, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Paul Miki and St. Zélie Martin, who will be among the more than 150 saints whose relics are set to visit the Archdiocese of GalvestonHouston Oct. 30 through Nov. 12 as part of the “Treasures of the Church” exhibit right in time for All Saints Day.

The exhibition, which has traveled the nation, features a multimedia presentation on the Church’s history of relics and the chance to visit and venerate the many relics.

How does one venerate a relic? Some might kiss or touch the reliquary containing the relic, while others might stand or kneel prayerfully near or in front of the relic, perhaps making the

Sign of the Cross in silent prayer.

While the idea of relics can be a bit unnerving for some — fleeting images of dark catacombs and tunnels might

OCTOBER

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PHOTO BY JAMES RAMOS/HERALD

A first-class relic of St. Philip the Apostle is seen at St. Philip Catholic Church in Huffman. St. Philip will be one of the 150 saints featured in an upcoming tour exhibiting relics.

CNS PHOTO

A reliquary containing a relic of Blessed Carlo Acutis and his photo are seen in a chapel. The Italian teen will be among the 150-plus saints featured in the upcoming “Treasures of the Church” exhibit set to visit 13 parishes.

A

LIFE Catholic schools, parishes host pet blessings for St. Francis of Assisi’s feast

race

Pope announces a second session for Synod of Bishops assembly

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Saying he did not want to rush the process of discerning how the Holy Spirit is calling the Church to grow in “synodality,” Pope Francis announced that the next assembly of the Synod of Bishops would take place in two sessions.

The synod assembly, with mostly bishops as voting members, will meet from Oct. 4 to 29, 2023, as previously announced, the pope said, but the assembly will have a second session in October 2024 as well.

Pope Francis announced on Oct. 16 at the end of his Angelus address. He had met on Oct. 14 with the synod leadership.

The pope and local bishops kicked off the listening and discernment process for the “synod on synodality” in October 2021, and by November, the synod secretariat is expected to release a working document for continental assemblies.

With 112 of the 114 bishops’ conferences in the world having sent in a synthesis of what emerged in the listening sessions in their countries, Pope Francis said that “the fruits of the synodal process underway are many, but so that they might come to full maturity, it is necessary not to be in a rush.”

“To have a more relaxed period of discernment,” the pope announced, “I have established that this synodal assembly will take place in two sessions” rather than the one originally planned.

“I trust that this decision will promote the understanding of synodality as a constitutive dimension of the Church and help everyone to live it as the journey of brothers and sisters who proclaim the joy of the Gospel,” Pope Francis told thousands of people gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the Sunday Angelus prayer.

The website of the synod secretariat describes synodality as a style seen in the Church’s life and mission that reflects its nature as “the people of God journeying together and gathering in assembly, summoned by the Lord Jesus in the power of the Holy Spirit to proclaim the Gospel.”

While it does not imply everyone

SYNOD REPORT AND RESOURCES

For more information and resources about the local Synod process in the Archdiocese, and to read the final Synod report, visit WWW.ARCHGH.ORG/SYNOD or scan the QR code at left.

has a vote on issues facing the Church, it does mean that all the members of the Church — ordained or lay — have a responsibility to contribute to the Church’s mission and to pray, offer suggestions and join in discerning the voice of the Holy Spirit.

A statement from the synod secretariat on Oct. 16 said Pope Francis’ decision to add a second assembly “stems from the desire that the theme of a ‘synodal Church,’ because of its breadth and importance, might be the subject of prolonged discernment not only by the members of the synodal assembly but by the whole Church.”

Although it did not feature the same widespread, grassroots listening sessions, the deliberations of the Synod of Bishops on challenges and joys facing families also met in two sessions. First, Pope Francis convoked in 2014 an “extraordinary general assembly” on “the pastoral challenges of the family in the context of evangelization.” Then, using the 2014 gathering’s final report as an outline, the ordinary general assembly of the Synod of Bishops met in 2015 to look at “the vocation and mission of the family in the church and contemporary world.” †

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Pope Francis meets with leaders of the Synod of Bishops’ general secretariat in the library of the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican Oct. 14. Pictured with the pontiff are Xavière Missionary Sister Na thalie Becquart, undersecretary; Bishop Luis Marín de San Martín, undersecretary; Jean-Claude Cardinal Hollerich of Luxembourg, relator general; Mario Cardinal Grech, secretary-general; and Jesuit Father Giacomo Costa, consultant.

THE ARCHDIOCESE OF GALVESTON HOUSTON

THE FIRST WORD

Recognized as pioneers in education, the Dominican Sisters of Houston provided leadership for the organization and accreditation of the diocesan school system. They founded St. Agnes Academy in 1906.

Pioneers of Catholic education, Dominican Sisters of Houston continue ministry today

HOUSTON — In September 1882, with the approval of Bishop Nicholas Gallagher, third Catholic bishop of Galveston, 20 Dominican sisters arrived in Galveston from Ohio to open Catholic schools in Texas.

The sisters immediately opened Sacred Heart Academy in Galveston and continued over the next several decades to open and operate Catholic schools predominantly in the Galveston-Houston, Beaumont and Austin dioceses.

Recognized as pioneers in education, the sisters provided leadership for the organization and accreditation of the diocesan school system. They founded St. Agnes Academy in 1906, Newman Hall at the University of Texas in 1918, Sacred Heart Dominican College in 1945 and St. Pius X High School in 1956.

After Vatican II, the sisters expanded their ministries to address

justice issues and to serve the poor in Guatemala.

Today, the sisters continue to sponsor St. Agnes Academy, St. Pius X High School and their mission school in Guatemala City, San Vicente de Paul Bethania. The sisters collaborate and advocate with others to alleviate the suffering caused by human trafficking, racial injustice, the death penalty and the unjust treatment of workers, immigrants and the environment.

To ensure the Dominican mission and charism well into the future, the congregation decided in 2020 to honor its long history in education and justice ministry by working with others to advance systemic

and equitable change in education in underserved neighborhoods in the Houston area. To move this direction of mission forward, the congregation has engaged in a great deal of study and prayer and focused on the importance of access to quality early childhood education for all God’s children.

The sisters hope to collaborate in the future with local organizations that provide systemic solutions to allow young children, regardless of the zip code in which they live, the opportunity to be instilled with a love of learning and the social and emotional skills necessary to be kindergarten ready and successful in school. †

LOOKING BACK

Though nearly a month has passed since Archbishop Emeritus Joseph A. Fiorenza’s funeral services in late September, the impacts of his death will continue to be felt in the months and years ahead.

In addition to the Memorial Section published in the Oct. 11 Texas Catholic Herald issue, the Herald continues its expanded coverage of Archbishop Fiorenza’s legacy and life with a website: ‘IN MEMORIA.’

Exclusive to the website, readers can find six photo galleries illustrating the life of Archbishop Fiorenza, as well as additional tributes and video highlights from the funeral events. This content and more can be found online only at WWW.ARCHGH.ORG/FIORENZAMEMORIAL

Save some trees and get the Texas Catholic Herald sent straight to your inbox with The Digest, our free email newsletter. For free features, exclusive content and more, sign up at WWW.ARCHGH.ORG/TCHDIGEST.

IN BRIEF

Asian Mass set for Oct. 30

HOUSTON — The annual Asian Mass celebrates the diversity of Asian Catholics in the Archdiocese of GalvestonHouston. At least six Asian cultures — Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Indonesian, Korean and Vietnamese — will gather with Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, on Sunday, Oct. 30 at 2 p.m. at Christ the Incarnate Word Catholic Church, located at 8503 S. Kirkwood Rd. in Houston.

In its 26th year, the Mass reflects the languages of the many Asian cultures in the Archdiocese, with participants encouraged to wear their traditional clothing for the festivities. A reception featuring samples of Asian food along with performances of traditional music and dance follows the Mass. †

All Souls Day Masses to be celebrated at Catholic cemeteries Nov. 2

HOUSTON — Praying for the souls of the departed to be blessed with eternal life in Heaven is the focus of All Souls Day that always lands on Nov. 2. This year, that day lands on Wednesday, and Catholic Cemeteries of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston will celebrate with four Masses at three different cemeteries.

Mount Olivet Cemetery and Mausoleum, 7801 Gulf Freeway in Dickinson, will host two Masses. The first Mass will be at 10 a.m. with Father Jeff Bame, celebrant, and the evening candlelight ceremony will be at 7 p.m. with Father Larry Wilson, celebrant.

Holy Cross Cemetery and Mausoleum, 3502 North Main, will hold a 10 a.m. Mass with Father Julian Gerosa, celebrant.

Calvary Cemetery and Mausoleum, 2506 65th St. in Galveston, will hold a 10 a.m. Mass with a celebrant from Holy Family Parish. †

Catechists invited for ‘Proclaim 2022’ conference

HOUSTON — All ministry leaders, catechists, volunteers, core team members and Catholic faithful are invited to attend “Proclaim 2022: I Will Love,” a conference hosted by the Secretariat for Pastoral and Educational Ministries of the Archdiocese. The event offers two days for ministry leaders and volunteers to grow deeper in the knowledge of the faith, hone practical ministry skills, and meet and network with other leaders from around the Archdiocese.

The multilingual conference (English, Spanish and Vietnamese) will be held at St. Ignatius of Loyola Catholic Church, located at 7810 Cypresswood Dr. in Spring Nov. 11 to Nov. 12. The weekend conference includes keynote speakers, breakout sessions, networking opportunities, and time for communal prayer.

Main speakers include Daniel Cardinal DiNardo and Mike Patin, with workshop sessions with leaders like Lia Raquel Garcia and Father Francis Toan Vu, SJ, and nearly 40 others from around the Archdiocese and beyond. The workshops will explore a variety of topics including youth ministry, catechesis and faith formation, family life ministries, Liturgy and worship, Catholic schools, young adult and campus ministry and pro-life ministry topics, as well as how to live the Catholic faith.

$50 registration includes both days of programming. To view the conference schedule or to register, visit www. archgh.org/proclaim. For more information call 713-7418723 or email proclaim@archgh.org. †

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LOCAL Holy Rosary to host Veterans Day events

Houston church hosts Mass, Rosary, talks and a movie during the week to celebrate Veterans Day. ▪ SEE PAGE 11

Relics show how we should serve God, one another

SAINTS,

come to mind — a visit with a saint’s relics can be a comforting encounter.

The word “relic” comes from the Latin “reliquiae,” which means “remains.” The relics are the remains of canonized and beatified saints.

According to Treasures of the Church, a ministry that will be hosting the 13-day tour, relics are physical objects that have a direct association with the saints or with Jesus Christ.

Relics are typically classified into three categories depending on how they are connected to the saint, said Father Leon Strieder, associate professor of Liturgical and sacramental theology at the University of St. Thomas School of Theology at St. Mary’s Seminary.

First-class relics are usually the body or parts of a saint’s body, like fragments of bone or flesh, he said. Second-class relics are items that belonged to a saint, such as St. Teresa of Kolkata’s sandals or St. John Paul II’s papal crosier. Lastly, a third-class relic are items that a saint had touched during his or her lifetime, or an object — a Rosary or a prayer card — that has been touched to a first, second, or another third-class relic.

“Most relics today are first-class relics,” Father Strieder said.

A reliquary containing relics from the 12 apostles is seen during a recent “Treasures of the Church” exhibition. This

will tour 13 parishes Oct. 30 to Nov.

When visiting a new church or attending Mass, Catholics often unknowingly encounter the relics of saints, oftentimes one from the church’s namesake.

Many times, when a new church is built, a reliquary is deposited into or under the altar of the Church. For example, when the new Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart was built and dedicated in 2008, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, Archbishop of

Galveston-Houston, placed relics of 12 different saints into a reliquary beneath the altar.

“This is a tradition that dates back to the early Church,” Monsignor Chester Borski previously told the Texas Catholic Herald in 2011. “Mass was said over the tombs of holy people in the catacombs. The relics are to honor those who have lived their lives for God. These relics... remind us of their lives and how we should strive to live in service to God and one another.”

Many popes have taught about the special place relics can have in impacting the life of Catholics.

“Relics direct us towards God himself: it is He who, by the power of His grace, grants to weak human beings the courage to bear witness to Him before the world,” said Pope Benedict XVI at World Youth Day in Cologne, Germany, in 2005. “By inviting us to venerate the mortal remains of the martyrs and saints, the Church does not forget that, in the end, these are indeed just human bones, but they are bones that belonged to individuals touched by the living power of God.”

The 13 parishes will host these firstclass relics, offering Catholics the special chance to meet the stories of these saints face to face, some of which are 2,000 years old. Two notable relics include a portion of a veil worn by the Blessed Mother and one of the world’s largest pieces of the True Cross.

“Relics are a physical connection to saints that are in heaven,” said Father Strieder. “The idea is that we are seeking that saint to intercede to God for us. [Their relics are] under the altar because we joined the saints and angels in heaven around God’s throne, praising Him and seeking His help in intercession.”

And to those with doubts or reservations about visiting with relics, Father Strieder offered a word of comfort: “You don’t have to go,” he said. “They’re not essential. If you don’t sense that they will be of help to their spiritual life, they don’t have to go.”

“We pray to saints that they will intercede for us, not that they have any power in themselves, they do not,” he said. “Their power is intercession for the Lord to act for us.”

RELIC TOUR SCHEDULE

HOUSTON — From The Woodlands to Texas City, the ‘Treasures of the Church’ relics tour will visit 13 different parishes beginning Oct. 30. Here are the parishes hosting the exposition.

SUNDAY, OCT. 30 - 3 P.M. St. Anthony of Padua 7801 Bay Branch Dr., The Woodlands 281-419-8700

MONDAY, OCT. 31 - 6:30 P.M. St. Edward 2601 Spring-Stuebner Rd., Spring 281-353-9774

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 2 - 6:30 P.M. Catholic Charismatic Center 1949 Cullen Blvd., Houston 713-236-9977

THURSDAY, NOV. 3 - 6:30 P.M. Saint Maximilian Kolbe 10135 West Rd., Houston 281-955-7324

FRIDAY, NOV. 4 - 6:30 P.M. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton 6646 Addicks Satsuma Dr., Houston 281-463-7878

SATURDAY, NOV. 5 - 10 P.M. Prince of Peace 19222 Tomball Pkwy., Houston 281-469-2686

SUNDAY, NOV. 6 - 6:30 P.M. St. Theresa 705 St. Theresa Blvd., Sugar Land 281-494-1156

MONDAY, NOV. 7 - 6:30 P.M. St. Bartholomew 5356 11th St., Katy 281-391-4758

TUESDAY, NOV. 8 - 6:30 P.M. Our Lady of Lourdes 10114 Highway 6, Hitchcock 409-925-3579

Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston

for

• Mount Olivet Cemetery & Mausoleum, I-45 Southbound at Hughes Road, Dick inson, Texas. Mass at 10 a.m. with Fr. Jeff Bame, celebrant.

• Calvary Cemetery & Mausoleum, 2506 65th St. Galveston. Mass at 10 a.m.

• Holy Cross Cemetery & Mausoleum, 3502 North Main St., Houston. Mass at 10 a.m. with Fr. Julian Gerosa, celebrant.

• Mount Olivet Candlelight Ceremony, I-45 Southbound at Hughes Road, Dickinson, Texas. Mass at 7 p.m. with Fr. Larry Wilson, celebrant.

Catholic Cemeteries

The Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston

Families Since 1845 www.ccadgh.org | 281-337-1641

Maybe there’s a saint that you haven’t heard about waiting to meet you among the 150 relics at one of the 13 parishes.

Celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints and find a new patron saint the day before All Saints Day (on Halloween, Oct. 31) with 150 of them at St. Edward Parish in Spring. Spend All Souls Day, Nov. 2, with (yes, again) 150 saints, praying for our dearly beloved deceased.

Or try making “Ordinary Time” a little less ordinary by making a pilgrimage to one of the parishes and encounter Jesus through the saints in a new way.

Tour organizers, headed by Father Carlos Martins, CC, are encouraging visitors to bring articles of devotion, like Rosaries, prayer cards, and pictures of ill friends or family, that can be touched to the reliquaries as a means of intercession.

The “Treasures of the Church” exhibit is set to visit 13 parishes in the Archdiocese.

For more information, including a

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 9, - 6:30 P.M. St. Mary of the Miraculous Medal 1604 9th Ave. N, Texas City 409-948-8448

THURSDAY, NOV. 10 - 6:30 P.M. Epiphany of the Lord 1530 Norwalk Dr., Katy 281-578-0707

FRIDAY, NOV. 11 - 6:30 P.M. Christ the Good Shepherd 18511 Klein Church Rd., Spring 281-376-6831

SATURDAY, NOV. 12 - 10 A.M. St. James the Apostle 22800 Aldine Westfield Rd., Spring 281-353-5053

schedule, an informational video and a listing of all 150 saints, visit www.archgh. org/saints2022. †

PHOTO COURTESY OF TREASURES OF THE CHURCH

Steps for Students hits the ground running with presenting sponsor

BY JO ANN ZUÑIGA Texas Catholic Herald

HOUSTON — The Steps for Students 5K Walk/Run, set for Feb. 11, 2023, welcomed its new presenting sponsor, Gilbert Andrew Garcia and Garcia Hamilton & Associates, donating $25,000 for Catholic education at the beginning of Hispanic Heritage Month.

A Yale University graduate, Garcia and his money management firm Garcia Hamilton & Associates, L.P., (GH&A) presented the check on Sept. 16 to Steps for Students returning co-chairs Román and Diana Martínez.

Garcia and his wife, DeeDee Garcia, a graduate of Texas A&M and an optometrist, said they always believed in Catholic education. Their four children attended Corpus Christi Catholic School in the Willowbend area. Later, their two sons attended St. Thomas High School, while their youngest daughter is currently a student at St. Agnes Academy.

“I’ve done everything at the school from coaching soccer to wearing the horse mascot costume (Bolt the Colt), to serving as gala auctioneer, and announcing at all the GHCAA (Greater Houston Catholic Athletic Association) track and field meets,” Garcia said.

“My wife and I helped kick off the church capital campaign with a lead $500,000 gift,” he added.“She is even more involved - serving on a new principal search committee and serving on both the current CCS capital campaign and building committees.”

The Garcias remain committed to Catholic education, especially with the Archdiocese’s 46 elementary and middle schools along with the 11 Catholic high schools.

Mrs. Garcia said, “We toured Catholic high schools because we wanted the amazing church family and community that our children had in elementary at Corpus Christi school. The children made their choices for high school and they landed right where they needed to be.”

She added, “Now I’m a parent ambassador at St. Agnes.”

Meanwhile, their oldest son graduated from Oberlin College and works in internet security. Their second son recently graduated magna cum laude from Texas A&M University and is now working on Wall Street. Their youngest son, who graduated this May from St. Thomas High School, has started at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge.

Garcia said, “Together, my wife and I recently donated $250,000 to St. Thomas

High School for all the support they provided our boys. We live in a changing world. It’s important for people to know the accomplishments by Hispanics, blacks and women and how much we contribute to the community.”

His GH&A firm was awarded “Outstanding Diverse Organization” in 2022 by the Houston Business Journal and received Best Places to Work in Money Management for five years in a row by the Pensions & Investment Magazine.

“We are proof that if minorities have access to a good education and business opportunities, this, in turn, helps the community overall,” Garcia said.

Both Román Martínez, himself a graduate of Catholic schools and alumnus of Yale University, and wife Diana, a graduate of Harvard University, agree with the assessment of the importance of a Catholic education as a strong foundation.

“More than ever, businesses need to support the Catholic Church and the help that it provides to families in need,” Martínez said.

The Martínezes are leading the Steps for Students steering committee toward the one-million-dollar fundraising goal, which they reached for three years running before COVID-19 shut down large public events.

With Steps registration kicking off earlier this year, 1,355 students and supporters have registered so far, with a total of $26,714 donated directly to schools. Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic School currently has the biggest team participating with 239 and is in second place with donations of more than $3,300 raised. Assumption Catholic School, which receives support from its church

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE DEVELOPMENT OFFICE

Steps for Students 5K Walk/Run co-chairs Diana and Roman Martinez thank new 2023 presenting sponsor Gilbert Andrew Garcia (with Bolt the Colt mascot costume) and wife DeeDee Garcia, pictured at a past Steps for Students event.

Catholic schools serve to provide role models that they can see in themselves.”

Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, who blesses 5K Walk/Run participants and counts down runners at the starting line, said, “Steps for Students provides a great sense of unity with parents, students and the community sharing the event.”

Catholic Schools Superintendent Debra Haney said, “It is thrilling for us as well as students, their families and schools’ staff members, to come together in one place and see the diversity of ages, cultures, and personalities who make up the Catholic schools in our Archdiocese. We are grateful for this celebration of our faith, families and formative Catholic education.”

parishioners, has raised more than $4,100.

Claudia de Guia, Archdiocese’s development coordinator organizing Steps, said, “More than one-third of our Catholic school students were Hispanic in the 2021-2022 school year. It’s beautiful to have Steps for Students leadership reflect the diverse communities our

Catholic schools have used the Steps funds to purchase computers and offer teacher training and student programs, including tuition assistance. Other schools use their fundraising for their general operational funding. This allows the schools to keep their tuition affordable for parents yet academically enriching for students.

Early Bird registration sale ends Oct. 31. To register, sponsor or for more information, www.steps4students.org. †

‘When

care for creation, we are caring for the poor’

all, we have to set aside our pride.”

on Oct. 1. The Archdiocese’s first-ofits-kind conference was prompted by growing concern about the state of the environment in light of the pope’s seminal encyclical in which he calls on Catholics and non-Catholics unite to protect “our common home.”

Dr. Philip Sakimoto, director of the Minor in Sustainability at the University of Notre Dame, a keynote speaker, said if we don’t act now, we can expect more death and destruction from extreme weather events and massive migration as people seek to escape increasingly hostile environments.

Taking a theological approach, Sister Linda Gibler, OP, also a keynote speaker, said Catholics have a duty to take care of one another and the environment that God has created. Sister Gibler referred to “integral ecology,” the Church’s approach to tackling today’s ecological crisis by everyone working together to protect the planet.

“When we care for creation, we are caring for the poor,” Sister Gibler said, noting that all are dependent for life on God’s gift of the natural world.

Sakimoto, who has attended Vatican events on the environment, also painted a dire picture with glaciers and polar ice caps melting at an accelerated rate, rising ocean temperatures and extreme weather across the globe, including the droughts and wildfires in the southern and western U.S. and recent Hurricanes Ian and Fiona.

“We can expect more and more of these extreme weather catastrophes every year,” Sakimoto said.

He added the cost, in terms of deaths, clean up, food shortages and migration will only increase, saying there could be an estimated 200 million asylum seekers by 2050.

The goal of the conference, organizers said, was to spotlight the Church’s moral obligation to make caring for the

environment a priority.

Panelists of everyday activists in Galveston-Houston called on Church leaders to make climate change a top issue, whether it’s in the homilies or supporting parishioners who want to take action and galvanize others into action in their parishes and personal lives. Living simply, conscientiously, and with concern for the impacts of our consumption and behavior on our neighbors and the natural world are core to leading a Christian way of life, they said.

Roger Ingersoll, a Catholic climate educator, said the biggest obstacles to addressing climate change are apathy and a lack of urgency. He said climate change that impacts all life should be the top priority of the U.S. bishops’ conference. One speaker, Sister Ricca Dimalibot, CCVI, spoke of the health threats to fetal life by air pollution, which affects the developing brains and lungs of unborn babies.

“Climate change is a critical life issue,”

Ingersoll said. “The Church needs to ... be consistent about life.”

Deanna Ennis, director of construction and preventative maintenance for the Archdiocese, said she would like to see more urgency for combatting climate change from more priests and Church leaders.

“We don’t hear about these issues in the pews — that’s pretty stunning,” Ennis said. “We have to learn, to educate, to act. We have to be willing to change.”

Houston Chronicle business columnist Chris Tomlinson said many of the obstacles to combatting climate change, especially in Texas, boil down to economics. He said there is an unwillingness of pastors of all faiths to address climate change, knowing that many of their parishioners are involved in or invested in oil and gas.

“We fundamentally have to transform our economy in ways that are unimaginable to people who are over 40,” Tomlinson said. “We have to cooperate, innovate and compromise, and most of

While the situation is dire, Sister Gibler said they believe the window of opportunity is still open.

“We have time to do something, but the time is now,” Sister Gibler said.

Sakimoto called on Catholic organizations across the globe to make a commitment to fight climate change by coming up with their own plan and putting it into action. He advocated for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, changing the means of energy production, switching to a plant-based diet, and buying less “stuff.”

Ennis said the Archdiocese is concentrating on energy efficiency in parishes and pointed out that all electric contracts now draw power from renewable sources. At the parish level, Ennis said staff and parishioners can reduce energy costs and create “care teams” to raise awareness.

Deacon Arturo Monterrubio and his wife Esperanza of St. Paul the Apostle in Nassau Bay were eager to take what they had learned and raise awareness in their Spanish-speaking church community about the desperate need to fight climate change and change habits.

“This is an opportunity to make clear the message from the pope’s Laudato Si’ — read it, practice it, and respond to it,” Deacon Monterrubio said.

Locally, there are bright spots. Robby Robinson, field operations manager for Buffalo Bayou Partnership, said the bayou is cleaner, and there is more wildlife in the 10 square miles encompassed in the revitalization of the bayou. But he also said there also is a proliferation of plastic.

Tommy Garcia-Prats’ urban farm program Finca Tres Robles promotes healthy food production for the East End community. Alexa Rivas Gassan and Gabriella Palmer, students at St. Catherine’s Montessori, said the school has switched to plant-based cleaning products, installed water stations to fill up bottles, and is discouraging singleuse plastics. †

Vatican marks ecology saint's feast day with film premiere, climate accords

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Vatican hosted the global premiere of a new documentary on the urgent need to address climate change on the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the same day the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change and the 2015 Paris Agreement entered into force for the Holy See.

The two events on Oct. 4 helped mark the feast of the patron saint of animals and ecology and the namesake of Pope Francis. The Vatican became a formal party to the U.N. convention in July and declared at

the same time that it also intended to formally join the 2015 Paris Agreement.

“Both documents will enter into force for the Holy See, in the name and on behalf of the Vatican City State, on 4 October 2022, the Solemnity of St. Francis,” said a joint statement by the pontifical academies of Sciences and Social Sciences and the Vatican Secretariat of State's section for relations with states.

It was the same day a new film was launched at the Vatican for the world premiere of “The Letter: A Message For Our

Earth,” based on Pope Francis's 2015 encyclical letter, “Laudato Si’, on Care for Our Common Home.”

Presented by YouTube Originals, the film was written and directed by Emmy-winner Nicolas Brown and produced by the Oscar-winning production company “Off the Fence.” It was made in partnership with the Laudato Si' Movement, the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and the Dicastery for Communication.

In the seven years since the pope's landmark encyclical was published, “the environmental crisis of our common home has worsened drastically,” Michael Cardinal Czerny, prefect of the integral development dicastery, said at a Vatican news conference on Oct. 4.

“Clearly, the great treasure of Laudato Si’’s wisdom needs to become far more deeply known and effectively put into practice,” he said.

The film features activists representing

wildlife, Indigenous peoples, young people and the poor — the voices of those who are least listened to but are the most impacted by the consequences of climate change, Brown said at the news conference. The film includes their meeting with Pope Francis last year to talk about their national and personal challenges and what needs to be done.

The activists included: Chief Cacique Odair “Dadá” Borarí from the Amazon rainforest in Brazil; Ridhima Pandey, a 13-year-old climate activist from India; Arouna Kandé, a climate refugee from Senegal; U.S. scientists Greg Asner and Robin Martin; and Lorna Gold, president of Laudato Si' Movement.

The film is streaming for free at theletterfilm.org and on YouTube. †

PHOTO BY JAMES RAMOS/HERALD

Roy Nlemba, a master farmer with Houston’s Plant It Forward Farms, tends a half-acre urban farm at the University of St. Thomas in Houston.

The Rosary ‘should stir up and deepen our love for God’

Father Lew said. “If you’ve found it [lacking], slowly begin with one decade a day.”

For those moments during the Rosary, or at any time when at prayer, when the mind begins to wander or get distracted, Father Lew suggested having something to place our focus on, like sacred art. The image might feature a mystery of the Rosary or a favorite picture of Our Lady with Jesus or a statue of the Blessed Mother, or even a cross. Having something to keep the focus on will help keep attention to prayer, he said.

Father Lew, who is the rector of the Diocesan Shrine of Our Lady of the Rosary in London and also a prolific photographer, recently published a book with Ignatius Press called “Mysteries Made Visible: Praying the Rosary with Sacred Art,” which features his own photographs.

He traveled to the U.S. for the Rosary celebration at Holy Rosary and preached during a weekend Mass at the invitation of Father Peter Damian Harris, OP, pastor of Holy Rosary.

FILLING THE SPARE MOMENTS

After beginning with a decade a day, continue to gradually increase the number of decades prayed each day, praying one decade at a time, spreading each throughout the day, he said.

For example, consider praying one decade in the morning when getting ready for the day. Then, if time is usually spent scrolling social media or watching the news on TV or listening to the radio, pay attention and find things to pray about from what you observe on social media or on the news, he said.

Prayer intentions can come directly from friends or even our social media feeds, he suggested.

Then as the day continues, keep the Rosary close at hand or use your fingers to keep count. Father Lew said the moments in between that fill our day can be a special time for grace and prayer, such as while waiting at a stop light on the drive to work, the bus or even the elevator, then suddenly we might find that we’ve said four decades.

“It’s very doable if we are conscious to not waste time, but rather use time well and to fill the spare moments,” he said. “Jesus has given us this lifetime and only this lifetime in which we can learn to love Him better.”

And the Rosary does exactly that; it teaches us to love God better, he said.

“By praying the Rosary, we are doing this because Mary asks us to and because we hope that this will bring us closer to Jesus. That’s already an act of love. It’s an act of trust,” he said. “We are not doing it because it makes us feel good, just as listening to our favorite pop song might make us feel good. But we do it because we love Mary.”

In his role as general promoter of the Rosary, he actively advocates and preaches the Rosary within the Dominican Order and encourages his fellow Dominicans to preach the Rosary, which he said is part of the sacred heritage of the Order.

“According to tradition, Our Lady gave the Rosary to St. Dominic and entrusted the order with that job of preaching the

When’s the last time you took that Rosary off your rear view mirror and prayed with it? These last few weeks of October and the time before Advent offer a special time to embrace praying the Rosary.

Rosary,” Father Lew said.

Appointed to the role in October of 2019, Father Lew replaced a familiar face to the Archdiocese of GalvestonHouston: Father Christopher Eggleton, OP, who was the pastor at Holy Rosary in Houston, was previously the promoter of the Rosary.

‘GREATNESS’ IN THE ROSARY

Father Lew drew a comparison to how a doctor would prescribe a new medicine to a patient. The effects aren’t typically immediate; rather, you trust that the doctor’s prescription will help in some way.

“That’s Mary’s prescription to us. Begin by praying the Rosary slowly because we trust in Mary, and we know that she’s our mother,” he said. “She’s been given to us by Our Lord Jesus to be our mother, and she loves us. That’s why I pray the Rosary, and I encourage everyone to begin that way.”

The Rosary should “stir up and deepen our love for God. That’s the goal of prayer,” he said. “In a sense, it’s pointless to pray the Rosary by rote in a way where it’s just ratcheting off words. It’s very, very clear in the Dominican tradition and Dominican teaching that the Rosary must be prayed as a meditation. It’s better to pray one decade at a time, to pray that decade well rather than try to rush through all five decades in 20 minutes.”

If we find ourselves praying the Rosary as a habit more than a meditation, we shouldn’t feel guilty, he said.

“We’re human, and human beings get distracted in prayer,” Father Lew said. “But as long as we set our intention and begin to pray and our motivation is out of love for God and we’re still distracted, our prayer doesn’t lose its merit.”

Father Lew emphasized that the Rosary is for everyone, no matter our stage in life, young or older. The Blessed Mother reached out, especially to young people, such as in her apparitions in Fatima and Lourdes, where she appeared to children and to a young teenager.

The Blessed Mother “knows what young people are capable of, and she knows what they want, which is that they should be able to rise to the challenge of the day and change the world,” he said. The young

people she appeared to were capable of “greatness through the Rosary.” †

For a guide on how to pray the Rosary, visit www.archgh.org/rosary.

FR. LEW’S FIVE TIPS ON PRAYING THE ROSARY

1. PRAY WITH SACRED ART Art can help focus a wandering mind, and can help meditate on the mysteries of the Rosary and on the stories of Jesus.

2. DESIGNATE A TIME AND PLACE Pray the Rosary at home, in your car, in line at the store or in your spare time.

3. PRAY WHILE TRAVELING Prayer can be a great witness and can surround others in prayer in a quiet and subtle way.

4. SPREAD IT THROUGHOUT THE DAY Don’t do too much, too soon. Spread the decades throghout the day, praying one decade intentionally is better than rushing through five decades like a machine.

5. PRAY-N-SCROLL ON SOCIAL MEDIA Give your scrolling an intention and find things to pray for, then stop and pray a decade of the Rosary for what you saw on social media.

And with your support, Catholic Charities provides help and hope to people in need, especially the poor and vulnerable. Our network of life-changing programs work together to alleviate poverty.

Guided by the Catholic Faith, we serve people of all beliefs.

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Inviting men in the pews into a journey to serve the Church as deacons

BY KERRY MCGUIRE Herald Correspondent

HOUSTON — The positive growth trend that began over 50 years ago in the Archdiocese, where adult men “in the pews” answered the call to serve the local Church as permanent deacons, still continues today.

To help form these men into permanent deacons, the Office of the Permanent Diaconate was founded in 1969, later to become an official part of the Chancery in 1991. This year marked the 50th anniversary of 38 men who were ordained in 1972 and recently recognized at an annual convocation in August for their 50 years of diaconal ministry to the Archdiocese.

“Those early deacons in our program helped pave the way for us who have followed in their footsteps, and we are grateful for their example of diaconal service,” said Deacon Phillip Jackson, Director of the Office of the Permanent Diaconate. “We are proud to be distinguished as one of the top three largest diaconal formation programs in the United States today.”

Current figures show 386 permanent deacons serving in the Archdiocese, with an additional 46 men that will be ordained to the permanent diaconate in January 2023. Two additional “cohorts” or groups of men choosing to participate in the six-year diaconal formation process will include 44 men that are enrolled in the 2025 cohort and 33 men, called inquirers, who will soon be formally accepted into the 2027 cohort.

Deacon Jackson said these men in formation are prepared to serve in a three-fold ministry of Word, Liturgy and Charity. He said to describe a typical “day in the life” of a deacon would be hard to capture because of the broad scope of their service to the local Church. From proclaiming the Gospel at Mass to celebrating Baptisms, marriages and funerals outside of Mass and leading the faithful in prayer, there are many other roles deacons serve that are not as visible.

“In many instances, deacons are seen serving at the altar and preaching, but our ministry goes well beyond that, and in most cases, cannot truly be captured in photographs or in print,” said Deacon Jackson. “Our deacons visit those who are incarcerated, in nursing homes, the homebound, and people we encounter on the street corners who are seeking to see the face of Christ in a kind word or a modest handout. In all cases, deacons treat them with the dignity, respect, and love that all of us are entitled to as human beings.”

Deacon Jackson said the continued growth of the Archdiocese’s diaconal formation program can be challenging, especially when it comes to finding enough space for the cohorts to come together in prayer and for coursework. Regardless of the number, no man discerning the call to serve the Church as a deacon is turned away. It is through formation and the discernment of the call that some will be ordained as deacons.

“We do not limit the size of our cohorts, so if 60 men apply and meet all of the requirements, then 60 men

The 2022 Diocesan Services Fund theme draws from 1 Corinthians: “All For the Glory of God.” DSF operates in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston each year to help the Church carry out the ministries of teaching and sanctifying. DSF brings the needed financial resources to carry out 60-plus ministries.

begin the process,” said Deacon Jackson.

“These men, along with their wives if they are married, at some point will be on our campus. We often push our retreat centers to capacity as the men, the formation teams, and mentors gather for the spiritual formation of the candidates.”

Deacon Jackson said that social distancing mandates during COVID-19 actually had a silver lining for the ministry and opened the door for distance learning as needed.

“We had to make a number of adjustments to diaconal formation during the period where we were unable to meet in person,” said Deacon Jackson. “We have come to rely on and utilize more technology to allow for an expanded necessity for distance learning, not only to keep ahead of the technological changes but to anticipate future needs as well. For instance, we have expanded our capabilities of providing Spanish translation to the candidates in formation whose first language is not English.”

The Office of the Permanent Diaconate is one of 64 ministries that are supported by DSF (Diocesan Services Fund), which allows the diaconal formation program to continue and grow. Deacon Jackson said the majority of the costs associated with the six-year formation courses offered for each man and his wife are covered by the generous contributions from the faithful to DSF.

“Much of the cost of their tuition, retreats and vestments is covered largely in part by the generous contributions from the DSF,” said Deacon Jackson.

“We know that several parishes would like to put men into consideration for the diaconal formation program but may lack the financial resources to do so. DSF makes it possible for those men to come from the pews to make the journey to serve the Church as deacons.”

To donate to DSF that supports the Office of the Permanent Diaconate and 64 additional ministries, go to archgh. org/dsf. DSF supports each of these ministries, which require this critical funding to remain in operation. Out of each gift given to the DSF, 100% of every dollar goes directly to supporting these ministries. †

PHOTO BY JAMES RAMOS/HERALD

Permanent deacons line up to process during a recent Ordination Mass for the Permanent Diaconate at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Houston.

OBITUARIES

Sister Mary Ann Giardina, O.P.

HOUSTON — Sister Mary Ann Giardina, O.P., died Sept. 22.

Sister Giardina was a teacher at Sacred Heart School in Galveston, St. Pius X High School, St. Agnes Academy and Dominican College in Houston. She also served as treasurer of Dominican College, Houston, and in the finance office at St. Agnes Academy. She served her community in leadership on the General Council and assumed the responsibilities of Secretary General and Treasurer of the congregation.

The funeral Mass was held Sept. 26 at St. Dominic Villa Chapel. Interment is in Forest Park Lawndale Cemetery. †

Father Robert Matzinger, C.S.B.

HOUSTON — Father Robert Matzinger, CSB, a long-time teacher at St. Thomas High School, died on Sept. 21. He was 93 years old.

After 20 years of teaching, being athletic director and coaching at St. Thomas High School, Father Matzinger began ministering in parishes — St. Catherine in Houston, Sacred Heart in Manvel, St. Theresa in Sugar Land, and lastly at St. Clare in Houston.

The funeral Mass was held Sept. 27 at St. Anne Catholic Church. Interment is in Forest Park Lawndale Cemetery. †

IN MEMORIA

Pray for the following priests whose anniversaries of death are during the month of November.

Nov. 1, 1915 Rev. Anthony Truchard

Nov. 1, 1950 Msgr. Thomas A. Carney

Nov. 1, 1977 Rev. Joseph I. Reardon, OP

Nov. 3, 2013 Rev. Joseph Konkel, OP

Nov. 4, 1967 Rev. Henry T. Schroeder

Nov. 4, 2015 Rev. Gabe T. Adhana

Nov. 5, 2012 Rev. Armando Rodriguez

Nov. 5, 2019 Rev. Edward Randall

Nov. 7, 1957 Rev. F.B. Hardy

Nov. 8, 1907 Rev. Anthony Kripajitis

Nov. 9, 2021 Rev. Roosevelt Martin

Nov. 10, 1940 Rev. Daniel Leahy

Nov. 10, 1967 Rev. William A. Sheehan,CSB

Nov. 10, 2002 Rev. Henry J. Planinsek, CSSp

Nov. 10, 2015 Rev. Nils F. Thompson, OFM

Nov. 14, 1983 Msgr. A.L. O’Connell

Nov. 14, 2003 Rev. Richard J. Schiefen, CSB

Nov. 17, 1963 Msgr. James T. Fleming

Nov. 17, 1969 Msgr. John J. Ruddy Nov. 17, 1982 Msgr. Anton J. Frank Nov. 17, 1989 Msgr. Teodoro de la Torre Nov. 18, 1957 Msgr. Marius S. Chataignon Nov. 18, 1987 Msgr. J.J. Roach Nov. 18, 2015 Rev. Joseph Kalladan Nov. 19, 1913 Rev. Thomas Hennessy

Nov. 19, 1966 Rev. George B. Black

Nov. 20, 1967 Rev. Edward J. Sullivan,CSB Nov. 20, 1976 Rev. William H. Wood, MM Nov. 20, 2006 Rev. David J. Cardenas Nov. 21, 2013 Rev. Blas Herrador Nov. 22, 1969 Rev. L.A. Sampson Nov. 22, 1985 Rev. Francis Knobloch Nov. 22, 2002 Rev. John J. Ward, OMI Nov. 23, 1935 Rev. Patrick J. Walsh, SSJ Nov. 23, 2004 Msgr. Thomas A. Donovan Nov. 24, 1992 Rev. Lionel LaCasse, MS Nov. 25, 1858 Rev. Edward Clare Nov. 25, 1933 Msgr. George T. Walsh Nov. 25, 1982 Msgr. John D. Connolly Nov. 25, 1992 Rev. Joseph G. Alvarez Nov. 25, 2007 Msgr. William P. Robertson Nov. 25, 2018 Rev. William Sheehan, CSB Nov. 26, 1934 Rev. Henry F. Rops Nov. 27, 1967 Rev. Francis Duffy, OMI Nov. 27, 2009 Msgr. Lawrence Lee Nov. 28, 2002 Rev. Daniel McKenna, OMI Nov. 28, 2014 Rev. Antonio T.J. Martinez SJ Nov. 29, 1934 Rev. Paul Puigserver, TOR Nov. 30, 1941 Rev. Joseph F. Hanek Nov. 30, 1947 Rev. Narcise P. Denis, SSJ

25 PRIESTS, RELIGIOUS SISTERS CELEBRATE AT JUBILEE MASS

LOCAL CATHOLIC NEWS.

WHERE YOU WANT IT. WHEN YOU WANT IT.

IN BRIEF

Café Catholica Lite set for Nov. 3

GALVESTON — The Office for Young Adult and Campus Ministry will host the next Café Catholica Lite at St. Frances Cabrini Church, located at 10727 Hartsook St. in Houston, on Nov. 3 from 7 to 8:45 p.m.

The speaker is Julie Fritsch Dumalet, director for the Office of Pro-Life Activities, and her talk will be, “After Roe: Autonomy, Equality, & Health Care.” The night will include light snacks, the talk, a Q&A and communal prayer. The talk will be available to view online as well at www.archgh.org/ cafecatholica. The Café Catholica program seeks to help young adults ages 18 to 39 encounter Christ and His Church. All young adults are invited to Café Catholica Lite throughout the year.

For more, contact the Office for Young Adult and Campus Ministry at yacm@archgh.org or 713-741-8778. †

Catholic Charities’ food distributions continue at three locations

HOUSTON — Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston offers food assistance at three locations.

In Houston, client choice food distributions are on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Guadalupe Center, located at 326 S. Jensen St. Appointments required, for appointments, call 713-874-6781 on Mondays and Fridays. Only registered clients will be permit ted; no walk-up registrations. Food fairs are set for Oct. 22 and Nov. 12 from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

In Galveston, the Beacon of Hope Center, located at 4700 Broadway, Suite F-103, hosts drive-thru distributions on the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month, starting at 9 a.m. No appointments required. Call 409-762-2064 for more information.

In Fort Bend County, The Mamie George Community Center, located at 1111 Collins Rd. in Richmond, hosts both drive-thru food distributions and in-person shopping. Drive-thru distributions, in partnership with the Houston Food Bank, are on Tuesdays, from 5 to 7 p.m., and Thursdays from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Register by texting “HFBPS” to 855-788-3663, then select “Catholic Charities — Richmond.”

Clients should visit by appointment only on Mondays, 12 p.m. to 2 p.m.; Tuesdays, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Wednesdays, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The Center also hosts monthly food fairs, with the next one set for Oct. 29, 9:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. For help, call 281-202-6200.

For more, visit www.catholiccharities.org/food or call the Catholic Charities COVID Assistance Line at 713-874-6521.

PHOTO BY MEGAN DOHERTY/FOR THE HERALD 25 priests and religious sisters celebrated their silver, golden, diamond and platinum jubilees on Oct. 9 at annual Jubilee Mass at Corpus Christi Catholic Church celebrated by Daniel Cardinal DiNardo along with Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS.

ALL YOU PETS, BLESS THE LORD!

Parishes, schools mark feast of St. Francis of Assisi with pet blessings

HOUSTON — They came in crates, boxes, totes, backpacks, and leashed and caged. Beloved pet animals were towed to Catholic parishes across the Archdiocese as faithful turned out to celebrate the Oct. 4 feast of St. Francis of Assisi, patron of creation and animals.

Many parishes, including St. Paul the Apostle in Clear Lake, St. Matthias in Magnolia, Mary Queen in Friendswood, St. Hyacinth in Deer Park and St. Thomas More in Houston, joined others to mark the special occasion. A number of schools, like St. Christopher and St. Rose of Lima, both in Houston, and True Cross School in Dickinson also celebrated the feast day, with students bringing four- and two-legged (or winged! or finned!) friends for a morning blessing ceremony. The annual celebration unites parishioners and communities with their pets. †

ST. MATTHIAS

ST. ELIZABETH ANN SETON

ST. JOHN THE EVANGELIST

ST. CHARLES BORROMEO

ST. JOHN VIANNEY

ST. MARY OF THE MIRACULOUS MEDAL

ST. PAUL THE APOSTLE

ST. ROSE OF LIMA SCHOOL

ST. LAURENCE SCHOOL

ST. AUGUSTINE SCHOOL

BLUE MASS BLESSINGS

Holy Rosary in Houston hosts several events to celebrate veterans

HOUSTON — Several events to celebrate Veterans Day are set for Nov. 4 to 18 at Holy Rosary Catholic Church, located at 3617 Milam St. in Houston.

On Nov. 9, from 7 to 8:30 p.m., the parish will host Sister Deidre Byrne, POSC, the 2012 University of St. Thomas commencement speaker and is a retired U.S. Army Colonel, who will present an address called “Preparation for the Battle Ahead of Us,” a pro-life message about the road ahead in pro-life ministry.

At 5:15 p.m. on Nov. 11, the parish will host a Veterans Day Mass celebrated by Father Ian Bordenave, OP, a veteran, along with a celebration for all veterans and their families. Those who arrive early will receive a Veterans Day pin. After Mass, a reception will be held upstairs in the parish hall.

Then, at 7:15 p.m., Sister Byrne will lead a “Rosary for the Nation,” with each bead of the Rosary praying for a different U.S. state. At 7:45 p.m., Sister Byrne will speak about how, inspired by the faith-filled lives of her parents and mentored by Mother Theresa of Calcutta, she realized her vocation while serving in the U.S. Armed Forces as a medical officer.

On Nov. 18, the church will host a veteran vocation series with Lay Dominicans Wendy Clark, OP, and retired Major Celia Clay, OP, as they present the inspiring stories of military chaplains, Father Emil Kaupan, a Korean War veteran, and Father Vincent Capodanno, M.M., a Vietnam War veteran. Both military chaplains have been put forth by the Military Archdiocese of the USA for canonization as saints and declared “Servants of God.” After the presentation, the 90-minute EWTN movie “Called & Chosen” about Father Capodanno’s life will be shown. †

Archdiocesan African Cultural Heritage Festival to be held Nov. 20

HOUSTON — The Third Annual Archdiocesan African Cultural Heritage Festival is set for Nov. 20 with a Mass at 3 p.m. celebrated by Daniel Cardinal DiNardo.

The Mass will be followed by a festival that will include cultural expressions through music and dance. There will be booths for vendors, and various foods from different African countries and cultures will be available as well.

The event, sponsored by the African Catholics and Catholics of African Descent in the Archdiocese, will be held at St. Cyril of Alexandria Catholic Church, located at 10503 Westheimer Rd. in Houston. There is no cost to attend.

For more information, call Dr. Che Anu at 832-570-2024 or Chuk Amaliri at 832-244-1950. †

WYD 2023: Deadline to register extended

HOUSTON — The Archdiocese is hosting a pilgrimage to World Youth Day for young adults ages 18 to 39 coming up from July 26 to Aug. 7, 2023. This trip includes visits to Madrid, Avila, Toledo and Fatima before heading to Lisbon for World Youth Day with Pope Francis.

To sign up, all pilgrims need to make a $300 deposit. Spaces are almost full. The new registration deadline is Nov. 1. Fundraising opportunities will be available this fall.

for

Working

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF CORRECTIONAL MINISTRIES Police trucks, horses, motorcycles and a helicopter were available to be blessed during the Blue Mass, held Sept. 25 at Assumption Catholic Church. The annual Mass was sponsored by the Office of Correc tional Ministries.

CNS PHOTO

U.S. Marine veterans participate in a 21-gun salute during a memorial service marking the 55th anniver sary of the death of Maryknoll Father Vincent R. Capodanno at Fort Wadsworth in Staten Island, N.Y., Sept. 4. Father Capodanno, a native of Staten Island, was killed while ministering as a U.S. Navy chaplain to wounded Marines on a battlefield in Vietnam. A biopic of Father Capodanno’s life will be screened at Holy Rosary Parish in Houston on Nov. 18 during a series of events celebrating veterans.

Catholic

ST. JUSTIN MARTYR

PET BLESSINGS

Nun Run on motorcycles raises funds for school clinics

HOUSTON — Roaring motorcycles mingled with melodic church bells as more than 300 people were riding out of the Villa de Matel convent grounds on Oct. 15, raising funds for nine Catholic school clinics keeping children healthy.

The 18th annual Nun Run took designated drivers and nuns with Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word, traveling from Houston’s East End off Lawndale to San Leon on Galveston Bay.

The Blue Knights police-escorted ride ended with a finishing line party on behalf of the CHRISTUS Foundation for HealthCare that gives access to immunizations, medical care and mental health counseling to underserved communities, said clinic director Sister Roseanne Popp, MD.

Sister Francesca Kearns, CCVI, vicar for Religious for the Archdiocese, who rode behind biker Nathan Wedge on his metallic blue hog, said, “The clinics keep students in school by providing treatment for minor aches and illnesses, which also helps parents stay at work.”

One parent’s testimony on the CHRISTUS website stated, “I have such great relief knowing that my children

will not suffer because they can go to the school clinic when they are sick, and I don’t have to miss work and income to take them to the doctor.”

Nine clinics, including those in Holy Ghost School in southwest Houston, both Our Lady of Fatima schools in Galena Park and Texas City, and St. Mary of the Purification in Third Ward, are called upon more than 6,000 times a year to care for children at Archdiocesan schools.

Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, blessed the riders before the trek but also raced with a foot scooter against sponsor Jim “Mattress Mac” McIngvale, ending in a tie across the finish line amid cheers from the crowd. †

Jo Ann Zuñiga

EDWARD

PHOTO BY MICHELLE EISTERHOLD

Daniel Cardinal DiNardo speaks to the students of St. Edward Catholic School during the homily of the school’s 50th Anniversary Mass. The school was founded in 1972.

PHOTO BY JO ANN ZUÑIGA/HERALD

Sister Francesca Kearns, CCVI, Archdiocesan vicar for religious, waves from the back of her designated driver Nathan Wedge’s motorcycle as they prepare to ride for the Nun Run on Oct. 15. The event raises funds for nine Catholic school clinics that help students stay in school by treating them for minor aches and illnesses.

“The clinics keep students in school by providing treatment for minor aches and illnesses, which also helps parents stay at work.”

YOUTH

What does it take to become a saint?

church to being on fire for the Lord.

What do men desire to know? The truth. I have seen this to be especially evident with the younger generation.

Prior to entering seminary, I was the director of youth ministry at my home parish, Notre Dame in Houston, for more than four years. I had the privilege of accompanying many young people in their journey of faith, and in many ways, they helped me respond to the invitation to discern the priesthood.

As anyone who has ever been involved with youth ministry knows — there was, and still is, always the question of how we get the young people to be engaged in the life of the Church. And every year, without fail, whether preparing for the Sacrament of Confirmation or faith formation in general, I would encounter youth who did not want to be there, thought it was boring, or would say their parents forced them to be there.

This is not new, but this is true. Another reality I have experienced was the transformation of some of those same youth — from not wanting to be at

by CHRISTIAN MAI †

Initially, it was tempting for me to think that this transformation only happened because their friends, boyfriend/ girlfriend were in the youth group, or they had nothing else to do, thought it was fun, etc. These are all good things and might have very well been part of the reason.

Nevertheless, above all, I believe this transformation happened because they came to know the truth.

The Catholic Church teaches that God himself is truth, goodness and beauty — that which we all long for is found in God!

Furthermore, despite what our culture tries to feed us, not everything is subjective or relative. For instance, a truth that is “true for you, but not true for me.”There is such a thing as objective and absolute truth — something that is true independent of how I feel or

whether I want to believe it.

To say “there is no absolute truth” would be making an absolute statement, a contradiction.

Hence, St. Augustine teaches, “I have met many who wanted to deceive, but none who wanted to be deceived.” Nobody likes being lied to. The youth are thirsting for truth and authenticity. All the while, they are getting pulled in so many different directions with the influence of social media, decline in mental health, concerns for social justice, etc.

Not to mention everything they experience with family, friends, work and school. As a result, it can be hard to trust that this truth that the Church teaches is worth fighting for. This is normal. Somewhere along the way, we can start to doubt in the dark what we knew was true in the light. What changes is not the truth but how we feel about the truth. There is no shame in this.

To the youth, my invitation is to permit yourself to start over as many times as you need (Sacrament of Reconciliation is a good place to start).

St. Josemaria Escriva said, “To begin is for everyone, to persevere is for saints… a saint is a sinner who keeps trying.”

This is the secret to sainthood. Be a person of perseverance, of grit! Keep showing up and allow yourself to wrestle with God. I understand that the “fire” can seem to burn out for various reasons. This can often lead to discouragement, despair, anger, guilt, shame and so forth.

This is a common tactic of the enemy to cause a wedge between you and God. If not addressed, it only causes you to stray more and more from practicing the faith.

Therefore, it is crucial to “be aware” of the voices (God, the enemy, yourself) you listen to, “understand” them for what it is, and “take action” — to accept that which is good and leads you toward God and reject all that which pulls you away. Be willing to do whatever it takes to be a saint. †

Christian Mai is the former youth minister of Notre Dame and currently a seminarian of the Archdiocese of Galves ton-Houston.

“All men by nature desire to know” (Aristotle).

COLUMNISTS

Re-energizing the Church through the vocation of older adults

Who could imagine a tree with healthy branches and fruit without healthy roots? Pope Francis, in his recent series of weekly talks, portrays the Church community as a tree with older adults serving as the roots that sustain the quality of life found in the branches and fruit. The wisdom that the Holy Father imparts is that only by attending to the care of the roots, namely older adults, can the fruitfulness of the tree be maintained.

He focuses on the vocation of the elderly, being one who bears witness to their faith and wisdom for future generations. In turn, he calls the Church community to support the pastoral care of older adults.

Aging presents both opportunities and challenges for parish communities. By way of opportunities, parishes are called to recognize and celebrate older adults as gifts to their community.

Older adults offer an incredible source of strength, wisdom and resilient faith to the lifeblood of the parish.

Having weathered the storms of life, they know the meaning of perseverance, patience, forgiveness, generosity, commitment and selfsacrifice.

strengthen the Church community. So many seniors are waiting to be asked to contribute their knowledge and gifts to the well-being of parish life.

doctor visits.

Diocesan

by MARK CIESIELSKI †

Pope Francis envisions parish communities fostering intergenerational exchanges to produce a fountain of life sustained by the joy and enthusiasm of youth and the authenticity, tenderness and wisdom of the elderly.

The Holy Father has encouraged parish communities to allocate appropriate resources for the greater inclusion of older adults in community life. Because older adults have successfully navigated the ups and downs of life, they possess personal, professional and spiritual resources and experiences that can guide and

The challenges for parishes involve facing an increasingly aging population of older adults, which requires pastoral care to sustain their dignity as they age. Because their needs are very different from other generations, parishes will need to re-envision how they can provide pastoral care through a principle of interdependence.

This is where parish communities can provide thoughtful pastoral care and intentional practices which promote the generation’s care for each other.

• Think of seniors as mentors for young adults, sponsors for youth retreats, and coaches for married couples.

• Think of youth as friendly (supervised) visitors with seniors, families as respite caregivers, parish organizations offering transportation to the church, the grocery store, and

• Think of parishes offering educational and referral services to essential community providers for aging in place, memory care, caregiving, and end-of-life planning.

The Office of Aging can assist parishes with educational and formational resources to support their parishes in this endeavor. Working in partnership with parish leaders and their older adults, parish communities will be both enriched by the gifts of older adults and prepared to provide pastoral responses to the challenges that accompany aging.

For more information, contact the Office of Aging at 713-741-8712. View their webpage for resources on caregiving, aging-in-place, and end-oflife care planning at www.archgh.org/ aging. †

Mark Ciesielski is the director of the Office of Aging.

Fund MINISTRY SPOTLIGHT

The Office of Family Life offers over 50 programs that accompany spouses and ministry leaders in forming, revealing, enjoying and protecting our families.

To support the Office of Family Life, and over 60 ministries like it, make a gift to the DSF at www.archgh.org/dsf

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The future of humanity passes by way of the family.

– Pope Saint John Paul II

Prayer revitalizes the soul, pope says at Angelus

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Prayer is medicine for one’s faith, and it reinvigorates the soul, Pope Francis said.

“We need the daily water of prayer; we need time dedicated to God so that He can enter into our time, into our lives,” the pope said on Oct. 16 during his Sunday Angelus address.

“We need consistent moments in which we open our hearts to Him so that He can daily pour out on us love, peace, joy, strength, hope, thus nourishing our faith,” he said.

So often, people spend their day focused on many “urgent but unnecessary things,” neglecting what counts the most in life, he said. “We allow our love for God to grow cold” bit by bit.

Prayer, he said, is the remedy to rekindle this “tepid faith.”

“Prayer is the medicine for faith; it is the restorative of the soul,” he said.

Just as a patient must “faithfully and regularly” take his or her medication, Pope Francis said, prayer, too, needs to be consistent and constant, not practiced in fits and starts.

BRIEF

In the Gospel of Luke’s parable of the persistent widow, Jesus is showing people that they must “pray always without becoming weary,” he said.

When finding the time to pray is a real difficulty, he said, busy people should turn to an old but “wise spiritual practice” called “aspirations.” These are very short prayers in which the mind is directed to God and “that can be repeated often throughout the day, in the course of various activities, to remain ‘in tune’ with the Lord” so that “our hearts remain connected to him.”

For example, he said, as soon as people wake up, “we can say, ‘Lord, I thank you and I offer this day to you,’” or before beginning an activity, “we can repeat, ‘Come, Holy Spirit,’” and throughout the day, people can pray, “Jesus, I trust in you. Jesus, I love you.”

“And let’s not forget to read his responses” in the Gospel, the pope said.

“The Lord always responds,” he said, so people should open the Gospel “several times every day to receive a word of life directed to us.” †

Dissidents, Catholic leaders want famous Minsk church reopened after fire

WARSAW, Poland (CNS) — Christian dissidents in Belarus accused officials of intimidation after one of the country’s best-known Catholic churches was ordered to close following a suspicious fire.

Belarus’ Emergencies Commission said it was terminating the parish’s permit to use the Church of Sts. Simon and Helena, popularly dubbed the Red Church, following the Sept. 26 fire, pending repairs and safety checks.

The commission ordered the removal of all religious objects by Oct. 12.

Archbishop Iosif Staneuski of Minsk-Mohilev urged the return of the church and its rectory, noting, “Many residents of our capital are greatly concerned about having no opportunity to pray or simply visit this church, while Minsk itself has been, in a certain sense, orphaned.”

In an Oct. 13 pastoral letter, Archbishop Staneuski encouraged Catholics “to pray for restoration of parish activities as soon as possible.”

The opposition-linked Christian Vision organization said an “immediate public investigation” should be launched into the fire, which was blamed officially on faulty wiring. The organization said Catholic representatives should also be allowed access to assess the church’s current condition. †

Pope names seven new members to life academy

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Pope Francis has named Mariana Mazzucato, a leading economist advocating for sustainable growth, and Dr. John N. Nkengasong, the U.S. global AIDS coordinator and special representative for global health diplomacy at the U.S. Department of State, as members of the Pontifical Academy for Life. They were among the seven new members the pope named as “ordinary academicians” Oct. 15.

Mazzucato, 54, who holds U.S. and Italian citizenship, is professor in the “economics of innovation and public value” at University College London, where she is founding director of the university’s Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose. She graduated from Tufts University and The New School for Social Research in New York. Nkengasong is a Cameroonian-American virologist with more than 30 years of experience in public health.

The other ordinary members the pope named are:

• Archbishop Carlos Castillo Mattasoglio of Lima, Peru, a theologian with long experience in student and university pastoral care;

• Federico de Montalvo Jääskeläinen, a professor in Spain and expert in constitutional law, human rights, civil liberties and medical law and bioethics;

• Saad al-Din Mosaad Helaly, a professor of Islamic jurisprudence at Al-Azhar University in Egypt;

• Dr. Jean-Marie Okwo-Bele, a public health expert and consultant from Congo, former director of the department of immunization, vaccines and biologicals of the World Health Organization; and

• Sheila Dinotshe Tlou, an educator and nurse specializing in HIV/AIDS and women’s health, former minister of health for Botswana and former director of the World Health Organization’s Collaborating Center for Nursing and Midwifery Development in Primary Health Care. †

Full descriptions for each open position are available online: www.archgh.org/ employment

Downtown Chancery | 1700 San Jacinto | Houston, TX 77002

Accounting: Accounts Payable Coordinator

Communications: Media Technician Coordinator

Internal Audit Department: Internal Auditor

Parish Accounting Services: Staff Accountant I Staff Accountant II

St. Dominic Chancery | 2403 Holcombe Blvd. | Houston, TX 77021

Hospital Catholic Chaplain Corps: Director Hospital Catholic Chaplain Corps: Priest Chaplain

Interested candidates may send a cover letter, with salary requirement, and resume to resume@archgh.org with the job title on the subject line.

*Submissions that do not include the salary requirement will not be moved forward for consideration.

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“Let us follow the example of St. Francis of Assisi and take care of our common home.”

“Let us follow the example of St. Francis of Assisi and take care of our common home.”

– Pope Francis

CNS PHOTO

Pope Francis waves to the crowd as he leads the Angelus from the window of his studio overlooking St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican Oct. 16.

STATE & NATION

Catholic Mobilizing Network names award in Archbishop Fiorenza’s honor

WASHINGTON (CNS) — At an Oct. 10 ceremony at the Vatican Embassy in Washington, Catholic advocates working to bring an end to the death penalty acknowledged leaders in the fight against capital punishment in the U.S.

They also vowed to remain committed to the ongoing work of building the culture of life.

About 200 people attended the event, held on World Day Against the Death Penalty and sponsored by Catholic Mobilizing Network, a national Catholic organization working to end the death penalty and promote restorative justice.

The apostolic nuncio, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, welcomed guests to the “house of the pope” and called it fitting that they gathered there because of the pope’s support of their work and his own statements against the death penalty.

The nuncio pointed particularly to Pope Francis’ revision of the Catechism of the Catholic Church four years ago to say capital punishment is “inadmissible

BRIEF

because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person.”

The archbishop urged those involved with the work of Catholic Mobilizing Network not to give up. “Keep going! Be bold!” he told them, emphasizing that “together we can build a culture of life.”

During the event, Catholic Mobilizing Network officials presented Wilton Cardinal Gregory of Washington with the “Archbishop Fiorenza Dignity & Life Award” for his longtime commitment to raising awareness of capital punishment as a critical life issue for U.S. Catholics.

The award is named in memory of Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza, a longtime death penalty abolitionist who died in September at age 91.

Cardinal Gregory said it was an honor to accept the award because he was “privileged to call Archbishop Fiorenza a cherished friend and mentor.” He said the archbishop spoke out against the death penalty even as the state of Texas, where he ministered, continued to use it.

Life without parole for school shooter called ‘severe and just punishment’

MIAMI (CNS) — There is “no question” the actions of the Parkland, Florida, school shooter “were heinous,” but “a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole is a severe and just punishment,” said Miami Archbishop Thomas G. Wenski.

This sentence also will allow Nikolas Cruz, now 24, “to continue to reflect on the grave harm he caused,” the archbishop said in a statement Oct. 13.

Earlier in the day, a jury at the Broward County Courthouse in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, rejected the prosecution’s request for the death penalty in the case and instead recommended life with no chance for parole.

“While not excusing his actions, it is clear that multiple and systemic breakdowns within family services, police and the public school system failed him and the rest of us as well,” Archbishop Wenski said. “Seemingly nobody recognized the inadequacies in Mr. Cruz’s life or the state of his mental health.” Cruz’s “numerous threats of violence that preceded the mass murder were addressed inadequately, if at all,” he added.

On Feb. 14, 2018, a 19-year-old Cruz used a semi-automatic rifle to kill 14 students and three staff members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland in Broward County. Fourteen others were wounded. The jury foreman told reporters that three jurors ultimately voted against the death penalty. Florida law requires a jury to be unanimous in deciding on a death sentence. †

Cardinal Turkson visits New Orleans congregation whose founder is up for sainthood

NEW ORLEANS (CNS) — The Sisters of the Holy Family used a recent visit by Peter Cardinal Turkson to update him on the status of the sainthood cause for Mother Henriette Delille, the free woman of color who founded the congregation in New Orleans in 1842.

Mother Delille was declared “venerable” by Pope Benedict XVI in 2010 after what is now called the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints approved historical documentation that she had practiced a life of “heroic virtue.”

After eating breakfast with 35 sisters at the motherhouse Sept. 28, Cardinal Turkson was briefed for 15 minutes on Mother Delille’s cause by Sister Alicia Costa, congregational leader; former congregational leader Sister Sylvia Thibodeaux, head of the Delille Commission Office; and Sister Jean Martinez, assistant congregational leader.

Documents detailing an alleged miraculous healing through Mother Delille’s intercession were submitted to the dicastery, also in 2010, but the sisters were told by the sainthood congregation that more information was needed.

In 2016, an investigation into another alleged miracle was launched by the Diocese of Little Rock, which issued a decree of judicial validity Dec. 7, 2018. The sisters are awaiting the results of that process. If that miracle is approved by the Vatican panel and, ultimately, by the pope, Mother Delille would be declared “blessed,” the third step in the canonization process. Another miracle would be needed for Mother Delille’s canonization.

Cardinal Turkson praised the sisters for continuing the 180-year ministry of their foundress, who educated the enslaved at a time in pre-Civil War New Orleans when that was against the law. Mother Delille also opened up a home to care for elderly African Americans. †

“If he were here with us this evening, he would encourage the members of Catholic Mobilizing Network to continue with your advocacy to end the death penalty,” the cardinal said.

Cardinal Gregory added that he would continue to lend his voice to the chorus of many others, including the pope, to end this practice.

The group also presented Vicki and Syl Schieber, a Catholic couple, with the “Reimagining Justice Award.” The couple’s daughter Shannon was murdered in 1998, and they launched a successful campaign against pursuing capital punishment in her case even though the district attorney had initially wanted to pursue it.

Since then, the couple has continued to publicly advocate against the death penalty.

Vicki Schieber said she and her husband would not have been at the evening’s event or receiving the award without the support that many in the room had given them over the years.

Syl Schieber said he and his wife had relied on their faith to sustain them and to respond as they did after their daughter’s death.

He said they had both prayed the Lord’s Prayer “thousands of times” and knew that the message of asking for forgiveness required “that we forgive those who trespass against us,” but it wasn’t until they went through their ordeal that they truly understood what it meant to forgive others.

“We both realized that if we could not stand by our principles when it was difficult, then they were simply not our principles,” he said.

Syl Schieber joked that the American philosopher of baseball fame, Yogi Berra, noted that “when you come to a fork in the road, take it.”

“There were no directional signs at our fork in the road, but our faith turned us in the right direction even as the police and the prosecutors were pushing us in the other direction,” he said.

He also noted that many people they have met in the same predicament “have chosen the other path” of seeking the death penalty and have waited decades, or are still waiting, for executions — which takes its toll on family relationships and mental health.

“If we can help survivors in these cases choose the better path when they are at their fork in the road, it would be a tremendous tonic for their longterm welfare and accelerant for further elimination of the death penalty,” Syl Schieber said, adding that he was grateful that God had given him and his wife the “vision to see the better path.”

In closing remarks, Krisanne Vaillancourt Murphy, executive director of Catholic Mobilizing Network, noted the group is “the only national faithbased organization dedicated to ending the death penalty.”

Over the past 13 years, she said, its work has been to “wade into the murkiest depths of the criminal legal system and

Karen Clifton, founder of Catholic Mobilizing Net work, stands with Washington Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory at the Vatican Embassy in Washington Oct. 10, which was the World Day Against the Death Penalty. The cardinal received the Archbish op Fiorenza Dignity and Life Award during a cer emony sponsored by Catholic Mobilizing Network, a national Catholic organization working to end the death penalty and promote restorative justice.

proclaim the good news Jesus came to share — that another way of doing justice is possible.”

She said so many churchgoing Catholics “still cling to revenge as a way to tolerate or justify the practice of the death penalty,” but opponents of the death penalty also are not alone.

For example, she said earlier that day a group of Catholic leaders sent a letter to Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt urging him to stop the state’s plan to execute one person a month for the next two years.

Vaillancourt Murphy said advocates of ending the death penalty should be energized and emboldened in the work they are doing together and also be encouraged by signs of hope, including Virginia’s outlawing of the death penalty last year. †

CNS PHOTO

MUNDO CATÓLICO

En el libro del Apocalipsis leemos “Mira que hago un mundo nuevo” (21,5). Con estas palabras, hay una afirmación gozosa de aquellos que creemos en el Señor. Los primeros discípulos de Jesús no fueron enviados a cambiar el mundo desde el primer día que tuvieron un encuentro con Jesús de Nazaret. Ellos tuvieron que conocer a Jesús a un nivel profundo y personal, tuvieron que dejarse guiar por el Espíritu Santo y hacer uso de su memoria para contar al mundo lo que Jesús hizo en Israel antes de salir a evangelizar. La misma dinámica sucede hoy en día, el primer paso antes de salir a evangelizar es dejarse encontrar por El, de “renovar ahora mismo su encuentro personal con Jesucristo” como lo dijese Papa Francisco en su exhortación Evangelii Gaudium

Este renovar, es avivar ese encuentro con Jesus Eucarístico. Para esto, la Conferencia de Obispos Católicos de los Estados Unidos en noviembre del 2021 se anuncio un Avivamiento Eucarístico Nacional con un proceso de tres años. Este Avivamiento Eucarístico busca renovar la Iglesia católica de los Estados Unidos a través de una mayor apreciación del misterio Eucarístico, de la presencia sacrificial de Jesucristo que es la razón

Avivamiento Eucarístico Nacional by ADRIAN HERRERA

misma de la existencia de la Iglesia en primer lugar. Al final de este proceso de tres años, habrá un congreso eucarístico nacional en Indianápolis. En el corazón de esta renovación local, se espera un compromiso renovado de cada parroquia, escuela y familia para convertirse en lo recibido en la Eucaristía, comunión de amor derramada por la vida del mundo.

Este proceso no es un programa, no es un texto, libro o serie de reuniones, es más bien, un tiempo de gracia dedicado a la conversión, un tiempo dedicado a un encuentro mas profundo con el Señor Eucarístico, es un tiempo de renovación, de aprender, de crecer, de compartir. Es un tiempo de acrecentar, de volver a encender nuestro amor, de volver a enamorarnos del Señor en la Eucaristía y querer recibirlo. Es un tiempo para contemplar su presencia Real bajo las dos especies. Es reflexionar e interiorizar ¿qué significa ser el Pueblo de Dios, el Cuerpo Místico de Cristo? Y a la vez, teniendo a Cristo en el centro de nuestras

vidas, es fomentar una comunión de amor que pueda transformar cada grieta y hendidura de nuestra sociedad tan polarizada.

Como veremos, es un tiempo propicio para que todas las familias sin importar la edad nos dejemos transformar por su presencia Real en la Eucaristía y reconozcamos este regalo, y gran amor que Dios nos ofrece que es su Cuerpo y su Sangre.

¿Cómo hago para enamorarme profundamente de la Eucaristía?

Les propongo cinco formas iniciales de como acrecentar el amor por la Eucaristía:

• Una forma es asistir a Misa los domingos y al momento de acercarse a recibir la Sagrada comunión puede orar como el Padre del niño epiléptico que Jesús curó “¡Creo, pero ayúdame a tener más fe!” (Mc 9,24b).

• Una segunda forma es, hacer el hábito de visitar al Santísimo Sacramento como

le sea posible. Y estando allí, hablar con Jesús como lo hacemos con los amigos.

• Una tercera forma es, tener el hábito de meditar el evangelio del día, en especial el capitulo 6 del Evangelio de Juan

• Una cuarta forma es, leer la vida de los santos, ya que sus vidas reflejan el amor grande que tuvieron por Jesús aquí en la tierra. El Papa San Pio X conocido como el Papa del Santísimo Sacramento dijo “La Sagrada Eucaristía es la manera mas corta y más rápida para llegar al Cielo”.

• Una quinta forma es, cuando le sea posible, trate de asistir a Misa diariamente y dedique un tiempo al final de cada Misa dando gracias a Dios por las gracias recibidas. †

Adrian Alberto Herrera es actual mente Director Asociado para la Oficina de Evangelización y Catequesis en la Arquidiócesis.

APOYO PASTORAL A VÍCTIMAS DE ABUSO SEXUAL DEL

THE

Catholic school’s long-standing dance tradition goes viral in a big way

SEATTLE (CNS) — For years, the cheer squad and some courageous teachers have shown off their dance moves during the homecoming assembly at Bishop Blanchet High School in Seattle.

It’s always a fun moment, but this year something very different happened: A video of the “Supersonic Dance” tradition went viral in a big way.

“On our platforms alone, we have had close to 20 million views worldwide, and the video has been reposted by several major outlets, including ESPN, Inside Edition, USA Today, Goodnews Movement, Highlight Her and King5 News,” Julie Gallaudet, the Catholic high school’s marketing and communications director, said Oct. 4.

Along with those views have come “well over 20,000 comments — and they are truly heartfelt,” Gallaudet told Northwest Catholic, news outlet of the Seattle Archdiocese.

“Love seeing teachers connect with students and just having fun!!!” one commenter said. “Best thing ever! What an incredible school this must be!” another wrote. “It’s teachers like that that change lives. Awesome,” another person noted.

The video also was reposted on TikTok by the official account of J.J. Fad, the artists who released “Supersonic” in 1988: “Had to repost because @BishopBlanchet rocked

Vatican basilica provides background for new film on St. Peter

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — For two weeks in October, the facade of St. Peter’s Basilica will be the screen for the nighttime showing of a short film about the life, the call and the ministry of St. Peter. The eight-minute 3D film, using art from the basilica and from the Vatican Museums, will be projected onto the facade every 15 minutes from 9 to 11 p.m. Oct. 2 to 16. The narration is in Italian, with subtitles in English.

“What are the features of the church? What is its true face? That of the pope? The scandals? Its missionaries? Its doctrine and catechism? Its social commitment?” asked Mauro Cardinal Gambetti, archpriest of the basilica.

While all those are part of the Church, the cardinal told reporters on Sept. 20, “sometimes you need to dust off the mirror” and provide a clearer, more basic image of the Church to both believers and visitors, which is why the basilica wants to present to the public the life and faith of St. Peter. Conventual Franciscan Father Agnello Stoia, pastor of the basilica, said the millions of people who cross the basilica’s threshold each year include pilgrims wanting to renew their faith but also many visitors simply attracted by the majesty and beauty of the art, architecture and history of the basilica. Both types of visitors must be welcomed, he said, and helped to understand why the Church, built

this!! You guys are definitely ‘Supersonic.’”

During Blanchet’s Sept. 23 homecoming assembly, the “Supersonic Dance” was performed twice — by members of the cheer squad with other students, and

over the tomb of St. Peter, is so important to Catholics and to Christians in general. †

Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is ‘monument of humanity,’ says architect

WASHINGTON (CNS) — The Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris is “a monument of humanity,” French architect Philippe Villeneuve told a Washington audience.

He spoke during a recent program at the National Building Museum on the project to restore the cathedral nearly three and a half years after a calamitous fire engulfed its roof and collapsed the spire.

Villeneuve, the chief architect of historical monuments in charge of the cathedral, was joined by his colleague Rémi Fromont, also a chief architect of historical monuments there. Their remarks were delivered in French and translated live into English by Lindsay Cook, assistant teaching professor of architectural history in the Department of Art History at Pennsylvania State University.

Their Sept. 26 lecture was titled “Notre Dame de Paris: Restoring a Legacy.” A February 2022 cover story in National Geographic magazine noted that Villeneuve has led restoration efforts at Notre Dame Cathedral since 2013, work that became urgent after the April 2019 fire.

Villeneuve thanked those in the museum audience, saying: “It is amazing to see, 6,000 kilometers away from Paris, the same spirit that we ourselves have for Notre Dame.” †

again with the cheer members and the teachers.

Gallaudet posted the all-student video on TikTok that afternoon and it quickly got nearly 1 million views. She decided to post the teacher version the next day; by that afternoon, it was up to 4 million views and ESPN was calling about it.

Based on the comments, one of the favorite teacher performers was “yellow pants” — Taryn Darr, Blanchet’s drama

RATINGS By

director, who has the advantage of a background in professional song, dance and theater.

The student body let out an especially loud cheer for the final teacher in the dance line — Dom Salle, who teaches social studies and is the head football coach.

According to Gallaudet, the “Supersonic” music has been used since 1989, and the cheer squad-teacher combo has been a tradition for at least 15 years.

The cheer squad members come up with eight-count dance moves, then ask teachers to participate and teach them the moves, she explained. At the assembly, the pairs of cheer students and teachers line up in crouched positions, each pair popping up when it’s time to show their moves.

“It’s always kind of exciting to see the different dances and the different teachers and the different energy or synergy,” Gallaudet said.

She mused that this year’s video was so popular because it hit a chord with people after the pandemic, showcasing “the simple joy of high school spirit, the wonderful graciousness of our teachers willing to go above and beyond, the act of just being together post-COVID shutdown (and) having genuine fun at school.”

Blanchet is enjoying its viral fame, Gallaudet said.

“It’s a great community moment,” she said. “It really reflects our culture as a place that supports each other.”

The Blanchet video also can be viewed on the school’s YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter platforms. †

U

M – MATURE VIEWERS

TEENS

LIMITED MATURE AUDIENCE

UNSUITABLE FOR

PASTORAL SUPPORT FOR VICTIMS OF CLERGY SEXUAL ABUSE

In a continuing effort to provide pastoral care to victims of sexual abuse by clergy or Church personnel, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo would like to remind the faithful of the Archdiocese of the availability of the Victims Assistance Coordinator. Anyone who has been the victim of sexual abuse by clergy or Church personnel is encouraged to call Diane Vines at 713-654-5799. Please keep in daily prayers the healing of victims of abuse and all who suffer in any way.

CNS PHOTO

A cheer squad member and a teacher perform during the “Supersonic” dance at Bishop Blanchet High School’s homecoming assembly in Seattle Sept. 23. The dance is a long-standing tradition, but this year a video of it went viral after it was posted on the school’s TikTok account, garnering nearly 20 million views and 20,000-plus comments.

AROUND THE ARCHDIOCESE

Editor’s Note: Contact event organizers for the latest updates. For deadline details and more listings, visit WWW.ARCHGH.ORG/ATA.

OCT. 29

HALLOWEEN DANCE , 7 to 10 p.m., St. Ignatius of Loyola Christus Center (7810 Cypresswood Dr., Spring). St. Ignatius of Loyola Women’s Club hosts an evening of dinner, drinks, dancing with DJ Terry Parker and a costume contest. Cost: $50 per person ($55 at the door) includes Italian dinner and two drinks. Womensclub@ silcc.org; www.ignatiusloyola.org/events/ halloween-dance-fundraiser

OCT. 30

HALLOWEEN FESTIVAL , 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School (10114 Hwy 6, Hitchcock). This child-centered, family friendly event offers a costume contest, “Punkin’ Rock” entertainment, new games, prizes, haunted house, vendors, giant turkey legs, carnival foods, cake wheel and more. Open to the public. Free parking. 409-925-3224; ololcs.org

RELICS EXHIBITION , 3 p.m. to 6 p.m., St. Anthony of Padua (7801 Bay Branch Dr., The Woodlands). Father Carlos Martins, a Vaticanappointed expert on sacred relics, will be bringing his extraordinary collection of relics. Come view and venerate saints. Free and open to the public. ap.church/treasures

ANNIVERSARY MASS , 2 p.m., Annunciation (1618 Texas Ave., Houston). Charity Guild of Catholic Women celebrate their 100th Anniversary.

NOV. 1

FESTIVAL , 5 to 8:30 p.m., St. Anthony of Padua (7801 Bay Branch Dr., The Woodlands). Celebrate the Solemnity of All Saints Day with games, crafts, food and more. Come dressed as your favorite saint. Free and open to the public. ap.church/saintsfest

NOV. 4

ICE CREAM SOCIAL , 7 to 8:30 p.m., Holy Rosary (3617 Milam St., Houston). The Dominicans of Mary Immaculate Province, better known as the Houston Astros’ “Rally Nuns,” are hosting an ice cream social for attendees to learn this Dominican congregation of religious sisters and their apostolates in the Archdiocese.

NOV. 5

RUMMAGE SALE , 7 a.m. to 4 p.m., St. Mary (8227 CR 205, Plantersville). Annual rummage sale is among the largest in Montgomery and Grimes counties.

CONFERENCE , 9:15 a.m. to 3:40 p.m., St. Faustina (28102 FM 1093, Fulshear). Conference celebrates Our Lady of Guadalupe with presentations in English and Spanish. Free, open to the public. Lunch provided.

CRAFT SHOW , 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic School (10114 Hwy 6, Hitchcock). Shop for a variety of handmade arts, crafts, unique gifts, home-decorating treasures and more at open pavilion. Crafters are invited to rent space. Free parking. 409925-3224; ololcs.org

NOV. 5-6

BAZAAR , Holy Ghost (6921 Chetwood Dr., Houston). Annual bazaar celebrates the parish and school 75th anniversary and features grand raffle, games, rides, food and live music.

NOV. 10

NIGHT OF PRAISE , 7 p.m., Sacred Heart (704 Old Montgomery Rd., Conroe). Features singer/ songwriter Cody Carnes, Woodlands Worship and Sam McCabe. miraclecitycollective.com

NOV. 11

Around the Archdiocese

VETERANS DAY CELEBRATIONS , 5:15 to 8:45 p.m., Holy Rosary (3617 Milam St., Houston). Veterans Day Mass begins at 5:15 p.m. with veteran and Dominican priest Father Ian Bordenave, OP, as celebrant and homilist, followed by a reception. At 7:15 p.m., Retired U.S. Army Colonel, Sister Diedre Byrne, POSC, will lead a Rosary for the nation. Rosaries will be available. At 7:45 p.m., Sister Byrne speak about her vocation story.

NOV. 11 - 12

SEMINAR ON THE EUCHARIST , Friday, Nov. 11: 6:30 to 9 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at St. Laurence - Ave Maria Parish Life Center (3103 Sweetwater Blvd., Sugar Land). “Feast of Faith: The Transforming Power of the Eucharist,” with Marcellino D’Ambrosio includes four talks. Cost: $20 per person. Register: stlaurence.org/ feast. 281-265-5774; jfrato@stlaurence.org.

NOV. 12

FESTIVAL , 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., St. Luke the Evangelist (11011 Hall Rd., Houston). Features food, DJ music, craft sale, raffle and kids activities. Free admission. fallfest@ stlukescatholic.com

GALA , 6 to 11 p.m., Frassati Catholic High School (22151 Frassati Way). Blue & Gray Gala will celebrate 10 years of Frassati Catholic. Cost of ticket is $150, or $1,100 for a table for eight. 832-616-3231; m.hill@frassaticatholic.org

CRAFT SHOW , 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., St. Hyacinth (2921 Center St., Deer Park). Catholic Daughters Court #2361 is sponsoring craft show featuring vendors for holiday shopping, jewelry, soaps, food and more. Free admission, rain or shine. cda2361craftshow@gmail.com

NOV. 12-13

BAZAAR , St. Peter Claver (6005 N Wayside Dr., Houston). From Saturday, 12 to 8 p.m., music is by Jose De La Cruz. Sunday, 12 to 4 p.m. is Jamming J, and Step Rideau and the Zydeco Outlaws from 4 to 8 p.m. The event also features Bingo in English and Spanish, family entertainment, and Creole and Mexican food. Free admission.

NOV. 13

FESTIVAL , 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Holy Family (7122 Whiting Rock St., Baytown). Features games, music, silent auction, Sweet Treats booth, international food (Creole, BBQ, burgers, Caribbean and Hispanic) and raffle tickets at $5 each. 281-426-8448

NOV. 17

HOLIDAY MARKET , 1 p.m. to 8 p.m., St. Laurence Ave Maria Parish Life Center (3013 Sweetwater Blvd., Sugar Land, 77479). Hosted by the St. Laurence Ladies Guild, the Shop Til U Drop Charity Holiday Market features over 70 vendors, selling seasonal gifts, home décor, toys, jewelry, food items and more. Admission is free. Food, drinks and desserts are available for purchase. All proceeds benefit charity. stlaurence.org/shop-til-u-drop

NOV. 18

PRESENTATION AND MOVIE , 7 p.m., Holy Rosary (3617 Milam St., Houston). The church will host a veteran vocation series with Lay Dominicans Wendy Clark, OP, and retired Major Celia Clay, OP, as they present the inspiring stories of military chaplains, Father Emil Kaupan (Korean War Veteran) and Father Vincent Capodanno, M.M. (Vietnam War Veteran). After the presentation, the EWTN movie “Called & Chosen” about Father Capodanno’s life will be shown.

Award dinner to support the education of priests from China

HOUSTON — Spiritan China Education Fund for Advanced Formation will host its third Father Matteo Ricci, SJ, Dinner on Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 6 p.m., at Ocean Palace Seafood Restaurant.

The benefit dinner seeks to raise funds for the formation of Chinese priests/nuns and improve awareness of the situation in the Church in China.

In the previous dinners, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo and Auxiliary Bishop George A. Sheltz joined local faithful in solidarity with the Catholic Church in China. Cardinal DiNardo received the Our Lady of China Award in 2017, which, this year, will be given postmortem to the late Bishop Sheltz. The Charity and Service Award will go to the Knights of Columbus Phil Kelley Council 6878.

With Father Tommy Chen from the Diocese of Victoria being the Master of Ceremonies and Scanlan Foundation the honorary chair, the event will feature talks by Chinese priests studying in the U.S.

“Adding to the educational part, we are showing our friends the best of Chinese culture,” said Peter Tan, event chair, former Diocesan deputy and past chapter president of the Knights of Columbus of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. “We will have martial art by our local Chinese pastor, folk dance and ancient Chinese musical instruments by Chinese children, etc. People really felt entertained last time.”

Founded by Father Donald Nesti, CSSp, the China Education Fund aims to bring Chinese priests and sisters to Houston for graduate study, so they can return home to evangelize better.

NOV. 19

DINNER , 6 p.m., The Revaire (7122 Old Katy Rd., Houston). Wine & Dine dinner benefits Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese features a curated four-course dinner with sommelierselected wine pairings from around the world. Event also includes welcome reception at 6

Father Yifu Lyu, the first student brought from China six years ago, is now shepherding his flock in China after obtaining his master’s degree at the University of St. Thomas.

“I want to express my deepest gratitude for those who helped my English, life and academic struggles. Your generosity in Christ has equipped me to make a deeper impact when back home. I keep each of your souls in Houston in my prayer.”

“We had our second Chinese priest just graduated and now is pursuing another degree in the U.S.,” said Professor Patrick Leung, chair of China Education Fund. “We are working hard to educate the third priest in Houston and bring a nun here from China. We will bring them here, no matter how huge the hurdles. We need your continued support to help cultivate leaders for the Church in China, one at a time.”

“Sponsoring their formation is perhaps the most practical and visionary way to lend your helping hand to the Church in China,” said JP Liu, a board member of the fund. “Myself being a sixth-generation Chinese Catholic, let me admit that building solidarity overseas is not easy, but it is a worthy cause. Through our prior success, we witness the return of American investment in the People of God.”

Those interested in engaging with the Church in China can refer to U.S. Catholic China Association at www. uscatholicchina.org.

To register for the event, email pkleung@ccim.net to register. Any financial support is welcome. †

p.m., wine pull, mystery wine game during dinner and live auction with one-of-a-kind luxury items.

NOV. 20

HERITAGE MASS AND FESTIVAL , 3 p.m., St. Cyril of Alexandria (10503 Westheimer Rd., Houston).

Third annual Archdiocesan African Cultural

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SPIRITAN CHINA EDUCATION FUND FOR ADVANCED FORMATION Left to right, Professor Patrick Leung, chair of China Education Fund; Father Yifu Lyu, first student sponsored by the fund; Father Donald Nesti, founder of the fund; and Peter Tan, vice chair of the fund.

MILESTONES

Forever Healing: Centennial celebration caps San José Clinic’s 100th year

HOUSTON — San José Clinic (SJC) hosted its Forever Healing: Centennial Celebration event and raised over $1.03 million to recognize the history, collaborations and partnerships that have helped the clinic endeavor for 100 years of healing underserved and uninsured citizens.

On Oct. 7, the San José Clinic board of directors, advisory board, and Event Chairs Katherine and Brian S. Parsley, M.D., hosted its Forever Healing: Centennial Celebration with an evening of history and commemoration, including a reception, dinner, wine pull, live auction and more at the Marriott Marquis Houston.

Among the honorees of the event was Archbishop Emeritus Joseph A. Fiorenza, and Bishop George A. Sheltz was an honorary chair.

For a century of care, San José Clinic has led the way in serving the underserved and uninsured populations of the Greater Houston area. As a ministry of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, a member institution of the worldrenowned Texas Medical Center and a United Way of Greater Houston partner, the clinic stands out as a premiere multi-

disciplinary charity clinic.

“As we lean forward into our next century, our vision remains clear — providing access to a healthier future of all, inspired by faith, driven by innovation and powered by the human spirit,” Maureen Sanders, president and CEO of San José Clinic.

As Houston’s oldest safety net clinic, San José Clinic takes pride in its mission to provide healing through quality healthcare and education with respect and compassion for those with limited access to care. In the next century, the clinic hopes to bridge the health gap between the privileged and the uninsured population, who often fall between the cracks of a challenging healthcare system without the clinic’s help. With dignified services and generations of volunteers, donors and patients, the clinic leaders believe they have the people in place to accomplish the clinic’s future goals to save lives and establish a culture where health is a priority.

“The clinic’s triumphs could be attributed to the dedication of the many volunteers, staff members and charitable supporters. With their support, San José

Vocations honored at Fishers of Men dinner

Clinic may look forward to another 100 years of providing high-quality, dignified healthcare to our friends and neighbors,” Daniel Cardinal DiNardo.

More information regarding San José Clinic’s Forever Healing: Centennial Celebration is available at www. sanjoseclinic.org/centennial. †

Humanitarian Roz Hill receives UST’s Faithful Citizenship Award for her ‘Love in Action’

HOUSTON — “Love in Action…. Humanity in a World of Brokenness” was the theme for the 12th annual Faithful Citizenship Dinner sponsored by the University of St. ThomasHouston’s Nesti Center for Faith & Culture held at the River Oaks Country Club on Friday, Oct. 7.

More than 300 attended to celebrate the life and accomplishments of Humanitarian Roz Hill, who received the Faithful Citizenship Award from the University of St. ThomasHouston’s Nesti Center for Faith & Culture for her love in action displayed through philanthropic endeavors, successfully contributing to the welfare of others.

HOUSTON — On Oct. 4, hundreds of supporters came together at the Lakeside Country Club to celebrate the ninth Annual Fishers of Men Dinner benefiting the Guadalupe Radio Network (GRN).

Because GRN is committed to promoting holy vocations, this year’s Fishers of Men award was given to Father Richard McNeillie for his strong work as vocations director at the Archdiocese. After dinner, Daniel Cardinal

DiNardo exhorted everyone to consider the celebration of Mass as the highest Eucharistic activity. Both Cardinal DiNardo and Father McNeillie were presented with custom embroidered stoles featuring images of Our Lady of Guadalupe and a Castilian Rose. GRN is an affiliate of EWTN and broadcasts in Houston on AM 1430, in Jersey Village on FM 96.1, and online at www.GRNonline. com. †

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Daniel Cardinal DiNardo delivered the invocation, while Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro closed the evening with a prayer. Father Donald Nesti, CSSp, and Charlene Brandau spoke of Hill’s accomplishments.

For 28 years, the Nesti Center for Faith & Culture has brought the Catholic voice to the ongoing conversation about the meaning of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness held in common as Americans. The center’s mission is to educate faithful

citizens to understand and impact the many facets of our American culture through dialogue and articulating a God-centered vision of the world and how that vision strengthens institutions that govern the American people.

The center’s pragmatic offerings serve local and regional civic society in Texas and beyond by curating insightful, contemporary thinking on today’s social challenges. To learn more about the center, go to www. stthom.edu/cfc. †

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PHOTO COURTESY OF SAN JOSÉ CLINIC Pictured, from left to right, are Maureen Sanders, president and CEO of San José Clinic; Sister Celeste Trahan, Congregation of the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word; Brian S. Parsley, MD and Katherine Parsley, Centennial Event Chairs; and Daniel Cardinal DiNardo.

PHOTO COURTESY OF GUADALUPE RADIO NETWORK

Father Richard McNeillie, Archdiocesan director of Vocations, was given the Fishers of Men award as part of the ninth Annual Fishers of Men Dinner. Father McNeillie’s parents Janie and Jim McNeillie were in attendance.

ROZ HILL