Canon, civil law collide on seal of confession, says expert
▪ SEE PAGE 14
Celebrating 60 years of Catholic news in Texas
VOCATIONS
MEET THE PERMANENT DIACONATE CLASS OF 2025
40 men are set to be ordained to the Permanent Diaconate this month, joining a growing number of clergy serving the Church ▪ SEE PAGE 6
FAITH ALIVE
Holy
Black
Catholics:
Meet six African American candidates for canonization
(OSV News) — We are greatly blessed by the contributions of Black Catholics in the Church in the U.S., particularly their illuminating legacy of holiness. The struggles and pain faced by the African American community are succinctly captured in the lives of these six Black Catholics now being considered for canonization. In them, we can find the greatest of human characteristics, truly men and women for our times.
VENERABLE PIERRE TOUSSAINT
(1766–1853)
Born a slave in Haiti, Toussaint came to New York with a French Haitian family who freed him in 1807. As a successful hairdresser, he used his earnings to buy freedom for his sister and future wife, Juliette. Together, the Toussaints spent their lives in service to the poor and needy. When urged to retire and enjoy his remaining years, Toussaint is quoted as saying, “I have enough for myself, but if I stop working, I have not enough for See CATHOLICS, page 7
Proclaiming the Good News to the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston since 1964
CRY OUT WITH JOY TO THE LORD
Launching the 2025 DSF campaign
HOUSTON — As St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans reminds us, each and every Christian is called to cry out with joy to the Lord in our words, in our thoughts and in our deeds. And that’s why it is the theme of this year’s Diocesan Services Fund campaign. • SEE PAGE 4
THE HOLY FATHER’S PRAYER INTENTIONS FOR FEBRUARY
Pope prays for Church that accompanies young people in discernment
February papal intention is for vocations to priesthood, religious life
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The Church must welcome young people and embrace their desires and doubts to bring them closer to Jesus and ultimately open them up to receiving God’s call, Pope Francis said.
“God still calls young people even today, sometimes in ways we can’t imagine,” the pope said in a video message to present his prayer intention for the month of February: “For vocations to the priesthood and religious life.”
“Sometimes we don’t hear because we’re too busy with our own things, our own plans, even with our own things in the Church,” Pope Francis said in his message released by the Vatican Feb. 4. “But the Holy Spirit also speaks to us through dreams and speaks to us through the concerns young people feel in their hearts.”
The pope said that by accompanying young people in their life journeys, “we’ll see how God is doing new things with them, and we’ll be able to welcome His call in ways that better serve the Church and the world today.”
Pope Francis called for prayers so that the Church may “welcome the desires and doubts of those young people who feel called to live Jesus’ mission in life, either through the priestly life or religious life.”
“Let us trust young people,” he said. “And let us trust God, for He calls everyone.” †
A WITNESS TO LIFE AT THE STATE CAPITOL
Pope Francis gathers with a group of religious sisters for a group photo at the end of his weekly general audience in the Paul VI Audience Hall at the Vatican Feb. 28, 2024. The papal intention for February is “for vocations to the priesthood and religious life.”
WATCH AND LEARN
Scan to watch this month’s prayer video from Pope Francis
St. Mary’s Seminary 9845 Memorial Dr. Houston, TX 77024
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE TEXAS CATHOLIC CONFERENCE
At left, Archbishop-Designate Joe S. Vásquez, second from left, is seen with San Angelo Bishop Michael J. Sis and San Antonio Auxiliary Bishop Gary W. Janak at the steps of the Texas State Capitol in Austin after the Texas Rally for Life. ArchbishopDesignate Vásquez gave the invocation and opening prayer to the rally. Ahead of the gathering, Archbishop-Designate Vásquez celebrated a Mass for Life in Austin. Hundreds also attended from the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston from at least seven parishes. Part of the rally included a baby supply drive, which collected more than 40,000 diapers and 13,000 wipes, to support local pregnancy centers.
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Nearly 60 men are currently in formation to become the next generations of priests at St. Mary’s Seminary in Houston. These men spend anywhere from 5 to 7 years preparing for their Ordination to the Priesthood.
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THE FIRST WORD
ASIAN CATHOLICS CELEBRATE LUNAR NEW YEAR
Lunar New Year coinciding with Jubilee Year seen as time for ‘change, renewal’
HOUSTON (OSV News) — From Spring to Asiatown, Asian Catholics at parishes around the Archdiocese ushered in the Lunar New Year with a series of Masses and celebrations.
Among these parishes, at Christ the Incarnate Word Parish near Houston’s Asiatown, a troupe of lion dancers rushed through a storm of firecrackers. A large puppet dragon paraded through the grounds near the parish hall and church, where thousands attended Mass on Jan. 28, the eve of the Lunar New Year. Traditional Lunar New Year dishes were served as Father Thu Ngoc Nguyen, pastor, and Father Joseph Tien Phuong Bui, parochial vicar, greeted parishioners and visitors with li xi, or lucky red envelopes.
Coinciding with the Catholic Church’s Jubilee Year, the Lunar New Year “can be a time of change and renewal” of faith, two U.S. bishops’ committee chairmen said in a special message to Catholics from Asian cultures who celebrate the Lunar New Year. “We wish you and your families many blessings for a joyous and peace-filled Lunar New Year,” said Bishop Robert J. Brennan of Brooklyn, New York, and Bishop Earl K. Fernandes of Columbus, Ohio, in a Jan. 28 message issued with their blessings on behalf of all the bishops. They chair the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (USCCB) Committee on Cultural Diversity in the Church and its Subcommittee on Asian and Pacific Islanders.
Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, who also serves on the USCCB’s subcommittee for Asian and Pacific Islanders, celebrated a Feb. 1 Mass at Ascension Chinese Mission, where a traditional Chinese potluck was also held on Feb. 2. Across several Asian traditions, a series of Masses are celebrated to pray for peace and honor ancestors and family. The Lunar New Year usually starts sometime between late January and mid-February. This year, the festivities begin Jan. 29, ushering in the Year of the Snake, symbolizing good luck, rebirth and renewal. Celebrations can last for 15 days in countries where the Lunar New Year is typically celebrated, such as China, South Korea, Vietnam, and countries with a significant number of people from Asia.
“This year, the Year of the Snake, can be a time of change and renewal, coinciding with the Jubilee Year, in which we are called to be Pilgrims of Hope, people who are constantly being renewed along our faith journey through the power of the Spirit at work within us,” said Bishops Brennan and Fernandes. †
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PASTORAL APPOINTMENTS
Effective December 11, 2024
Father Aneesh Philip, O.S.H.
Parochial Vicar - St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church, Houston
BRIEFS
Tickets now on sale for annual priests vs. seminarians basketball game
HOUSTON — The eighth annual Priests vs. Seminarians Basketball Game is set for 7 p.m. on April 4 at Rice University’s Tudor Fieldhouse, located at 6100 Main St. in Houston near the Texas Medical Center.
The seminarians’ Saints will face off against the priests’ Martyrs. Tickets range from $4 to $95, with all proceeds going to the seminarians at St. Mary’s Seminary. Tickets are limited, and the event is expected to sell out. To purchase, visit www.houstonvocations.com/ events. †
Black and Indian missions collection to be held in March
HOUSTON — Since 1884, proceeds from the Black and Indian Missions Collection (BIM) are distributed as grants to dioceses supporting and strengthening evangelization programs, which would otherwise be in danger of disappearing among the Black, American Indian, Eskimo and Aleute communities of the U.S.
The BIM collection is taken up in most parishes on the first weekend in Lent, March 8 and 9. For more information, visit blackandindianmission.org. †
Bishop Rizzotto Golf Classic set for March 17 at Wildcat Golf Club
HOUSTON — The 21st Annual Bishop Rizzotto Memorial Golf Tournament, which supports the retired priests, religious and elders of St. Dominic Village, is set for Monday, March 17. Registration is at 11 a.m., and shotgun at 12 p.m. The tournament is at the Wildcat Golf Club, 12000 Almeda Rd., in Houston. All proceeds directly benefit the residents of St. Dominic Village. Price per player is $375.
To register to play or sponsor-a-priest, visit www. stdominicvillage.org. For sponsorship opportunities, contact Rosalyn Lillie at 713-741-8722 or email rlillie@ stdominicvillage.org †
Catholic Charities’ food distributions continue in Galveston, Houston and Fort Bend
County
HOUSTON — Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston continues offering food assistance at three locations.
In Houston, walk-up food distributions at the Guadalupe Center (326 S. Jensen St.) are Tuesdays beginning at 10 a.m. No appointment is necessary. Call 713-251-6919 for more information.
The Beacon of Hope Isle Market in Galveston (4700 Broadway, Suite B-101) is open for appointments Tuesday to Friday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. To make an appointment, which is required, call 409-762-2064. Emergency pre-packaged food bags are available on Wednesdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The next monthly mobile food drive is set for Feb. 26 and March 26. Call 409-7622064 for more information.
In Fort Bend County, the Mamie George Community Center (1111 Collins Rd., Richmond) hosts drive-thru food distributions and in-person shopping. Drive-thru distributions with the Houston Food Bank are on Tuesdays, from 5 to 7 p.m., and Thursdays from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. and no appointment is necessary. Clients should visit the pantry by appointment only on Mondays, 12 to 2 p.m.; Tuesdays, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Wednesdays, 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. For help, call 281-2026200. For more information, visit www.catholiccharities.org/ wfood or call 713-526-4611. †
PHOTOS BY JAMES RAMOS/HERALD
BY NICHOLAS SAWICKI Special to the Herald
HOUSTON — With a theme drawn from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans, “Cry Out With Joy to the Lord,” The Diocesan Services Fund (DSF) campaign serves as the principal vehicle through which the faithful of Galveston-Houston support the 64 ministries of the Archdiocese.
These ministries serve the poor, care for the sick, accompany expecting mothers, assist those transitioning out of prison, provide chaplaincy services to our hospitals, care facilities, and prisons, prepare and promote our clergy, and support Catholic Schools.
“Last year, the faithful of the Archdiocese provided overwhelming support to DSF,” said Daniel Cardinal DiNardo, apostolic administrator of Galveston-Houston, “displaying once again the generous hearts of the people of this local Church.”
“DSF ministries are conducted on behalf of the faithful, so supporting DSF is an important way we can all contribute to the thriving spirit of this local Church as we all live out the Gospel of Jesus Christ,”he said. DSF-supported ministries serve hundreds of thousands of people every year across the 10 counties of the Archdiocese.
Michael Schillaci, director of the Development Department, said, “From the prison ministry in Huntsville to the port ministry in Galveston; from the Mamie George Center in Richmond to St. Dominic Center in the Medical Center; the works of this local Church are serving the people of God every day.”
Last year, the DSF 2024 campaign raised nearly $16.5 million with over 36,600 participants — beating the goal of $14.3 million by over $2 million. This year, the goal is $14,834,230.
“No matter the size of the gift,” said
Priests process at the end of a Mass in the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart. Clergy formation, chaplaincy services, pastoral outreach and ministry to priests are among the 64 ministries in the Archdiocese supported by the Diocesan Services Fund.
Schillaci, “all in the Catholic community are called as disciples to participate in DSF in the ministerial work of the Church. These ministries serve individuals within each of the 154 parishes and missions that make up the Church in GalvestonHouston.”
DSF is also vital in supporting parishes. “Over the last four years,” said Cardinal DiNardo, “nearly $7 million has flowed back directly to parishes through DSF rebates.”
“Parishes use these funds in a variety of ways, including to fund their own ministries, provide scholarships to school
children, to cover necessary expenses, or to make improvements to their parish facilities,” he said.
“On a special note, I want to end with an invitation to all Catholic Christians in the Archdiocese,” concluded Cardinal DiNardo. “As Archbishop-Designate Joe Vásquez succeeds me on March 25, I encourage everyone to show our new archbishop just how generous the hearts and hands of the people of God in this Archdiocese can be.”
To learn more about DSF and the impact your gift has, please visit www. archgh.org/dsf. †
TEACHING, EVANGELIZING AND WORSHIP
Apostleship of the Sea
Catholic Schools Office
Holy Cross Chapel and Warren Chapel
Communications Office
Ecumenism Commission
Office of Evangelization and Catechesis
Office of Worship
Pastoral and Educational Ministry
MINISTERING TO THE POOR, THE SICK AND THE INCARCERATED
Angela House
Catholic Chaplain Corps
Catholic Charities
Correctional Ministries
Foreign Missions
Office of Justice & Peace/Catholic Campaign for Human Development
Our Daily Bread
San José Clinic
St. Dominic Center for the Deaf
PROMOTING, PREPARING AND SUPPORTING THE CLERGY
Archbishop Joseph A. Fiorenza Priest Retirement Residence
Clergy Formation and Chaplaincy Services
Clergy Pastoral Outreach
Department of Seminarians
Ministry to Priests
Office of Permanent Diaconate Ministry
Office of Vocations for Priesthood & Religious Life
NURTURING AND STRENGTHENING FAMILIES
Aging Ministry
Camp Kappe
Ethnic Ministries
Family Life Ministry
Family Retreat Center at Circle Lake
Office of Adolescent Catechesis and Evangelization
Office of Hispanic Ministry
Pro-Life Activities
Special Youth Services
St. Dominic Village
Vicar for Judicial Affairs - Metropolitan Tribunal
Young Adult and Campus Ministry
open to all Christian women, is seeking a new Executive Director. The director is responsible for leading TI in fulfilling its mission and overseeing all operations.
Headquarters’ location is flexible within the continental United States. To view a full job description, go to www.Theresians.org or scan the QR code below.
Email cover letter and curriculum vitae to theresian.ed.search@gmail.com by March 28
Theresians International P.O. Box 487, Elburn, IL 60119
PHOTO BY JAMES RAMOS/HERALD
Archdiocese welcomes its first vocation to Consecrated Virginity in more than a decade
HOUSTON — The consecration of a virgin is one of the oldest rites in the Catholic Church, in which a woman dedicates herself to the service of the Church. She remains in perpetual virginity, serving as a “mother” to her parish community and living and serving Christ in the world as a lay person.
Through this sacramental, the virgin, after renewing her resolve of perpetual virginity to God, is set aside as a sacred person who belongs only to Christ. The acting agent is God Himself, who accepts the virgin’s promise and spiritually fructifies it through the action of the Holy Spirit.
It is a rare and special calling. But on Jan. 11, Mackenzie Warrens walked down the aisle at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and joyfully made this unique promise. A Ph.D. student in experimental atomic physics at Rice University and a St. Vincent de Paul parishioner, she is the newest consecrated virgin in the Archdiocese. Amongst lit Christmas trees, winter flowers and roses, Daniel Cardinal DiNardo celebrated the Mass and performed the Rite of Consecration to a Life of Virginity for Women Living in the World, as it is formally called.
As part of the rite, she received a veil, a ring — the only external sign of her consecration — and the Liturgy of the Hours, which she promised to pray daily with the Church. Surrounded by family and friends, including the Holy Family in a Nativity scene, her two best friends and a group of her fellow former perpetual pilgrims who walked the St. Juan Diego route of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage last summer, Warrens said she felt grateful to see so many people attending, especially those who played major roles in her life.
Warrens has joined a special group of lay women set apart as sacred persons, though they do not wear habits, live in community or take the title of “sister.” They work in various professions and support themselves financially. †
WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS VOCATION?
To learn more about the Consecrated Life, call Sister Francesca Kearns, CCVI, vicar for religious in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, at 713-741-8733.
PHOTO BY JAMES RAMOS/HERALD
ORDINATION TO THE PERMANENT DIACONATE
40 men set to be ordained to the permanent diaconate
HOUSTON — On Feb. 14 and Feb. 15, 40 men from 30 parishes across the Archdiocese will be ordained to the Permanent Diaconate at two Masses at the Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in downtown Houston.
Daniel Cardinal DiNardo will be the principal celebrant for both of the Diaconate Ordination Masses, which are ticketed and closed to the public.
For each, the Ordination Mass will mark the
end of six years of rigorous study and pastoral formation and the beginning of consecrated life in the Permanent Diaconate. In the Archdiocese, many deacons work in parishes and schools, serving as liturgists, homilists, catechists, ministers and administrators, while others commit to social ministries such as correctionional services, special youth, hospital ministry, port chaplaincy and other ministries as well.
At an August 2024 gathering of more than 400 local deacons and their wives, Cardinal DiNardo said, “The ministry of the deacon is defined by his closeness to the people of God in works of charity. To share in people’s joys and sorrows, to bring them to the altar and to make them known in the local Church gathered.”
Both of the Permanent Diaconate Masses will be livestreamed online at archgh.org/live. †
WATCH LIVE ONLINE
The Diaconate Ordination Masses will be livestreamed on Feb. 14 at 7 p.m. and Feb. 15 at 10 a.m. online at WWW.ARCHGH.ORG/LIVE.
ARMANDO
CHRISTOPHER
CARLOS CHAVEZ
from page 1
others.”
Toussaint, a daily Mass attendee for over 60 years, was known for his charity and faith. He and his wife adopted his niece, took in orphans, funded orphanages, operated a credit bureau, and supported the Church. Toussaint died on June 30, 1853. In 1990, his remains were moved to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and he was declared venerable in 1996.
VENERABLE MOTHER HENRIETTE DELILLE (1812–1862)
Born out of wedlock to a Frenchman and a free woman of color, Henriette Delille spent all her life in and around New Orleans’ French Quarter. A cultured young woman of high society, Delille was expected, like her mother and the women of her family, to form a liaison relationship with an eligible white man. After receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation, however, Delille clearly became a woman committed to the Lord. Her guiding motto, written in a prayer book, captures what defined her heart and spurred her vocation: “I believe in God. I hope in God. I love. I want to live and die for God.”
Despite facing racial prejudice, Delille used inheritance from her mother, to found the Sisters of the Holy Family in 1836 to serve the poor, sick, and elderly. Known for her generosity, she was a mother to all she encountered. Delille died on Nov. 16, 1862, at age 49. Her cause for canonization opened in 1988, and she was declared venerable in 2010.
VENERABLE FATHER AUGUSTUS
TOLTON (1854–1897)
Augustus Tolton, born a slave on April 1, 1854, was the first Black priest from the U.S. His path to priesthood was difficult. After a harrowing escape from their Missouri home, Tolton’s family settled in freedom in Quincy, Illinois, where the pastor accepted him into the parish school despite much opposition from parishioners. Later, as Tolton began to pursue a priestly vocation, seminaries across the U.S. rejected his applications out of prejudice.
With heroic determination, Tolton pressed on toward his calling. He was accepted to a seminary in Rome and was ordained there in 1886. Though Tolton expected to serve as a missionary in Africa, he soon found out that he was destined for service back in the U.S. “America has been called the most enlightened nation; we will see if it deserves that honor,” said Giovanni Cardinal Simeoni, prefect of the Holy See’s Congregation for Propagation of the Faith, which oversaw Tolton’s seminary. “If America has never seen a black priest, it has to see one now.”
Accepted in Rome, he was ordained in 1886. Returning to the U.S., he faced racial prejudice but served in Chicago, establishing St. Monica Church. Tolton died on July 9, 1897 at 43. His canonization cause opened in 2010, and he was declared venerable in 2019.
Venerable Mother Mary Lange (c. 1784–1882)
Few details are known about the early life of Elizabeth Lange. Likely born in Santiago de Cuba, she emigrated to the U.S. with a heart ready for service. Known to be of African descent, Lange once described herself as “French to my soul.”
God’s providence eventually led Lange to Baltimore, where there was a sizable group of French-speaking Catholics who fled Haiti at the time of their revolution.
VENERABLE
At that time, no free education existed for Black children in Maryland. There, Lange operated a free school out of her home. Financial difficulties eventually forced its closure.
Lange was drawn into further teaching by Sulpician Father James Joubert, who also encouraged her and a few companions to consecrate their lives and work to God as professed religious women. With Mother Mary Elizabeth Lange as the first superior, the Oblate Sisters of Providence were established in 1829 — the first successful congregation for Black women in the U.S. With Lange’s pioneering vision and holy example, the Oblate sisters persevered through great difficulties and offered their lives in service to all in need — especially to pupils, orphans, widows, the sick and those in spiritual need.
With a humble heart, Lange accepted whatever tasks lay before her. Lange consistently persevered, trusting in God’s provident hand. She died on Feb. 3, 1882, and her cause for canonization was formally opened in 1991.
SERVANT OF GOD JULIA GREELEY
(C. 1840–1918)
Born into slavery in Hannibal, Missouri, Julia Greeley gained her freedom after the Emancipation Proclamation. Her years as a slave left a permanent mark: a drooping eye, received as the result of a beating. After moving to Colorado in 1879, Greeley fell in love with the Catholic faith. She converted the following year and immediately immersed herself in the devotional and sacramental life of the Church. She attended daily Mass, was devout and pious, and took up intense fasting. When questioned about regularly eating no breakfast, Greeley would respond, “My Communion is my breakfast.”
Greeley found great joy in her love for the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which she saw as the source for her many charitable and service-oriented ministries. She was known to spread the devotion, even using it as a tool to evangelize Denver’s firemen. From her heart flowed the love of Christ’s heart.
Greeley took on a life of poverty, living in union with the poor of Denver. Taking on odd jobs like cooking and cleaning, she used her meager salary to finance a ministry to the poor while suffering from painful arthritis. She could not write, read or count, but wearing her trademark floppy hat, Greeley could show Christ’s love. She dragged a red wagon filled with goods to distribute to the poor, and, at times, she even begged for them. Many of those she helped were among the nearly 1,000 mourners who attended the funeral after her death on June 7, 1918. Her canonization cause was opened in 2016.
SERVANT OF GOD SISTER THEA BOWMAN (1937–1990)
Born in Mississippi on Dec. 29,
1937, Bertha Bowman converted to Catholicism at the age of nine. Missionary priests and sisters began a Catholic school in her hometown to provide a better education for Black children, and it did not discriminate. The Gospelfilled joyfulness of those missionaries attracted the young Bowman to the faith. This same joyfulness became a hallmark trait of hers later on. Bowman was so attracted to their way of life that at 15, she went on a hunger strike to get her parent’s permission to enter as an aspirant with her teachers’ order, the Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration in La Crosse, Wisconsin. Life in the convent did not protect her from racial prejudice, but she won people over with her joyful, outgoing demeanor and love for Christ and the Church. The daughter of a doctor and a teacher, Sister Thea, her name given upon taking religious vows, was intellectually gifted. She earned a doctorate in English at
The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., and subsequently served in a variety of teaching roles.
After she, as an only child, returned home to take care of her parents in 1978, Sister Thea served as director for intercultural affairs in the Diocese of Jackson. She dedicated herself to overcoming divisions in the Church and society in the wake of the Second Vatican Council and the racial strife of the 1960s.
As a writer, teacher, musician and evangelist, Sister Thea preached the Gospel to clergy and laity alike, promoting ecclesial and cultural harmony and reconciliation as a tireless spokeswoman for the Black Catholic experience. Pledging to “live until I die,” Sister Thea remained wholeheartedly committed to her ministry while battling breast cancer for several years. She died on March 30, 1990, and her cause for canonization was opened in 2018. †
CATHOLICS,
EDUCATION
Annual ‘Legacy Luncheon’ celebrates Catholic school education, milestone anniversaries
BY JONAH DYCUS Texas Catholic Herald
KATY — The 2025 Catholic Schools Legacy Luncheon, hosted by St. John XXIII College Preparatory, celebrated milestones in Catholic education in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. Among the schools recognized during the event was St. John XXIII itself, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this academic year.
Among those in attendance at the Jan. 29 event in Katy were Daniel Cardinal DiNardo and Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, along with school pastors, principals, Archdiocesan Advisory School Council members and friends of Catholic school education. David Magallanez served as Master of Ceremonies; Joseph Noonan, St. John XXIII’s principal, provided the welcoming address; and Roland Millare, STD, was the event’s keynote speaker.
“Today is about acknowledging the great work you all do each day to fulfill our mission of forming disciples. Our Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston are incubators of hope and faith fostering intellect and service that will one day transform the world,” said Mazie McCoy, Ed.D., superintendent of Catholic Schools in the Archdiocese. “We hear and see the beautiful success stories of
our Catholic school graduates daily. Our graduates are problem solvers, collaborators, critical thinkers and faithful disciples, which are testaments to your dedication and commitment to Catholic education.”
Besides St. John XXIII, other schools recognizing milestones during the luncheon were Our Lady of Fatima Catholic School in Texas City (75 years), St. Michael Catholic School (70 years) and Corpus Christi Catholic School (65 years). Video tributes for the anniversary schools were shown, and the St. John XXIII Choir and Bell Choir
The St. John XXIII Bell Choir performed at the 2025 Catholic Schools Legacy Luncheon, hosted by St. John XXIII College Preparatory, on Jan. 29, which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this academic year.
performed throughout the luncheon for the invited guests.
In her closing remarks, McCoy recognized Cardinal DiNardo for his dedication to Catholic schools in
Galveston-Houston. On Jan. 20, the Vatican announced that Pope Francis accepted Cardinal DiNardo’s resignation from the pastoral governance of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston and named Bishop Joe S. Vásquez, Bishop of Austin, as Cardinal DiNardo’s successor. The installation Mass for ArchbishopDesignate Vásquez is scheduled for March 25.
McCoy thanked Cardinal DiNardo for his unwavering support of Catholic schools, saying it was “commendable” and that his leadership blessed the schools.
“Your presence at the various school events, such as this one, The Cardinal’s Circle, A Pattern of Hope and Steps for Students, is noteworthy. The support you consistently provide is truly exceptional,” she said. “On behalf of the Catholic Schools Office and the 56 schools in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, I extend our deepest gratitude for all the support you have provided over the years and continue to do so. Thank you!” †
PHOTO BY JONAH DYCUS/HERALD
Celebrating Catholic Schools Week
HOUSTON — National Catholic Schools Week, celebrated across the country and in the Archdiocese from Jan. 26 to Feb. 1, united 1.6 million students nationwide with the 17,500-plus in the Archdiocese in an annual celebration of Catholic education.
Sponsored by the National Catholic Educational Association and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishop’s Secretariat of Catholic Education, the week is an opportunity for schools to celebrate their faith and showcase their school spirit.
Catholic schools throughout the Archdiocese celebrated their school and Catholic education with different events and theme days. Many held events to compete in fun games with teachers and each other. Others hosted events to honor parents, families, veterans, vocations, family cultures, their Catholic faith, school spirit and more.
To see more photos from Catholic Schools Week celebrations and events, visit www. archgh.org/csw25. †
THE JUBILEE PRAYER
Father in heaven, may the faith You have given us in Your son, Jesus Christ, our brother, and the flame of charity enkindled in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, reawaken in us the blessed hope for the coming of Your Kingdom.
May Your grace transform us into tireless cultivators of the seeds of the Gospel. May those seeds transform from within both humanity and the whole cosmos in the sure expectation of a new heaven and a new earth, when, with the powers of evil vanquished, Your glory will shine eternally.
May the grace of the Jubilee reawaken in us, Pilgrims of Hope, a yearning for the treasures of heaven. May that same grace spread the joy and peace of our Redeemer throughout the earth.
To You our God, eternally blessed, be glory and praise forever. Amen.
JUBILEE 2025 - PILGRIMS OF HOPE
Learn more about the Jubilee Year online at ARCHGH.ORG/JUBILEE2025.
FRASSATI CATHOLIC
ST. FRANCIS DE SALES
DUCHESNE ACADEMY
ST. JOHN PAUL II
TRUE CROSS
SCHOOLS HOST FOOD DRIVES
As part of Catholic Schools Week, several schools hosted service projects like food drives. At St. Vincent de Paul School in Houston, students conducted a school-wide cereal drive.
The drive benefited the Second Servings, which is Houston’s only prepared and perishable food rescue organization. Since 2015, they’ve been redirecting unserved and unsold food from retailers, sports venues, distributors and hotels to shelters, soup kitchens, low-income housing and other nonprofits.
This is the second year that the St. Vincent de Paul School has worked with Second Servings, and in both years, the cereal was given to multiple organizations in need. Staff said they follow the example of their patron saint, St. Vincent de Paul, and place service at the forefront of the school’s faith formation.
During National Catholic Schools Week, Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, visited St. Joseph Regional Catholic School in Baytown to celebrate a Mass with the school’s students and families.
SCHOOLS EARN RECOGNITION
As part of Catholic Schools Week celebrations, schools celebrate their local cities and communities. At St. Laurence Catholic School in Sugar Land, a pep rally honored Sugar Land Mayor Joe Zimmerman, who shared a special city proclamation recognizing the school as a valuable part of the Sugar Land community. Mayor Zimmerman received an honorary award in celebration of his longstanding support of Catholic education.
BISHOP DELL’ORO VISITS ST. JOSEPH DURING CATHOLIC SCHOOLS WEEK
ST. JOSEPH - BAYTOWN
ST. LAURENCE
COLUMNISTS
Helping young people discern God’s
As parents, we all want what is best for our children. But each person’s definition of best is different. Is best what gives them the most monetary success? Is best what gives them peace? Is best what makes them “happy?”
As Catholics, we know that “best” is God’s perfect will. Yet, we find it hard sometimes to surrender to that especially when it comes to trusting our children to Him. It seems so contradictory. After all, He is the Creator of all things, including them. He knows all things and has only ever wanted for us the only true success: the salvation of our souls.
God tells us that the moment He knitted us into our mother’s womb, He knew the plans He had for us. And, as one of my favorite doctors of the Church said, if we become who we were meant to be, we will “set the world on fire.”That feels like success.
One of the ways the Office of Vocations strives to help the people who were created to be priests, religious and consecrated find their way to that vocation is by offering what are called Andrew Dinners. St. Andrew brought
by ASHLEY JARRELL
our first pope to Jesus, and so, in his honor, we have named these events in which we all are called to invite the young men around us whom we have noticed to be devoted, holy, and possibly being called to the priesthood to a discussion and dinner with Archdiocesan priests. Here they can ask the priests the questions they have and bring those answers to prayer and to God, who we all then pray will give them a clear answer on who He made them to be.
For those of us who like science and statistics, we have seen a direct correlation between the number of new seminarians and the number of Andrew Dinner participants. So, we are working hard to increase both of those numbers.
In that spirit, I offer you a notable opportunity… stay aware, look for the charisms in the young people around you and tell them when you see the
will with their charisms
“Stay aware, look for the charisms in the young people around you and tell them when you see the ways God has gifted them.”
ways God has gifted them. Our world is full of noise and chaos. When we can enjoy the “peace that surpasses all understanding” and, in that peace, hear His voice and see His spirit move, we can bring that divine love to each other in the form of encouragement, love and support. Maybe invite him to an Andrew Dinner.
I’ve sat with other devout Catholic parents who say they know we need more priests, but it needs to be someone else’s son, not theirs. They don’t want that life for him. It’s too hard; he will be lonely; they want grandkids.
So many times, we go through things in our life that feel difficult, but when we come out the other side and see what He did with our surrender, we are able to marvel at His work. For the families of priests, this is amplified as they watch their son become a shepherd of souls, a comforter to the afflicted, a mediator between heaven and earth.
As a momma of four, this is what I want for my kids: fulfillment, peace and knowledge that they are doing God’s will. I know this will look different for each of them, so we’re bringing it all to Him and searching for His voice.
To be fair, most young men are not called to the priesthood or religious life, but if we truly trust God and want what is “best” for our children, shouldn’t we at least help them ask their Creator and listen intently for the reply even if it’s not what we thought or hoped for?
After all, He really does know best. †
Ashley Jarrell is the parish programs manager of the Office of Vocations.
The girl who would become St. Josephine Bakhita was born in Sudan, Africa, sometime around 1869. She was the child of a prosperous and loving family, the niece of the village chief. Her life was changed forever when she was kidnapped at the age of eight and sold into slavery, enduring years of violence and cruelty. Her enslavers gave her the name “Bakhita” (Arabic for “fortunate one”) as a cruel joke.
In 1883, Bakhita was enslaved by an Italian diplomat in Libya who brought her with him to Italy and then gifted her to Maria Turina Michelli, the wife of a friend. Unlike her previous enslavers, the Michelli family did not beat or abuse her; for the first time in many years, she had sufficient food and clothing. Bakhita was a nanny for their young daughter Alice, whom she came to love as her own. When the Michellis had to return to Libya in 1888, they left Alice and Bakhita in the care of the Canossian sisters at a nearby convent.
In the convent, Bakhita met Christ for the first time. Her heart was captured by the sight of his scars, which looked so much like her own. After so many cruel “masters” who beat and abused her, Bakhita finally found the one true Master whose love could set her free. When the Michellis returned to collect Bakhita and Alice, Bakhita refused to leave.
The Michellis tried everything to force
Bakhita to return to them. When they threatened the Canossian sisters with legal action, the community was split. Some sisters felt that it was foolish to make such powerful enemies for the sake of one stubborn African woman who was not even a baptized Christian. They worried that their wealthy patrons would no longer wish to send their daughters to the convent school once it was known that they were harboring a foreign slave woman. Thankfully, the majority of sisters insisted that it would be a grave sin to return Bakhita into a state of bondage. Their support was affirmed in November 1888 when an Italian court ruled that Bakhita was a free woman. On Jan. 9, 1890, she was baptized Josephine Fortunata (Italian for “fortunate one”) and received her first Holy Communion from Archbishop Giuseppe Sarto, the future Pope Pius X. In 1896, she joined the Canossian sisters and went to live in their convent in Schio, Italy, where she became a beloved member of the community, renowned for her spiritual wisdom. Villagers credited the prayers of their “little brown mother” for protecting
them during World War II; although the town was severely bombed, not a single person was killed. Sr. Josephine Bakhita died on Feb. 8, 1947.
As we celebrate the feast of St. Josephine Bakhita this month, I pray that we might be inspired by the courage of the Canossian sisters who stood
against the political pressures of their day to defend the dignity of a vulnerable immigrant who came to them as a stranger and became a spiritual mother. Let us pray especially for Catholic ministries in our country who are under attack for their service to migrants; may we stand firmly with them in their commitment to serve the Lord who is present in the poorest and most vulnerable (Mt 25:40). St. Josephine Bakhita, pray for us! †
Amy Auzenne, MSW, MACE, is the director of the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis.
by AMY AUZENNE
WORLD
Nothing is worth sacrificing the life of a child, pope tells world leaders
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — It is unacceptable that a child’s right to life and a dignified childhood should be sacrificed to “the idols” of power, profit, ideology and nationalistic self-interest, Pope Francis told a group of world experts and leaders.
“A childhood denied is a silent scream condemning the wrongness of the economic system, the criminal nature of wars, the lack of adequate medical care and schooling,” he said in his address opening a Feb. 3 summit at the Vatican on children’s rights.
“We are here today to say that we do not want this to become the new normal,” he said, and “we are all here together to put children, their rights, their dreams and their demand for a future at the center of our concern.”
About 50 guests from all over the world, including former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, attended the oneday world leaders’ summit titled, “Love them and protect them.” The invitees included Nobel Prize winners, government ministers and heads of state, leaders of international and nonprofit organizations, top Vatican officials and other experts.
Talks were divided into topics of concern, including a child’s right to food, health care, education, a family, free time, and the right to live free from violence and exploitation.
The pope opened the summit by urging everyone to listen to children — their hopes, dreams and fears — and “to build a better world for children, and consequently for everyone!”
“I am confident that, by pooling your experience and expertise, you can open new avenues to assist and protect the children whose rights are daily trampled upon and ignored,” he said.
“Listening to those children who today live in violence, exploitation or injustice serves to strengthen our ‘no’ to war, to the throwaway culture of waste and profit, in which everything is bought and sold without respect or care for life, especially when that life is small and defenseless,” the pope said.
“In the name of this throwaway mentality, in which the human being becomes all-powerful, unborn life
Franciscan Father Enzo Fortunato, president of the Pontifical Committee for the World Day of Children; and Aldo Cagnoli, vice president of the same committee.
is sacrificed through the murderous practice of abortion,” he said. “Abortion suppresses the life of children and cuts off the source of hope for the whole of society.”
The pope highlighted the plight of children living in “limbo” because they were not registered at birth and of “undocumented” children at the border of the U.S., “those first victims of that exodus of despair and hope made by the thousands of people coming from the south toward the United States of America.”
“What we have tragically seen almost every day in recent times, namely children dying beneath bombs, sacrificed to the idols of power, ideology and nationalistic interests, is unacceptable,” he said. “In truth, nothing is worth the life of a child. To kill children is to deny the future.”
Archbishop Paul Gallagher, Vatican foreign minister, followed up on the pope’s condemnation of abortion in his talk.
Religious poverty, chastity, obedience are signs of hope, pope says
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — The way consecrated women and men live their vows of poverty, chastity and obedience can offer light and hope to a world looking for authentic relationships marked by love and self-giving, Pope Francis said. Celebrating vespers Feb. 1, the eve of the feast of the Presentation of the Lord and of the Catholic Church’s celebration of World Day for Consecrated Life, the pope thanked members of religious congregations for their witness, saying it is “leaven for the Church.” Pope Francis was joined by hundreds of sisters, brothers, consecrated virgins and religious-order priests, including the new leadership of Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life: Consolata Missionary Sister Simona Brambilla, the prefect; and Ángel Cardinal Artime, a Salesian, the pro-prefect. †
“All children, even before birth, have the right to life and should be protected from discrimination on the grounds of sex or health,” he said. “The choices that societies make regarding the protection of the child in its mother’s womb have an impact on the way we see children, indicating the space and importance we are prepared to give them.”
He also said, “Every child should have the right to a family, the right to be raised by a father and a mother,” as “it is within the family that the rights and the wellbeing of children are best protected and promoted.”
Parents also have the right to “educate
their offspring according to their own religious beliefs,” the archbishop added.
Pope Francis attended the early morning panels and was scheduled to return for the closing session. He was present for the speech of Jordan’s Queen Rania, who told the gathering that “the Convention on the Rights of the Child is the most widely ratified human rights treaty in history.”
“In theory, the consensus is clear: Every right for every child. Yet so many children around the world are excluded from this promise, particularly in war zones,” she said. “Worse yet, people have grown desensitized to their pain.”
The media blur horrific scenes of war “for our protection,” she said, adding that it is absurd that a child’s “lived reality is deemed too graphic for even adults to watch.”
Some children are even denied the promise and protections of childhood, she said, when “they are demonized, aged up, portrayed as threats or simply dismissed as human shields.”
“From Palestine to Sudan, Yemen to Myanmar and beyond, this un-childing creates chasms in our compassion. It stifles urgency in favor of complacency. It allows politicians to sidestep blame,” she said.
Today, Queen Rania said, there is “a status quo that deems some children’s suffering acceptable based on their name, faith or the land of their birth, where every child’s fate depends on where they fall on some artificial line between ‘our’ children and ‘theirs.’”
“Without equal application, global commitments ring hollow. Because if a right can be willfully denied, then it is not a right at all. It is a privilege for the lucky few,” she said. “Every child has an equal claim to our protection and care. No exceptions, no exclusions, no preconditions.” †
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CNS PHOTO
Queen Rania of Jordan, left, signs a document during the world leaders’ summit on children’s rights at the Vatican Feb. 3. Sitting and looking on are Pope Francis, center, and former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, right. Standing from left to right are: Angelo Chiorazzo, founder of the “Auxilium” social cooperative;
NATION
Canon, civil law collide on seal of confession, says expert
(OSV News) — Proposed legislation looking to repeal clergy-penitent protections in at least two states is in a head-on collision with the Church’s primary legal code, one expert told OSV News
Montana and Washington are among the states seeking to compel clergy to disclose abuse revealed to them in the context of the Sacrament of Reconciliation or similar confidential pastoral settings in other faith traditions.
Earlier in January, Washington state Sen. Noel Frame introduced a third bill to mandate clergy to report abuse revealed under the seal of confession or in pastoral counseling. Two previous bills sponsored by state lawmakers failed; the latest would mandate clergy who receive information about abuse in confession to report it to authorities but would allow them to abstain from testifying in court cases or criminal proceedings.
On Jan. 14, Montana state Sen. Mary Dunwell introduced SB 139, which seeks to strike an existing provision that does not require priests or other clergy to report abuse if the information was revealed in such settings. Currently, Montana recognizes that such confidentiality can be required by “canon law, Church doctrine, or established church practice,” although SB 139 bill would eliminate that consideration.
In a Jan. 22 email, Dunwell told OSV News she had advanced the bill“to protect
children and save them from a potential lifetime of emotional and mental scars,” adding, “This is about civil and criminal laws, not canon law. Absolution is still possible without secrecy.”
Dunwell subsequently wrote in a Jan. 27 email to OSV News that she had revised the text of the bill after discussions with the Montana Catholic Conference and Bishop Austin A. Vetter of Helena,
Montana. The amended text, which Dunwell sent to OSV News, states that “a member of the clergy or a priest is not required to make a report under this section if the communication is required to be confidential by canon law or Church doctrine.”
The Montana Catholic Conference confirmed the change to OSV News, adding that “the bishops are satisfied with the amendment” and “plan to support the amended bill.”
Although the Montana bill was satisfactorily amended, legislative efforts to mandate abuse reporting by confessors are fundamentally at odds with the Catholic Church’s understanding of the Sacrament of Reconciliation, said Father John Paul Kimes, associate professor of the practice at Notre Dame Law School and the Raymond of Peñafort Fellow in canon law at Notre Dame’s de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture.
Canon law holds that “the sacramental seal” of the confessional is “inviolable,” and therefore, “it is absolutely forbidden for a confessor to betray in any way a penitent in words or in any manner and for any reason” (Canon 983.1).
Even when there is no danger of such revelation, canon law prohibits
a confessor “completely from using knowledge acquired from confession to the detriment of the penitent” (Canon 984).
Moreover, canon law uses “extraordinarily strong” language regarding the seal, describing its violation as “nefas” — a term that is “the worst possible thing you can call something in Latin,” said Father Kimes. “It’s horrible, despicable, unthinkable.”
As a result, “at the end of the day, this is an unresolvable conflict between civil and canon law,” Father Kimes told OSV News
While civil law would assign the privilege to a party — historically, the penitent who has been accused — “in canon law, the seal (of confession) belongs to no one,” neither the priest nor the penitent, said Father Kimes. “It belongs to the Sacrament.”
He noted the clash has a long history, with the first U.S. civil case in which the issue was treated, People v. Philips, dating back to 1813.
In that case, Father Anthony Kohlmann — who had been subpoenaed by a grand jury — refused to break the seal of the confessional by testifying against defendant Daniel Philips, who indicated he had spoken with the priest about receiving stolen goods.
New York City Mayor DeWitt Clinton, presiding over the court of general sessions, ruled that “it is essential to the free exercise of a religion that its ordinances should be administered — that its ceremonies, as well as its essentials, should be protected.”
Clinton stressed that compelling such revelations would violate constitutional guarantees of religious freedom, stating that “secrecy is of the essence of penance.” Forcing priests to reveal disclosures from penitents was to, in essence, “declare that there shall be no penance,” and if such measures were permitted, “this important branch of the Roman Catholic religion would be thus annihilated.”
“The seal is there because it’s part of the Sacrament itself,” said Father Kimes. “It is an essential element of the Sacrament because it allows all of us, when we are repentant of sin, to come and
OSV NEWS
A confessional is seen in a file photo at the Memorial Church of the Holy Sepulcher on the grounds of the Franciscan Monastery of the Holy Land in Washington.
STATE Human dignity ‘not dependent’ on legal status, say Catholic leaders
EL PASO (OSV News) — Several Catholic leaders are speaking out against the Trump administration’s reversal of a longstanding policy limiting where immigration officials could make arrests.
On Jan. 21, the Department of Homeland Security announced that previously designated “sensitive locations” such as churches and schools would no longer be off-limits for such arrests. The agency said in a statement that “criminals will no longer be able to hide in America’s schools and churches” to evade law enforcement.
The move followed several executive orders on immigration issued by President Donald Trump hours after his Jan. 20 inauguration, based on campaign pledges to tighten border security and ensure mass deportations of undocumented migrants.
But allowing for immigration arrests at houses of worship and other previously protected locations threatens human dignity, religious liberty and society itself, said several Catholic leaders in a joint statement issued Jan. 23 by Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, Texas, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Migration; Sister Mary Haddad, a member of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas and president and CEO of Catholic Health Association of the United States; and Kerry Alys Robinson, president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA.
“We recognize the need for just immigration enforcement and affirm the government’s obligation to carry it out in a targeted, proportional and humane way,” they said. “However, nonemergency immigration enforcement in schools, places of worship, social service agencies, healthcare facilities or other
that this dignity is not dependent on a person’s citizenship or immigration status.”
“Catholic health care, Catholic Charities agencies, and the Church’s other social service ministries work daily to feed, house, heal, educate, and meet people’s needs in communities across our nation,” they said. “Through these ministries — together with the Church’s responsibility to proclaim the Gospel and celebrate the Sacraments — we uphold the belief that all people are conceived with inherent dignity, reflecting the image of God.”
“The charitable services we provide are fundamental to who we are as Christians,” they added, quoting Pope Benedict XVI’s 2005 encyclical, “Deus Caritas Est”: “For the Church, charity is not a kind of welfare activity which could equally well be left to others, but is a part of her nature, an indispensable expression of her very being.”
seek forgiveness in a concrete fashion, in a way where we know that sin remains private, regardless of its gravity. That’s for everybody.”
At the same time, said Father Kimes, “whether we’re confessing a lie or a murder,” or “atrocious sins that are also crimes, like the sexual abuse of minors,” each penitent must demonstrate repentance and a firm purpose of amendment.
“And if you don’t demonstrate those things, then you can’t receive absolution,” he said.
Civil laws seeking to undermine the inviolability of the confessional seal “fundamentally misunderstand” the Sacrament, said Father Kimes.
He noted that there has been “a long conversation in the literature,” including canon law, moral law and sacramental theology “about what falls under the seal and what doesn’t” — and “there is a spectrum of opinions,” he added.
In 2019, the Vatican’s Apostolic Penitentiary issued a note on the importance of the internal forum and the
sensitive settings where people receive essential services would be contrary to the common good.”
The three said that they were “already witnessing reticence among immigrants to engage in daily life, including sending children to school and attending religious services.”
“All people have a right to fulfill their duty to God without fear,” they said.
According to the Pew Research Center, Christians “are the largest religious group in the world among both migrants and nonmigrants” and are “overrepresented among international
inviolability of the sacramental seal.
The note affirmed that the “inviolable secrecy of confession comes directly from the revealed divine right and is rooted in the very nature of the Sacrament, to the point of not admitting any exception in the ecclesial sphere, nor, least of all, in the civil one.”
At the same time, said Father Kimes, there are some potential opportunities to exhort those who confess committed criminal acts to alert the authorities.
“There are plenty of instructions that have been given to confessors that say, ‘Look, you can’t condition penance on somebody revealing a crime in the civil forum,’” said Father Kimes. “But you can encourage them to. … I can’t say, ‘You have to go do this in order for me to absolve you,’ but I can say, ‘Wow, two necessary elements of confession are repentance and firm amendment not to sin again. … And bringing this to the civil authorities’ attention would certainly go a long way toward demonstrating both of these.’ So I can’t require it, but the Sacrament itself is set up to encourage those kinds of things because of what we’re looking for in the Sacrament.” †
migrants, accounting for 30% of the world’s overall population and 47% of all people living outside their country of birth, as of 2020.”
In their statement, Bishop Seitz, Sister Haddad and Robinson said, “Through our parishes, shelters, hospitals, schools and other Church institutions, we recognize
The policy of “turning places of care, healing and solace into places of fear and uncertainty for those in need, while endangering the trust between pastors, providers, educators and the people they serve, will not make our communities safer,” they said.
“Our organizations stand ready to work on a better path forward that protects the dignity of all those we serve, upholds the sacred duty of our providers, and ensures our borders and immigration system are governed with mercy and justice,” they said. †
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OSV NEWS PHOTO
Margelis Tinoco, a migrant from Colombia, reacts after receiving news that her U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s smartphone application CBP One was cancelled at the Paso del Norte International border bridge in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, Jan. 20.
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MUNDO CATÓLICO
Indulgencia del jubileo: Qué significa y qué hacer
Recibir una indulgencia especial es más fácil de lo que cree
HOUSTON — Los peregrinos que pasen por la Puerta Santa de la Basílica de San Pedro durante el Año Santo 2025, se confiesen, comulguen y recen por las intenciones del Santo Padre pueden recibir indulgencias, pero también pueden recibirlas los reclusos y quienes trabajan en defensa de la vida humana o ayudan a inmigrantes.
Abstenerse «al menos un día a la semana de distracciones banales», como las redes sociales, también puede ser un camino hacia la indulgencia jubilar, según las normas publicadas por el Vaticano el 13 de mayo de 2024.
El Papa Francisco abrió el Año Santo en el Vaticano el 24 de diciembre de 2024 y lo clausurará el 6 de enero de 2026, festividad de la Epifanía.
Desde hace siglos, una de las características de las celebraciones del Año Santo es la indulgencia, que la Iglesia describe como la remisión de la pena temporal que una persona merece por sus pecados.
«Todo pecado ‘deja huella’» incluso después de que una persona haya recibido el perdón y la absolución a través del Sacramento de la Reconciliación, escribió el Papa Francisco en el documento que proclama el Año Santo. «El pecado tiene consecuencias, no sólo exteriores, en cuanto consecuencias del mal cometido, sino también interiores, en cuanto ‘todo pecado, incluso venial, entraña apego desordenado a las criaturas, que es necesario purificar, sea aquí abajo, sea después de la muerte, en el estado que se llama Purgatorio’», escribió, citando el Catecismo de la Iglesia Católica Las normas para recibir una indulgencia durante el Año Santo fueron firmadas por su eminencia Angelo Cardenal De Donatis, Jefe de la Penitenciaría Apostólica, un tribunal vaticano que se ocupa de cuestiones de conciencia y de la concesión de indulgencias.
Las condiciones básicas, escribió, son que una persona esté «movida por un espíritu de caridad», esté «purificada a
FOTO POR MARCUS NORWOOD/HERALD
Junto con el cardenal Daniel DiNardo y el obispo auxiliar Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, los obispos de todo el mundo celebraron la apertura del Año Santo 2025 el 29 de diciembre con misas en sus catedrales y concatedrales para conmemorar el Jubileo, cuyo tema es “Peregrinos de la Esperanza”.
través del sacramento de la penitencia y alimentada por la Santa Comunión» y ore por las intenciones del Sumo Pontífice. Junto con una peregrinación, una obra de misericordia o un acto de penitencia, un católico «podrá obtener del tesoro de la Iglesia una indulgencia plenaria, con remisión y perdón de todos sus pecados, que podrá ser aplicada a las almas del purgatorio en forma de sufragio».
Para recibir la indulgencia del Año Santo, los peregrinos pueden visitar Roma o Tierra Santa, así como las dos catedrales de la arquidiócesis: La Catedral Basílica de Santa María, en la isla de Galveston, y la Concatedral del Sagrado Corazón, en el centro de Houston.
Durante el Jubileo, los peregrinos que visitan un lugar de peregrinación reciben la indulgencia del Jubileo, que puede aplicarse a uno mismo o a las almas de los difuntos, pero no puede aplicarse a otras personas vivas.
Quienes no pueden viajar, «especialmente todas las monjas y los monjes de clausura, los ancianos, los enfermos, los reclusos, como también aquellos que, en hospitales o en otros lugares de cuidados, prestan servicio continuo a los enfermos», pueden unirse espiritualmente a una peregrinación y
recibir la indulgencia, según las normas. La doctrina de la comunión de los santos enseña que entre los vivos y los muertos existe tanto un vínculo perenne de caridad como un intercambio de bienes espirituales. Las oraciones de los vivos pueden ayudar a los muertos, y las oraciones de los santos del cielo pueden ayudar a los de la Tierra.
Una indulgencia no es el perdón de un pecado, sino la eliminación de los apegos malsanos y los efectos debilitadores de un pecado que ya ha sido perdonado. La Iglesia regula la concesión de indulgencias en el sentido de que, normalmente, hay ciertas condiciones que deben cumplirse y ciertas obras que deben realizarse.
Es conveniente, pero no necesario, que la Confesión sacramental y sobre todo la Sagrada Comunión y la oración por las intenciones del Papa tengan lugar el mismo día en que se realiza la obra indulgenciada, pero basta con que estos ritos sagrados y oraciones se realicen en el plazo de varios días (unos 20) antes o después del acto indulgenciado.
Más recursos e información sobre los próximos actos y programas para la celebración del Año Jubilar están disponibles en línea en www.archgh.org/ jubilee2025. †
APOYO PASTORAL A VÍCTIMAS DE
ABUSO SEXUAL
DEL CLERO
En un continuo esfuerzo por facilitar atención pastoral a las victimas de abuso sexual del clero o del personal de la Iglesia, el Cardenal DiNardo gustaría recordar a los fieles de la Arquidiócesis la disponibilidad del Coordinador de Ayuda a Víctimas. Si alguien ha sido victim de abuso sexual del clero o del personal de la Iglesia, se les anima llamar a la Diane Vines al 713-654-5799. Por favor rece por la sanación de las víctimas del abuso y por todos los que sufren de alguna manera.
WITHIN THE ARTS
New book offers timely reflection on media fasting
(OSV News) — Have you ever berated yourself for falling down an online “rabbit hole” and losing precious time? I know I have. My initial intentions would be good. Seeking some background music to listen to while working, I would go on YouTube where, thanks to the algorithm, the title of an unrelated video would catch my eye, and down the rabbit hole I’d go, clicking from one video to another. Giving into the pull of clickbait usually leaves me feeling annoyed with myself. Whether your rabbit hole is a social media app, online news or just a quest for information or entertainment, I’m guessing that the experience isn’t unique to me, and you know exactly what I’m talking about.
That’s why Sister Nancy Usselmann’s new book, “Media Fasting: Six Weeks to Recharge in Christ” is so timely. The book encourages readers to do a deep dive into how they use media and discern how God might be calling them to improve their habits through a fast.
Sister Usselmann explains, “The goal of the book is to lead readers on a journey to discover Christ in and through their media, to develop virtue, and to make good choices in the digital environments they inhabit. In order to live our faith today, we must integrate it within our daily experiences and decisions, many of which are made in the digital realm.”
“Media Fasting” consists of two parts. The first asks readers to reflect on how they may be spiritually drained due to some of their media practices. After explaining the purpose of fasting in general, Sister Usselmann leads the reader through the steps of making a “media fast plan.”
Prayer and discernment are key. You may be drawn to do a complete media
& Media US (2025)
176 pages, $13.50 Web: paulinestore.com
fast for six weeks. Perhaps you want to fast only on weekends due to the need to use media for work. Maybe a 24-hour fast every so often is what you need most. If you’re not sure of the best way to engage in the fast, a sample fasting plan is provided.
Part two helps the reader spiritually recharge with the help of daily reflections centered around weekly themes. These include “paring down to the essentials,” “choosing the good life,” being “media mindful,” and “creating communion.”
Each day’s meditation includes a guiding Scripture passage, reflection, media challenge and prayer. At the end of each
week, the reader is urged to check in with their media fasting plan. How is it going, and how might it need to be tweaked or renewed due to that week’s prayerful reflection?
“Media Fasting” contains many other gems apart from the two main sections of the book. The foreword by “The Chosen” actor Jonathan Roumie helps us to realize we’re not alone in needing to take a deep look at our media.
He says, “As I continue to surrender my own life and career to a deeper relationship with Christ, the demands of that career have inevitably led me to become more reliant on building social media platforms that reach many in order to glorify His message. I have not been exempted from the ‘swipe and scroll’ epidemic that consumes more of my time than I both realize and like to admit.”
The appendices of “Media Fasting” provide many helpful resources on the reality of media addiction and pornography, media prayers and spiritual media practices such as praying the news
and an “examination of conscience for my online life.”
No matter how you choose to use the book, the ultimate goal is a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. Sister Usselmann explains her hope for those who engage in the fast. She says, “God wants to be part of every aspect of our lives, and that includes our media experience. Grace is present everywhere, and Jesus can work through the digital storytelling we engage with daily. Media fasting changes the way we see our relationship with God, the world, the media and ourselves by focusing us on spiritual disciplines that free us from addictions, open us to grace, and set us on the path to holiness of life.”
“Media Fasting: Six Weeks to Recharge in Christ” is available through Pauline Books and Media. †
Sister Hosea Rupprecht, a Daughter of St. Paul, is the associate director of the Pauline Center for Media Studies.
A-I – SUITABLE FOR ALL
• Mufasa: The Lion King (PG)
A-II – SUITABLE FOR OLDER CHILDREN
• Dog Man (PG)
• Sonic the Hedgehog 3 (PG)
• The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim (PG-13)
‘WALK WITH ONE’
Learn more about the next step of the Eucharistic Congress online at archgh.org/revival
A-III – ADULTS AND ADOLESCENTS
• A Complete Unknown (R)
• Back in Action (PG-13)
• Flight Risk (R)
• You’re Cordially Invited (R)
L – LIMITED MATURE AUDIENCE
• Better Man (R)
• Wolf Man (R)
O – MORALLY OFFENSIVE
• Den of Thieves 2: Pantera (R)
• Kraven the Hunter (R)
• Nosferatu (R)
• One of Them Days (R)
▶ For full movie reviews, visit www.osvnews.com/ category/reviews
“Media Fasting: Six Weeks to Recharge in Christ” By Sister Nancy Usselmann Pauline Books
AROUND THE ARCHDIOCESE
► FOR SUBMISSION DETAILS AND MORE LISTINGS, VISIT WWW.ARCHGH.ORG/ATA.
FEB. 14-16
COUPLES RETREAT, Friday 6 p.m. to Sunday 12:30 p.m., Holy Name Passionist Retreat Center (430 Bunker Hill Rd., Houston). Married couples are welcome. Cost: $430 per couple, includes lodging, meals and materials. 713-464-0211 x 10. registrar.holyname@passionist.org.
FEB. 15
VOCATION DINNER & DANCE, 6:15 p.m., St. Anne School Gymnasium (1111 S Cherry St., Tomball). St. Anne Knights of Columbus Council 11472 hosts dinner, dancing and live and silent auctions to benefit vocations to the religious life. Cost: $50 per person; tickets to be purchased in advance. colstryker@att.net; 832646-5542; kc11472.org.
DANCE, 8 p.m. to 1 a.m., St. Martin de Porres (12606 Crosby Lynchburg Rd., Crosby). “Hearts & Beads Masquerade Dance,” featuring Step Rideau & The Zydeco Outlaws, celebrates Valentine’s Day and Mardi Gras. Attire: Mardi Gras colors (green, purple and gold) or Valentine’s red. Cost: Pre-sale tickets $25; at the door $30. 723-806-9793 or 832-889-6624.
ROSARY PROCESSION, 8 a.m., Annunciation (1618 Texas Ave., Houston). Mass followed by the Divine Mercy Chaplet, a light breakfast and a Rosary procession around Discovery Green.
annunciationcc.org.
FEB. 19
MEETING, 9:30 a.m. to noon, St. Mary of the Expectation (1612 E. Walker, League City). Bay Area Deanery Council of Catholic Women host “Nourishing the Soul and Body”-themed meeting with social, light refreshments, brief meeting, raffle and speakers. 713-412-8559.
FEB. 21
BINGO, 7 p.m., St. Rose of Lima (3600 Brinkman St., Houston). Cost: $20 online pre-order tickets includes one free drink, $25 tickets at the door. Food and drinks also available for purchase. stroselima.org.
FEB. 22
BREAKFAST, 7 p.m., Holy Rosary (3617 Milam St., Houston). Gratia Plena hosts “Healing Lives Through Faithful Service” breakfast celebrating 13th anniversary of providing mental and spiritual health services to the community. Cost: $65 per ticket; Tables for eight start at $500. 281607-5626; ricardog@gratiaplenacounseling.org.
GALA, 8 p.m. to midnight, St. Mary of the Purification Catholic School (3006 Rosedale, Houston). “Mardi Gras Masquerade Gala” features Brian Jack and the Zydeco Gamblers. Individual tickets: $30, tables of eight $200. 713-522-9276.
GALA, 6 to 9 p.m., Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic
School (10114 Hwy 6, Hitchcock 77563). Event features dining, entertainment, auctions and dancing. Sponsorships and tickets available online: OLOLchurch.org/2025-gala.
WORKSHOP, 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Emmaus Spirituality Center (12211 Memorial Dr., Houston). Kathleen Messina explores that spiritual directors to grow in connection and to become more skilled and creative in helping seekers connect to God. Cost: $40, includes lunch. emmausspiritualitycenter.com; info@ emmausspiritualitycenter.com.
FEB. 27
DINNER & PROGRAM, 6 to 10 p.m., Safari Ranch Texas (11627 FM 1464, Richmond). Benefiting Catholic Charities in Fort Bend County, “Mission of Love” features the work of Catholic Charities in Fort Bend County. RSVP: 281-202-6208; sbaker@catholiccharities.org.
FEB. 28
CHOCOLATE FEAST, 7 p.m., St. Rose of Lima (3600 Brinkman, Houston). St. Rose of Lima’s Altar Guild hosts a “Chocoholic Feast” with light dinner, decadent dessert, games and silent auction. parishinfo@stroselima.org; stroselima.org.
MARCH 1
FORMATION PROGRAM, 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., St. Dominic Chancery (2403 Holcombe Blvd., Houston). Hosted by Father Kingsley Nwoko, “Discovering Love with Clarity” is a four-part formation series for single people, dating and engaged couples explores the meaning of love and discernment toward the vocation of marriage held across four Saturday sessions on March 1, 15, April 5 and May 3. Cost: $40. Register by Feb. 24. archgh.org/discoverlove; 713-741-8778; yacm@archgh.org.
CONFERENCE, 11:30 a.m. to 9 p.m., St. Laurence (3100 Sweetwater Blvd., Sugar Land). Heart of Worship is an all-day spiritual event with talks, music, Mass, Eucharistic Adoration with Procession and dinner. This year’s speakers are Sonja Corbitt and Father Dat Hoang. $30 per person by Jan. 31. After that, it’s $50. stlaurence. org/how.
MARCH 7-9
RETREAT, Friday 6 p.m. to Sunday 1 p.m., LTT Retreat Center (20303 Kermier Rd., Waller). Silent weekend retreat based on the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius, led by Father Jon Budke, LC, with Mass, Reconciliation, spiritual direction and personalized formation. Open to all men. Cost: $285-$300. 210-452-9161; escorcia@dfwetc.com.
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purchase. Free and open to the public. stjosephaltarguild@silcc.org; 713-825-4576.
WORKSHOP, Friday from 7 to 9 p.m., and Saturday, 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Emmaus Spirituality Center (12211 Memorial Dr., Houston). This retreat will deal with the dynamics and healing of anger, fear, guilt, shame and grief so they become drives for new life rather than emotions we wish would disappear. Cost: $75 for both days. emmausspiritualitycenter.com; info@ emmausspiritualitycenter.com.
MARCH 22
GALA, 6 p.m., Ashton Gardens West Houston (18002 Clay Rd., Houston). Epiphany of the Lord Catholic School hosts gala with cocktail hour, dinner, wine pull, silent and live auctions, and dancing. Cost: $125 a ticket. epiphanycatholic. school/support/gala.
MARCH 30
ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION, noon to 6 p.m., St. John the Evangelist (800 W. Baker Rd., Baytown). Jubilee of Hope “50 Years of Faith & Fellowship: Celebrating the past and embracing the future” features barbecue plates, street food,
MILESTONES
IN VOCATIONS
Archdiocese welcomes newest transitional deacon
DEACON MITCHELL SCHUMANN
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE VOCATIONS OFFICE
Daniel Cardinal DiNardo presides over a Mass of Ordination to the Transitional Diaconate for Mitchell Schumann at St. Mary’s Seminary in Houston on Dec. 28, 2024.
HOUSTON — Daniel Cardinal DiNardo set a young man onto his next step toward the priesthood when he ordained seminarian Mitchell Schumann as a transitional deacon on Dec. 28, 2024, the day before his Dec. 29 birthday.
The Ordination Mass was celebrated at St. Mary’s Seminary in Houston and Auxiliary Bishop Italo Dell’Oro, CRS, concelebrated.
Deacon Schumann, who has been in seminary at the Pontifical North American College in Rome, returned to Italy following his ordination to begin his final year in seminary. His home parish is St. Ignatius of Loyola in Spring.
He said he loves studying theology, attending Mass and that he is able to serve the people of God. He credited his mother for always helping guide him to (or back to) the Lord with her “compassionate guidance.” †
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 713654-5799. Please keep in daily prayers the healing of victims of abuse and all who suffer in any way.
Shea Homes enhances facilities at St. Mary of the Purification School
HOUSTON — St. Mary of the Purification Catholic School announced that Shea Homes, which has funded numerous projects to enhance the school’s facilities, has recently helped the school acquire a state-of-the-art sound system, a retractable screen for the gymnasium and a new electronic marquee sign to improve communication with the school community.
“Without the generosity of Shea Homes, these improvements would not have been possible,” Deena Wolf, principal at St. Mary the Purification School, said. “The school community is deeply grateful for their continued support in fostering a better learning experience for all.”
Wolf said Shea Homes’ ongoing commitment has previously provided a new playground, window coverings for all classrooms and a protective covering for the playground, “creating a more comfortable and enriching environment for students.”
