FROM THE PASTOR’S DESK
Dear Beloved St. Mary’s Parishioners,
It’s 1927. Life in Mexico is changing for the worse; it’s revolutionary-like. The Mexican authorities have adopted a vehemently anti-Catholic approach. Their main goal – destroy the Catholic Church in the hearts of the people. During this time, over 90% of them would have identified their Catholic faith as integral to their identity. It was the center of their lives. The Church baptized their children, they were educated in our schools, they married within the walls of the Church, they went to Catholic hospitals when they were sick and they called the priests when they were dying. To be Mexican was to be Catholic; the two were intertwined for nearly five centuries.
The government of the then president Plutarco Elias Calles, sought to change this by any means necessary. The question for him had become, “How do I kill the faith of the Mexican people?” Under his leadership, the fiercest persecution against the Catholic Church would begin. Our Catholic brothers and sisters did not cower in fear. In fact, they fought back. One of these men was a faithful priest by the name of Fr. Miguel Pro. He defied the government mandates and secretly ministered to the people. He baptized, he married couples, he taught them catechesis; he did all the things that a good, faithful priest would do. The police looked for him for months until one day they finally found this “irritating” priest.
The photo on the bulletin cover is of Fr. Miguel Pro in one of disguises was taken in 1927, shortly before he died by firing squad. His captors asked him if he had any last words. He raised both hands in the form of a cross and yelled, "LONG LIVE CHRIST THE KING!" The government published this photo on the front pages of all the major newspapers the next day in an attempt to scare Catholics. It had the opposite effect.
Dethroning our egos is the hardest part of being a follower of Jesus Christ. Every day we must decide again and again that Jesus Christ is the King of our lives. Last Sunday at the 10AM Mass, we officially welcomed the largest group OCIA class in recent parish memory (Order of Christian Initiation for Adults). These brothers and sisters of ours are seeking to enter fully into the Catholic Church.
They each received the Sign of the Cross on their foreheads by me, as well as the sign of the cross on their ears, eyes, lips, hearts, shoulders, hands and feet from their sponsors. They also received a Bible and a crucifix to wear around their necks as the sign of God's love.
Those who were received into the Order of Catechumen (for those who are seeking baptism) are: Abigail Andrade, Ariana Andrade, Marissa Fisher, Gwendolyn Hargis, Alyssa Harris, Glen Mendoza, Wade Prichard, Nicolas Ramirezz, Andrea Schukler, Hank Schukler, Samantha Schukler, Raymond Tabios, Adrian Tenorio, Tyler Todd, Julien Whitaker, and Jaykob Whitaker.
Those who were received into the Order of Candidates for Confirmation and Holy Eucharist are: Ryan Alcazar, Bernardo Arreola-Medina, Ricardo ArreolaMedina, Marvin Carrion, Alicia Contreras, Lizzete Gomez, Chris Kerner, Theodore Pacheco, Meredith Pettman, Arlene Rubino, Rene Ruiz, and Jason Walther
Those who were received into the Order of Candidates for Full Communion with the Catholic Church are: Justin Null, Timothy Pettman, Karen Powers, Rachel Ruiz, Stephanie Siegle, and Amy Wilson.
Many of them are doing this despite facing great personal cost and hardship, the straining of family relationships, the ridicule of their friends, and painful isolation. Why walk this harder path of becoming Catholic? It’s simple. Jesus Christ is King. If he established the Catholic Church, how can I not follow him, regardless of the price? !VIVA CRISTO REY!
A Slave of Jesus Christ,
Fr. Brian J. Soliven
