Angelus News | March 24, 2023 | Vol. 8 No. 6

He was at the meeting the bishop was
supposed to attend the day he was
killed. It was fitting that they come
together, he said, because O’Connell
always urged them to avoid isolation
and “plug-in, build a group.”
“He would call it the epidemic of
loneliness,” explained Ramirez. “The
anxiety, the depression, the suicides,
all the struggles that youth and young
people are going through. He wanted
to find ways that they didn’t feel that
they were alone.”
Under O’Connell’s leadership, the
council created youth outings like
“After Hours,” evenings of eucharistic
adoration with music and food. There
were larger events like “Oceans of
Mercy” in 2017, an open Mass celebrated
on Huntington Beach. In 2019,
he accompanied a group to World
Youth Day in Panama and last year
spoke at the National Catholic Youth
Conference (NCYC) in Long Beach.
O’Connell paid attention in a special
way to mental health issues. In a 2017
interview on “We Are One Body Radio,”
he opened up about his family’s
history with depression and suicide,
and how at times he felt “terrible
anxiety.”
Later, he spoke of how a priest had
introduced him to Neal Lozano’s
book “Unbound: A Practical Guide to
Deliverance,” and that its prayer technique
gave him “peace.” He told host
Father Boniface Hicks, OSB, what it’s
like for people when they let go of a
traumatic past.
“They could be liberated, they could
feel free, they could feel new life,”
said O’Connell, crediting the impact
of Unbound Ministry on his work as
a priest.
In 2016, O’Connell saw an opportunity
in the Year of Mercy declared by
Pope Francis to try something new.
“He called it ‘Mercy on the Streets’
so we walked on the streets, we
knocked on doors, and we said we’re
here,” said Perez. “It was to evangelize
and show them there’s a place that
worries about them, cares about them,
and is very ready to welcome them if
they decide to go to church.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic,
O’Connell didn’t forget his young
flock, posting a video of encouragement
on YouTube. He helped at least
one couple get the Catholic wedding
they wanted when churches were
closed. With the help of a special
emergency dispensation and a Mass
kit, O’Connell celebrated the wedding
of Matthew and Amber Ghanadian at
an outdoor venue. Amber called the
bishop a “shining light” during a dark
time for the couple.
“He reminded us God is ready to
bless this marriage and he allowed
that to happen,” said Ghanadian, now
a parishioner of St. Angela Merici in
Brea in the Diocese of Orange.
Meanwhile, Rodriguez hopes to
continue the work O’Connell started,
leading her own young adult pilgrimage
to World Youth Day in Lisbon this
summer. There, she believes, “Bishop
Dave will be with us in spirit.”
Natalie Romano is a freelance writer
for Angelus and the Inland Catholic
Byte, the news website of the Diocese of
San Bernardino.
March 24, 2023 • ANGELUS • 31