Angelus News | February 7, 2024 | Vol. 10 No. 3

ANGELUS

IN IT FOR

THE LONG HAUL

Parishes go into rebuilding mode

after LA fires

February 7, 2025 Vol. 10 No. 3

B • ANGELUS • Month 00, 2024

ANGELUS

February 7, 2025

Vol. 10 • No. 3

3424 Wilshire Blvd.,

Los Angeles, CA 90010-2241

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Published by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese

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Publisher

ARCHBISHOP JOSÉ H. GOMEZ

Vice Chancellor for Communications

DAVID SCOTT

Editor-in-Chief

PABLO KAY

pkay@angelusnews.com

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MIKE CISNEROS

Multimedia Editor

TAMARA LONG GARCÍA

Production Artist

ARACELI CHAVEZ

Photo Editor

VICTOR ALEMÁN

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RICHARD G. BEEMER

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HANNAH SWENSON

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JIM GARCIA

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ON THE COVER

VICTOR ALEMÁN

Fire-scarred foothills are seen behind Assumption of the Blessed

Virgin Mary Church and School in Pasadena, one of several parishes

near the Eaton Fire burn area that have mobilized an army of volunteers,

staff, and school students to help victims of January’s fires. On

Page 10, Theresa Cisneros reports on how those parishes are moving

from emergency mode to recovery mode. On Page 14, Natalie

Romano talks to Altadena’s Black Catholics about the challenge to

rebuild their historic community after the fires.

THIS PAGE

VICTOR ALEMÁN

A young girl processes with a small Holy

Child statue into the Cathedral of Our

Lady of the Angels Jan. 19 before the annual

feast of the Santo Niño (“Divine Infant

Jesus”) Mass. The liturgy, which draws

thousands of Filipino Catholics every

January, was preceded by traditional dance

performances in the Cathedral Plaza.

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Pope Watch.................................................................................................................................... 2

Archbishop Gomez..................................................................................................................... 3

World, Nation, and Local News.......................................................................................... 4-6

In Other Words............................................................................................................................. 7

Father Rolheiser............................................................................................................................ 8

Scott Hahn................................................................................................................................... 32

Events Calendar......................................................................................................................... 33

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CONTENTS

OneLife LA crowd hears from families who lost homes to Eaton Fire

Why the American bishops are confronting Trump on immigration

Can Pope Francis’ new autobiography survive ‘papal fatigue’?

When choosing another child over vacations and brunches doesn’t ‘compute’

Robert Brennan on why ‘things’ still matter, even in a fire or disaster

Sign up for our free, daily e-newsletter

Always Forward - newsletter.angelusnews.com

28

30

The contradictory dogmas of late surrealist filmmaker David Lynch

Heather King: The LA fires and the ‘worthiness to suffer’

February 7, 2025 • ANGELUS • 1

POPE WATCH

Sisters stepping forward

Pope Francis praised members of

the Los Angeles-based Conrad

Hilton Foundation for helping

bring the Catholic Church out of a

“clerical mindset” that invests too little

in the formation of religious sisters.

“The need for sisters to pursue continuing

education and training is urgent,”

said the pope at a special Jan. 22 Vatican

audience with the foundation, which

supports women religious around the

world through the Catholic Sisters Initiative

and the Hilton Fund for Sisters.

“The mission of sisters is to serve the

least among us. It is not to be servants to

anyone.”

The pope met with members of the

foundation’s board of directors, as well

as some sisters who were taking part

in a conference in Rome dedicated to

religious women working in the field of

communication.

“Often we hear complaints that there

are not enough sisters in positions of

responsibility, in dioceses, the Roman

Curia and universities,” the pope said.

The complaints are valid, and “we need

to overcome a clerical and chauvinist

mindset.”

“Thanks be to God that now in the

Curia we have a woman prefect in the

dicastery for religious,” said the pope,

alluding to his recent appointment of

Sister Simona Brambilla as the new

prefect of the Dicastery for the Institutes

of Consecrated Life and the Societies of

Apostolic Life. He also mentioned the

presence of women in other top Vatican

positions.

“Thanks be to God that the sisters are

stepping forward. They know how to do

things better than men,” he said.

During the conference, the foundation

announced the creation of The Anna

Trust, a new elder care fund that will

support “a healthy, dignified aging process

for Catholic sisters worldwide” with

the help of an initial $15 million grant.

According to the foundation, the trust

will fund grants to support 10,000 sisters

in underserved areas, provide training for

sisters on better elder care, and launch

“a longitudinal study to document the

impact of grantmaking on sisters’ mental

health, physical health, and spirituality.”

Hilton Foundation board chair Linda

Hilton, granddaughter of the late hotel

magnate Conrad N. Hilton, was among

those at the Vatican audience. In a statement,

she said the foundation has “taken

to heart Pope Francis’ encouragement to

honor the wisdom of elderly people” in

creating the trust.

In his remarks, Francis thanked the

foundation for its philanthropy and

generosity toward those who “find themselves

in situations of vulnerability.”

“The service you freely offer in the

fields of education, health, refugee

assistance, and the fight against poverty

is a concrete testimony of love and

compassion,” he said, calling them to

continue to focus on compassion, which

“is not throwing money into the hands

of another without looking them in the

eyes,” but is drawing near and “suffering

with.”

“As the numbers of the poor and

excluded in our world continue to

increase … you have chosen to commit

yourselves actively to promoting human

dignity, personally with passion and

compassion, like the good Samaritan,”

he said.

Reporting courtesy of Angelus staff and

Catholic News Service Rome correspondent

Carol Glatz.

Papal Prayer Intention for February: Let us pray that the

ecclesial community might welcome the desires and doubts

of those young people who feel a call to serve Christ’s

mission in the priesthood and religious life.

2 • ANGELUS • February 7, 2025

NEW WORLD OF FAITH

ARCHBISHOP JOSÉ H. GOMEZ

After the fire, a still, small voice

The following is adapted from the

archbishop’s Jan. 18 address to the

11th annual OneLife LA family

festival, which this year was focused

on supporting those affected by the

wildfires.

These days we are being purified,

we are being tested by fire.

Our city is being tested, and

our Church, the family of God.

In good times and hard times, we

always need to turn to the Word of

God.

So, these days I’ve been spending

time with God’s Word. I’ve been

trying to discern his will and understand

his purposes.

The Scriptures say that in days of

old, God came to his people in fire.

He called to Moses from the burning

bush. He came to Israel at Horeb, as

the mountain burned with fire to the

heart of heaven, as it was wrapped in

darkness, cloud, and gloom.

And the Lord God spoke to his

people there, from the fire. He promised

to love them forever, and never to

fail or forget them.

The voice of the Lord is still speaking

to us from the midst of these fires.

He is still promising his love. Our

challenge is to listen for his voice.

The wildfires and windstorms swept

away loved ones and homes, they

swept away parishes, neighborhoods,

and livelihoods. People’s possessions

and precious memories have been

reduced to ash, their futures left

uncertain.

I know some of you lost everything.

My heart weeps for you and your

families and for all our neighbors.

But keep this in your heart and never

forget: You are precious in the Lord’s

eyes. Every one of you. God loves you

with a love beyond telling.

St. Paul said that nothing can ever

separate us from the love of Jesus

Christ! Not trial or tribulation, not

famine or persecution. And not fire.

In all these things, we can overcome,

with the strength of the One who loves

us until the end. We need to trust

that in everything God is working for

the good with those who love him,

according to his purposes.

We remember the story from Scripture

about how the prophet Elijah was

chased by his enemies. God told him

to climb the mountain, and he would

pass by and speak to him.

Elijah felt abandoned. He couldn’t

see God anywhere.

Then a violent wind came that ripped

through the mountain, shattering

everything in its wake. After that came

an earthquake. Then a fire.

The Lord was not in the windstorm.

Or the earthquake. And he was not in

the fire.

But after the fire, Scripture says,

there came a still, small voice, a tiny

whispering sound.

Out of these fires, we need to listen

for that still, small voice. God is calling

to us now, even if it sounds like

only a whisper.

In times like this we realize life is

precious, but life is also fragile. What

we have, we could lose in an instant.

So, we should live for God, enjoy

every moment, and never take anyone

or anything in our lives for granted.

Now is the hour for Christian

witness. We need to stand together in

hope! Support one another, sacrifice

for one another, take care of one

another!

This is the spirit we’ve tried to foster

over the years through OneLife LA.

OneLife LA was never meant to be

just an event. It was meant to start a

movement.

OneLife LA is the dream of a community

of love where every human

life is sacred, and every life is cared

for, from the moment a person is conceived

in the womb until the moment

their life reaches its natural end.

We need this spirit now to renew our

city and our Church.

In this moment, the Lord is calling

us to be good friends and good

neighbors, to bring his love to those

who are suffering.

In times like this we realize life is precious, but

life is also fragile. What we have, we could lose

in an instant. So, we should live for God, enjoy

every moment, and never take anyone or anything

in our lives for granted.

Let us go, always forward with faith

and hope in God: One life, one love,

one LA!

Let’s ask our Blessed Mother to

protect and guide us. In her tender

love, may she help us to hear that still,

small voice of her Son speaking in

these days of fire.

Our Lady, Queen of Angels: Be a

mother to us all!


WORLD

■ Pope to promote first woman to

lead Vatican City government

Sister Raffaella

Petrini. | DAN-

IEL IBAÑEZ/

EWTN NEWS

Pope Francis revealed he plans to appoint a woman

to govern the Vatican City’s day-to-day administrative

operations.

Franciscan Sister Raffaella Petrini currently serves as

secretary for the General Secretariat of the Government

of the Vatican City State. But according to the

pope, she will replace the current head of the secretariat,

Spanish Cardinal Fernando Vérgez, when he turns

80 next month.

Francis made the announcement during a Jan. 19

appearance on the Italian talk show “Che Tempo Che

Fa,” where he said that “women know how to manage

things better than us.”

Petrini was born in Rome and has degrees from Guido

Carli International University and the Pontifical

University of St. Thomas Aquinas.

■ Pope dissolves Latin American

community, citing history of abuse

Pope Francis ordered the dissolution of the Sodality

of Christian Life (SCV), whose founder was convicted

of sexual abuse and abuse of power.

The news of the dissolution was confirmed by representatives

of the SCV Jan. 20. According to leaked

reports, the Vatican decree “refers to the immorality of

the founder, Luis Fernando Figari, as an indication of

the nonexistence of a founding charism, and therefore,

the lack of ecclesial legitimacy for the permanence of

the institution.”

In 2017, the Vatican sanctioned Figari and banned

him from having any contact with the society. In

August of last year, Francis made the additional move

to expel Figari and other members from the group

following a 2023 investigation into the SCV.

■ Cuba releases prisoners in

Jubilee Year deal

The Cuban government announced the release of 553 prisoners

Jan. 14, citing the “spirit of the Ordinary Jubilee of the year 2025.”

“It is significant that the authorities in Havana linked this decision

directly to Pope Francis’ appeal,” Cardinal Pietro Parolin,

Vatican secretary of state, told Vatican News Jan. 15, calling the

decision a “sign of great hope at the beginning of this Jubilee.”

The commutations reportedly follow several years of communication

between Francis and the presidents of the United States

and Cuba mediated by retired Boston archbishop Cardinal

Seán O’Malley. The White House also announced that it would

no longer designate Cuba a state sponsor of terrorism after the

announcement.

In a papal bull last year announcing the Jubilee, the pope called

on governments to adopt “forms of amnesty or pardon” and “programs

of reintegration” for prisoners.

■ Ceasefire was ‘absolutely necessary,’

Jerusalem patriarch says

The Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem praised a ceasefire agreement

in Gaza between Israel and Hamas as “absolutely

necessary,” and called for immediate focus on food, health, and

education support in the region.

The ceasefire was announced Jan. 15 and brokered by the

U.S., Qatar, and Egypt. It calls for a six-week pause in fighting

and facilitates the release of 33 Israeli hostages in exchange for

50 Palestinian prisoners.

“This is only the first step,” Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa

told Vatican News. “Peace will take much longer to achieve

because the end of the war is not the end of the conflict.”

Pizzaballa said Gaza’s only Catholic church, Holy Family

Parish, will help coordinate humanitarian relief in the region.

“We are all very happy,” said Pizzaballa. “In every context,

people are happy because this war has worn us down, exhausted

us, and wounded everyone’s lives.”

Released Israeli hostage Doron Steinbrecher

embraces loved ones Jan. 19. | OSV NEWS/

MAAYAN TOAF/GPO/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS


NATION

■ Philly creates ‘missionary

hubs’ to support ailing

parishes

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia is creating

50 “missionary hubs” after diocesan

Mass counts found that 83% of baptized

Catholics in the area do not attend Sunday

Mass.

As part of a new 10-year program, the

“hubs” will not replace the archdiocese’s

214 parishes, but provide resources to existing

parishes and ministries with the help of

full-time staff, which may include “service

coordinators, communications experts, event

specialists, and missionaries,” working under

pastors “committed to outward engagement.”

The hubs will be funded mostly by

charitable donations and grants.

In a Jan. 5 pastoral letter, Philadelphia

Archbishop Nelson Pérez said the plan is an

answer to the rising number of church closures

across U.S. dioceses, and that he does

not want to “perpetuate this cycle” of closing

underfunded and underattended parishes.

The path of life — A statue of Jesus is carried past the U.S. Capitol during the annual March for Life

rally in Washington, D.C., Jan. 24. This year’s event drew tens of thousands of pro-life demonstrators and

featured remarks from Vice President JD Vance, House Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Majority Leader

John Thune, activist Lila Rose, and Bethany Hamilton, who survived a shark attack while surfing in Hawaii

20 years ago. | OSV NEWS/EVELYN HOCKSTEIN, REUTERS

■ Study: US

clerical abuse

accusations

have dropped

sharply

While the number

of abuse allegations

against Catholic clergy

has dropped dramatically

over the past 20

years, the U.S. Church

has spent more than $5

billion responding to

the abuse crisis during

that time.

Those findings come A graph from the new CARA report. | CARA

from a January report

from the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), drawn from its

annual survey of U.S. dioceses and eparchies.

The surveys detailed a total of 16,276 credible allegations of abuse of minors

from incidents dating back more than 80 years. Ninety percent of these allegations

occurred in or before 1989; 5% occurred in the 1990s; and 3%, or approximately

488, occurred since 2000.

About 75% of the $5 billion spent by dioceses and religious orders on abuse

allegations has gone to settlements and other payments to victims. Another

$728 million has been spent on abuse prevention efforts, including training and

background checks.

■ Montana bill takes aim

at seal of confession

A proposed Montana bill could compel

priests to break the seal of confession

if passed.

Montana Senate Bill 139 states

that clergy, as part of the mandatory

reporting group that includes medical

providers and social workers, “may not

refuse to make a report as required …

on the grounds of a physician-patient or

similar privilege.”

“This is about civil and criminal

laws to protect children from child

sex abuse. It’s not about canon law.

Otherwise, there’d be no separation of

church and state,” Democratic Rep.

Mary Ann Dunwell, the bill’s sponsor,

told Catholic News Agency.

“I believe that this bill is an attack on

the Catholic faith,” Republican Rep.

Lukas Schubert, a public critic of the

bill, told CNA. “This Democrat bill

would attempt to require Catholic

priests to break the seal of confession.”

The priest-penitent privilege is currently

protected by Montana law and a

1980 U.S. Supreme Court precedent.


LOCAL

More for Maryvale — Rosie Erickson, left, the daughter of Dr. Tirso del Junco, poses with Archbishop José

H. Gomez, Mary Koenig, the vice president for development at Maryvale, and Michael Donaldson, the senior

director for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles’ Office of Life, Justice and Peace at the OneLife LA event on

Jan. 18. A $10,000 grant, this year renamed for the recently deceased del Junco, is annually given at OneLife

LA to a community partner that reflects its mission and vision. | VICTOR ALEMÁN

■ Archbishop Gomez urges

immigration enforcement be

‘prudent’

Archbishop José H. Gomez prayed that authorities

“proceed with restraint and compassion” after the

new Trump administration issued a series of immigration-related

executive orders.

“Statements and actions from the new administration

in Washington have caused fear in our parishes,

schools, and communities,” said Archbishop Gomez in

a statement released Jan. 22. “That is not good for anybody.

I pray that our leaders will proceed with restraint

and compassion, with respect for the law, and with

respect for the rights and dignity of all concerned.”

Since taking office on Jan. 20, the Trump administration

issued several directives, including effectively

closing the country’s borders to asylum-seekers and

revoking a policy requiring immigration agents to get

special approval to arrest people at or near churches

and schools.

“Jesus Christ commanded us to love God as our Father

and to love our brothers and sisters, especially the

most vulnerable, and regardless of what country they

came from or how they got here,” Archbishop Gomez

said.

For immigration resources, visit LACatholics.org/

immigration.

■ St. Brigid’s

parishioner celebrates

105th birthday

For parishioners of St. Brigid

Church in South LA, Jan. 26

was no ordinary Sunday — it

was also the 105th birthday of

their most beloved parishioner:

Althea Vignaud.

Originally from Madisonville,

Louisiana, Vignaud was raised

Catholic and taught at school

by the Sisters of the Holy Family,

an order of religious sisters

founded by Venerable Henriette

Delille, a Creole nun who lived

in New Orleans in the 1800s

and is now being considered for

sainthood.

■ First round of donations

from archdiocese fire fund

tops $500K

The special Wildfire Victim’s Relief

Fund created by the Archdiocese of Los

Angeles to assist those affected by the

recent Southern California fires, has

received more than $500,000 in donations

so far.

The fund began disbursing $1,000 onetime

payments to anyone affected by the

wildfires who need immediate financial

support, whether they’re Catholic or not.

To receive the funds, individuals can visit

any Catholic parish in the archdiocese.

Holy Angels Church in Arcadia has been

the parish to distribute the most so far —

$214,000 — while Sacred Heart Church

in Altadena has distributed $98,000.

Parishes across the archdiocese — and in

parishes and dioceses across the country

— held a second collection during Masses

in January to support the relief fund.

Continue donating at LACatholics.org/

california-fires.

Althea Vignaud celebrating

her 105th birthday at

Mass on Sunday, Jan. 26. |

ST. BRIGID CHURCH

Vignaud moved to Los Angeles in the 1980s and joined St. Brigid,

where she’s gone by the nickname “Puddin” for as long as anyone

can remember. The parish celebrated her birthday with a special

reception after Sunday Mass.

When asked how she’d kept her faith all these years, Vignaud’s

answer was simple.

“God has blessed me, and I’m not messing up my blessings fighting

with nobody,” she told Angelus. “I don’t care who it is.”

Y


V

IN OTHER WORDS...

Letters to the Editor

Getting David Lynch’s beliefs straight

I didn’t like the tribute to late filmmaker David Lynch published on

AngelusNews.com Jan. 27 (and on pages 28-29 in this issue). He was the

reason why I fled Transcendental Meditation and went to rediscover my Catholic

faith. Don’t mislead people with the hope that he converted to Catholicism or

Christianity.

— Richard Chen

A film worthy of a positive review

Thanks to Rafael Alvarez for giving “A Complete Unknown” the credit it

deserves in his review in the Jan. 24 issue. I didn’t expect to enjoy its treatment of

Bob Dylan’s character as much as I did.

While I agreed with the recent critical reviews of “Conclave” and Netflix’s

“Mary” movie, I think it was time to find a film worth praising in the New Year!

— J. Caffrey, New York

Correction

The destroyed Pacific Palisades home on the cover of the Jan. 24 issue of Angelus

was misidentified in the image’s caption. The home belongs to Rick and Tracy

McGeagh; their son, Jack, took the photo shown on the cover.

Y

Continue the conversation! To submit a letter to the editor, visit AngelusNews.com/Letters-To-The-Editor

and use our online form or send an email to editorial@angelusnews.com. Please limit to 300 words. Letters

may be edited for style, brevity, and clarity.

A light for life

“The next four years of

America’s history will be

defined either by courage

or by cowardice.”

~ Hannah Lape, president of Wheaton College

Voice for Life, at the 52nd National March for Life

on Jan. 24.

“God speaks and

understands all languages.”

~ Rev. Datuk Danald Jute, secretary general of the

Association of Churches in Sarawak, in a Jan. 23

Agenzia Fides article on the first Bibles published in

the Malaysian language.

“I was born in war, brought

up in war, and studied

in war. Perhaps that has

helped me to get through

this.”

~ Bishop Yunan Tombe of El-Obeid, Sudan,

speaking to Aid to the Church in Need about the

situation in his country, weeks after being briefly

captured and tortured by paramilitary soldiers.

“I can’t imagine sitting in a

hot tub.”

~ Shannon Hunt, an Altadena resident, in a Jan. 20

LA Times column about survivor’s guilt feelings in

Southern California after the wildfires.

A young girl brings up a candle

symbolizing a baby killed by

abortion during the annual

Requiem Mass for the Unborn,

the conclusion to the OneLife

LA celebration at the Cathedral

of Our Lady of the Angels on

Jan. 18. | VICTOR ALEMÁN

View more photos

from this gallery at

AngelusNews.com/photos-videos

Do you have photos or a story from your parish that you’d

like to share? Please send to editorial @angelusnews.com.

“We can finally stop

listening to ‘On Eagle’s

Wings’ for the umpteenth

time.”

~ Auguste Meyrat, in a Jan. 22 Crisis Magazine

commentary on how to save the music at Mass.


IN EXILE

FATHER RONALD ROLHEISER, OMI

Oblate of Mary Immaculate Father

Ronald Rolheiser is a spiritual

writer; ronrolheiser.com

Lies and the sin against the Spirit

There is nothing as psychologically

and morally dangerous

as lying, as denying the truth.

Jesus warns us that we can commit

a sin that is unforgivable which (in

his words) is a blaspheme against the

Holy Spirit.

What is this sin? Why is it unforgivable?

And how is it linked to not

telling the truth?

This is the context where Jesus gives

us this warning. He had just cast out

a demon and some of the people who

had witnessed this believed, as a hard

religious doctrine, that only someone

who came from God could cast out

a demon. But they hated Jesus, so

seeing him cast out a demon was a

very inconvenient truth, so inconvenient

in fact that they chose to deny

what they had just seen with their

own eyes. And so, against everything

they knew to be true, they affirmed

instead that Jesus had cast out the

demon by Beelzebub, the prince of

demons. They knew better. They

knew that they were denying the

truth.

Jesus’ first response was to try to

make them see their lie. He appeals

to logic, arguing that if Beelzebub,

the prince of demons, is casting out

demons, then Satan’s house is divided

against itself and will eventually

fall. But they persist in their lie. It’s

then, in that specific context, that Jesus

utters his warning about the danger

of committing a sin that cannot

be forgiven because it blasphemes

the Holy Spirit.

In essence, what’s in this warning?

The people whom Jesus addressed

had denied a reality that they had just

seen with their own eyes because it

was too difficult for them to accept its

truth. So, they denied its truth, fully

aware that they were lying.

Well, the first lie we tell is not so

dangerous because we still know we

are lying. The danger is that if we

persist in that lie and continue to

deny (and lie) we can reach a point

where we believe the lie, see it as

truth, and see truth as falsehood.

Perversion is then seen as virtue, and

the sin becomes unforgivable, not because

forgiveness is withheld, but because

we no longer believe we need

forgiveness, nor in fact do we want it

or remain open to receiving it.

Whenever we lie or in any way

deny the truth we begin to warp our

conscience, and if we persist in this

eventually we will (and this is not too

strong a phrase) pervert our soul so

that for us falsehood looks like truth,

darkness looks like light, and hell

looks like heaven.

Hell is never a nasty surprise waiting

for a basically honest, happy person.

Hell can only be the full flowering

of a long, sustained dishonesty where

we have denied reality for so long

that we now see dishonesty as truth.

There isn’t anyone in hell who is

repentant and wishing he or she had

another chance to live and die in

grace. If there is anyone in hell, that

person, no matter his or her private

misery, is feeling smug and looking

with a certain disdain on the naivete

of those who are honest, those in

heaven.

And how is that a “blaspheme

against the Holy Spirit”?

In his letter to the Galatians, St.

Paul lays out two fundamental ways

we can live our lives. We can live

outside of God’s spirit. We do that

whenever we are living in infidelity,

idolatry, hatred, factionalism, and

dishonesty. And lying is what takes

us there. Conversely, we live inside

God’s spirit, the Holy Spirit, whenever

we are living in charity, joy, peace,

patience, goodness, longsuffering,

fidelity, gentleness, and chastity. And

we live inside these whenever we

are honest. Thus, whenever we lie,

whenever we deny reality, whenever

we deny truth, we are (in effect and

in reality) stepping outside of God’s

spirit, blaspheming that spirit by

disdaining it.

Satan is the prince of lies. That’s

why the biggest danger in our world

is the amount of lies, disinformation,

misinformation, and flat-out denial of

reality that’s present most everywhere

today — whenever, it seems, we don’t

find the truth to our liking. There

is nothing more destructive and

dangerous to the health of our souls,

the possibility of creating community

among ourselves, the future of our

planet, and our own sanity, than the

flat-out denial of the truth of something

that has happened.

When reality is denied; when a fact

of history is rewritten to expunge

a painful truth; when you are told

that something you witnessed with

your own eyes didn’t happen; when

someone says, the holocaust didn’t

happen; when someone says there

never was slavery in this country; or

when someone says no kids died at

Sandy Hook, that doesn’t just dishonor

millions of people, it plays on the

sanity of a whole culture.

When something has happened and

is subsequently denied, that doesn’t

just make a mockery of truth, it plays

havoc with our sanity, not least with

the one who is telling the lie.


ROAD TO

RECOVERY

Catholic parishes and schools

were on the front lines of relief

efforts during the LA fires. But

they’re only getting started.

BY THERESA CISNEROS

If Father Michael Ume learned anything

from leading his flock during

the COVID-19 pandemic, it was the

need to stay active — and united —

during times of turmoil.

With that in mind, the pastor of

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Church in Pasadena has kept the lights

on, the doors open, and the coffee and

donuts flowing in the last few weeks,

even as nearby wildfires claimed the

homes of at least 17 parishioners and

one employee.

“In a time of crisis people are trying

to reach out, people are trying to figure

out where to go, what to do, who to talk

to,” Ume said. “And this provided that

opportunity for them. Maybe they lost

their home, or maybe they were evacuated,

or maybe they just wanted to talk

about the whole experience, and that is

what we did.”

Father Michael Ume, pastor of Assumption of the

Blessed Virgin Mary Church in Pasadena, with

volunteers from his parish. | VICTOR ALEMÁN


Ume’s parish is one of many churches

and schools in the Archdiocese of Los

Angeles that rallied their communities

as wind-driven wildfires ravaged parts

of Southern California, mobilizing to

provide the afflicted with emergency

supplies, money, and moral support.

And they have no plans to slow down

as parishioners figure out how to

rebuild their lives and abodes in the

coming months and years.

Those who work, worship, and volunteer

in or near burn and evacuation

zones said the fires and their aftermath

have upended their day-to-day activities.

At St. Elizabeth Church in Altadena,

at least half of its parishioners — including

school parents — lost their

homes to the Eaton Fire, according to

pastor Father Modesto Perez.

Although evacuation orders were

recently lifted and power has been

restored, Perez said it could take weeks

of sanitizing and deep cleaning before

services can resume at the church

campus.

In the meantime, the parish is doling

out everything from toiletry kits to

rental assistance while informing fire

victims about various resources available

to them, including counseling.

The parish’s Knights of Columbus

council also recently organized a daylong

“Live-Away” event that provided

more than 1,000 attendees with food,

toiletries, clothes, and resources to

help them find short- and long-term

housing.

In addition, several parishioners have

taken fire victims into their homes,

said Frank Ferguson, who leads the

Knights, and one person even made

a seven-figure donation to help the

displaced get back into housing.

“We are not just a group of people

who go to church together on Sunday,”

Perez said in an email. “We are

a community united by faith, love

and boundless generosity. Though

fire ravaged our community, faith has

flourished.”

At Assumption of the Blessed Virgin

Mary School — located about a

Steve Mets looks on as a volunteer assists Gloria

Cisneros, center, in finding donated clothing for

her daughter in the gymnasium of Assumption

of the Virgin Mary School in Pasadena Jan. 14. |

OSV/BOB ROLLER

half-mile away from the Eaton Fire

footprint — four school families lost

their homes, and many more students

and staff members are still displaced,

said Principal Robert Bringas Jr.

To help, the school and church held

an “Operation Gators Strong” donation

drive. For two weeks, people dropped

off pet food, socks, laundry detergent,

and other essentials while the World

Central Kitchen served hot meals. In

addition, an “army of angels” filled

fire victims’ requests for air mattresses,

phone chargers, pots and pans, and

more, Bringas said.

“It was really the true example of

people really caring for each other,” he

said.

Jennifer Ramirez, principal of St.

Philip the Apostle School in Pasadena

— located about four blocks from the

Eaton Fire evacuation zone — said


A statue of Mary rests nearly

untouched in the rubble of a

destroyed home in Altadena Jan.

17. | OSV NEWS/BOB ROLLER

the disaster has taken a heavy toll on

students and staff, with 10 school families

losing their homes and another

60 evacuated. Four staff members and

many families are still displaced, she

added.

As a result, the school started a fire

relief fund for families and staff. It’s

also providing free lunch and uniforms

for displaced students, Ramirez said,

and each grade level has “adopted”

students and families that have lost

their homes.

In March, the school is planning to

host an event to provide homeowners

with the latest information they’ll need

to reconstruct their dwellings.

The church has also held multiple

donation drives, Ramirez said, and

People wait for meals during a food distribution

sponsored by World Central Kitchen

for displaced people outside La Salle College

Preparatory High School in Pasadena Jan. 16. |

OSV NEWS/BOB ROLLER


members, and the church pastor are

working long hours to assist about 50

people a day.

“This is a project of angels that is

worth doing, and it lifts the dignity of

the people who lost everything,” he

said.

As those ministering to the fire victims

begin to move from emergency

mode to recovery mode, many say

they intend to keep helping.

Bringas — who called ABVM’s donation

drive a “long haul project” —

said organizers are storing the items

they’ve received so they can distribute

said. “It gives you hope that together

we can rebuild.”

Many who’ve spent the last month

aiding fire victims said they’re compelled

to do so out of love for the

suffering.

For Ferguson, whose home was

spared from the

flames, it’s a way

to answer God’s

call to help his

neighbors.

“Jesus encourages

us in Matthew to

give food to the

Father Kevin Rettig,

pastor at Holy Angels

Church in Arcadia,

with volunteers who

provided sandwiches

and coffee for wildfire

victims. | ENRIQUE

REYES

plans to host a six-week fire survivor

support group starting in February.

“It’s a good feeling to be in a community

where people take care of

each other,” she said.

Nearby schools and churches further

removed from the fire zone are also

stepping up.

Holy Angels Church in Arcadia — a

few miles away from the Eaton Fire

burn zone — recently collected clothing,

canned goods, personal hygiene

items, and more for fire victims, said

Business Manager Enrique Reyes.

The parish has also provided financial

help to fire victims. As of the

weekend of Jan. 26, it had distributed

215 individual $1,000 relief

grants from the archdiocese’s wildfire

emergency relief fund to victims with

urgent needs. Most are from Altadena,

Reyes said, though some are from

other fire-impacted communities like

Pasadena, Pacific Palisades, and parts

of the San Fernando Valley.

Checks have been used to cover

hotel stays, help stabilize home-based

businesses, and purchase medications

for children with special needs, Reyes

said. A core group of volunteers, staff

them in a few months.

Ferguson said his parish community

will keep assisting the displaced for

the next four years or so, as they’ll

need furniture and other resources

as they transition into permanent

housing.

At Holy Angels, Reyes said the parish

will continue gathering donations for

local shelters and giving more grants

to those in need.

“Seeing the outpouring of support

from different people, from not only

our parish, but also from other cities,

it gives you hope in humanity,” Reyes

hungry and clothing to those in need

of clothes,” he said. “When we do this

for the least of our brothers, we do it

for Jesus. It is that simple.”

Those who wish to donate to help fire

victims can visit angelusnews.com/

howtohelp.

Theresa Cisneros is a freelance journalist

with more than 20 years of experience

in the news industry. She is a

fourth-generation Southern California

resident and lives in Orange County

with her husband and four children.


A home burns behind the

wreckage of Trena Spurlock’s

home during the Eaton Fire. |

TRENA SPURLOCK

NOT WALKING AWAY

Altadena’s Black Catholics see a difficult,

but not impossible, road ahead to rebuilding a

fragile community after the Eaton Fire.

BY NATALIE ROMANO

As a member of Sacred Heart

Catholic Church’s gospel choir,

Trena Spurlock has sung the

hymn “My Help” countless times.

But after the Eaton Fire, the words hit

deeper.

Spurlock fled her home of 40 years

with her dog, a Bible, and her late husband’s

ashes before the blaze devoured

her entire neighborhood in Altadena,

home to a historically significant Black

community.

While Spurlock copes with the tragedy,

she finds herself repeating the words

of the hymn, adapted from Psalm 121.

“It says, ‘I will lift up mine eyes to the

hills’ and you know we are in the hills

that burned,” said Spurlock. “Then

it goes, ‘From whence cometh my

help, My help cometh from the Lord.’

That means he’s not going to forget us.

Beautiful.”

Even though the flames that killed

at least 17 people in Altadena are no

longer a threat, the loss of community

lingers — particularly for the city’s African

American residents, some of which

are Catholic.

For decades, Altadena has been a

diverse hamlet that boasted higher

than average Black home ownership,

thriving Black small businesses, and

churches with ministries that specifically

serve Black Catholics. But

now, in the wake of such devastation,

local leaders recognize Altadena faces

a daunting challenge: retaining its

identity in the face of a very real chasm

between residents’ desire to stay, and

the financial ability to stay.

Yet with faith there is hope, insists

Deacon Charles Mitchell, who has

been active in the post-Eaton Fire relief

effort.

“Black Catholics are a strong group

and we will survive this,” said Mitchell,

who serves as a deacon of St. Elizabeth

of Hungary Church in Altadena and

as treasurer of the Altadena/Pasadena

Black Catholic Association.

Still, Mitchell said, “we also know this

isn’t going to be easy.”

“The cost of housing has tremendously

risen in the last 10 years … people

may have to live nearby instead and

that would really distort the history of

Altadena,” said Mitchell. “We ask those

not affected to do what you can to help,

and as always we ask for the grace of

God.”

Among those leading the drive is the

LA Archdiocese’s African American

Catholic Center for Evangelization

(AACCFE). The nonprofit, which

supports archdiocesan churches with

predominantly Black parishioners,

recently announced the launch of the

Altadena Wildfire Victims Fund.

The idea arose organically at this


Trena Spurlock with her two

children, Franqui and Bryce. |

TRENA SPURLOCK

year’s Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Prayer

Breakfast, held the same week that the

fires started, when someone picked up

a vase and attendees started dropping

in donations. By the time the event was

over, $2,000 was raised. AACCFE leaders

say they’re aiming to raise around

$10,000 before offering grants.

“Once the quick relief money is gone

and the insurance money comes up

short, we want to help people,” said

AACCFE director Anderson Shaw.

“We want them to remodel, rebuild,

and buy in Altadena. … If everyone

leaves, the community structure starts

to collapse.”

That’s a future that Spurlock said

she cannot bear. Her family has been

active in local Catholic circles since the

1950s. As a child, she attended both Sacred

Heart Church and Primary School

then went on to St. Andrew High

School in Pasadena. Her two children,

now adults, attended St. Elizabeth’s

School. After much prayer, the retired

educator said she’ll rebuild the home

she shared with her son.

“Black Catholics are very rare,” said

Spurlock. “So when you find a community

that understands you, has the

capacity to worship the way you’re used

to, and has the same values, you want

to stay connected, you want to go to

church … I’m not walking away.”

Before the wildfire, Altadena had

a Black population of 18% and a

Black home ownership rate of more

than 80%, about double the national

average. The suburb grew in diversity

following the Fair Housing Act of 1968,

which banned racial discrimination in

mortgage lending known as “redlining.”

Dr. Horace Williams remembers

those days. The retired pharmacist

fought for equity in housing as a member

of the Catholic Human Relations

Council. He’s concerned about losing

what he so passionately fought for:

middle-class neighborhoods for African

American families.

“Real estate speculators are coming in

with good offers and getting the properties.

They’ll be turned into expensive

homes,” lamented Williams. “The

community will be changed. … We

need to put people ahead of profits.”

Shaw is also concerned about bigotry

from the very agencies that are supposed

to protect

homeowners.

“There is some

bias in the system,”

said Shaw.

“People make it

more difficult for

[African Americans]

to qualify

for monies. Insurance

companies

specifically will

try to find reasons

to deny them

everything they

need.”

That’s where

advocates like

Edwina Clay

come in. As

president of the

Altadena/Pasadena

Black Catholic

Association and

The Knights of

St. Peter Claver

Ladies Auxiliary,

she’s providing

friendship and

guidance to her

Anderson Shaw at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels

following a Mass commemorating Dr. Martin Luther

King Jr.’s call for Service on Jan. 20. | VICTOR ALEMÁN

fellow evacuees.

“I’m calling people, asking them what

they need, then sending them in the

right direction,” said Clay, whose apartment

was damaged by high winds. “We

pray things are going to happen the way

[officials] say they’re going to happen,

but in all honesty, who knows? There’s

some things we’re going to have to do

on our own.”

Rebuilding the Black community is

not only important for its members but

important for the wider community

including his parish, said Father Gilbert

Guzman, pastor of Sacred Heart.

“African Americans have a rich

spiritual history,” explained Guzman.

“They continue those traditions

through Gospel music … by celebrating

Black History Month and Kwanzaa.

They make a unique contribution here

and are very strong in their presence.”

Deacon Mitchell said that will never

change.

“For those of us who remain, we will

continue our traditions. Even if our

numbers lessen, our faces, our activities,

our involvement will be seen.”

To learn more and donate to the

Altadena Wildfire Victims Fund, visit

aaccfe.org.

Natalie Romano is a freelance writer

for Angelus and the Inland Catholic

Byte, the news website of the Diocese of

San Bernardino.


GAIN FROM

WHAT’S LOST

At this year’s OneLife LA, two

families who lost their homes in the

Eaton Fire gave a stirring witness.

BY MIKE CISNEROS

George Magallon processes

into the OneLife LA celebration

holding the Virgin Mary statue

that survived the Eaton Fire at his

home. | VICTOR ALEMÁN

When the Magallon and

Gonzalez families received

evacuation orders during the

Eaton Fire, neither had any inkling

that they were seeing their home for

the last time.

“Not in a million years would I have

thought we’re never coming home,”

Diana Gonzalez said.

After losing their homes in the fire,

both families were invited to speak

at and participate in the OneLife LA

event at the Cathedral of Our Lady of

the Angels on Jan. 18.

Both families spoke to Angelus about

the harrowing first hours of their

ordeal, as well as the challenges and

signs of hope that have followed since.

‘God was telling me, I didn’t abandon

you’

Hours before the Eaton Fire started,

Rodrigo and Diana Gonzalez were

planning for Father Joseph Fox, OP, to

come and bless their Altadena home.

Then the power went out.

Armed with flashlights, Fox went

room by room to bless the house. Afterward,

the family moved to Diana’s

mother’s house in Pasadena to have

dinner and get her home blessed.

That’s when their phones started

to light up with texts and calls from

neighbors about an evacuation order.

Leaving the children at their grandparents’,

Rodrigo and Diana trudged

their way back to Altadena, dodging

downed power lines and fallen tree

limbs. They packed up the dog, stumbled

in darkness to gather two days’

worth of clothes and headed back to

Pasadena. It was the last time Diana

saw her house.

After waking up to early texts from

friends saying they were fine, the

couple thought their house was OK.

But when Rodrigo and Diana’s father

ventured back into the neighborhood

to check, things were not OK.

“It was something that I’d never seen

before,” Rodrigo said. “Apocalyptic. It

was horrible. More than 100 homes,

either burned or on fire.”

They reached their street and only

three houses remained standing.


The Gonzalezes’ house was in the

middle, somehow still untouched.

But the shared fence with the neighbor’s

house was on fire, and the men

burned their hands tearing it down.

With no water in the home’s hoses,

they used water from inside the

house to fend off the flames. But as

they’d put out one fire, another would

appear.

Eventually, even with N95 masks, the

smoke became too much to endure.

But the two men left feeling like

they’d saved the house.

When they came back to check on

the house a few hours later, armed

with large water bottles, fire extinguishers,

and shovels, they found the

house engulfed in flames.

The next day, Archbishop José H.

Gomez invited the family to a Mass

for fire victims at the Cathedral of Our

Lady of the Angels.

“We weren’t in the mood to go to

Mass, we have to be really honest,”

Diana said. “But we did. We knew it

was the right thing to do.”

The couple was asked to bring up the

gifts at Mass, and as she did, Diana

said she felt a calm rush over her.

“I felt like God was telling me, ‘I

didn’t abandon you,’ ” she said.

Since then, they’ve been flooded

with food, clothing, and offers of shelter.

Sitting on several boards associated

with the LA Archdiocese, they’re used

to being the ones giving. But nothing

prepared them for how to receive.

“When we get a gift, it’s people

saying, ‘I love you’,” Diana said. “It’s

like God’s way of saying I got you, I’m

still here.”

Although the couple, along with

their children Isaac, 10, and Penelope,

8, are still searching for the “why” in

their fire loss, they are confident that

God is going to get them through.

“I feel like he chose the right family

for it,” said Rodrigo. “With our faith,

it’s like, ‘bring it on.’ I hate saying that

because no one wants to deal with

this stuff. But I feel like our faith has

equipped us to deal with this.”

‘She came to me before I even asked’

On the afternoon of Jan. 7, the

Magallon family noticed faraway

smoke from their Altadena house.

Having only lived in their dream

home since 2020, they asked a neighbor

how worried they should be.

The neighbor said not to worry, that

the fire always moves away from them.

This time, it didn’t. Backed by

100-mph winds, the fire kept moving

steadily toward them, kicking up dirt

and fire embers.

The couple decided to leave and

head to George’s mother’s house in

Atwater Village, where the couple

are still parishioners at Holy Trinity

Church. There they watched the

news, looking for any clues about their

home’s condition. In the morning,

they found out.

Only a few charred walls remained

standing, and something else. As Jennifer

walked through her courtyard,

ash and cracked roof tiles everywhere,

she saw something under a small arch:

her Virgin Mary statue.

“Anything could have happened

to her, and yet she’s still standing,”

Jennifer said. “And I just felt like it

gives us hope. It gave me hope to still

stand because when I saw my house,

I literally wanted to fall to my knees. I

could not believe it.”

Speaking to the OneLife LA crowd,

Jennifer described the strength she

drew from seeing the Virgin Mary

statue sitting nearby unscathed.

“She gave me hope and strength in

one of the most difficult moments of

my life,” she said. “I often pray to her

and ask her for strength and guidance.

This time, she came to me before I

even asked.

“This beautiful statue of the Virgin

Mary will always be a reminder of

everything I have, and not what I lost.”

Seeing that sign has given the family

an additional injection of faith that the

couple has passed on to their children,

Diego, 24, and Sophia, 20.

George, a general contractor, says

he’s ready to rebuild. Jennifer is an

aesthetician with a business in Pasadena,

and is back to work. The couple

has been overwhelmed by the support

they’ve received.

“I stopped saying, ‘Why did this happen

to us?’ ” Jennifer said. “And one

day, I’ll know why, but we’re still here.

“God’s given us a second chance,”

George said.

Those who wish to donate to help fire

victims can visit angelusnews.com/

howtohelp.

Mike Cisneros is the associate editor

of Angelus.

Rodrigo Gonzalez speaks to the OneLife LA crowd

with his wife, Diana, and children Isaac and Penelope. |

VICTOR ALEMÁN


‘DRASTIC’

MOVES

BY OSV NEWS

President Donald Trump signs documents in the Oval Office at the

White House on Inauguration Day in Washington Jan. 20. He signed

a series of executive orders including on immigration, birthright

citizenship, and climate. | OSV NEWS/CARLOS BARRIA, REUTERS

A series of executive orders and tough statements put the White House

and the U.S. bishops on a collision course over immigration.

The first days of President Donald Trump’s term in

office saw open confrontation between the White

House and the country’s Catholic bishops over the

implementation of strict immigration policies.

In his first week in office, Trump signed a flurry of executive

orders, several of which fulfilled campaign promises to deter

illegal immigration and deport undocumented immigrants

living in the United States.

They included an order seeking to end “birthright citizenship”

as guaranteed by the 14th Amendment, by directing

federal agencies to stop issuing passports and citizenship

certificates to children born in the U.S. to parents without

legal status or who are temporary visa holders. The order was

temporarily blocked by a federal judge.

Trump also directed authorities to effectively close the country’s

borders to asylum-seekers, deploy 1,500 troops to the

U.S.-Mexico border, and declare an emergency in response

to the “invasion at the southern border.”

Those actions did not go unnoticed by the country’s bishops.

When the administration said Jan. 21 it would rescind a

policy preventing immigration agents from making arrests

at churches, schools, and hospitals, Bishop Mark J. Seitz of

El Paso, Texas, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic

Bishops’ (USCCB) migration committee, criticized the

change as one of “many drastic actions from the federal government

related to immigration that deeply affect our local

community and raise urgent moral and human concerns.”

The next day, USCCB president Archbishop Timothy P.

Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services said

Trump’s executive orders on immigration were “deeply troubling

and will have negative consequences, many of which

will harm the most vulnerable among us.”

Days later, new Vice President JD Vance singled out the

bishops for their criticism, questioning whether they are more

concerned about receiving federal resettlement funding and

“their bottom line.”

“I think the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has, frankly,

not been a good partner in common sense immigration

enforcement that the American people voted for, and I hope,

again, as a devout Catholic, that they’ll do better,” Vance said


on CBS’s “Face the Nation” Jan. 26.

In Vance’s first interview since becoming vice president,

host Margaret Brennan noted that the USCCB “condemned”

Trump’s immigration-related executive orders,

and asked Vance, “Do you personally support the idea of

conducting a raid or enforcement action in a church service,

at a school?”

“Of course, if you have a person who is convicted of a

violent crime, whether they’re an illegal immigrant or a

nonillegal immigrant, you have to go and get that person to

protect the public safety. That’s not unique to immigration,”

he said.

“But let me just address this particular issue,” he continued.

“Because as a practicing Catholic, I was actually heartbroken

by that statement. And I think that the U.S. Conference of

Catholic Bishops needs to actually look in the mirror a little

bit and recognize that when they receive over $100 million

to help resettle illegal immigrants, are they worried about

humanitarian concerns? Or are they actually worried about

their bottom line? We’re going to enforce immigration law.

We’re going to protect the American people.”

The USCCB is one of 10 national resettlement agencies

that receive federal funding and partner with local organizations

to assist refugee populations

that qualify for federal assistance.

They include people

resettled via the U.S. refugee

admissions program, certain

groups of vulnerable noncitizen

children, and victims of

human trafficking and torture.

Vance said that if the USCCB

is “worried about the humanitarian

costs of immigration enforcement,

let them talk about

the children who have been

sex trafficked because of the

wide-open border of Joe Biden

... who are brutally murdered.

I support us doing law enforcement

against violent criminals,

whether they’re illegal immigrants

or anybody else, in a way

that keeps us safe.”

When Brennan suggested that

potentially allowing Immigration

and Customs Enforcement

agents to arrest people

in churches and schools could

have “a chilling effect … to

people to not send their kids to

school,” Vance replied, “I desperately hope it has a chilling

effect ... on illegal immigrants coming into our country.”

Brennan asked Vance whether he thought the USCCB is

“actively hiding criminals from law enforcement?” Vance

did not answer the question directly, but said the USCCB

has “not been a good partner in common sense immigration

enforcement that the American people voted for.”

In a statement Jan. 26 regarding its work with the U.S. Refugee

Admissions Program, which did not name Vance, the

USCCB said, “Faithful to the teaching of Jesus Christ, the

Catholic Church has a long history of serving refugees.

“In 1980, the bishops of the United States began partnering

with the federal government to carry out this service when

Congress created the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program

(USRAP),” the statement said. “Every person resettled

through USRAP is vetted and approved for the program by

the federal government while outside of the United States. In

our agreements with the government, the USCCB receives

funds to do this work; however, these funds are not sufficient

to cover the entire cost of these programs. Nonetheless, this

remains a work of mercy and ministry of the Church.”

While the funds the USCCB receives are limited to

assistance for qualifying refugee populations, and therefore

immigrants in the U.S. lawfully, Vance’s accusation that

the funds are used to “resettle illegal immigrants” appears

to mirror previous rhetoric he used. While campaigning,

Vance indicated that he does not recognize the legal status of

certain immigrant groups the Biden administration deemed

eligible to receive temporary protected status, or TPS.

However, TPS recipients are not eligible for the federal

funding received by the USCCB for refugee resettlement.

Bishop Mark J. Seitz of El Paso, Texas, greets a Salvadoran migrant in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, June 27, 2019, who was deported

after crossing the Paso del Norte international border from El Paso. | OSV NEWS/JOSE LUIS GONZALEZ, REUTERS

Other immigrant populations not eligible for federal assistance

received by the USCCB include migrants seeking asylum,

humanitarian parolees, employment-based immigrants,

family-based immigrants, DACA recipients, and people who

are stateless.

Maria Wiering and Kate Scanlon of OSV News contributed

to this story. Angelus Staff also contributed to this story.


A pope

of many

words

His new

autobiography

offers plenty

of new insights

into Francis’ life.

But does it risk

muddling his

‘real voice’?

BY CHARLES COLLINS

A

new book by Pope Francis is

causing one of the strangest controversies

of his pontificate: Was

his autobiography ghostwritten?

“Hope: The Autobiography” was

released this month, and the book was

originally supposed to be put in the

closet until after the pontiff’s death.

However, Francis decided the 2025

Jubilee Year was a good time to tell his

story. The book goes into many of the

details of his early life, and reiterates

some of his present views which have

caused controversy in the Church.

The book is co-written with the Italian

journalist Carlo Musso, but some critics

claim Musso is the primary author.

Of course, Pope Francis is 88 years

old, and a pope using ghostwriters is not

unheard of. Vatican insiders have long

debated who “really” writes documents

such as papal encyclicals.

It is also important to point out that

in many European countries, even

legal courts will rewrite testimony so it

makes more sense, and get the person

to sign the new work as the “official”

testimony.

Complaints that the autobiography

doesn’t always reflect the “real voice” of

Pope Francis reviews and initials each page of the manuscript of

“Hope: The Autobiography” on Aug. 9, 2024, in his Vatican residence,

the Domus Sanctae Marthae. The book was released in multiple

languages Jan. 14. | CNS/COURTESY OF MONDADORI

the pope seem to put aside the fact the

book reflects his real opinions.

The 303-page volume covered a

number of issues, including the controversial

decision to allow priests to give

a blessing to homosexual couples who

requested it.

“It is the people who are blessed,

not the relationships,” Francis writes.

“Everyone in the Church is invited

[for a blessing], including people who

are divorced, including people who are

homosexual, including people who are

transgender.”

Of course, the decision caused an

uproar among Catholics in Africa, and

hurt relations with the Eastern Churches

— a fact the book passes by.

Francis also defends his work against

traditionalist Catholic priests, who he

has often accused of being “rigid.”

“This rigidity is often accompanied by

elegant and costly tailoring, lace, fancy

trimmings, rochets. Not a taste for tradition

but clerical ostentation,” he says.

The pope has done much to end the

policies of his predecessor Pope Benedict

XVI, who gave a lot of freedom to

clergy who wanted to use the pre-Vatican

II Mass, and as well the faithful

who preferred it.

However, Francis used the book to

complain about how “old rite” Catholics

dressed and acted.


“These ways of dressing up sometimes

conceal mental imbalance, emotional

deviation, behavioral difficulties, a personal

problem that may be exploited,”

Francis claims.

He also complained about the attire

he refused to wear in the moment after

his election in 2013.

“They were not for me. Two days later

they told me I would have to change

my trousers, wear white ones. They

made me laugh. I don’t want to be an

ice cream seller, I said. And I kept my

own,” the pope says.

“The red shoes? No, I have orthopedic

shoes. I’m rather flat-footed,” Francis

continues.

In much of the book, Francis seems

to be using the opportunity to defend

himself against the attacks from more

conservative Catholics. Of course, this

is not unprecedented; after all, after his

retirement, Benedict also often defended

the decisions he made.

Francis is also in a unique position,

in that he follows two popes who had a

more conservative view of what Vatican

II represented. In Catholic theological

terms, St. Pope John Paul II and Benedict

came from the Communio school,

which very much put the Council in

a more direct relationship with the

Church before the Council.

The present pope is very much in the

Concilium school, which endorses

the “spirit of Vatican II.” This means

Francis has more reasons to explain his

views in interviews and books.

However, “Hope: The Autobiography”

also suffers from this tendency.

Just last year, “Life: My Story Through

History” was published (strangely,

the “first papal biography” has been

announced more than once), and soon

after “Hope” was released, Francis did

a lengthy interview on Italy’s television

show “Che Tempo Che Fa,” which

pushed his new book off the headlines.

These follow various interviews he

gives to journalists — sometimes without

even mentioning it to his own press

office — and his often headline-inducing

statements aboard the papal plane

during trips to foreign countries.

There is a danger that this constant

stream of written works by the pope

— usually involving his personal

opinions on controversial matters — is

causing “papal fatigue.” I must admit,

I had even forgotten “Life: My Story

CNS/COURTESY VIKING

Through History” had come out less

than a year ago.

Worse, it could make Francis’ words

become something of a papal cotton

candy: a great treat when it first appears,

but easily dissolving in short order.

Charles Collins is an American

journalist currently living in the United

Kingdom, and is Crux’s managing editor.

Pope injures arm in fall

Pope Francis wears a sling on his right arm in a Jan. 16 photo with Edmond Brahimaj, right, leader of the

Bektashi community of Muslim Sufis from Tirana, Albania, and Rabbi Yoel Kaplan, chief rabbi of Albania

during a meeting at the Vatican. | CNS/VATICAN MEDIA

Pope Francis had to wear his right arm in

a sling after hurting it in a fall Jan. 16.

“This morning, due to a fall at the Casa

Santa Marta, Pope Francis suffered a contusion

to his right forearm, without a fracture.

The arm was immobilized as a precautionary

measure,” the Vatican press office said.

The note was published after Vatican Media

had distributed photographs of the 88-yearold

pontiff’s morning meetings in which he

was wearing a sling that appeared to be made

from an elastic bandage tied at his neck.

While the photos showed him shaking hands

with his left hand, other photos showed him

using his right hand to sign a document.

He also had fallen in early December,

hitting his chin on his bedside table and

sporting a significant bruise on the right side

of his face when he created 21 new cardinals

Dec. 7.

— Cindy Wooden, Catholic News Service


A mother feeds her

newborn child after

giving birth in the Family

Birth Center at Beaumont

Hospital in Royal Oak,

Michigan, Feb. 1, 2022.

| OSV NEWS/EMILY

ELCONIN, REUTERS

An act that doesn’t compute

Having a third child

in our 40s meant

realizing there’s more

to life than vacations

and brunches.

BY GRANT MARTSOLF

A

few weeks ago, my wife and I

welcomed our third child into

the world. She is a little girl. We

named her StellaMaris in honor of the

Blessed Mother.

This was an unusual pregnancy. We

are both 44. We also have two teenage

children. We were five years away from

the coveted “empty nest.” We both

have relatively flexible, well-paying

jobs. I am even employed by a university,

which means that I do not have

hundreds of thousands of dollars in

tuition costs hanging over my head if

my children choose to go to college.

We were on the cusp of vacations and

brunches.

People who heard of our pregnancy

and considered our age (and the ages

of our two children) often ask me if the

baby was the consequence of an “oops.”

Although certainly a surprise, the pregnancy

was quite intentional.

We made a conscious choice at 44

years old to have another child with

teenagers in the house. This is surely

quite strange. But, even ignoring our

age and family structure, there is something

fundamentally strange in 2025

about having a third child at all.

Fertility rates are crashing around the

world. The rate in the United States has

dropped to 1.6, the lowest in our history.

This is far below the “replacement

rate” of 2.1 births per woman necessary

to simply replace one’s population.

The situation is much worse in other

countries, like South Korea, where that

number is down to 0.7. This has grave

implications if you think the existence

of South Korea is, on the whole, a good

thing.

People disagree about whether we

should be concerned about these rates.

Many argue that fewer births is a net

positive, especially those worried about

global warming and resource depletion.

Others argue that having collapsing

fertility rates is catastrophic for modern

welfare states.

While I tend to be on the “fertility

decline bad” side, as a good personalist,

I get squeamish with the idea of

procreating for the sake of the economy

or the Social Security system. However,

at the very least, a basic function of a

healthy society is to ensure its continued

existence.

I am no expert on fertility rates, but

I do read a lot about the subject. The

most common explanation for the drop

tends to mix economic and educational

arguments: Birth rates are going down

because we are getting richer and better

educated. Basically, children are for

lower-class people.

Taken at face value, this explanation

works. Fertility is negatively correlated

with women’s income and education.

Likewise, as countries get richer and

more educated, fertility rates go down.


But my favorite demographer of fertility,

Lyman Stone, recently questioned

this economics/education explanation.

His research shows that the correlation

between income, education, and fertility

is not some immutable fact.

Standard analyses of income, education,

and fertility do not consider

pregnancy timing and instead focus too

much on women’s earnings as opposed

to family incomes. Stone points out the

obvious fact that women tend to have

kids when they are young, when earnings

are at their nadir. Likewise, highly

educated women with higher earning

potential tend to delay pregnancies and

generally do not have as many children

later in life for various reasons (including

simple biology).

In fact, Stone found that when you

consider male earnings and overall

family income, income is positively

associated with fertility rates.

To make things more complicated,

this varies a lot across racial and religious

groups. For example, for Whites

and Asian Americans, the highest fertility

rates are found among the highest

and lowest earners. But for Hispanic

and Black women, fertility rates consistently

get lower as women get wealthier.

Stone believes that culture, not

income and education, is driving the

decline in fertility rates. For example,

he observes that fertility rates among

the most religiously observant Americans

are nearly three times higher than

their secular neighbors.

While Stone doesn’t get into the

cultural factors that might lead to lower

fertility rates, others have certainly

weighed in.

Johann Kurtz, known best for his

excellent Substack page “Becoming

Noble,” recently argued in an essay

titled “It’s embarrassing to be a stay-athome

Mom” that the problem comes

down to “status.”

The value systems of liberal societies,

Kurtz points out, confer low status on

childbearing and mothering. While

pre-Enlightenment status systems

supported, or at least did not oppose,

childbearing and mothering (thanks

largely to the influence of Christianity,

both were associated with virtue),

post-Enlightenment liberal culture

changed the game, emphasizing success

over virtue.

It was only a matter of time, writes

Kurtz, that women would demand “access

to and participation

within

success games”

like education,

commerce,

politics, and even

sport.

“Unfortunately,

accruing status

through success

games is time-intensive,

and unlike

virtue games,

trades off directly

with fertility,” he

writes.

I agree with

Kurtz’s assessment,

but I would

go even further

and argue that

we are no longer

having children

primarily because

we are too bored

to do so.

Boredom, as I argued in a recent

Substack post, is a uniquely modern

experience, a functional emotion that

alerts us to a deeper despair, which

is a psychological state marked by a

lack of meaning, purpose, and hope.

We ultimately cannot come up with

Fertility rates among the most religiously observant

Americans are nearly three times higher

than their secular neighbors.

Grant Martsolf. |

SUBMITTED PHOTO

any particular reason to do something

rather than to do nothing.

In a report that surveyed adults who

did not have children and adults who

were not planning on having any, the

most common response to “why?” was

“I just didn’t want them” or “I wanted

to focus on other things.” That seems

consistent with boredom to me.

Any parent knows that raising children,

despite the joys, is exceptionally

difficult. To actively choose children,

one must really believe that it is something

that is worth doing, that there is

a deep purpose and meaning in the act

itself.

This is especially true in a consumer

economy that bombards us with advertisements

for various desirable products

and experiences. Without a deeper

sense of purpose and meaning to guide

childbearing, children are merely

another good that can be obtained to

satisfy our novel appetites.

Ultimately, choosing to have children

is an act of hope: You really have to be

hopeful that there is something worth

passing on to those spawned.

Stanley Hauerwas, the great philosopher,

theologian, and curmudgeon

whose work helped form my vision of

the world in my younger years, put it

this way: “For Christians do not place

their hope in their children, but rather

their children are a sign of their hope

... that God has not abandoned this

world.”

Without that kind of hope, you’d likely

find me choosing the most pleasurable

and expedient thing in front of me,

like vacations and brunches. A child is

certainly not that thing.

My two teenagers are excellent kids.

But I often feel hopeless about the


SHUTTERSTOCK

future. I shudder to think about one

potential future that my son faces:

one where the robots have taken his

job prospects, and he is left with porn,

weed, and loneliness.

I believe my wife and I have given

him enough of a substructure of hope:

purpose, and meaning that he will be

able to navigate this dystopian future.

But if this is all we can hope for, why

have kids?

Of course, hope is a virtue. It must be

practiced, and the hopeful action must

be actively chosen.

Acts of hope, as Wendell Berry

illustrates in his poem “Manifesto: The

Mad Farmer Liberation Front,” simply

do not compute within the logic of our

modern society and economy:

“So, friends, every day do something

that won’t compute. Love the Lord.

Love the world. Work for nothing. Take

all that you have and be poor. Love

someone who does not deserve it. …

Ask the questions that have no answers.

Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias.

Say that your main crop is the forest

that you did not plant, that you will not

live to harvest.”

In November 2021, my wife and I did

something that does not compute. We

drove our family 600 miles from Pittsburgh

to St. Louis to have a vasectomy

reversed. We reopened ourselves to life,

a decision made possible through the

intervention of Our Lady of Lourdes (a

story for a future essay).

Clearly, our act to bring new life into

the world at 44 is not for everyone. But,

to truly create a culture that can live

hopefully toward the future, we all must

make our own little incomputable acts.

Grant Martsolf is a writer and educator

living in Western Pennsylvania.

He writes on issues related to class and

human flourishing at his Substack newsletter

“The Savage Collective.”

Month 00, 2024 • ANGELUS • 25

AD REM

ROBERT BRENNAN

Things do matter

The altar inside the destroyed Corpus

Christi Church in Pacific Palisades Jan.

15, in the aftermath of the wildfires. |

OSV NEWS/BOB ROLLER

During the round-the-clock

news coverage of the historic

fire disaster that befell Angelenos

in January, actor Mel Gibson

was interviewed after learning his

multimillion-dollar house was now a

pile of ash. He shrugged it off like one

of his tough guy movie characters,

suggesting the house and everything

in it were only “things.”

Instead of being gripped with sorrow,

he embraced gratitude. His family

was safe and he took time to thank the

tireless efforts spent by fire crews on

behalf of others.

I cannot imagine the amount of

“things” Mel Gibson lost in this

blaze, and I think his sentiment is

one we should all embrace, since

we take nothing with us when we

die except our souls, in whatever

condition we have left them. But the

more I thought about this, the more

I thought about “things”: my things,

Mel Gibson’s things, and the things

we all have in our home or carry on

our person.

Corpus Christi Church in Pacific

Palisades was a building. It was a

thing. But within those walls people

were baptized, and second-graders

had their first confessions and first

holy communions. Couples were

joined in marriage there and bodies

were prayed over during funerals

there. The sights and sounds within


Robert Brennan writes from Los Angeles, where

he has worked in the entertainment industry,

Catholic journalism, and the nonprofit sector.

those walls etched a memory into the

hearts and minds of the parishioners

there, and now those sights and

sounds are distant memories, never to

be completely replaced, regardless of

when the church will be rebuilt. In

a tactile way, a piece of the parish’s

life has been burned away, never to

return.

I have lived in Los Angeles my entire

life. I have been through two major

earthquakes, the Sylmar quake of ’71

and Northridge in ’94. I have seen the

Sepulveda Basin fill up with so much

water that people had to be plucked

out of trees and a raging flood by

helicopter, and I have seen the city

burn in riots.

A lot of things were lost in those

catastrophes, and sadly, many lives as

well. As Santa Ana winds recede into

the desert to rise again another day,

survivors will assess the damage done.

And there will be a sense of loss.

It does not matter whether you lost a

$20 million mansion overlooking the

Pacific Ocean or a three-bedroom,

one-bath bungalow in Altadena overlooking

the 210 Freeway. All those

affected by this catastrophe have lost

more than a house and its contents.

Sitting in the relative safety of the

San Fernando Valley flatlands, I took

a moment to look around my own

house and wonder: What would I take

if I was told I had five minutes to get

out?

I may not have experienced the kind

of loss so many fellow Angelenos

just did, but I have had my fair share

of personal disasters, some due to

circumstances beyond my control and

others orchestrated expertly via my

own brokenness. We lived very close

to the epicenter of the Northridge

quake, and we did lose a lot of things.

Some of those things could never be

replaced.

A statue of the Blessed Mother is just

plaster, wood, or stone, but it provides

a connection to invisible truth and

something deeply emotional and

spiritual. When my dad passed away,

the statue of St. Joseph and the Christ

Child that stood sentinel on his bedroom

dresser remained. It could not

have been worth more than $5 at any

thrift store, but my mother kept it in

its place of honor because the life of

Joseph was interwoven with the man

she loved and the children she raised.

How it survived all the earthquakes is

a miracle in and of itself.

After my mom died I “inherited” the

statue, where it stood guard on the

desk in my home office. I have since

passed it to my eldest son, and if it

were ever to be lost in fire, flood, or

earthquake, I would be grieved; not

for the five dollars’ worth of plaster,

but for what it meant to my mom and

what it meant to me.

Just recently, the relic of the crown of

thorns was returned to the Cathedral

of Notre Dame, another fire victim.

It was cause for celebration because

a thing was rescued from destruction,

not because of its monetary value, as

if one could even be ascribed to it,

but because of what it means to the

faithful.

There will be no international news

coverage when Corpus Christi opens

her doors again, but there will be a

celebration, and there will be “things”

inside to create new memories and

empower stronger faiths. So, in the

end, things do matter.


HOLLYWOOD’S

TRUE BELIEVER

From ‘Twin Peaks’ to ‘Blue

Velvet,’ late filmmaker

David Lynch’s work was

always in search of a

higher meaning.

BY JOSEPH JOYCE

David Lynch at a red carpet event in Rome in

2017. | GENNARO LEONARDI/SHUTTERSTOCK

Over the past few days, a cult has

sprung up at Bob’s Big Boy in

Burbank.

At the base of the Big Boy statue’s feet

is a shrine of sorts. There are the usual

flowers and prayer candles nestled

there, but also cans of Coca-Cola; packs

of cigarettes, coffee mugs, stray donuts,

owl figurines, and a few chocolate

milkshakes to-go that are now rancid

under the unforgiving Burbank sun. It’s

a scene that at first glance might be mistaken

for a pagan offering to appease

the little cherub’s wrath.

Clever readers (or at least those

familiar with “Twin Peaks,” which is

often the same thing) can tell by the

offerings that this is a tribute to filmmaker/painter/general

renaissance man

David Lynch, who died at 78 on Jan.

15. Lynch was known for drinking a

milkshake almost every day at this diner

while he wrote, which explains its new

status as a pilgrimage site.

Lynch is a difficult man to eulogize:

his fans already know whatever I could

share, and there’s no quick access

point for novices. Even for his fans,

Lynch was an open book written in a

handwriting we couldn’t decipher. In

a famous exchange, he once told an

interviewer that his debut film “Eraserhead”

was his most spiritual film.

When asked to expand upon that, he

politely yet flatly refused.

The easy, if incomplete, answer is to

say Lynch was a surrealist. He had the

privilege (or curse) of having his name

immortalized as an adjective in his

own lifetime, making it into the Oxford

dictionary, which associates “Lynchian”

with “juxtaposing surreal or sinister

elements with mundane, everyday

environments” and “compelling visual

images to emphasize a dreamlike

quality of mystery or menace.” This will

have to do for now.

Lynch earned this reputation with

films like “Blue Velvet” and his television

show “Twin Peaks,” where the folksiness

of small town America collided

with utter depravity, beset by evils from

both sides of the white picket fence. His

so-called “Hollywood trilogy” (“Lost

Highway,” “Mulholland Drive,” “Inland

Empire”) follows a similar thesis,

contrasting the celluloid dreams of Los


Angeles with bitter realities and almost

cosmic horrors lurking in the hills.

Lynch was a man who spent most of his

adult life in Los Angeles, something he

never forgave himself for.

It’s easy to presume that Lynch was

cynic. But the most endearing aspect of

Lynch was how pure he was in his oddity

and how odd he was in his purity. He

really did love Americana; blue jeans

and slicked hair, soda fountains, Roy

Orbison and, yes, milkshakes. In one

video, Lynch mists up while analyzing

a clip from “It’s a Wonderful Life.”

What’s funny is that he chose the clip

himself, even when he saw it coming

he couldn’t help but give himself over

entirely.

Lynch also believed in such trifles like

family and friendship, which is why he

spent most of his films trying to destroy

them. To Lynch, these things above all

else held power, and threats to them

were the only story that mattered. They

were the bulwark against the forces of

evil, and if they were broken (or, God

forbid, infiltrated) then nothing stood

in the path of destruction. A character

in his “Twin Peaks” once said his greatest

fear was that Love was not enough, a

thought that haunts the rest of his work.

I’ve attended screenings of his films

where the audience, uncertain at

how to respond to moments of such

unblinking sincerity, resorted to

laughter until the coast was clear. They

munched popcorn throughout his violence

yet shifted uncomfortably in their

The makeshift memorial to late filmmaker

David Lynch at Bob’s Big Boy in

Burbank in January. | JOSEPH JOYCE

seats when the synth strings swelled in

a love theme. There was another interviewer

who asked Lynch what the frequent

use of angels meant in his films.

He refused to accept Lynch’s answer

— repeated several times — that they

were just angels and that he believed in

them. It was the quintessential Lynch

experience: to be directly told the answer

and still not comprehend it.

Lynch’s belief in angels doesn’t mean

he was a Christian. As with most things

involving him, it’s rarely that simple.

Lynch was a proponent of Transcendental

Meditation, and even started a

charity dedicated to it. Lynch always

looked further East for his spirtual

needs, favoring the dualist and indecipherable

over the specifics of Abrahamic

faith.

His work could perhaps properly be

understood as the marriage between

Western kitsch and Eastern spirituality.

At his core Lynch was a believer; it

was an expansive theology which held

space for angels, Tao, tulpas, llamas,

astral projection, and the kitchen sink.

He favored something over nothing, yet

something meant everything.

But amid all that indiscriminate

dogma, he also found room for one

of the most Christian scenes I’ve ever

seen on TV. It takes place in “Twin

Peaks,” where a military man runs into

his delinquent son at a diner. Instead of

fighting once more, the father invites

his son to sit down.

At the booth, he tells him of a vision

he had the previous night, which he

stresses is not the same as a dream. In it

he saw a beautiful palazzo and his son

inside it, finally joyful and free of what

drove him from his true self. The son,

up to this point the worst sort of lowlife,

unexpectedly embraces this pure

unadulterated grace, nearly in tears

at his reprieve. His father then offers

his hand, wishing him “nothing but

the best in all things.” It is ridiculous,

melodramatic, contrary to everything

we knew about the characters before,

absurd to its very marrow. I watch it on

YouTube every two days.

Before I departed the Big Boy shrine,

I left two offerings of my own: an old

Lenten palm cross I didn’t have the

heart to burn, and a serenity prayer

card. Serenity is a common cause for

whatever direction your spirituality faces,

whether East or West. In any case, I

have good hope that the only direction

Lynch is moving in right now is up.

Joseph Joyce is a screenwriter and freelance

critic based in Sherman Oaks.


DESIRE LINES

HEATHER KING

Finding freedom from the fire

Faithful venerate the salvaged tabernacle

from the incinerated remains of Pacific

Palisades’ Corpus Christi Church during

OneLife LA at the Cathedral of Our Lady of

the Angels Jan. 18. | VICTOR ALEMÁN

Viktor Frankl, Holocaust survivor

and author of the spiritual classic

“Man’s Search for Meaning,”

wrote:

“Dostoevsky said once, ‘There is only

one thing I dread: not to be worthy of

my sufferings.’ These words frequently

came to my mind after I became

acquainted with those martyrs whose

behavior in camp, whose suffering and

death, bore witness to the fact that the

last inner freedom cannot be lost. It

can be said that they were worthy of

their sufferings; the way they bore their

suffering was a genuine inner achievement.

It is this spiritual freedom —

which cannot be taken away — that

makes life meaningful and purposeful.”

Catholicism is tailor-made to make us

worthy of our suffering: past, present,

and future. Whether our transmission

just went out, or our house just

burned down, we’ve been welcomed

into and united with the suffering of

Christ, which is to say the suffering at

the heart of all mankind: the lame, the

blind, the leper, the poor in spirit.

A dear East Coast friend, an infectious

disease doctor and deacon who

often works with the poor, called me

last week to commiserate about the LA

wildfires. “I fear for the trauma of the

people in the mostly wealthy communities

of Pacific Palisades and Altadena,”

he observed.

“The poor are used to staggering losses,”

he continued. “I often hear things

like ‘My mother was just sentenced

to 20 years in prison,’ or ‘We’ve been

evicted again,’ or ‘My diabetic sister’s

other leg has to come off.’

“But the wealthy” — my friend knows

because he’s wealthy himself — “are

used to being in control. We fix things

with money. So to have so complete


Heather King is an award-winning

author, speaker, and workshop leader.

and sudden a loss, compounded by

the thousands of people who lost their

homes — the emotional effect, it

seems to me, will be staggering.”

Everyone who lives or has lived in LA

has felt the wound of the wildfires. The

wound to those of all demographics

who lost their homes (not to mention

the many who lost their lives) is simply

unfathomable.

Not a paperclip — no papers. Not a

coffeemaker, not a cup to drink from.

Not a beloved shelf of books, a toothbrush,

a family keepsake, a dog dish,

a favorite jacket, a familiar view out

of the window from which you may

have gazed during morning prayer for

decades. The beauty, the sight lines,

the treetops, the streets down which

you walked, and drove, and dreamed:

for many, all gone.

A sense of security and stability shattered.

The old-growth Southern California

landscape, the visual reminders

of a lifetime of memories: up in smoke.

Without engaging in the blame game,

one Scripture verse has rung especially

true: “We have in our day no prince,

prophet, or leader, no holocaust, sacrifice,

oblation, or incense, no place to

offer first fruits, to find favor with you”

(Daniel 3:38).

The moral backbone seems to have

come, among other places, from

the firefighters, first responders, and

debris removers. The reassuring

solidarity has been modeled by the

innumerable neighbors, friends, and

volunteer brigades who by all accounts

have offered shelter, set up donation

centers, organized clothing and food

drives, instituted fundraisers, opened

their wallets, shared their tables, beds,

hearts, and prayers.

If this ghastly tragedy has shown us

anything, it may be the extreme limitations,

and folly, of political infighting.

When your house is burning down,

do you care who the willing-to-risk-hisor-her-life

firefighter voted for? When

your neighbors’ house is burning down,

do you withhold your compassion

because they belong to the opposite

party?

The rain falls on the just and the

unjust, and flames spread with the

same neutrality. Can we offer the same

heart, open to all, when we start to

rebuild?

I am not worthy — “No soy digno” in

Spanish — we say before receiving the

Eucharist. “I am not worthy that you

should enter under my roof.”

I am not worthy — and I may or may

not still have a roof — BUT. “I am

not worthy but only say the word and

my soul shall be healed.” My soul, my

heart, my nerves. Perhaps never have so

many in the city of Los Angeles needed

so much healing, on so many levels.

And if we pray to be worthy of our

sufferings, may we also be worthy of

our joys: however small at the moment

for so many; however and whenever

they may come.

When a Benedictine monk takes final

promises, with his hand on the altar he

repeats this phrase: “Uphold me, Lord,

according to your word, and I shall

live; let not my hope be put to shame”

(Ps. 119:116).

Let the emblem of the 2025 wildfires

be not the streets reduced to ashes, the

faltering leadership, the smoldering

embers of beloved homes, businesses,

and schools.

Let the emblem be the object unearthed

from the smoldering rubble of

Corpus Christi Church in Pacific Palisades:

a tabernacle housing the body of

Our Lord: intact, unharmed.

A volunteer assists Gloria Cisneros, left, look through

donated clothing for her daughter in the gymnasium

of Assumption of the Virgin Mary School in Pasadena

Jan. 14 in the aftermath of the Eaton Fire, which

began Jan. 7. Cisneros’ daughter, Angela, who has

two young children, lost everything. | OSV NEWS/

BOB ROLLER


LETTER AND SPIRIT

SCOTT HAHN

Scott Hahn is founder of the

St. Paul Center for Biblical

Theology; stpaulcenter.com.

Love’s labors won

I

love the month of

February. I love it

because its midpoint is

such a great holiday. You

romantics out there know

right away that I’m talking

about Feb. 14, the great

feast day of love, love, love

— the memorial of Sts.

Cyril and Methodius.

I know, I know: Feb.

14 is also the feast of a

Roman martyr, St. Valentine.

But my mind is very

much on the ninth-century

apostles to the Slavic

peoples. They were

brothers born into privilege,

a senatorial family

in Thessalonica, Greece.

Cyril was a professor by

training. Methodius was

a governor. Both received

the call and became

monks and then missionaries.

The Byzantine Emperor

Michael III sent them to

evangelize the Khazars in

what is now Russia. From

there they went on to

other lands, other peoples

Sts. Cyril and Methodius. | SHUTTERSTOCK

who did not know Jesus.

They were prodigiously

successful. Their preaching and example won many hearts,

and made the people want more. The new Christians

begged to have the Scriptures and the liturgy translated into

their own tongue and taught to native-born priests. Cyril

recognized that the local languages could not accommodate

such a project. So he did something outlandish. He

invented a new alphabet, and with his brother he translated

the Gospels and the sacramental liturgies into Slavonic.

Why am I so fascinated by two men who died so long ago

in such a faraway place? Because they’re models for us in

the work we must do today. Cyril and Methodius wanted

the world to know God’s

saving Word and receive

it from the heart of the

Church, which is the

liturgy. In their zeal they

were willing to advance

the state of technology for

the sake of the Gospel.

I want to have that

attitude, and I want you

to share it. Like those two

brothers, we live in a time

of great change. World

powers are shifting. New

communications technologies

are appearing.

We can worry over how

these changes will affect

us — or we can find ways

to make them occasions

for the advancement of

the Gospel.

We can dare to use new

media and new circumstances

in new ways, so

that ever more people

will come to know Jesus

“in the breaking of the

bread.”

Cyril and Methodius

succeeded, after all, and

the Slavic world turned to

Jesus Christ.

St. Cyril’s relics reside

today at the Basilica of San Clemente in Rome. Quite

recently I heard of a visit there from an Eastern European

head of state. He was taken to the underground level of

the basilica, where the artworks date to the fifth century.

At some point it dawned on him: He was standing where

Cyril had once stood and viewing the same walls that Cyril

had once viewed. He asked the tour guide to stop speaking.

“Can we just pray?” he said. And together the entourage

recited the Lord’s Prayer — in a language invented by Cyril

for that purpose, and more than a full millennium after Cyril’s

last words on earth.


■ FRIDAY, JANUARY 31

Priests vs. Seminarians Basketball Game. Bishop Alemany

High School, 11111 N. Alemany Dr., Mission Hills, 6 p.m.

Admission onsite, cash only: $10/general, $5/students,

5 years and under free. Group rate: $8/each for 10 people.

Game will be livestreamed at lacatholics.org/catholic-hoops/.

■ SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 1

Catholic Singles Network St. Valentine Breakfast. Hilton

Garden Inn, 1309 West Rancho Vista Blvd., Palmdale, 8:45-

10:15 a.m. Mingling will be maximized at the breakfast by

having attendees rotate to different tables. Call Celeste at

661-916-2727 or visit CatholicSinglesNetwork.com.

Journeying with Jesus: Lenten Workshop. La Purisima

Church, 213 W. Olive Ave., Lompoc, 9-11:30 a.m. Handson

workshop for catechists who minister to elementary-age

children. Learn creative ideas to help families live a

Christ-centered Lent. Cost: $25/person. Visit lacatholics.

org/events.

Cancer Support Ministry Meeting. St. Euphrasia Church,

11779 Shoshone Ave., Granada Hills, 10 a.m. The group

gathers to honor the gift of life and encourage cancer

patients, survivors, and caregivers, in honor of late pastor

Msgr. James Gehl. For more information, email Lisa Barona

at lbaloha@gmail.com.

Journeying with Jesus: Lenten Workshop. Mission San

Buenaventura Basilica, 211 E. Main St., Ventura, 3-5:30 p.m.

Hands-on workshop for catechists who minister to elementary-age

children. Learn creative ideas to help families live

a Christ-centered Lent. Cost: $25/person. Visit lacatholics.

org/events.

Restored: A Journey to Wellness Retreat. Sponsored by

the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Office of Life, Justice and

Peace, Restored is a one-day retreat of hope and healing

for women whose lives have been touched by abortion. All

registrations are confidential. For more information, email

Jeanette Gonzalez Seneviratne at jseneviratne@la-archdiocese.org.

■ SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 2

Religious Jubilarian Mass. Cathedral of Our Lady of the

Angels, 555 W. Temple St., Los Angeles, 3:30 p.m. Hundreds

of religious will renew their vows and celebrate milestones

ranging from 15 to 85 years of service. Visit lacatholics.org/

events.

■ THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 6

Healing the Body, Soul, and Spirit. Holy Spirit Retreat

Center, 4316 Lanai Rd., Encino, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. Runs Feb. 6,

13, and 20. With Bola Shasanmi. Visit hsrcenter.com or call

818-784-4515.


Bereavement Retreat. St. Bruno Church, 15740 Citrustree

Rd., Whittier, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Cost: $75/person for food and

supplies. RSVP by Feb. 2 to Cathy by calling 562-631-8844

or emailing bereavement.ministry@yahoo.com.

Journeying with Jesus: Lenten Workshop. St. John Eudes

Church, 9901 Mason Ave., Chatsworth, 9 a.m.-12 p.m.

Hands-on workshop for catechists who minister to elementary-age

children. Learn creative ideas to help families live

a Christ-centered Lent. Cost: $25/person. Visit lacatholics.

org/events.

World Day of the Sick Mass. Cathedral of Our Lady of

the Angels, 555 W. Temple St., Los Angeles, 10:30 a.m.

rosary, 11 a.m. Mass. Celebrant: Archbishop José H. Gomez.

Bilingual Mass in Spanish and English will include anointing

of the sick, blessing of caregiver hands, and blessing with

Lourdes water. Visit lacatholics.org/events.

■ TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 11

Memorial Mass. San Fernando Mission, 15151 San Fernando

Mission Blvd., Mission Hills, 11 a.m. Mass is open to the

public. Limited seating. RSVP to outreach@catholiccm.org

or call 213-637-7810. Livestream available at CatholicCM.

org or Facebook.com/lacatholics.


St. Padre Pio Mass. St. Anne Church, 340 10th St., Seal

Beach, 1 p.m. Celebrant: Father Al Baca. For more information,

call 562-537-4526.

Journeying with Jesus: Lenten Workshop. St. Joseph

Church, 550 N. Glendora Ave., Covina, 6:30-9 p.m. Handson

workshop for catechists who minister to elementary-age

children. Learn creative ideas to help families live a

Christ-centered Lent. Cost: $25/person. Visit lacatholics.org/

events.


Journeying with Jesus: Lenten Workshop. Holy Name of

Mary Church, 724 E. Bonita Ave., 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Hands-on

workshop for catechists who minister to elementary-age children.

Learn creative ideas to help families live a Christ-centered

Lent. Cost: $25/person. Visit lacatholics.org/events.

“Shining Lights: Seek and Save”: A Panel Discussion on

Human Trafficking. Our Lady of Grace Church, 5011 White

Oak Ave., Encino, 9 a.m.-12 p.m. Hosted by the Office of

Life, Justice and Peace. Call 818-342-4686.

Journeying with Jesus: Lenten Workshop. St. Joseph

Korean Catholic Center, 20124 Saticoy St., Canoga Park,

4-7 p.m. Hands-on workshop for catechists who minister to

elementary-age children. Learn creative ideas to help families

live a Christ-centered Lent. Cost: $25/person. Visit lacatholics.org/events.

23rd Annual Black History Mass. Cathedral of Our Lady of

the Angels, 555 W. Temple St., Los Angeles, 5 p.m. Celebrant:

Archbishop José H. Gomez. Honorees will receive the

Keeper of the Flame Award.


Religious Education Congress: Youth Day. Anaheim

Convention Center, 800 W. Katella Ave., Anaheim, 7:30

a.m.-4 p.m. Youth day includes general session, keynote, two

workshops, lunch, closing session, and Eucharistic liturgy.

Speakers; Jessica Cox, Maggie Craig, Chris Estrella, and

more. Visit recongress.org.

■ FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 21

Centering Prayer Silent Weekend Retreat. Holy Spirit Retreat

Center, 4316 Lanai Rd., Encino, 2 p.m.-Sunday, Feb. 23,

1 p.m. With Sister Chris Machado, SSS, and the centering

prayer retreat team. Visit hsrcenter.com or call 818-784-

4515.

Religious Education Congress 2025: “Called to Compassion.”

Anaheim Convention Center, 800 W. Katella Ave.,

Anaheim. The event runs Feb. 21-23 and features keynotes,

workshops, liturgies, exhibits, and entertainment. Visit

recongress.org.

Items for the calendar of events are due four weeks prior to the date of the event. They may be emailed to calendar@angelusnews.com.

All calendar items must include the name, date, time, address of the event, and a phone number for additional information.


Angelus News | February 7, 2024 | Vol. 10 No. 3

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