Angelus News | April 4, 2025 | Vol. 10 No. 7

ANGELUS

PILGRIM

SURVIVORS

Meet the ‘Roaming

Catholics’ scattered by

the Palisades Fire

PILGRIM

SURVIVORS

Meet the ‘Roaming

Catholics’ scattered by

the Palisades Fire

April 4, 2025 Vol. 10 No. 7

B • ANGELUS • April 4, 2025

ANGELUS

April 4, 2025

Vol. 10 • No. 7

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ON THE COVER

JOHN RUEDA

Parishioners of Corpus Christi Church in Pacific Palisades share a

hug with kids at a recent “Roaming Catholics” Mass at Good Shepherd

Church in Beverly Hills. Since losing their church and many of

their homes in the Palisades Fire, parishioners have been hosted for

Sunday Mass at a different LA parish every weekend. On Page 10,

James Turner reports on how the Masses are keeping the parish’s

scattered flock together, and helping them live tragedy with faith.

THIS PAGE

CNS/VATICAN MEDIA

Pope Francis greets well-wishers at Rome’s

Gemelli Hospital before being discharged

March 23, after 38 days of treatment at the

hospital. On his way back to the Vatican

that day, Francis stopped in front of the Basilica

of St. Mary Major to leave a bouquet

of flowers for the Blessed Mother.

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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

Photos: Cardinal Mahony celebrates a history-making milestone

Why the Vatican’s efforts to define ‘synodality’ are far from over

Oils for the body are everywhere. What about for the soul?

Msgr. Richard Antall on the complicated Catholic immigration debate

Greg Erlandson: How my mom said goodbye at 101

Sign up for our free, daily e-newsletter

Always Forward - newsletter.angelusnews.com

28

30

‘The Last Supper’ film takes Holy Week’s Jewish roots seriously

Heather King looks at a memoir’s journey into the depths of hunger

April 4, 2025 • ANGELUS • 1

POPE WATCH

Prayers answered

On Sunday, March 23, more

than 600 people gathered outside

Rome’s Gemelli Hospital

to witness a moment millions have

been praying would happen: the end

of Pope Francis’ hospitalization.

With a very weak voice, Francis

thanked the crowd from a balcony

overlooking the square outside the

hospital, waving his hands and giving

a thumbs up.

The pope left the hospital almost

immediately after his appearance on

the balcony.

The motorcycle police leading the

pope’s motorcade turned onto the

street leading to the Vatican entrance

closest to his residence and then

turned around. Rather than go directly

home, Francis was driven through

the center of Rome to the Basilica of

St. Mary Major where he has prayed

before and after every foreign trip and

after his two previous hospitalizations

for abdominal surgery.

Francis did not go into the church

but left a bouquet of flowers to be

placed on the altar under the Marian

icon “Salus Populi Romani” or

“Health of the Roman People.”

Television footage of the pope,

seated in the front seat of a white Fiat,

showed he was using oxygen through

a nasal tube.

Just before the 88-year-old pope had

come out on the hospital balcony, the

Vatican released a text he had prepared

for the midday Angelus prayer.

The pope’s message focused on the

day’s Gospel reading of the parable

of the fig tree from Luke 13:1–9, in

which a gardener asks a landowner to

allow him to spare a fig tree that had

not borne fruit for three years; the

gardener asks to be given a year to fertilize

and care for the tree in the hope

that it would bear fruit in the future.

“The patient gardener is the Lord,

who thoughtfully works the soil of

our lives and waits confidently for our

return to him,” the pope wrote.

“In this long period of hospitalization,

I have experienced the Lord’s

patience, which I also see reflected in

the tireless solicitude of the doctors

and health care workers, as well as in

the attention and hopes of the family

members of the sick,” who also are in

Gemelli Hospital, he wrote.

“This trusting patience, anchored in

God’s love that does not fail, is indeed

necessary in our lives, especially in

facing when the most difficult and

painful situations,” Pope Francis

wrote.

Dr. Sergio Alfieri, head of the medical

team treating the pope, had told

reporters March 22 that in his rooms

at the Domus Sanctae Marthae, the

pope will continue using oxygen as

needed through a nasal tube, will be

taking medication to fight a lingering

mycosis, a fungal infection, and will

be continuing his physical therapy

and respiratory therapy.

The pope’s doctors told reporters

that they have prescribed two months

of rest and recuperation and have

urged the pope not to meet with large

groups during that time. They also

said his voice will require time to

recover.

Reporting courtesy of Catholic News

Service Rome bureau chief Cindy

Wooden.

Papal Prayer Intention for April: Let us pray that the use of

the new technologies will not replace human relationships,

will respect the dignity of the person, and will help us face

the crises of our times.

2 • ANGELUS • April 4, 2025

NEW WORLD OF FAITH

ARCHBISHOP JOSÉ H. GOMEZ

Becoming pilgrims of hope

On April 5, I will be privileged

to lead a six-mile procession

from All Souls Church in Alhambra

to the Cathedral of Our Lady

of the Angels. I hope many of you will

be able to join us.

We are calling it a “pilgrimage of

hope” and it is part of our local celebration

of the Jubilee of Hope declared

by Pope Francis to mark the 25th year

of the new Christian millennium.

Every heart needs hope in the face of

the challenges of everyday life and the

fears and uncertainties of the world.

In one of the Eucharistic prayers for

Lent, we pray for the freedom to “so

deal with the things of this passing

world as to hold rather to the things

that eternally endure.”

That freedom is the fruit of the virtue

of hope.

Hope is not just a sentiment, a warm

wish that things will work out alright

or be better in the future. Hope is a

pillar, an anchor, one of three “theological

virtues” that form the foundation

of our relationship with God and our

lives as Christians.

If you have not returned to the Catechism

in a while, I recommend it. The

short article on hope (nos. 1817–1821)

makes for inspiring spiritual reading,

especially in this Jubilee Year.

Hope turns our eyes toward heaven,

even as we live in this world of passing

things.

We can only understand the events of

our lives and the events of this passing

world accurately, if we view them in

light of God’s plan of salvation, the

kingdom that he is building in history,

through the workings of his Church.

Hope gives us this perspective. Hope

opens our eyes to see that the truth

and happiness that we all desire can

only be found in God and in the promises

of Jesus.

In Christ, we discover that we are

made by God and made for God,

through love. This is the source of our

dignity and it defines the transcendent

destiny of our lives. We are made

for heaven. It is Christ’s promise of

heaven that is the source of our hope.

My sense is that we don’t think

enough about heaven. That’s understandable.

We are all caught up in the

business of living and the demands of

work, of school, of all the responsibilities

that we have for our loved ones.

That’s why it’s important for us to be

intentional about cultivating the virtue

of hope.

Hope lifts our hearts toward heaven

and keeps our lives grounded and

following the right path on earth.

Jesus promised us that he has gone

ahead of us to prepare a place for us

in his Father’s house. And he “proved”

his love by laying down his life for us

on the cross.

So we can live with confidence,

knowing that if we follow the way that

Jesus set before us, if we love him and

seek to do the will of the Father, as

he taught us, then will be with him

forever in the glory of heaven.

When we live with hope, we remember

that we are on our way to heaven.

And when we live with that hope, the

things we do during the course of our

days take on a new and fuller meaning.

Francis is calling us in this Jubilee

Year to become “pilgrims of hope.”

This means living our faith in Jesus

with humility, joy, and love, and it

means being active in seeking ways to

share the hope that we have in him.

It means living as St. Peter talked

about: always being ready to share “the

reason for your hope … with gentleness

and reverence.”

Sharing our hope is an important

dimension of being apostles and

We can only understand the events of our lives

and the events of this passing world accurately, if

we view them in light of God’s plan of salvation.

missionary disciples in our time and

place. So many of our neighbors are

struggling and searching for meaning

in the midst of the difficulties of their

lives.

So, in this Jubilee Year, let’s look for

ways to share our hope with those who

are discouraged. Let’s let them know,

through our words and deeds, that

they are never abandoned and that

they are loved.

My prayer is that we will use this

Jubilee Year to work on growing in the

virtue of hope.

We can start by making acts of trust

in Jesus, asking him often during the

course of the day to help us to rely on

his strength and not our own.

Let’s also try to reflect more about

Our Lord’s promises of heaven, especially

as we prepare for the final days

of this sacred season, in which we remember

his passion and resurrection.

Pray for me and I am praying for you.

May our Blessed Mother Mary go

with us, and may she help us all to

live with joyful hope, and help us to

share the hope that is in us with our

neighbors.


WORLD

■ Catholics in Panama

give aid to migrants

moving South

Catholic groups in Panama

are providing food, medicine,

and orientation to an influx of

migrants traveling back to South

America after being unable to

enter the U.S.

More than 2,200 migrants —

many from Venezuela — have

headed south from Mexico since

the end of January, according to

the International Organization

for Migration. Along the way,

many find themselves stopped in

Panama and Costa Rica. The Jesuit

Migrant Service, for example,

estimates 50 to 70 people a day

have been arriving in the small

town of Paso Canoas, where religious

sisters and a Catholic parish

offer free meals.

OSV News reported that

Catholic organizations are asking

governments in Central America

to facilitate the migrants’ transit

and help those who want to seek

asylum.

“We are worried that restrictions

on the movements of migrants

will increase,” Roy Arias, an

official with the Jesuit Migrant

Service in Panama, told OSV

News. “Many people could be

trapped in border towns, and they

have very limited resources to

support themselves.”

Marks of the missing — Pairs of shoes depicting victims are pictured during a vigil in front of Mexico City’s cathedral

March 15 for the victims of the clandestine mass grave recently found in Teuchitlan, in the state of Jalisco. Mexico’s

Catholic leaders prayed for the country’s missing and urged the population of the country and their political leaders to

listen to victims of violence amid outrage over the discovery of mass graves and ovens for cremating bodies on a drug

cartel compound. | OSV NEWS/SEILA MONTES, REUTERS

■ Brazilian priest’s 4 a.m. broadcast is the talk of the nation

A priest’s popular early morning live broadcast in Brazil has stoked a politicized debate

in the divided country.

Father Gilson da Silva Pupo Azevedo, or “Frei Gilson,” is a 38-year-old member of the

Carmelite Brothers, Messengers of the Holy Spirit, and a part of the Brazilian Charismatic

Catholic Renewal. For years, he has had an early morning social media broadcast,

and this Lent is leading a rosary at 4 a.m.

Gilson’s streams have reached peaks of 1.2 million simultaneous viewers. But he has

drawn critics, including for his prayers to deliver Brazil from “the scourge of communism”

and public support from former President Jair Bolsonaro and his supporters.

Some have accused him of becoming the face of right-wing Catholicism in the country.

His defenders insist his prayers are being politicized.

“Those messages of solidarity from politicians hadn’t been asked by him. They were

spontaneous,” Auxiliary Bishop Devair da Fonseca of San Paolo told Crux. “Gilson has

never had any kind of political intention with his work.”

“The Deposition of Christ,” by Andrea Mantegna. | CNS/COURTESY GOVER-

NORATE OF VATICAN CITY STATE

■ Vatican restores ‘lost’ painting

from Renaissance master

The Vatican Museums unveiled a newly restored Renaissance masterpiece

once thought lost.

“The Deposition of Christ,” by Andrea Mantegna, which depicts

Christ being laid in the tomb, was unveiled March 20.

Though historical records from the 16th century referenced Mantegna’s

work being displayed in Naples’ Basilica of San Domenico

Maggiore, it was believed lost or even nonexistent. After centuries in

obscurity, the painting resurfaced at the Shrine of the Virgin of the

Rosary in Pompei but was initially thought to be a copy.

Scientific analysis and restoration, which removed significant overpainting

atop Mantegna’s original piece, confirmed that the image is

the original.


NATION

■ Archbishop slams

Oregon’s ‘Abortion Provider

Appreciation Day’

The state of Oregon’s proclamation of

March 10 as “Abortion Provider Appreciation

Day” is a “celebration of death,” said

Portland’s archbishop.

The designation, signed by Gov. Tina

Kotek, is the latest in a series of moves by

the state to champion abortion access after

the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v.

Wade in 2022.

“To our providers and to the patients who

live in Oregon or have been forced to retreat

to our state for care, know that I continue to

have your back,” Kotek said upon signing the

proclamation.

In a letter written in response to Kotek’s

proclamation, Archbishop Alexander

Sample said the proclamation showed a

“kind of spiritual blindness so thick that what

should be self-evident — the sheer wonder

and worth of a human life — is obscured

entirely.”

“The idea that those who make a living

ending innocent, unborn life should be publicly

honored. Thanked. Applauded. This

isn’t just moral confusion. It’s something

deeper.”

■ Maryland to host first

Eucharistic Congress

for the Deaf

A chaplain for the growing deaf ministry in

the Archdiocese of Baltimore has organized

the nation’s first Eucharistic Congress for the

Catholic Deaf Community.

The congress will take place April 4-6 at the

National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

in Maryland and is led by Father Mike Depcik,

one of the world’s few deaf priests.

“Several statistics have shown that 96% of

deaf people, including those baptized Catholics,

do not go to any church due to very

limited services available to them in their

own language (American Sign Language),”

Depcik told Catholic News Agency.

While the 2024 National Eucharistic

Congress in Indianapolis provided ASL

interpreters, this congress for the deaf community

will specifically focus on matching

Eucharistic devotion to the needs of the deaf

Catholic community.

■ Denver

archdiocese

looks to 2033,

launches nineyear

novena

The 2,000th anniversary

of the passion,

death, and resurrection

of Jesus Christ

isn’t until 2033, but

Catholics in one U.S.

diocese are already

getting ready.

As part of a nine-year

novena leading up to the milestone, Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver has

invited faithful in his diocese to join in a daily prayer directed to Mary under

the title “Mary at the Foot of the Cross,” and accompanied by an icon created

by local artist Elizabeth Zelasko of Mary under this title.

“As Mary was present with Jesus throughout his passion, she will guide us in

meditating upon these mysteries and participating in Jesus’ salvific mission

on the cross,” Archbishop Aquila said in his pastoral note announcing the

novena.

Twenty-five years ago, the archdiocese proclaimed a similar nine-year novena

in preparation for the Jubilee Year of 2000, which celebrated the second millennial

anniversary of Christ’s birth.

A Californian in the capital — Cardinal Robert W. McElroy blesses a baby as he greets representatives

of archdiocesan ministries and others at a March 11 Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of

the Immaculate Conception in which he was installed as the eighth archbishop of the Archdiocese of

Washington, D.C. McElroy, a San Francisco native, has lived and served for most of his life in California,

most recently as the bishop of San Diego for the last 10 years. | OSV NEWS/MIHOKO OWADA, CATHOLIC

STANDARD

Archbishop Samuel Aquila of Denver with iconographer Elizabeth Zelasko

at the March 4 unveiling of the nine-year novena icon. | DENVER CATHOLIC


LOCAL

Math whiz — Gabriel Baguindoc, an eighth-grader at St. Dorothy School in Glendora, poses with Principal

Ryan Nearhoff after being presented with a medal on March 21 for his third-place national finish at the National

Catholic Schools Academic Junior High Decathlon for mathematics on March 14. | EDUARDO DUEÑAS

■ CEF raises thousands in tuition aid at LA Marathon

The Catholic Education Foundation announced it raised more than $40,000

thanks to the students and supporters who participated in LA Marathon events at

Dodger Stadium on March

15-16.

The funds will provide tuition

assistance to financially needy

students attending Catholic

schools in the Archdiocese of

Los Angeles.

The foundation’s team consisted

of 129 runners — including

students, teachers, and others

— from more than 30 local

Catholic schools that participated

in the LA Marathon, the LA

BIG5K, the LA Kids Run and

the LA Charity Half Marathon.

The youngest runner was 4 years

old, CEF said.

Following the 5K race, participants

celebrated with a taco

lunch at Cathedral High School

in Los Angeles.

To learn more, visit cefdn.org.

Sylvia Gonzalez, Andrew Mendez, Karina Mendez, Charlie Gonzalez,

and Nick Gonzalez after completing the 2025 LA Charity Half

Marathon on March 16 to help raise money for CEF. | CATHOLIC

EDUCATION FOUNDATION OF LOS ANGELES

■ Auxiliary bishop named

administrator for San

Diego diocese

Auxiliary Bishop Michael Pham has

been appointed the diocesan administrator

for the Diocese of San Diego

while awaiting a successor to Cardinal

Robert McElroy, who was appointed

to lead the Archdiocese of Washington,

D.C.

A College of Consultors, consisting

of the three auxiliary bishops and

eight priests from the diocese, selected

Pham on March 17. Pham, who became

an auxiliary bishop in 2023, will

be responsible for leading the diocese

until Pope Francis appoints its next

bishop.

Pham, 58, was born in Vietnam, but

he and his family fled the country

before settling in the United States.

He attended San Diego High School

and San Diego State University before

being ordained a priest in 1999.

■ Orange County diocese

to build apartments on

church land

A Diocese of Orange plan to build 21

apartments on the grass field at Our

Lady of Guadalupe Church in La Habra

was approved by the City Council on

March 17.

While some residents complained

about potential traffic, parking, and

safety, the council approved the project

on a 4-1 vote.

The La Habra project is the diocese’s

first foray into housing development as

faith-based organizations have begun

using their land to help shore up California’s

dire lack of housing after SB4,

the “Yes In God’s Backyard” bill, was

signed into law in 2023.

“This apartment project will provide

funding to support the church and its

good works for the next 100 years,”

Father William Goldin, administrator

at Our Lady of Guadalupe, said during

the council meeting. “We will be a

great neighbor, and this project will be

a great neighbor, both to the church

and our neighbors.”

Y


V

IN OTHER WORDS...

Letters to the Editor

Wait, is the pandemic really over?

Regarding the cover story of the March 21 issue titled “Five Year Checkup”

(March 21 issue of Angelus): In my parish, there are several indications

the pandemic never ended.

During the lockdown, the parish office sent emails regarding social distancing,

vaccines, masks, etc., but never sent an email when the unvaccinated could stop

wearing masks. The Mass choirs have never returned. Altar servers are rare. No

handshakes during the passing of the peace, just tepid hand waves. The Precious

Blood is still withheld from the laity. The prayer chapel remains locked and the

large baptismal font is dry. Parishioners can still sit on the patio or in their cars to

hear Mass via radio.

Ministries such as adult small groups, Sunday Mass children’s liturgy, retreats,

etc., have vanished. If the prayer groups and Bible studies have resumed, they

haven’t announced their return. This is my parish’s new normal.

— Sally Carpenter, Moorpark

The right help for the immigrants among us

Thank you for your sensitive and balanced coverage of immigration in Kimmy

Chacón’s article “Answers and Assurances” in the March 21 issue.

I have found some of President Trump’s actions and statements on immigration

during his second term to be necessary, others wrongheaded, and sometimes immoral.

But they are having real-life consequences for faithful, hardworking families

in parishes like mine, and the workshops are a prudent approach to the problem.

— Elisa Molina, Venice

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.

Service with a smile

Lucia Lopez of St. Monica

Preparatory in Santa

Monica has a quick

laugh with Archbishop

José H. Gomez before

receiving her medal

from Superintendent of

Catholic Schools Paul

Escala at the Christian

Service Awards Mass

on March 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.

“They feel like children

waiting to know about their

father.”

~ Sister Anthony, of the Pious Disciples of the

Divine Master, in a March 15 Associated Press

article on the religious sisters who operate the

Vatican’s switchboard during Pope Francis’ illness.

“How could she have

known the chicken would

run at midnight?”

~ Rich Donnelly, former Major League Baseball

coach, in a March 21 National Catholic Register

article on the film, “Champions of Faith,” screening

on MLB Opening Weekend.

“It is like finding an

adolescent where you

would only expect babies.”

~ Sander Schouws, of Leiden Observatory in the

Netherlands, in a March 20 Phys.org article on

oxygen detected in the most distant known galaxy.

“People are going back into

their homes and living in a

toxic soup.”

~ Michael Jerrett, an environmental health scientist

at UCLA, in a March 12 New York Times article on

the health risks in the air following the wildfires

that burned through Southern California.

“What happens here is

between Mother Cabrini

and the Sacred Heart of

Jesus. What we do here

facilitates that.”

~ Julie Attaway of the St. Frances Cabrini Shrine in

New York City, in a March 24 National Catholic

Reporter story about how the shrine has become a

“refuge” during increased immigration enforcement.


IN EXILE

FATHER RONALD ROLHEISER, OMI

Oblate of Mary Immaculate Father

Ronald Rolheiser is a spiritual

writer; ronrolheiser.com

The person of Jesus and the mystery of Christ

I

was raised a Roman Catholic and

essentially inhaled the religious

ethos of Roman Catholicism. I

went to the seminary, earned theological

degrees, and taught theology at a

graduate level for a number of years

before I ever started making a distinction

between “Jesus” and “Christ.”

For me, they were always one and the

same thing, Jesus Christ.

To my mind, Jesus Christ was the second

person of the Trinity who took on

flesh in the incarnation and is still now

our God, our advocate, and our friend

in heaven. I didn’t distinguish between

Jesus and Christ in terms of whom I

was praying to, speaking about, or relating

to. Indeed, for many years in my

writings, I simply used the words Jesus

and Christ interchangeably.

Slowly through the years this

changed, and I have begun to distinguish

more between Jesus and Christ.

It began with a deepened understanding

of what the Gospels and St. Paul

mean by the reality of Christ as a

mystery which, while always having

Jesus as its center, is larger than the

historical Jesus. This distinction and

its importance became clearer to me

when I began to have more contact

with Evangelicals, both as students

and as colleagues.

In faith fellowship with various

groups of Evangelicals, I began to see

that one of the ecclesial differences

between us, Evangelicals and Roman

Catholics, is that we, Roman Catholics,

while not ignoring Jesus, are very

much about Christ, and Evangelicals,

while not ignoring Christ, are very

much about Jesus.

How we understand the Church,

how we understand the Eucharist,

and how we understand the primary

invitation given us in the Gospels are

colored by how we perceive ourselves

in relationship to Jesus and to Christ.

What’s at stake here?

What’s the difference between saying

“Jesus” and saying “Christ”? Is there

any difference between praying to

Jesus and praying to Christ, between

relating to Jesus or relating to Christ?

There’s a difference, an important

one. Christ is not Jesus’ second name,

as in Jack Smith, Susan Parker, or

Jesus Christ. While it is correct to use

the two names together, as we do commonly

in our prayer (We pray through

Jesus Christ, Our Lord), there is an

important distinction to be made.

Jesus is a person, the second person

in the Trinity, the divine person who

became incarnate, and the person

who calls us to one-to-one intimacy

with him. Christ is a mystery of which

we are a part. The mystery of Christ

includes the person of Jesus but also

includes us. We are not part of the

body of Jesus, but we are part of the

body of Christ.

As Christians we believe that Jesus is

the body of Christ, that the Eucharist

is the body of Christ, and that we,

baptized Christians, are also the body

of Christ. St. Paul states clearly that

we, the Christian community, are the

body of Christ on earth, just as Jesus

and the Eucharist are the body of

Christ. And Paul means this literally.

We (the Christian community) are not

like a body, or some mystical or metaphorical

body; nor do we represent or

replace Christ’s body. Rather, we are

the body of Christ on earth, still giving

physical flesh to God on earth.

This has implications for Christian

discipleship: Jesus is a person, the

person who invites us to one-to-one intimacy

with him (which Evangelicals

see as the goal of Christian discipleship).

Christ is part of a larger mystery,

which includes Jesus but also includes

each of us. In this mystery we are

called to intimacy not just with Jesus,

but also with one another and with

physical creation. In Christ, the goal

of Christian discipleship is community

of life with Jesus, with one another,

and with physical creation (since the

mystery of Christ is also cosmic).

At the risk of huge oversimplification,

allow me a suggestion: Roman Catholics

and Evangelicals can learn from

each other on this.

From our Evangelical brothers and

sisters, Roman Catholics can learn to

focus as much on Jesus as we do on

Christ, so that like Evangelicals we

might realize more explicitly (as is

clear in the Gospel of John) that at the

very heart of Christian discipleship lies

the invitation to a one-to-one intimacy

with a person, Jesus, (and not just with

a mystery).

Conversely, Evangelicals can learn

from Roman Catholics to focus as

much on Christ as on Jesus, with

all this implies in terms of defining

discipleship more widely than personal

intimacy with Jesus and church more

widely than simple fellowship. Relating

to Christ points to the centrality of

the Eucharist as a communal event.

As well, it implies seeing Christian

discipleship not just as an invitation

to intimacy with Jesus, but as an

incorporation into an ecclesial body

that includes not just Jesus but the

community of all believers as well as

nature itself.

We can learn from one another

to take both Jesus and Christ more

seriously.


LA’S ‘ROAMING CATHOLICS’

Since the Palisades Fire, Corpus Christi Church’s

scattered parishioners are learning to embrace a

new identity — and an uncertain future.

BY JAMES TURNER

Msgr. Liam Kidney greets Corpus

Christi Church parishioners after the

Sunday, March 9 Roaming Catholics

Mass at Good Shepherd Church in

Beverly Hills. | JOHN RUEDA

Eighty-year-old Msgr. Liam Kidney,

pastor of Corpus Christi Church

in Pacific Palisades, has seen a lot

in his 57 years as a priest.

But since January, Kidney has taken

up a Sunday routine unlike anything

he could have ever imagined: celebrating

Mass at a parish not his own, but

for a congregation that is.

Since the Palisades Fire incinerated

his church — and the homes of most

of his parishioners — Kidney has

found himself a displaced shepherd to

a wandering flock.

“We’re the roaming Catholics,” said

one Corpus Christi parishioner with

a chuckle — and a hint of pride — as

Kidney’s hosts at St. Anastasia Church

in Westchester showed him around the

church’s newly renovated sanctuary.

Indeed, “Roaming Catholics” are

what the parish community of Corpus

Christi have become. With the help of

the parish website and an email chain,


parishioners are told week to week

where they will be gathering for Mass

on the next Sunday. This weekend was

St. Anastasia’s turn.

“They are more than welcome to

come to our church,” said St. Anastasia

pastor, Father Leszek Semik.

Days after the Palisades Fire broke

Every Sunday, Corpus Christi parishioners are

invited to celebrate a special Mass with Msgr.

Kidney at a different host parish, usually located

near LA’s Westside. | JOHN RUEDA

Sam Laganà proclaims a reading during Sunday

Mass at St. Jerome Church in Westchester on

March 16. Laganà, the stadium announcer for

the Los Angeles Rams, has belonged to Corpus

Christi since he was a child. | PABLO KAY

out, Semik read the Angelus article

about the rescue of Corpus Christi’s

tabernacle. When he learned that

Kidney was a few miles up the road to

St. Monica Church in Santa Monica,

he reached out to offer his church as

a place for Kidney and the displaced

parishioners of Corpus Christi to cele-

brate Mass together.

The experience of leading a parish in

exile has inspired a certain kind of zeal

in Kidney.

“The roaming Catholic is, to some

degree, fun. I mean, there’s a kind of

an energy to it,” he said. “What I’m

happily amazed at is the people are

sticking with it. And I say, ‘Thank you,

God.’ I mean, what a blessing.”

Kidney hopes that Corpus Christi

will be rebuilt in the future. But in the

meantime, his priority is keeping its

people together, and finding a place

where they can gather regularly.

“My worry is that [being a roaming

Catholic] is going to get old,” said

Kidney.

The challenges are many. Most of

Corpus Christi’s parishioners are Palisades

residents who lost their homes

to the fire and now face hard decisions

about where to build their futures.

Parishioners told Angelus that while

some have moved to other parts of

California, the U.S., and even abroad,

the greatest concentration of Corpus

Christi members have resettled along

LA’s Westside, in communities like

El Segundo, Manhattan Beach, and

Santa Monica. (Hence, the parishes

hosting the Sunday Masses with Kidney

have generally been in that area.)

Some parishioners have been able to

rent temporary homes with the help of

insurance, while others have moved in

with family or friends.

Sam Laganà has lived in Pacific Palisades

and belonged to Corpus Christi

since he was a child. Although he

successfully defended his home from

burning down, he doesn’t expect to

be allowed to return until at least next

year. For now, he’s been living in Santa

Monica and serving as the roaming

Catholics’ lector at Mass.

“The biggest challenge is patience,”

said Laganà, the official stadium voice

of the Los Angeles Rams. “The process

is not going to happen overnight. So,

for us to come together, in a central,

temporary, semi-permanent location

until we can rebuild, that’s going to

really help our community.”

Laganà envisions Corpus Christi being

rebuilt in the next five years, even if

its flock of Catholics will be smaller.

“Once we’re rebuilt, we could be revitalized

and do that with positivity and


A couple from Corpus Christi brings up the gifts

at the March 9 Mass at Good Shepherd Church.

Most parishioners lost their homes in the Palisades

Fire, and many have temporarily resettled

along LA’s Westside. | JOHN RUEDA

A

promise,” he told Angelus after Mass.

For now, Corpus Christi’s religious

education and confirmation classes

for young people are being held at St.

Monica, which offered its facilities. Its

OCIA program (Order of Christian

Initiation, formerly known as RCIA)

has merged this year with St. Monica’s,

and Corpus Christi associate pastor

Father Valerian Menezes has joined

the formation team.

In the meantime, the scattered

parishioners say the Sunday Masses are

giving them hope, and helping keep

them together.

“Msgr. Kidney’s messages and his

homilies have just been spot on every

week,” said Rebecca Baron, who stayed

after the St. Anastasia Mass with her

husband, Juan, and their two daughters

for coffee and donuts in the courtyard

area.

She especially appreciated the consistency

it’s given her family.

“It’s been so relevant to the kind of

many different emotions our family’s

been dealing with, and losing our community,

and losing our home … just

this tragedy that we could have never

imagined.”

Will Salvini, Corpus Christi’s music

and liturgy director, said that while

the community’s losses have been

“devastating,” the welcome from each

different parish every weekend has

been “amazing.”

“It is a time for us to adjust as pilgrims,”

said Salvini. “You heard Father

Kidney use the word roaming Catholics,

but ‘refugees’ — that word fits us

as well.”

At the March 2 Mass, even the day’s

guests had guests.

Allen Villasenor’s elementary schoolage

sons had told their dad they wanted

to help Corpus Christi’s school. So

that morning, the family drove up from

San Diego after learning that members

would be at St. Anastasia.

“They wanted to do something for the

school, Corpus Christi, and we started

brainstorming what would be a good

drive to do,” said Villasenor.

The boys thought something that

might make things normal for the victims

of the fire might be either books

or board games.

“We were trying to decide one or the

other,” said the father. “We decided to

do both.”

In his homily at St. Anastasia, Kidney

recalled the days of his youth in his native

Cork, Ireland, where he discovered

an important life lesson while learning

to sail boats as a child.

“Liam, look at the top of the mast,” he

remembered his instructor telling him.

“Don’t look down, look at the top of

the mast.”

“And you would look at the top,” Kidney

continued, “and all you would see

is the top of the mast and the sky and it

was no problem.”

In the same way, “the message of our

faith is we’re always looking at the top

of the mast, we’re not looking down,’

said Kidney.

For Kidney, the need to look forward

is the one his parishioners need most

right now.

“We’re always looking at the top …

because the top is where we’re going,

and the top is where there’s peace,

security, calmness, and hope.”

James Turner is a Los Angeles-based

freelance writer.

Editor-in-chief Pablo Kay contributed

to this story.

Corpus Christi parishioners at

the March 16 Roaming Catholics

Mass at St. Jerome. | PABLO KAY


Altadena parishes start a slow comeback

As Easter approaches, parishioners

at Altadena’s two Catholic

churches are praying for a modest

kind of miracle: a return to normalcy.

“I think that’s what people really

want,” said Father Gilbert Guzmán,

pastor at Sacred Heart Church, about

upcoming Easter celebrations. “They

want familiarity.”

“I think if we can just kind of do the

basics, it’ll be an accomplishment,”

said Deacon Doug Cremer of St.

Elizabeth of Hungary Church, also in

Altadena. “There’s something powerful

about the ritual of the liturgy

and the Eucharist, that sometimes its

predictability and maybe even if it’s

boring, common elements are actually

a relief in an era of constant chaos and

turmoil and change.”

Even though both parishes have

returned to having Mass inside the

church, daily parish life is far from

normal in a city devastated by the

Eaton Fire in January.

Both Guzmán and Cremer estimate

that each parish has lost nearly half of

its parishioners since the fire. The water

was only recently declared safe to

use again. The air quality is hazardous

enough that Sacred Heart bought air

purifiers and St. Elizabeth’s school is

not expected to reopen until the fall.

While much of each parish’s insides

have been scrubbed and cleaned,

there is still extensive damage that

needs to be repaired.

Families continue to trickle in to

receive assistance, including from the

Archdiocese of Los Angeles’ fire relief

fund, as well as donated goods.

That’s what makes the return of

in-person gatherings so important.

“The one thing that everyone says is

what we lost was just stuff, at least we

have each other,” Guzmán said. “It’s

very beautiful, really a resounding test

of testimony to the value of relationship

versus anything material.”

Sacred Heart was able to return for

Mass on Feb. 2, only about a month

after the Eaton Fire first ignited. The

efforts of Deacon José Luis Díaz and

others have been credited with saving

the church as the fire tore through its

neighborhood.

During that first Mass, a single

candle was brought in during the

Auxiliary Bishop Brian Nunes joined

St. Elizabeth of Hungary pastor Father

Modesto Perez and parishioners for an

outdoor Sunday Mass Feb. 2 at the parish.

The church has since reopened for Mass. |

VICTOR ALEMÁN

procession.

“It was a beautiful, symbolic thing to

have our own little fire be a positive

thing versus the negative that we had

just suffered,” Guzmán said.

At St. Elizabeth, the return to Mass

inside has felt more uncomfortable.

After first doing outdoor Masses at the

parish’s Lourdes grotto, parishioners

finally got to go inside the church a

few weeks ago.

But it hasn’t quite felt the same,

Cremer said.

“It’s great to be back and kind of

doing what we do, and being with

people, and seeing each other, hearing

their stories about loss and survival and

rebuilding,” he said. “And yet it’s still

this sense of being not quite complete.

There’s a thing in the back of your

mind where you know it’s never going

to actually go back to the way it was.”

— Mike Cisneros


Parishioners and survivor-victims of abuse joined Auxiliary

Bishop Matthew Elshoff for the Jan. 2024 dedication

of St. Bernadette’s healing garden on the corner of Don

Felipe and Marlton in Baldwin Hills. | PABLO KAY

PLACES OF PEACE

The healing gardens at five LA Catholic parishes

represent a quiet side to the fight against abuse.

BY MIKE CISNEROS

When St. Bernadette Church

in Baldwin Hills was deciding

where its healing garden

would be located at the parish, Deacon

Jim Carper said the original thinking

was to put it near the convent at the

back of the property.

But to really convey the importance

of the garden as a place for victims of

abuse to find some measure of healing,

it needed to be more prominent than

that.

So up it went, near the entrance to the

church on the corner of Don Felipe

and Marlton, visible by walking or

driving by.

“While we didn’t have a marching

band, we certainly placed the monument

in a conspicuous place,” said

Carper, parish life director at St. Bernadette.

“It’s created conversation without

confrontation.”

The garden at St. Bernadette (Our

Lady of the Angels Pastoral Region)

was one of the five gardens installed

in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in

each of the pastoral regions. The other

four healing gardens are located at

Our Lady of the Assumption Church

in Ventura (Santa Barbara Pastoral

Region), St. Francis de Sales Church in

Sherman Oaks (San Fernando Pastoral

Region), Our Lady of Refuge Church

in Long Beach (San Pedro Pastoral

Region), and St. Camillus Center for

Spiritual Care in East LA (San Gabriel

Pastoral Region).

As National Child Abuse Prevention

Month gets underway this April, the

healing gardens at the five parishes —

plus an “unofficial” healing garden at

Old Mission Santa Inés in Solvang —

represent the prayerful side to the fight

against abuse.

Father Michael Wakefield, pastor at

St. Francis de Sales Church in Sher-

man Oaks, said he doesn’t always know

if the people who have visited the garden

are abuse victims, but many have

come to him with “pain” and “tears” in

their eyes.

“Just telling me kind of quietly, ‘This

is so beautiful. This is lovely and I’m so

happy that it’s here,’ ” Wakefield said.

Wakefield also likes to bring students

from the parish school to explain why

the garden is there.

“It’s a reminder that even in Christ’s

holy Church, there were people that

would do terrible things,” Wakefield

said. “This is a small way for us to say

to those people that were traumatized

and victimized how terribly sorry we

are, and no, it wasn’t your fault. No,

it should not have happened to you,

and that we hope that you will find in

this place of quiet and serenity some

semblance of peace.”

To mark National Child Abuse

Prevention Month, the archdiocese’s

Victims Assistance Ministry office plans

to send prayer cards with flower seeds

to each of the parishes with healing

gardens.

Carper believes the healing gardens

are an important way to underscore the

steps the Church has taken to make

children safer and teach people “to

keep their eyes on the prize, which is

our kids, the future of our Church.”

Carper said the garden is making a difference

even outside of the parish community.

When a prominent member of

the Baldwin Hills community walked

by recently, Carper said she stopped to

remark on the garden.

“Her response when she walked by

was, ‘Good for you,’ ” he said. “And

then there was a pause and she said,

‘Good for us.’ And I thought that statement

was powerful, good for you, but

good for us, meaning the community.”

For more information on abuse prevention

and protecting children, visit

the Office of Safeguard the Children at

lacatholics.org/safeguard.

Mike Cisneros is the associate editor of

Angelus.


Many of the nine teachers and 72 students honored during the 2025

Christian Service Awards Mass pose with Archbishop José H. Gomez

and Auxiliary Bishop Brian Nunes after the event on March 18.

SIGNS OF

SERVICE

Catholic school students and

teachers were honored for

their thousands of hours of

serving their communities.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY VICTOR ALEMÁN

Justin Croutch of Chaminade College Preparatory High School in Chatsworth

greets Archbishop Gomez as Paul Escala, right, superintendent of Catholic

schools, prepares to present him with his medal.

Two young ladies hug following the special Mass,

where Catholic school students were awarded for

more than 36,000 collective hours of Christian service.


The choir singing

during the Christian

Service Awards Mass

was comprised of

students from St.

Monica Academy in

Montrose.

Students, teachers, and supporters

pray during the 2025 Christian Service

Awards Mass, the 51st version of the

event organized by the archdiocese’s

Department of Catholic Schools.

Sophia Rodriguez, front, from St.

Genevieve High School in Panorama City,

reads the Prayers of the Faithful during

the Christian Service Awards Mass.

Behind her is Abigail Johnson from St.

Lucy’s Priory High School in Glendora,

and Isabelle Soto from Santa Clara High

School in Oxnard. To the right is Marcela

Quiju, assistant liturgy director at the

cathedral.


Cardinal Roger Mahony processes

out of St. Charles Borromeo Church in

North Hollywood at the end of the 11

a.m. Sunday morning Mass March 16

celebrating his 50 years as a bishop.

A SHEPHERD’S

JUBILEE

Cardinal Roger Mahony

celebrated the 50th anniversary

of his ordination as a bishop at

the parish he grew up in.

PHOTOGRAPHY BY VICTOR ALEMÁN

Friends, parishioners, and well-wishers received blessings from Cardinal

Mahony after the March 16 Mass. He was baptized at St. Charles, and attended

elementary school there as a child.

Cardinal Mahony shares a light moment with Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred

Heart of Los Angeles at a post-Mass reception at St. Charles Borromeo’s parish hall.


Staff and members of St. Charles Borromeo’s “Welcome Home” committee with Cardinal

Mahony at the March 16 reception.

The March 16 Mass was attended by several friends, deacons, women religious, and

former colleagues from Cardinal Mahony’s quarter-century as archbishop of LA.

The pope’s

special message

Among those congratulating Cardinal Roger

Mahony on his Golden Jubilee of episcopal

ordination was Pope Francis himself.

In a special message sent from Rome dated Feb. 17,

the pope recalled “with great joy” Cardinal Mahony’s

service as a bishop in three dioceses (Fresno,

Stockton, and Los Angeles) and noted that the day of

his episcopal ordination as auxiliary bishop of Fresno,

March 19, fell on the Solemnity of St. Joseph,

the patron of the Catholic Church.

“May the Lord fill your soul with abundant blessings

and joy! I make this plea through the intercession

of the Blessed Mother of God, the Queen of the

Apostles, and that of her most chaste Spouse,” wrote

the pope.

In his homily at the March 16 anniversary Mass,

Cardinal Mahony quoted remarks the pope made

during a visit to South America about the need

for pastors to take up three positions when leading

people: “in front to mark out the road, in the middle,

to know it, and at the back to ensure nobody falls

behind.”

Cardinal Mahony said he found that an appropriate

description of servant leadership in the Church.

“I learned very early as a young bishop that no

bishop operates by himself,” he said in his homily.

“Every bishop needs to listen to the Holy Spirit, and

continue to call forth leaders from the flock to help.”

Cardinal Mahony is only the second Roman

Catholic bishop in California to have lived to reach

his 50th anniversary of episcopal ordination. The

other was Bishop John Cummins, who was an auxiliary

bishop of Sacramento from 1974 to 1977 and

the Bishop of Oakland from 1977 to 2003. Cummins

died Dec. 3, 2024, six months after marking his

Golden Jubilee.

— Angelus Staff

Cardinal Mahony was joined by bishops and priests

of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for a Mass at St.

Charles on March 19, 50 years to the day after he was

ordained an auxiliary bishop of Fresno in 1975.


Synodality now — or never

The Vatican has

announced a new

three-year plan

to implement

synodality. But

its fate will likely

depend on the

next pope.

BY CHARLES COLLINS

Cardinal Mario Grech,

secretary-general of the synod,

speaks at a news conference

at the Vatican Oct. 26, 2024. |

CNS/LOLA GOMEZ

Pope Francis has spent more than

a month in the hospital facing a

serious medical crisis, but he is

continuing to push for a more “synodal”

Church.

Francis announced the Synod on Synodality

on March 7, 2020, and it began

with diocesan and regional phases,

before holding the Vatican Synod on

Synodality at the Vatican in 2023 and

2024.

Over that time, it is still unclear what

“synodality” means in practice.

At the beginning of the process,

Francis said synodality is “a style, it is a

walk together, and it is what the Lord

expects from the Church of the third

millennium.”

In 2020, the International Theological

Commission said synodality is “the

action of the Spirit in the communion

of the Body of Christ and in the missionary

journey of the People of God.”

Admittedly, both these descriptions

aren’t very clear. But if you thought

that the discussions are over after the

final synod gathering last fall, and that

the definition of synodality can finally

form a more definable shape — well,

I’ve got a Winston Churchill quote

from 1942 for you: “This is not the

end. It is not even the beginning of the

end. But it is perhaps the end of the

beginning.”

That’s because on March 15, Synod

Secretary-General Cardinal Mario

Grech sent a letter to the world’s

bishops announcing another step in

the synodal journey, decreed by Francis

himself: A three-year phase focused on

applying the synod’s conclusions at all

levels of the Church to help integrate

synodality into daily church life before

an “ecclesial assembly” at the Vatican

in 2028.

“It is a process aimed at fostering

dialogue among Churches about the

insights developed in the implementation

phase. After a period of work at

the local level (until 2026), the goal is

to create, in a synodal style, spaces for


dialogue and exchange of gifts among

Churches,” Grech told Vatican News.

Grech said the new phase’s goal “is to

ensure that implementation does not

happen in isolation, as if each diocese

or eparchy were a separate entity, but

that bonds between Churches at national,

regional, and continental levels

are strengthened.”

He said the meetings planned for

2027 and early 2028 will lead toward

an Ecclesial Assembly in October

2028.

“This final assembly will then be

able to offer the Holy Father valuable

insights — fruits of a real ecclesial

experience — to aid his discernment

as the Successor of Peter, with perspectives

to propose to the entire Church,”

Grech said.

And that sentence opens up a question:

which Holy Father?

Francis is 88 and has been in the

hospital for more than a month with a

major ailment. October 2028 is more

than three years away.

With the possibility that a new pope

might be in office, the “fuzzy” definition

of synodality will play a role in

those very meetings.

That’s underlined by the fact that

among the general Catholic population,

no one is really talking about

synodality (despite the huge attention

given to it by the “professional” Catholic

class, we journalists included).

Francis himself admitted this fact over

a year ago.

“I am well aware that speaking of a

‘Synod on Synodality’ may seem something

abstruse, self-referential, excessively

technical, and of little interest to

the general public,” he said before the

2023 Synod of Bishops meeting.

Of course, it could help by looking

at the history of synods in the Church,

but that might also not be of assistance.

The Eastern Orthodox and Oriental

Orthodox churches have synods of

bishops taking place for the election of

new bishops and the establishment of

inter-diocesan laws within each province.

Eastern Catholic Churches also

use synods for such purposes.

In the West, synods were often held

in the early centuries of the Church,

and included important theological

debates. However, as the powers of the

papacy grew, the synods became less

common, although councils, like the

“Ecumenical Councils” — which are

arguably synods by a different name —

still continued.

The Western Church also has

diocesan synods — which used to be

required to happen once a decade

(admittedly, a rule observed more in

the breach than in the execution) —

Cardinals pray during Mass presided by Cardinal

Mario Grech, secretary-general of the synod, at the

altar of the Chair in St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican

Oct. 21, 2024. | CNS/LOLA GOMEZ

involved both clergy and laypeople.

Much like the more traditional synod,

it involved looking at local diocesan

laws and reforming them if needed.

More prominently, St. Pope Paul VI

established the Synod of Bishops in

Vatican II, which had no real authority

at all. This synod could make “proposals,”

which could be accepted or rejected

by the pontiff. Soon, these meetings

became talking shops, where many of

the participants were more interested

in Church gossip at the local restaurants

in Rome than the official issue

being discussed at the synod meeting in

the Vatican.

In many ways, Francis made “synodality”

almost a building together of

several of these ideas, even if they don’t

always fit together.

So what will “synodality” be after the

2028 meeting? Frankly, it will be whatever

the Holy Father — whether Francis

or his successor — says it means.

Charles Collins is an American

journalist currently living in the United

Kingdom, and is Crux’s managing

editor.


Searching for the oil of gladness

The modern obsession with using healthy oils for food

should remind us to think more about the holy ones, too.

BY ELISE URENECK

A priest anoints a woman’s

forehead with the oil of the

sick during a healing Mass

at his parish in this 2022

file photo. | CNS/GREGO-

RY A. SHEMITZ

Two years ago, I sleepily walked

to the sink to rinse my face after

getting out of bed. I looked in

the mirror, and to my surprise, there

was a sizable yellow spot on the white

of my eye. Having no idea what it

was, I made an appointment with an

ophthalmologist.

“Do you spend a lot of time in the sun

or at the beach without sunglasses?”

she asked. “No,” I replied.” “Do you ski

a lot?” she inquired. “Not at all,” I said.

“Your eyes are severely dry and

inflamed. I think you should see a

rheumatologist,” she said. “I think you

might have Sjögren’s disease.”

A few months later, a rheumatologist

confirmed her suspicions.

I was diagnosed with an autoimmune

disorder, which attacks my exocrine

glands. In layman’s terms, anywhere

my body is supposed to have moisture,

I have little to none.

It’s unclear how long I’ve had the

disease. Until that appointment, I’d

lived my whole life assuming that I

was sensitive to things like weather

and toiletries, and that some amount

of arthritis, swollen joints, and neuropathy

was typical, based on my family

history. It turns out I have a high pain

tolerance.

Like other autoimmune diseases, I


experience what doctors call flares —

the sudden onset of symptoms that

range from inflamed hands, knees, and

feet, to complications with any of the

body’s systems and organs. People with

this disease are at an increased risk for

lymphoma as well as other autoimmune

diseases like lupus.

There’s no way of predicting when

or why your body will take a sudden

turn in a downward direction. I am

now among those who live scan to scan

and blood draw to blood draw. It’s a

radical invitation to live in the present

moment.

At the same time, I’ve got a family

to serve, and I’m not one to idly sit

around if something can be done. I’ve

taken to overhauling my diet in order

to reduce the inflammation in my body

and improve my health outcomes.

Thanks in part to figures like Dr.

Casey Means, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.,

and others, the public now has a better

understanding of the inflammatory

— and sometimes poisonous — ingredients

we’re ingesting en masse. A theologian

more capable than I could delineate

how our current means of food

and agricultural production should be

counted among Pope Francis’ running

list of social and structural sins.

In the age of Google, YouTube, and

podcasts, one can easily despair from

information overload. At times I’ve

been paralyzed about what to eat and

how to find time (or money) to make

the bulk of our family’s food from

scratch. I confess to becoming overly

preoccupied with swapping healthy

cooking oils for ones that are not, and

for checking every ingredient list at the

grocery store. It’s been astonishingly

easy to become consumed by it.

Despite my efforts, my symptoms have

not gone away. In fact, the disease has

flared without warning, rendering me

not quite immobile, but close to it.

During a recent, demoralizing episode,

I was leaning on my dresser for

support as I put my clothes on. I looked

up and saw a small bottle of St. Joseph

oil that I had purchased on a pilgrimage

with my late mother to St. Joseph’s

Oratory in Montreal.

Thousands of sick pilgrims were

healed during their visits with St. André

Besette at the site he commissioned

to honor St. Joseph. To this day, visitors

Dozens of bottles filled with olive oil mixed with aromatic oils in the rectory of Sts. Peter and Paul Cathedral Parish in

Indianapolis April 8, 2019. They were blessed as chrism oil during the annual chrism Mass. | CNS/SEAN GALLAGHER,

THE CRITERION

report being cured of their diseases

after going to the basilica.

Bessette encouraged pilgrims to take

home vegetable oil which had been

burned in front of a statue of Joseph.

He instructed them to rub it on

themselves and to ask Joseph for relief,

cautioning them that it was not the oil

that healed, but Jesus Christ.

After I got dressed that day, I rummaged

through my drawers and realized

that I had accumulated not only

eight bottles of that oil — some from

my late mother’s bedside, some from

my husband who had traveled there

before we were married — but that I

had vials of oil from other shrines I’d

been to in my life.

Around that same time, a good friend

stopped by with her kids for a playdate

with mine. After I mentioned my

illness, she ran into her car and came

back with a tiny bottle of St. Faustina

oil from a local shrine. “Let me know if

you need an oil change,” she said,” I’ve

got plenty more.”

I had been so focused on healthy oils

that I had forgotten about holy ones.

In the Catholic tradition, oils serve

a variety of purposes. There are holy

oils used in the sacraments — the oil

of the sick, the oil of catechumens,

and chrism oil. We believe that God

himself confers his grace through their

application.

But the Church also permits the use

of blessed oils. Like other sacramentals,

they are intended to increase our faith.

As with ashes, palms, and holy water,

they remind us of God’s closeness to

us.

Our Lord has worked wonders

through this simple gift of nature,

anointing kings, providing light for the

Maccabees, receiving it as a baby in

the manger, and again from Mary of

Bethany before his passion.

I’ve begun to take a drop or two of

these oils and rub them on my cracked

hands and fingers, my eyes, and

my joints when I am praying in the

morning and before I go to bed. I ask

for God’s healing and consolation, but

also help to make an offering of my

discomfort for others. The practice has

helped me to do what I can, and leave

the rest to him.

It’s not lost on me that my disease

presented itself most clearly in my eyes,

and that through it, God is helping

me to see — chiefly that in physical or

spiritual dryness, he is closer than I can

imagine, through the simplest of gifts.

Elise Ureneck is a contributor to Angelus

writing from Rhode Island.


Caught between extremes

BY MSGR. RICHARD ANTALL

There are no simple

‘fixes’ for our

immigration system.

A Catholic approach

to the subject should

acknowledge that.

After winning the prestigious

Orwell Prize for Political

Writing for his 2023 novel “The

Picnic” (W. W. Norton & Company,

$28.95), author Matthew Longo wrote

a reflection that included one of the

most thought-provoking quotes about

immigration I’ve ever heard.

“If the money doesn’t go where the

people are, the people will go where

the money is,” said Miklos Nemeth,

the last Communist prime minister of

Hungary, in an interview with Longo

for the book. Longo never included

it in “The Picnic,” which is about the

hundreds of East Germans who fled

communism just before its collapse

in Eastern Europe, and the quote is

actually from late French historian

Alfred Sauvy, but Nemeth cited it as a

prophecy.

And I’ve been thinking about that

line — “the people will go where the

money is” — a lot lately, considering

all the dramatic developments with

immigration under our new president.

Sauvy’s quote is not just about

material things, but also opportunity.

My ancestors came to this country for

the same reason. When a Salvadoran

comes to the U.S. and his children go

to college and become professionals, I

see an echo of my family: My grand-

Cuban migrant Marielis Arosh and her family walk

with other migrants after their CBP One app asylum

appointment was canceled on the day of U.S. President

Donald Trump’s inauguration, near the border

fence in Mexicali, Mexico, Jan. 20. | OSV NEWS/

VICTOR MEDINA, REUTERS

mother was an illiterate ethnically

German girl when she arrived here;

now, her grandchildren are solidly

either middle- or upper middle-class

Americans.

People want a better life for their

children. The Mexicans I worked with

in a small town in Ohio came over

the border without registration to work

in nurseries. The money they earned

helped them build houses back in

Mexico out of cement block, instead

of adobe. Eventually, some decided

to outstay the season of work and put

down roots. Gradually, a group of them

were able to get residency and they


brought up their children, who themselves

were in various stages of the legal

immigration process.

So many people cannot understand

the complexity of immigration because

they have no idea of the difficulties

involved for the immigrants.

Once I was at an immigration seminar

at a local college and a suburbanite

woman angrily asked me why so many

Mexicans working in our county didn’t

just get visas to come here.

“There is a legal way in,” she insisted.

I tried explaining it was not like getting

a visa to take a vacation to Cancun, but

much more difficult.

People complain about immigration

in many parts of the developed world,

not just in the U.S. but in places like

Ireland, Colombia, and most of continental

Europe. But I have been disappointed

lately when I hear Catholics

declare they are “against” immigration

itself.

I wonder how many of them can have

ancestors who were here to greet the

Mayflower. The Draconian idea of expelling

all who came into the country

in an irregular way would cause a great

deal of havoc, not just economically,

but for families that are sometimes

mixed with members who have all their

residency resolved and those who do

not. There is an unconscious xenophobia

that regards all strangers as threatening:

hospes, hostis, as the Latin has it,

“the guest is an enemy.”

At least I hope the xenophobia is

unconscious, but sometimes I am

not sure. The hysteria about Haitians

having “Garfield” for a barbecue here

in Ohio last year — despite a glaring

lack of evidence — suggested an attitude

close to paranoia. “Open border”

policies are a mistake, I am convinced,

but not everyone who suddenly passed

through the gates without a wall was

a criminal or intent on destroying the

American way of life. To have to say

something so obvious reveals the ignorance

or at least the naiveté of some of

the more vociferous nativist voices.

As an Ohioan who supported our former

senator on several issues, I agreed

with Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New

York’s criticism in late January of Vice

President J.D. Vance’s hypothesis that

the U.S. bishops defended a federal

program that resettled migrants because

they wanted to recoup the billions paid

out in claims about clerical abuse.

It’s a shame that some so-called

Catholic “conservatives” online have

defended that scabrous accusation.

Their joy at the election results makes

them blind to the complexity of some

issues, and unwilling to recognize

when politicians overstep their bounds,

e.g., Trump’s full-throated support for

expanding access to in vitro fertilization.

In visits last year to Hispanic families

that I call friends, I was surprised at

how many immigrants voiced approval

of candidate Trump. One of them is in

a difficult migratory situation: although

raised in the United States, he was

too old to be bundled with his parents

when their papers came through. I

often think of him now, in fear of the

future.

But I am especially afraid of a future

that will be one of disastrous and acrimonious

division.

St. Thomas Aquinas said of doctrinal

debates that it was best to “Numquam

negare, raro affirmare, semper distinguere”

(“Never deny, seldom affirm, and

always distinguish”). It’s a principle that

has been neglected in the immigration

debates. One size does not fit all. Some

undocumented aliens are integrated in

families with citizenship, they are educated

and useful members of society.

Even Trump was quoted talking about

Vice President J.D. Vance speaks

during a press briefing in Damascus,

Virginia, Jan. 27, following a Jan. 26

interview where he suggested the

U.S. bishops were more concerned

about padding “their bottom line” by

resettling refugees. | OSV NEWS/BEN

CURTIS, POOL VIA REUTERS

the so-called “Dreamers,” who are contributing

members of society. But some

people seem averse to drawing those

kinds of distinctions.

The stream of immigration under the

last White House administration almost

resembled the chaos of the Children’s

Crusade in the Middle Ages (in which

droves of European children ran away

from home under the delusion they

could help knights retake the Holy

Land, and ended in disaster), a mass

movement of people without realistic

structures of evaluation or assimilation.

Now, a calmer approach must be

taken, starting with a case-by-case study

of cases and some kind of gradual

framework set in place. Politically, it

is anathema to propose some kind of

amnesty (which the sainted President

Reagan accepted), but how can it be

ruled out, at least in certain cases? We

Catholics do believe in forgiveness.

This is a problem that might take a

generation to work out. Meanwhile,

Catholic opinion should be considerate,

contextual, and careful about the

question.

Msgr. Richard Antall is pastor of Holy

Name Church in Cleveland, Ohio, and

the author of several books, including

the novel“The X-mas Files” (Atmosphere

Press, $17.99). He served as a missionary

priest in El Salvador for more than

20 years.


INTERSECTIONS

GREG ERLANDSON

Farewell, for now

The author with his late mother,

Mary Casilda Erlandson, while in

hospice care. | PATTY SANCHEZ

When my mom turned 100,

I wrote these words in this

column:

Old, old age is something else entirely.

Friends and spouses may be gone.

Memories too. There is something

beautiful in the resilience of the human

spirit even after a century of life,

yet it is characterized more by patience

than rage. God’s will and time have

not yet allowed my mom to put off her

burdened flesh and ascend to brighter

heights. She waits with good humor the

destiny her faith tells her will come.

God allowed my mom to “put off

her burdened flesh” on Feb. 21 of

this year, two months after her 101st

birthday. Mary Casilda died peacefully

in her sleep. That itself was an

answered prayer. This faithful woman

simply slipped away. Almost as one

rolls over in bed, she turned into her

new life, one she had looked forward

to for decades.

We don’t know what heaven looks

like. We mortal beings cannot really

fathom eternity. But we know God is

relational. Hence the Trinity. Jesus

had friends, went to weddings, wept at

Lazarus’ death. He knows the human

heart and its absolute passion to connect

with another. This must be some

component of the life to come. This

is why my family chooses to believe


Greg Erlandson is the former president and

editor-in-chief of Catholic News Service.

that if she is now with God, that in

some way mom is also now with her

husband, Ted. She is with her son that

she lost 68 years ago to a brain tumor.

She is with her brother, a Trappist

monk, who died 14 years before her.

In other words, she is home.

Now she knows. Now she knows

what before she could only see

through a glass darkly, what we can

only see darkly now who have been

left behind.

As I wrote more than a year ago,

mom bore the indignities of age with

grace and good humor most days. She

was bedridden, but watched the Mass

on television. She never forgot the

words to the Our Father and the Hail

Mary, even when she might forget our

names or not recognize our faces.

In our family lore, we will now recount

the many comments she made

out of the blue that seemed to suggest

that during her last year the membrane

between mortality and immortality

was becoming porous, transparent.

“The two men told me that

I can’t bring anything with me,” she

told us at one point. A dream? Angelic

travel advice? She took it in stride,

as when she recently started talking

about her brother, whom she hadn’t

spoken of or apparently remembered

in several years.

As a mother, as a wife, my mom lived

her faith daily and simply. She was

generous and caring, and her faith

animated everything. She didn’t fear

death, and when the Lord was ready

to take her, she was ready to go.

When someone who is 101 dies, her

survivors are both happy for her and

yet still grieve. She had been through

a lot. She had paid her dues and then

some. We are grateful that we had her

for so long and sad we could not have

her still. We will miss hearing her say,

“I love you madly.”

Yet even in this winter of sorrow, joy

like a crocus reminds us all is not loss.

For as we prepared for her funeral,

we were also baptizing our newest

grandchild and her eighth great

grandchild, Peter Francesco, into the

Faith. (Can there be a more papal

name?)

In a beautiful, old, creaky church in

Pittsburgh, Peter’s parents and godparents

renounced Satan and all his

works and affirmed their faith in Jesus

Christ on his behalf. We crowded

around the baptismal font and participated

in an ancient rite welcoming

little Peter into our company with

great joy. I like to think my mom was

there too. She would appreciate the

symmetry: a great grandson gaining

entrance into our community of faith

just as she was moving on.

And when we said we believed in

“the communion of saints, the forgiveness

of sins, the resurrection of the

body, and life everlasting,” mom was

there as a witness.

Peter never met his great grandmother,

but God willing, her spirit of faith,

her joy in life, her appreciation of

family will be evident to him in the

witness of his grandparents and parents.

Mom’s witness will remain, like

some Catholic DNA passed on to the

generations to come. This mystical

body, this communion of faith, will

continue to grow and thrive, bearing

witness to what we’ve received in

faith and handed on to the best of our

ability. Amen.


NOW PLAYING THE LAST SUPPER

WHEN GOD COMES TO DINNER

A surprising new film gets it: Jesus’ Last Supper, and the celebration

of Easter, can’t be understood without the Jewish Passover.

BY STEFANO REBEGGIANI

James Oliver Wheatley,

Charlie MacGechan, and

Jamie Ward in “The Last

Supper.” | PINNACLE PEAK

These are exciting times for Bible

movie lovers, with several biblical

film projects just released or

about to come out, like the Netflix film

“Mary,” which premiered in December,

and Amazon’s “House of David,”

released in February.

But I am not one of them, and I was

not expecting much from “The Last

Supper” (released in theaters March

14), written and directed by Italian

filmmaker and artist Mauro Borrelli,

and executive-produced by Christian

music star Chris Tomlin.

I was wrong. “The Last Supper” is

well worth a trip to the movies, especially

during Lent.

Yes, the film can help audiences meditate

on Jesus’ passion. But it can also

encourage Catholics to understand

and experience more fully the Easter

Vigil as well as the daily celebration of

the Mass itself. The writers’ intuition

is that we can’t fully comprehend what

happens at the Last Supper and in

Jesus’ passion, except in the light of the

Jewish Passover.

Cinematically, do not expect Mel

Gibson’s “The Passion.” But while

Jamie Ward’s performance as Jesus

is not entirely convincing, the depictions

of Judas (Robert Knepper) and

Caiaphas (James Faulkner) are.

Unlike other movies on the last moments

of Christ, this one concentrates

almost exclusively on the Last Supper,

which takes up more than half of the

film.

The Gospels are very clear that Jesus’

Last Supper was not just a somber

farewell dinner, but took place during

the Jewish Passover: a great feast celebrated

in the homes, family by family,

according to the prescriptions in the

book of Exodus, as a memorial of the

escape from Egypt.

By Jesus’ time this liturgical dinner

had evolved into a nights’ long feast

involving a complex ceremonial, the

Passover Seder, in which the different

signs (the bread, the wine, the bitter

herbs) made visible the intervention of

God in the life of his people.

Jesus followed the ritual of the Jewish

Passover but altered the prayers and

transformed the meaning of its signs.

To illustrate this process of transformation,

the film imagines that Jesus

and his disciples are hosted by a large

family.

The family celebrates the traditional

Passover in a room on the ground floor,

while Jesus and his disciples have their

supper in the upper room. The film

then alternates scenes from one room

to the other.

The first part of the Passover dinner

focused on the memory of slavery.

In the lower room, the father passes

around the bitter herbs and explains

that they signify the bitterness of enslavement,

along with the unleavened

bread, a symbol of the hasty departure

from Egypt.

In the upper room, Jesus does the


same sign, but his words are different:

This is my body, which will be given

up for you. The bread is no longer a

sign of the escape from Egypt, it is his

body offered on the cross for the salvation

of humanity.

In the third part of the Passover Seder,

the celebrant lifted a cup of wine and

blessed God for all his works, and

especially for the covenant he made

with the people of Israel. Jesus too

distributes the wine to his disciples, but

transforms the sign’s meaning: the cup

that is poured out for you is the new

covenant in my blood.

The movie does an effective job of

linking the Last Supper and the Resurrection.

Contrary to expectations, the

passion of Jesus is dealt with succinctly,

and only through brief flashbacks.

The scene that concludes the movie

— which I will not spoil — ties the

ritual of the Last Supper not just

with Jesus’ passion, but also with his

resurrection. This is another important

insight that is in tune with the spirit of

the Jewish Passover.

In the Jewish Passover, the bread

symbolizes the bitterness of Egypt, its

breaking signifies the end of slavery,

and the wine represents the joy of

freedom in the promised land.

In the Eucharist, the breaking of the

bread makes present Jesus’ death, but

it also looks ahead at his resurrection:

with his death and resurrection, Jesus

brings us from death to life, he introduces

us into the Promised Land.

One aspect of the Last Supper

could have received more emphasis.

The Jewish Passover is not merely a

commemoration. The point of the

celebration is not only to give thanks

and celebrate the Lord for how he

saved his people in the distant past, but

it is for the people to participate in this

salvation here and now.

That is why the Haggadah (the key

text that outlines the order of the

Passover Seder) proclaims: “In each

and every generation every person

must regard himself as though he had

come forth from Egypt as a slave.”

The salvation of God extends to every

generation.

This can only benefit believers

preparing for this year’s celebration of

Easter. Easter is not merely a commemoration

of the death and resurrection

of Jesus, but a moment when

we also can pass from death to life on

an existential level. The resurrection

of Jesus is an event of the now, not of

2,000 years ago.

As St. Paul puts it, we were dead because

of sin, and God brought us back

to life. We were plagued by envy, lust,

resentment, hatred; we were unable to

forgive or love anybody but ourselves.

Easter comes to make us experience

Christ’s victory over one’s death again:

that I can love now; that I can forgive

when forgiveness seems impossible.

“The Last Supper” is not a masterpiece,

but it offers lots of reasons not

to wait until the last season of “The

Chosen” to return to the movie theater.

Stefano Rebeggiani is an associate

professor of classics at the University of

Southern California.

Jamie Ward portrays Christ in a

scene from the movie “The Last

Supper.” | PINNACLE PEAK


DESIRE LINES

HEATHER KING

An exploration of true hunger

SHUTTERSTOCK

Lent is upon us. Pray, fast, and

give alms, saith the Lord.

Apropos of fasting, I recently

read a food-based memoir that is about

very much more than food.

Agata lzabela Brewer, author of

“The Hunger Book: A Memoir from

Communist Poland” (Mad Creek

Books, $24.95), grew up in Lviv during

the 1980s with a terrifying, unstable,

alcoholic mother and a little brother

whom she adored and protected. Now

a professor at Wabash College, she

lives in Indiana with her husband and

(thoroughly Americanized) children.

She also volunteers as a court appointed

special advocate and is the founder

and chair of the organization Immigrant

Allies.

Back in Poland, her mother had

survived the war, her father took off

not long after his son was born, and

Agata lived in constant fear — both of

her physically and emotionally abusive

mother, who regularly attempted suicide,

and of being separated from her.

When she was 5 and little Tomek 3,

they found their mother in bed one

evening, seemingly comatose, stupefied

by pills and vodka. Agata dressed

her brother in his little winter coat,

grasped his hand, and trudged with

him 15 minutes through slushy snow

to the haven of their maternal grandparents

to report: “Mama won’t wake

up.”

Another time, their mother caught

the two up late coloring in their room,

and — all too awake this time — made

them stand shivering in their thin pajamas

all night without moving.

Life in Poland at the time included

food insecurity, martial law, poverty,

Soviet bloc apartments, and crime.

Still, there were allotment gardens and

makeshift vegetable stands with rutabagas,

beets, and carrots to be eaten

raw, cooked, pickled, and fermented.

Cheese, bread, dumplings, and homebrewed

vodka and wine abounded.

Plus, the entire country of Poland is

mad, it turns out, for mushroom gathering.

Whole families took off to their

favorite secret spots, laden with baskets,


Heather King is an award-winning

author, speaker, and workshop leader.

buckets. and small sharp knives to cut

stems. Children were versed, practically

before they were weaned, in which

kinds were poisonous, which especially

coveted.

Some of Brewer’s most cherished

childhood memories are of mushroom-gathering

in the woods with her

mother: cigarette in one hand, bucket

in the other, for once absorbed and

happy.

Brewer includes a few recipes,

but these are hardly for the upscale

gourmand. One is for Polish potato

dumplings: potatoes, eggs, flour, salt;

another for Zurek: fermented rye soup.

A whole chapter is devoted to lard.

But while food is a thread that runs

throughout — the lack of it; the unbounded

joy and relief when food was

available; the sustaining memories of

shared meals, smells, foraging, stretching,

and making do — this is really a

book about the aching, unquenchable

human longing for love, and in particular

for Brewer’s anguished longing for

the love of her mother.

There were 12 or 13 psych ward commitments,

countless rehabs, violence.

More than once, she had to be cut

down from the bathroom pipes where

she’d tried to hang herself. But a child’s

longing for motherly love transcends

any kind of abuse, whether self-abuse

or abuse of others.

She, Brewer, tries to understand. Was

her mother a victim of generational

war trauma? Was she born with a kind

of alcoholic gene, hard-wired to derail

her life and the lives of those around

her? Was the underlying problem

undiagnosed manic depression?

Young Agata is saved by books, and

by a stable, firm, and loving figure: her

grandmother, who Brewer readily credits

with saving her life. She clothed,

fed, sheltered, and set boundaries with

the children during the periods when

their mother — her daughter — was

incommunicado or unreachable.

“I lived in a gray world

of totalitarian lack — of

freedom, of hope, of basic

necessities — but also in

a wonderland of Grandma’s

kitchen, with its

tea-stained glasses and the

earthy smell of gingerbread.

As with our beloved

mushrooms, my world was

both toxic and life-giving,

and I learned to navigate

Mother’s land mines, to

receive her blows, and

to recover on Grandma’s

lap, regaining strength to

weather the next family crisis.”

When Brewer took her own walk

on the wild side for several years as

an angry and disaffected youth, her

grandmother was always in the background:

unconditionally loving but

stern; steadfast, but also quick to point

out the perils of hanging out with the

wrong crowd, and to tout the value of

education.

Still it’s the love of her mother —

whose bizarre and profane behavior

continued to shadow Brewer from

across the ocean, who died at 60, who

never apologized — for which she

continues to hunger.

“Is it possible that if she had been

transplanted into another world, perhaps

one similar to my current relative

comfort of regular bill payments, a

fully stocked fridge, a small savings

account for travel and movie nights,

she would have managed her illness.

Would she have loved us more?”

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken

me?” cried Christ from the cross,

thereby putting himself in solidarity for

all time with every abused, neglected,

abandoned child who similarly asks:

Was it my fault? Could I have done

something differently?

No. What we can do is share our

stories, as Brewer has so bravely and

generously done.

Agata lzabela Brewer. | © AGATA SZCZESZAK-BREWER

And we can try to cultivate the heart

of that saving grandmother who surely

stands, still, at the foot of the cross with

Mary.


LETTER AND SPIRIT

SCOTT HAHN

Scott Hahn is founder of the

St. Paul Center for Biblical

Theology; stpaulcenter.com.

‘The Way’ to read Scripture

The Hallow app created a sensation by featuring

St. Josemaría Escrivá (1902-1975) throughout the

season of Lent this year. The two publishers of his

most popular book, “The Way” (Scepter Pubs, $11.96),

found themselves overwhelmed by orders in the tens of

thousands.

I love that book. But I say we cannot begin to understand

the spirit of Josemaría until we understand his reading of

the Scriptures.

I would go so far as to

say that the Bible always

served as Josemaría’s

primary referential language.

Though he was

steeped in the teachings

of the Fathers and

doctors of the Church,

though he was fluent in

scholastic theology, and

though he kept current

with trends in contemporary

theology, it was

to Scripture that he

consistently turned in his

preaching and writing.

He quoted frequently

from both the Old and

New Testaments, but

especially from the Gospels.

No phrases appear

so often in his writings

and homilies as those

that invoke the sacred

page: “as the Gospel tells

us”; “as the Gospel advises

…”; “Sacred Scripture

tells us …”; “the Gospels

relate …”; “Remember

the Gospel story …”

He spoke of the Scriptures

as the very measure

of his way of life, which was “as old as the Gospel but, like

the Gospel, ever new.” At the beginning of “The Way,” he

wrote: “How I wish your bearing and conversation were

such that, on seeing or hearing you, people would say: This

man reads the life of Jesus Christ.” Conversely, in discussing

those who do not live Christian charity, Josemaría said,

“They seem not to have read the Gospel.”

Study of the Scripture, then, was essential to his spirituality.

In a sermon he wrote: “In our own life we must

reproduce Christ’s life. We need to come to know him by

reading and meditating on Scripture.”

He practiced a particular method for the meditative

reading of Scripture: “I

advised you to read the

New Testament and to

enter into each scene

and take part in it, as one

more of the characters.

The minutes you spend

in this way each day

enable you to incarnate

the Gospel, reflect it in

your life and help others

to reflect it.”

With the reading of

Scripture, then, comes

the grace of transformation,

of conversion.

Reading the Bible is

not a passive act, but an

active seeking and finding.

The saint once said:

“If we do this without

holding back, Christ’s

words will enter deep

into our soul and will

really change us. For ‘the

word of God is living

and active, sharper than

any two-edged sword,

piercing to the division

St. Josemaría Escrivá. | WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

of the soul and spirit, of

joints and marrow, and

discerning the thoughts

and intentions of the

heart’ (Hebrews 4:12).”

There’s just a little bit of Lent remaining. Join the crowd

gathered at Hallow by learning Scripture from this saint, in

the pages of his most popular book.


■ FRIDAY, MARCH 28

24 Hours for the Lord: Pilgrims of Hope. SoCal faithful will

join churches around the world in 24 Hours for the Lord.

Twenty-four churches in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles

will remain open for 24 hours for confession and prayer

from Friday, March 28 to Saturday, March 29. Visit hope.

lacatholics.org/24-hours for locations and times.

Filipino Culture Night and Fish Fry. St. Clare of Assisi

Church, 19606 Calla Way, Santa Clarita, 4:30-8 p.m.

Includes live music and entertainment. Wear cultural attire.

Menu: 2- or 3-piece dinner of beer-battered cod, coleslaw,

fries, and dinner rolls, ceviche. Dessert, beverages, and family

pack available for purchase. Cost: $16/2-piece dinner,

$18/3-piece dinner. Proceeds benefit wildfire victims. Visit

st-clare.org.

Torrance Fish Fry. Nativity Church, 1415 Engracia Ave.,

Torrance, 5-7 p.m. Hosted by the Knights of Columbus

Council 4919, the fish fry runs Fridays in Lent. Menu: Baked

or deep fried fish, baked potato or fries, coleslaw, roll, and

cake. Cost: $15/adults, $10/seniors, $8/children under 12.

50/50 raffle as time permits. Indoor seating and takeout

service available.

Fish Fry. St. Margaret Mary Church, 25511 Eshelman Ave.,

Lomita, 5-7 p.m. Held March 7, 21, 28, and April 4 and 11.

Menu: Baked or fried cod, french fries, coleslaw, roll, dessert,

milk, and coffee. Soft drinks, beer, and wine available.

Take out available. Cost: $12/adults, $10/seniors, $6/children.

Call Joe Vicelja at 310-408-9117.

St. Barnabas Lenten Friday and Fish Fry. St. Barnabas

Church, 3955 Orange Ave., Long Beach, 5:30 p.m. Stations

of the Cross, 6 p.m. Mass, 6:15-8:30 p.m. fish fry dinner.

Runs every Friday in Lent. First Fridays include adoration.

Visit stbarnabaslb.org.

Faith and Healing Bereavement Weekend. Holy Spirit

Retreat Center, 4316 Lanai Rd., Encino, 5:30 p.m. Sunday,

March 30, 1 p.m. With Cathy Narvaez. Visit hsrcenter.com

or call 818-784-4515.

Guest Speaker Series: Father Richard Spitzer, SJ. St.

Bede the Venerable Church, 215 Foothill Blvd., La Cañada

Flintridge, 7-8:30 p.m. Visit bede.org.

Retrouvaille Ministry for Couples in Crisis Weekend.

Spanish weekend runs March 28-30. If you’re having problems

in your marriage, there’s hope. You and your spouse

can find ways to communicate and overcome adversity.

Register with Marya Perez-Carrillo at 818-723-8704 or

Carlos Perez-Carrillo at 818-741-5172.

■ SATURDAY, MARCH 29

The Mysticism of Julian of Norwich. Loyola Institute

for Spirituality, 434 S. Batavia St., Orange, 9 a.m. Lenten

mini-retreat exploring Julian of Norwich’s down-to-earth,

feminist theology using guided meditation discussion, and

writing. Email ebeall@csjorange.org.

ACTHeals: Learning and Unlearning. St. Andrew Church,

538 Concord St., El Segundo, 10 a.m.-12 p.m. Aloysius

Michael Pattian. Day of silence and stillness will focus on

reacquainting ourselves to the interior life to encounter

the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit. Love offerings

requested.

Catholic Bible Institute: Understanding Job. Zoom, 10-

11:30 a.m. Dr. Israel McGrew of the Augustine Institute will

explore the literature and theology of the book of Job and

the problems of evil and human ignorance. Cost: $10/person.

Register at lacatholics.org/events.

Lenten Day Retreat and Mass: 100% Autistic, 100%

Catholic. Pauline Books & Media, 3908 Sepulveda Blvd.,

Culver City, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Father Matthew Schneider, an

autistic Catholic priest, offers insights on leading fulfilling

lives in the Faith. Donation: $30. RSVP to 310-397-8676 or

email culvercity@paulinemedia.com.

■ SUNDAY, MARCH 30

John A. Swanson Art Exhibit. St. Augustine Center, 2060

N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Featuring

the work of world-renowned artist and former parishioner

of Our Mother of Good Counsel Church. OMGC Centennial

and Swanson Studio event. Free. Call 310-649-1210. Visit

JohnAugustSwanson.com.

Kontrapunktus Presents “Il Nuovo Orfeo: The Legacy of

Arcangelo Corelli.” St. Andrew Church, 311 N. Raymond

Ave., Pasadena, 8 p.m. Doors open one hour prior to start.

Featuring soloist Aubree Oliverson. Cost: $25/person.

Tickets available at kontrapunktus.com/tickets.

■ TUESDAY, APRIL 1

Archdiocesan Council of Catholic Women Lenten

Retreat: Pilgrims of Hope. Mary & Joseph Retreat Center,

5300 Crest Rd., Rancho Palos Verdes, 8 a.m.-2:30 p.m.

Speaker: Father Marinello Saguin. Fellowship, continental

breakfast, light lunch, and Mass included. Donation: $40/

person. Call Marissa Reyes at 310-483-9083 or email

ACCW.SW19@gmail.com.

■ WEDNESDAY, APRIL 2

“The Word of God” weekly series. St. Dorothy Church,

241 S. Valley Center Ave., Glendora, 7-8:30 p.m. Wednesdays

through May 7. Deepen your understanding of the

Catholic faith through dynamic DVD presentations by

Bishop Robert Barron, Dr. Edward Sri, Dr. Brant Pitre, and

Dr. Scott Hahn. Free events. No reservation required. Call

626-335-2811 or visit the Adult Faith Development ministry

page at www.stdorothy.org for more information.

■ FRIDAY, APRIL 4

Taize Prayer. Holy Spirit Retreat Center, 4316 Lanai Rd.,

Encino, 7 p.m. Runs April 4 and 11. With Sister Chris

Machado, SSS, and Sister Marie Lindemann, SSS. Visit

hsrcenter.com or call 818-784-4515.

■ SATURDAY, APRIL 5

Pilgrimage of Hope. All Souls Church, 1500 W. Main St.,

Alhambra, 8 a.m. Six-mile pilgrimage to mark the jubilee

year will proceed from All Souls Church to the Cathedral

of Our Lady of the Angels, and close with 11:30 a.m. Mass

with Archbishop José H. Gomez.

Faith and Healing Bereavement Retreat. St. Mary of the

Assumption, 7215 Newlin Ave., Whittier, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. For

those struggling with the death of a loved one. Cost: $75/

person, covers all materials, supplies, continental breakfast,

snacks, and lunch. RSVP to Cathy Narvaez at bereavement.

ministry@yahoo.com or call 562-631-8844 by Sunday,

March 30.

Freedom to Change: Alexander Technique. Holy Spirit

Retreat Center, 4316 Lanai Rd., Encino, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. With

Barbara and Seth Wegher-Thompson. Visit hsrcenter.com or

call 818-784-4515.

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 | April 4, 2025 | Vol. 10 No. 7

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