Good News for the Digital Pews

Let God take the wheel

2012-01-26T17:38:00.000-08:00

Theresa Montminy,
Chancellor

The hardest aspect of the Christian life is to learn to submit to God in all things. His yoke is easy, but remembering to be bound by it is difficult. We worship Him for His goodness, we thank Him for His love, we pledge to be His disciples, and we ask Him for His wisdom. All the while, the nuts and bolts of following Him are hard to grasp. When it comes to making decisions, we still like our independence.

What is it about our independence that so intrigues us? Why are we so captivated with our decision-making powers? Why, even when we know that a sense of autonomy does not lead us to making peace with ourselves and others, do we insist on maintaining little pieces of it in various corners of our lives? Why, when God tells us one thing and our internal compulsions tell us another, do we often choose the compulsions? What does that say about our trust in God?

Making peace in our life is about trusting God and seeking to serve Him. When we choose our own will over God’s, we’re mistrusting Him and trusting ourselves. What an absurdity! We forget the most basic of all biblical teachings ~ God’s will is in our best interest.

Are you convinced of that? You cannot be at peace until you know deep down in your heart that His commands, even the hard ones, are ultimately for our benefit. We can be sure that the best way to seek our own self-centered interests is to be entirely God-centered. In this paradox, godliness and the self-life meet. Or, as Jesus said; “Whoever loses his life will preserve it.” Our happiness is deeper and richer when we listen to Him.

In that sense, it is a self-fulfilling act to forsake our own will and submit to His. Submission seems so noble, but we have a lot at stake in it. When we serve Him, we serve ourselves. Believe that wholeheartedly, and see what happens. Let us strive to serve God where He has planted us . . . and, in that way we will find peace!

Commercial offers heartening perspective on our Church

2012-01-11T13:23:00.000-08:00

By John Andrews
Director, Department of Communications

If you were watching the evening news or the NFL playoffs recently and a saw a dramatic commercial espousing the historic importance of the Catholic Church to western civilization, you might have done a double-take. This is not the usual silly beer commercial or glib car ad you expect in prime advertising slots.

The commercial was produced by Catholics Come Home, an organization that reaches out to the millions who were raised in the faith but no longer practice it. In fact, about 1 in 10 Americans fits into that category. At its conclusion the commercial beckons, “if you’ve been away from the Catholic Church we invite you to take another look.”

I hope the TV spot does, indeed, attract those who have been away from active participation in our faith. It is very well done and that kind of air time doesn’t come cheap, so a significant investment has been made in this campaign.

Beyond the target audience this commercial has a value for many who do practice our faith. It makes us feel good about being Catholic. In describing the Church, the commercial rolls out a list of credentials that is undeniably spectacular. It reminds us that the Church compiled the bible, started hospitals and orphanages, founded the college system, developed the scientific method and is the world’s largest charitable organization, among others. Our values – family, diversity, and the sacredness of all human life – are powerfully depicted.

On first viewing the commercial made me want to pump my fist or let out a “yeaahh!!!” A lot of times the stuff we see on TV about the Church is not so affirmative. As a guy whose ministry is to promote the good work of the Catholic Church in the media, this commercial is like manna from heaven. So I invite you to check it out at www.catholicscomehome.org (or below).

I also invite you to look for those who may have been moved by the commercial to come back to our church. Welcome them with the warmth and hospitality that is a value of our diocese. Welcome them back to our big ‘ole family (over a billion of us, says the commercial).

The Twelve Days run counter to the "holiday" season

2011-12-29T15:41:00.000-08:00

By Steve Valenzuela
Director, Small Faith Communities

Everyone has holiday traditions, even if your “tradition” is to forget about them and act as if they are just another day. Over the past couple of months it has been hard to escape the “Holiday” reality as retailers, media outlets and everyone in between has been getting ready for the “holidays.” And the last few weeks (four to be exact), radio programs changed. Red and green or blue and white decorations have been everywhere. Every night one could watch a holiday themed movie, special or regular television program.

On the evening of the 25th and definitely on the 26th, much of our media oriented world will make the transition back to nonholiday time.

And in a kind of gentle yet profound prophetic gesture, we in the Church have maintained a quiet stand against all the hoopla. Our churches (and some of our homes) have been simply adorned in purple with a large wreath and 4 tall candles lit in weekly progression until this weekend. We had been observing Advent. For us Catholics, beginning on December 25, now is the time of the great twelve days (though this year it is 14) of celebrating the Nativity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ!

In addition to shopping (for some despite it), many of us have been preparing for this time with wonderful ethnic foods to share this night and beyond, whether it’s steaming tamales, baking cabbage rolls or pans of lasagna, decorating cookies or creamy fudge or making fruitfilled panetone or cake, many of our cupboards and countertops are filled with sweet and savory treats for feasting. There is no fasting with the birth of Savior, all will be fed, all will have their fill.

For many years now, over 25 since I have lived here in the IE, I have made a concerted effort to celebrate the 12 days. I try to do some kind of event each day whether it is a visit with outoftown friends, a movie with colleagues, whatever. One event I do annually is a party on December 26th with a group of church friends in Riverside and Orange County. That event, one of my favorites of the whole season, includes all the usual elements of a traditional Christmas celebration with gift giving, eating and drinking but ends around 10 p.m. (it use to be later but as most of us are beyond 50 now 10 seems reasonable!) with a wonderful tradition of faith sharing and prayer. After each person takes a turn to reveal what has been God’s activity in their lives this past year (some see each other only at this annual event), the group concludes singing the same folk hymn from our college days of fellowship meetings, bible studies and faith community houses.

These things I have spoken unto you
That in me you might have peace.
In the world, you shall have tribulation
But be of good cheer, be of good cheer
For I have overcome the World.

May your celebration of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus bring you peace and good cheer for the 12 days and throughout the New Year!

A Christmas Message from Bishop Barnes & Bishop del Riego

2011-12-25T10:38:00.000-08:00

By Bishop Gerald Barnes & Bishop Rutilio del Riego
Diocese of San Bernardino

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

We offer our deepest prayers to you at this most blessed time of year. Let the joy of Christmas fill us all. For today we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ! As we exchange gifts with friends and family and enjoy the many blessings of this time of year, let us remember that we are the “reason for the season” because Jesus came for us so that we might be saved. That God would send His Son to be among us, to be one of us, shows His great love for human kind and His desire to be reconciled with us. It is the only gift we truly need and the world is a more holy place when we share it with each other and with those we meet in our days.

Though he was born anonymously and humbly, the birth of our Lord Jesus gave hope to the world. As we enter into Christmas and the New Year may we take a few moments to look at our lives and accept the hope that God continues to offer us in His Son, Jesus. It is there for us today just as it was more than 2,000 years ago when He was born of Our Blessed Mother Mary and became man.

May your holiday season be filled with love and good cheer…
May you experience the peace and joy of Christ’s birth in your heart…
May your family and friends be blessed with good health and safety…
May the presence of the Spirit guide you on your journey in 2012…
And may Almighty God bless you.

Advent Joy through our Catholic Schools

2011-12-19T11:37:00.000-08:00

By Rick Howick
Principal, St. Catherine of Alexandria School, Riverside

An excited second grader ran to me across the lunch quad. In each hand she held treasures just made in our Santa’s Workshop. She not only wanted to show me her ornament for mom and dad, but she was equally excited at the Christmas card she made. This little girl had lost her grandfather the year before, and she was excited about making a card for somebody else’s grandpa who didn’t have grandchildren of his own. This was a new idea this year, to make a project for parents and then a card for an elder shut-in at one of our local retirement centers. Judging by the grin, the idea was a hit. I was personally pleased that she was so excited at helping those who needed her and the love a child’s card would bring.

That Saturday, I brought my mother to St. Catherine’s to show her how our mobile free health clinic worked. We walked around the huge modified mobile-home, and I introduced her to two of the nurses as she was a retired ER nurse herself. They smiled and we walked away slowly as one of the doctors came out. His shift was over, and as he walked past, I thanked him for his service (he drove in each weekend from Orange). He mentioned that today he saw a diabetic with some significant problems and was glad the man came in. I thanked him again, and reminded him that he was saving lives – thank you! He paused to make a joke, we smiled, and he departed.

I walked away with my mother in silent joy. My school had worked in tandem with the parish in setting up the mobile Lestonnac Free Clinic a few months prior, and I was thrilled that so many people without health insurance were being helped in vital ways. It was gratifying to know that we had volunteers (though we still need more volunteer doctors) who came together between our parish and our campus to bring hope and real healing to the lives of those in need. There was no politics in it, no proselytizing, not even real social justice; just freely offered love on Christ’s behalf just as described by our Holy Father (cf. Deus Caritas Est 31). It echoed our diocesan impact statement filling one soul at a time with hope.

At the same time, the prior day’s encounter with that little second grade girl filled me with even more joy than that doctor had. She was only seven, and she got it. The ministry of Christ is reaching out to make people feel better, even people we don’t know – and that brings joy to ourselves. Our Catholic schools educate our children academically better than any other system on earth. But the most important part of our curriculum was best taught this year at St. Catherine’s in a little workshop where children fill lives with the hope of Christmas, and a promise to grow up knowing that helping others is a joyful way to celebrate Advent.

The Occupy Movement and Catholic Social Teaching

2011-12-05T10:41:00.001-08:00

By Bishop Gerald Barnes
Diocese of San Bernardino

What are we to make of the Occupy Movement that has found its way from Wall Street to many communities here in our diocese? How does our Catholic faith inform our view of it?

Some of us may have already joined the protests or considered it. Others may wonder ‘what’s the point?’ or question the use of civil disobedience as a means of political expression.

Certainly this movement is a reflection of the dissatisfaction and despair felt by so many who face unemployment, foreclosure, poverty, hunger and other ill effects of the Great Recession that has gripped our country for the past three years. Our diocese has felt this pain significantly, reporting unemployment and poverty rates that are among the worst in the United States. It’s no surprise, then, that people in San Bernardino, Riverside, Redlands, Victorville and other cities are taking to the streets to vent their frustration.

One of the great gifts of our nation is our right to freedom of expression, to speak our mind publicly when we disagree with a prevailing policy or wish to bring light to something we believe unjust. Those participating in the Occupy Movement are exercising that right and should be free to do so. At the same time, any destruction of property, violence and other abuses that take place as part of these protests must be condemned. Even such a strong statement of disagreement must carry the flag of civility. We have the right to disagree with one another. We do not have the right to be disrespectful of anyone.

The Occupy Movement is challenging the fairness of our economic system, given that more and more people are being hurt by it than helped by it these days. Our faith is concerned with the economy in its impact on the human dignity that God grants each of us. We may think of the economy in terms of job reports, business transactions, stock markets and growth projections but Catholic teaching holds that the economy must be measured by how well it serves the people. Does it provide opportunities for meaningful work for the individual, a stability of food and shelter so that families can thrive, a distribution of resources that does not disproportionately favor one group over another and, in reflection of our Lord Jesus’ call in Matthew’s Gospel, does it provide for the poor and most vulnerable among us?

Much is made about the opportunity in America to go as far financially as your hard work, intelligence and determination can carry you. This is a great ideal but the workings of the economy must make it true. If the system is conducive to wealth for some at the expense of many others, this great statement of opportunity is not being lived. Those who have joined the Occupy Movement are telling us that such an imbalance may have come to pass.

This dovetails with our Catholic teaching that policies, laws and systems are created to serve the common good. We are not concerned just about individual opportunity but how the economy enhances community life. Whether or not we choose to become part of the Occupy Movement, we are called as Catholics to exercise Faithful Citizenship, raising our voices when we see moral failure in the public policies and government actions that shape our lives. We do this not to side with a particular political ideology or to follow a cultural trend. We do it for the same reason every time – to protect and promote human dignity. We believe that every life has value – regardless of economic status, race, age, health or any other factor. This is the love to which our Lord Jesus Christ calls us.

Twenty-five years ago, a time that seems prosperous compared to today’s economic climate, the Bishops of the United States issued “Economic Justice for All,” a pastoral letter that applied Catholic Social Teaching to the U.S. Economy. It remains remarkably relevant today. As a reference for Catholic thinking about the Occupy Movement, I highly recommend a revisiting of this letter. It can be found at: www.usccb..org

Regardless of your opinion about the Occupy Movement I urge you to continue to pray for those who find themselves in the margins of our society because of these difficult economic times, and to come to their aid in whatever way that you can. This time of Advent is a time of hope. It is a time for reflection and action. We prepare for the celebration of the Lord’s coming. May he find us waiting in hope; attentive to each other’s need; and sharing with one another the gifts He has given us.

My best wishes to you for a joyous and blessed Advent.

On Neutrinos and the news words at Mass

2011-11-29T10:55:00.001-08:00

By Jeanette Arnquist
Director, Ministry of Life Dignity and Justice

A few weeks ago, as I was driving home I heard about an experiment in which it appeared that scientists had measured neutrinos, those little electrically-neutral, sub-atomic particles, traveling faster than the speed of light. When I went to school, they didn’t even have neutrinos, or at least they didn’t teach us about them. I had to Google them. Wow! This story is all over the Internet, and if it is true, it has implications which I simply cannot imagine, much less understand.

Similarly, when it became apparent this year that I needed a new cell phone, I found that I didn’t even have the vocabulary to discuss it with a clerk one-third my age.

It is a cliché that our world is changing so rapidly that it is almost impossible to keep up. Most of us don’t like change, especially in the Church. I remember very well how controversial it was when the language of the Mass changed to English in the late 1960s. Many people complained about how the beauty and mystery were being lost.

Perhaps still smarting from a D in high school Latin, I was excited about the change. The new translations caught my attention and made me reflect on the meaning of the words. It deepened my faith. And at that time I promised myself that I would never become an old lady grousing at changes in the Mass.

So here we are, more than 40 years later. The language of the Mass is changing again and I am old. I am not a liturgist and so I adopted a “wait and see” attitude. During my first Mass with the new language I stumbled repeatedly. How many times am I going to say, “and also with you.” when the paper I am holding says, in bold print, “and with your spirit?” After a couple of days I have managed to say, “and also with you-r spirit” most of the time, but old habits of speech die hard.

The good news is that for the most part the new words woke me up again and made me once again reflect on the meaning of the words.

Black Catholic History Month celebrates a strong presence in the Church

2011-11-16T17:02:00.000-08:00

By David Okonkwo
Director, Ministry of the Assembly of Catholics of African Descent

The month of November is chosen to be the Black Catholic history month and it is also the month of All Saints and All Souls. The National Black Clergy Caucus selected this month to celebrate the history of blacks and canonized saints of African descent in Catholic history. The month of February is when the U.S and Canada celebrate the achievements and contributions of African diaspora.

In our Diocese, we celebrate the inception of the Assembly of Catholics of African Descent in our Diocese which convened on the recommendation of Bishop Phillip Straling. Under the leadership of two stalwarts Ms. Thelma Bledsoe and Ms. Lois Carson the Assembly was born. A Mass of Celebration marking this month will be held on Nov. 20 at 3 p.m. at St. Elizabeth Ann Seaton Church in Ontario.

Some ask why we celebrate November: So we will remember and tell our story all over again. As a people with a painful history, we walk back with all and share it as it pertains to our faith.

When we look at the list of canonized saints in November who are of African descent, they include saints with the title “Father of the Church” and Archbishop St. Dionysius of Alexandra and St. Gelasius, a pope who reigned for four years and made a tremendous impact to the life of the church and the papacy. St. Martin de Porres of Peru one of the favorites saints of blacks in the Americas, who is mostly famous for his humble service and as a recipient of extraordinary spiritual phenomena. The rest of the saints with their feast days in November include St. Pierius, St. Achillas, St. Catherine of Alexandria, and St. Peter of Alexandria. The titles of some of these saints and their contributions must have persuaded the National Black Clergy Caucus to easily choose the month of November.

It is true some have called the Catholic Church the “white man’s church,” but the contributions and presence of black Catholics has always been important. Simon the Cyrenian was forced to help Jesus carry the cross found in the synoptic gospels. In the Acts of the Apostles the one mentioned by most scholars (Acts 8:26-40) is Philip meeting and baptizing the Ethiopian eunuch. And here in our beloved country, from the beginning Africans carried on their backs the foundation of the Catholic Church. Slave trade was a trade that permeated through all industry including the Church. This caused a lot of pain and severed many people from the Catholic Church. As a people of reconciliation we have worked over the past centuries for healing from these sins.

Religion came to America again on the backs of African slaves and their owners. As early as 1536, as history has it, three Catholic Spaniards missionaries and their Catholic Spanish speaking slave Esteban (Stephen) a Moroccan trekked into this side of Americas which was formerly a Mexican territory, and so became the first black Catholic Spanish speaking slave missionary worker to come into America. The Spaniards established a colony in northern Florida and named it St. Augustine which attracted free blacks and slaves to settle there. St. Augustine is the oldest Catholic parish and non-Native American city. Here in our diocese, St. Anthony in San Bernardino became the base for African American Catholics as they helped erect the church and the convent. The parish was designated an African American (Black) parish by the diocese and has enjoyed many ecumenical events as different churches were invited to participate in gospel fests. From St. Anthony also came the first African America deacon for the diocese, Deacon Joseph Keyes who has passed, may his soul rest in peace.

Today, the composition of Black Catholics looks different than in the past. Along with African-American Catholics we have a growing number of African Catholics who have come to the United States from their home countries. This is reflected in the growing Nigerian and Nigerian Igbo communities in the diocese. In this month of remembering Black Catholic History it is important to remember that this is for all of us who share an African heritage. Together we celebrate our contribution and our place in this Universal Church!

The National Black Catholic Congress is still going on today and comes together every five years. Bishops of African descent together with the rest of the bishops who make it to the Congress concelebrate mass, catechize the congress attendees. They then work together to put forth “A Pastoral Plan of Action” which attendees take back to their dioceses, parishes and lives. And work to fulfill the action plan through which they impact lives neighborhoods filling their lives with hope.

New missal is a step on the Way

2011-11-11T16:38:00.000-08:00

By Bishop Gerald Barnes
Diocese of San Bernardino

Change is constant in our lives. We change jobs, we change our diet, we change schools, we change our hairstyle, we change where we live. Sometimes we initiate the change but more often it seems that change comes to us through circumstances not of our making.

Beginning November 27 we, as Roman Catholics, will experience a change that seems rather significant in the way that we celebrate the Mass when we begin to use the new English translation of the Roman Missal. This is our “script” for Mass, containing the prayers, music and responses that articulate our communal worship of God and our acknowledgement of the real presence of the risen Christ. We don’t take the words that we say and sing at Mass lightly, so these changes will feel very foreign to us. Many of our parishes have begun to preview and practice them during Mass. Our priests, who have the most substantial number of changes to learn, continue to study and prepare in a variety of ways. I extend my deep gratitude to our priests, the diocesan Office of Worship, the Diocesan Liturgical Commission, the Office of Continuing Education for Priests, and all in the parishes who are helping to prepare the people for the implementation of the new missal.

In reality, the new words will bring us closer to the intentions of the Church fathers who constructed the Roman Missal in Latin, the mother tongue of the Church for so many centuries. When we begin to study the changes, we also see a much stronger connection between what we will be saying and the scriptural foundation of the Mass. In the awkwardness of learning new words and phrases we will also have the opportunity to bring the meaning of the Mass more centrally into our consciousness. God blesses us with a love and a capacity for absorbing new information, and so we experience joy in learning.

The introduction of the new translation coincides with the start of Advent, and looking at this change through the lens of Advent gives us a good perspective. We are invited during this season to look closer at our own relationship with God while at the same time understanding that the fulfillment of His kingdom is the ultimate destination for us and all of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

So if you are feeling the burden of having to learn the responses of the new translation, I invite you to take the long view of Advent. As a community of believers we have our eyes set on something much bigger, something eternal. We are patient and hopeful in this light, and we know that this change in our liturgy is just a step on our journey that we believe will bring us closer to God.

And as with all things Catholic, we will take this next step together. It is my Advent hope that we will take this change as an opportunity to draw closer to one another. We will stumble over the new words together, we will discover the deeper meanings of the changes together, we will sing the new melody of the Gloria together, we will eventually learn to put away our missalettes together.

May God grant us patience and good will in this new journey of our Church. I offer my prayers to you for a blessed Advent season.

El nuevo Misal es un paso en el largo camino al reino

Por Obispo Gerald Barnes

Diócesis de San Bernardino

El cambio es constante en nuestras vidas. Cambiamos de empleo, cambiamos nuestra dieta, cambiamos de escuelas, cambiamos el estilo de nuestro cabello, cambiamos de domicilio. A veces nosotros iniciamos el cambio pero en su mayoría parece que el cambio nos llega por circunstancias ajenas a nuestra voluntad.

Comenzando el 27 de noviembre, nosotros, como católicos romanos, viviremos un cambio que parece muy notorio en la manera en que celebramos la Santa Misa cuando comencemos a utilizar la nueva traducción al inglés del Misal Romano. Este es nuestro “guión” para la Misa y contiene oraciones, música y respuestas que articulan nuestro culto comunal a Dios y nuestro reconocimiento de la presencia real del Cristo resucitado. No tomamos a la ligera las palabras que decimos y cantamos en la Misa, así que estos cambios nos parecen muy extraños. Muchas de nuestras parroquias han comenzado a presentarlos y practicarlos durante la Misa. Nuestros sacerdotes, quienes tienen el número mayor de cambios que aprender, continúan estudiando y preparándose de varias maneras. Extiendo mi profundo agradecimiento a nuestros sacerdotes, a la Oficina Diocesana del Culto Divino, a la Comisión Litúrgica Diocesana, a la Oficina para la Educación Continua de Sacerdotes, y a todas las parroquias que están ayudando a preparar al pueblo para la implementación del nuevo misal.

En realidad, las nuevas palabras nos acercarán más a las intenciones de los padres de la Iglesia que recopilaron el Misal Romano en latín, la lengua madre de la Iglesia por tantos siglos. Cuando comenzamos a estudiar los cambios, vemos también una conexión mucho más fuerte entre lo que vamos a decir y el fundamento bíblico de la Misa. En la incomodidad de aprender nuevas palabras y frases tendremos también la oportunidad de centralizar más el significado de la Misa en nuestra conciencia. Dios nos bendice con un amor y una capacidad de absorber nueva información, y así sentimos la alegría de aprender.

La introducción de la nueva traducción coincide con el inicio del Tiempo de Adviento, y el mirar este cambio con los lentes de Adviento nos da una buena perspectiva. Se nos invita durante este tiempo a analizar con mayor detenimiento nuestra propia relación con Dios al mismo tiempo que entendemos que su reino es el destino final para nosotros y para todos nuestros hermanos y hermanas en Cristo.

Así que si se sienten agobiados por tener que aprender las respuestas de la nueva traducción, los invito a que lo hagan con la perspectiva de Adviento. Como comunidad de creyentes, tenemos nuestros ojos puestos en algo mucho más grande, algo eterno. Con esto en mente esperamos con paciencia y llenos de esperanza, y sabemos que este cambio en nuestra liturgia es sólo un paso en nuestro caminar que creemos nos acercará más a Dios.

Y como hacemos con todas las cosas católicas, tomaremos este próximo paso juntos. Mi esperanza de Adviento es que tomaremos este cambio como una oportunidad para acercarnos más los unos a los otros. Juntos nos confundiremos con las nuevas palabras, juntos descubriremos los significados más profundos de los cambios, juntos cantaremos la nueva melodía del Gloria, juntos aprenderemos finalmente a guardar nuestros misalitos.

Que Dios nos dé paciencia y buena voluntad en esta nueva jornada de nuestra Iglesia. Ofrezco mis oraciones para que tengan ustedes un Tiempo de Adviento lleno de bendiciones.

First National Assembly of Filipino Priests Serving the U.S. Church, A Historical Event

2011-11-08T15:37:00.000-08:00

By Father Dennis Legaspi, V.F. Pastor
St. Elizabeth of Hungary, Desert Hot Springs

In conjunction with the 10th Anniversary of the USCCB Pastoral Statement, "Asian and Pacific Presence: Harmony in Faith" and in solidarity with other Asian and Pacific Catholic communities in the United States, the first ever National Assembly of Filipino Priests, U.S.A. will be held on November 8-11, 2011 at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel in Los Angeles, California. The assembly aims 1) to promote unity, support, and growth among Filipino priests ministering with their cultural gifts and 2) to serve as a forum for collaboration and effective pastoral leadership development.

To date, there are approximately 900 Filipino Catholic priests serving in different capacities in the Roman Catholic Church in the U.S.A. They serve in parishes, schools, seminaries, chaplaincies, chancery offices, and national institutions in the 50 states and some US territories.

The national assembly will hold dialogue sessions and workshops for continuing education, spiritual growth and pastoral enrichment. Some topics are Intercultural Competencies for Mission; The Spirituality of the Filipino Priest; The Priest’s Role in The Public Arena; Mens Sana in Corpore Sano: Priest and Wellness; Lay Ministry: Joys and Challenges; and Priestly Fraternity and Ministry. The workshops will be facilitated by renowned speakers and presenters in various fields in the Church’s ministry, as well as respected Church leaders like His Eminence, Roger Cardinal Mahony, D.D., Archbishop Emeritus of Los Angeles; Most Rev. Randolph Calvo, D.D., Bishop of Reno and Chair of USCCB Subcommittee on Asian and Pacific Island Affairs; Most Rev. Gerald Kicanas, D.D., Bishop of Tucson; Most Rev. Luis Antonio Tagle, D.D., Bishop of Imus, Cavite, Philippines; Most Rev. Robert McElroy, D.D., Auxiliary Bishop of San Francisco; and Most Rev. Oscar A. Solis, D.D. Auxiliary Bishop of Los Angeles and Episcopal Liaison to the Filipino Priests in the U.S.

The assembly will also hold a special Concelebrated Mass at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels on Thursday, November 10, 2011 at 11:00 A.M. The Mass is open to the public. There will also be a Filipino Priests Concert and a Barrio Fiesta Dinner with lay leaders on the evening of November 10th at 7:30 P.M. at the Westin Los Angeles Airport Hotel Grand Ballroom. We ask for your prayers for the success of this historical event in the life of the U.S. Church.

Holidays Call Us to Remember, Be Grateful and Hope

2011-11-02T08:37:00.000-07:00

By Steve Valenzuela
Director, Small Faith Communities

Once the calendar turned over to October, we began my favorite time of year, the secular and religious Holiday Trinity – Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas or as some of the discount stores display it, “Hallowgivingmas”. Like the ghosts who visit Ebenezer, these three celebrations arrive both expectedly and unexpectedly, kind of in a blur, bringing memories of our pasts, demands on present lives and dreams about our futures. The middle celebration, which many say is their “favorite” of the three, is part of our “American Civil Religion.” This national observance recalls the arrival of the pilgrims to Plymouth as part of the story of our founding as a nation. From my observance, though, Thanksgiving has become more of a speed bump on the road to Christmas. For many, Thanksgiving is more of a national rationalization that we are not as materialistic or greedy as the next few weeks actually seem to demonstrate. Still being grateful is an important virtue for Christians to cultivate, especially beyond the few minutes before the annual Turkey feast.

So while most Americans are remembering to give thanks for health, home and hearth during November’s annual indulgence, all three celebrations remind us people of faith to spend time practicing both as individuals and as communities the virtue of gratefulness. So what are we grateful for? All Hallows followed All Souls and All Saints, invites us to remember fondly and give thanks for our dearly departed, the friends and family who have graced our lives and gave it both substance and meaning. Thanksgiving, of course is all about cultivating gratefulness, especially for our present lives, the gifts and blessings we receive each day, the simple moments that bring joy and the challenges that bring growth. And finally with Christmas gratitude may be tough in light of all the stress and busyness the season brings but it too is ultimately a call to thank our God, for sending us His Only Begotten Son, for ushering in the Kingdom of Love, Justice and Peace, and for the hope of Eternal Life that arrived in that little town called Bethlehem..

Loyola-Marymount Professor of Spirituality Willie Au and his therapist wife Noreen Cannon Au write in their wonderful book, The Grateful Heart that “a spirituality of gratitude must lead us beyond the subjective well-being espoused by positive psychology to a holiness that is at once earthy and mystical.”

Earthy and mystical… sounds like being Catholic to me! As Catholics, we gather as regular people who live everyday lives; we work and go to Mass, try to watch our weight, we worry about our children and play with our grandchildren. We argue and make up with our spouses, we make love, have glass of wine, go out to dinner with friends and family. And when we gather in Jesus’ name, we are on Holy Ground. Whether we are at church, in our homes or at Starbuck’s, whenever we share faith and life God is with us. We share stories of His presence, of his great love and mercy, of our need for forgiveness and our desire to be good and compassionate. We share because we are grateful for all that God has done, is doing and will do in the days, weeks, month and years we have yet to live.

While every human being should cultivate an attitude of gratitude as positive psychology would say, I think those of us who gather in Jesus’ name have a particular obligation to be grateful. Often we are more aware of God’s presence in our lives because we are aware of what He is doing in the lives of those in our faith communities. Our mission as Catholics, given to us at Baptism, is to bring faith, hope and love to our families, neighborhoods, workplaces and especially to our struggling and challenging world. What better way to be grateful than to share the love and mercy we have experienced as we sort the candy, pass the cranberry sauce, wrap gifts or while waiting for the tamales to steam. “God is Good… All the time and All the Time … We are called to be grateful!”

For Sharing:
As you gather with family, friends and co-workers throughout the upcoming “holidaze” take time to name what God has done in your life this year, what has given you hope? What challenges have tempted you to give up gratitude and give in to cynicism, worry or despair? How did you overcome them?

Parish, Diocesan leaders talk Roman Missal

2011-10-20T09:10:00.000-07:00

With less than 40 days until parishes in Diocese of San Bernardino and throughout the United States implement the Third Edition of the Roman Missal, members of the Diocesan Liturgical Commission along with parish leadership discuss how parishes have prepared for this change and what is to be expected come Nov. 27.

In a round table discussion, seven representatives from parishes and diocesan ministries embark on a frank discussion of the fruits and challenges that await parish ministers and the Catholic faithful with the new translation of the Roman Missal.

Joining John Andrews, director of Communications for the Dicoese and acting moderator are: Father Erik Esparza, parochial vicar at Sacred Heart Parish in Rancho Cucamonga; Phil Arkfeld, music director from St. Paul the Apostle Parish in Chino Hills; Sr. Sarah Michael King, pastoral coordinator of St. Mary of the Valley, Yucca Valley and chair of the Diocesan Liturgical Commission; Sr. Marilu Covani, director of the diocesan Office of Worship; Father David Andel, priest minister at St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Parish, Yucaipa and Judicial Vicar of the Dicoese; Father Frank DiCirstina, pastor at Blessed Junipero Serra Parish in Phelan and Our Lady of the Snows Parish in Wrightwood and Deacon Ed Clark, also from Sacred Heart Parish, Rancho Cucamonga

What do they think of the changes? Have Catholics been prepared for the changes? The series of videos below answer these questions and more.

Signing of CA DREAM Act renews hope

2011-10-11T13:54:00.000-07:00

By Bishop Gerald Barnes
Diocese of San Bernardino

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The struggle to bring justice and compassion to our nation’s immigration system has been marked by many painful challenges. We have asked God to sustain us in hope as we accompany our immigrant brothers and sisters in their difficult journey. We have looked for signs that our voices are being heard by those who make and enforce immigration law.

This past weekend Governor Jerry Brown signed into law the second, critical piece of legislation that makes up the California DREAM Act. This is, indeed, a moment for us to rejoice and to be renewed in hope. I offer my gratitude to Governor Brown for his wisdom and his compassion in passing this law to benefit young people who are seeking higher education to improve their lives and better their communities. I also extend my thanks to State Assemblyman Gil Cedillo, who courageously authored this legislation and fought for its passage in the State Legislature.

As we celebrate a Year for Youth in our diocese, we know that current immigration law has been a great barrier to many of our young people who seek stability, family unity and education. It is providential, then, that this advancement in the cause of the immigrant specifically serves our young. As Catholics we believe education is a God given right and with the passage of the California DREAM Act, the dream of higher education will be more attainable to more of our youth.

While we take this new law as a positive step, we know that much more is needed to repair our nation’s broken immigration system. The federal version of the DREAM Act would actually grant citizenship to those youth enrolled in our colleges and universities who meet specific criteria. Passing this legislation into law would be immensely important in helping college students put their education to use in the professional world for the benefit of their community and our nation. I call on our federal lawmakers to pass this important piece of legislation.

And along with my brother bishops of the United States I ask the Congress and President Barack Obama to take up the task of comprehensive immigration reform that, provides a path to earned legal residency for those undocumented immigrants in the United States; allows families of mixed immigration status to stay together pending attempts to achieve legal residency; creates a more efficient and timely process for legal immigration; has more targeted and humane enforcement practices that respect the human rights of all; and addresses the root causes of immigration by working with the governments of other nations to enhance their quality of life and economic opportunities.

I offer my blessings and continued prayer for all of those who bear the hardships of current immigration law. I offer my thanks and my encouragement to all of those who continue to stand up for the dignity of the immigrant and push for change that is just.

May God bless you.

Firma del Dream Act de CA renueva la esperanza

Por Obispo Gerald Barnes,
Diócesis de San Bernardino

Hermanos y Hermanas en Cristo,

La lucha por llevar justicia y compasión al sistema de inmigración de nuestra nación ha estado marcada por muchos dolorosos retos. Hemos pedido a Dios que nos sustente en la esperanza mientras acompañamos a nuestros hermanos y hermanas inmigrantes en su difícil jornada. Hemos buscado señales de que quines hacen y ponen en ejecución la ley migratoria escuchan nuestras voces.

Este fin de semana pasado el Gobernador Jerry Brown firmó como ley la segunda, y esencial, parte de la legislación que compone DREAM Act de California. Este es, en verdad, un momento para regocijarnos y renovar nuestra esperanza. Ofrezco mi gratitud al Gobernador Brown por su sabiduría y su compasión al promulgar esta ley en beneficio de los jóvenes que buscan una educación superior para mejorar sus vidas y mejorar sus comunidades. Extiendo también mi agradecimiento al Asambleísta Estatal Gil Cedillo quien valientemente redactó esta legislación y luchó por que la aprobara la Legislatura Estatal.

Al celebrar el Año de la Juventud en nuestra diócesis, sabemos que la actual ley de inmigración ha sido una gran barrera para muchos de nuestros jóvenes que buscan estabilidad, unidad familiar y educación. Es providencial, entonces, que este progreso en la causa de los inmigrantes sirve especialmente a nuestros jóvenes. Como católicos creemos que la educación es un derecho que Dios nos ha dado y con la promulgación de DREAM Act de California el sueño de una educación superior estará al alcance de un mayor número de nuestros jóvenes.

Aunque tomamos esta nueva ley como un paso positivo, sabemos que se necesita mucho más para reparar el imperfecto sistema de inmigración de nuestra nación. La versión federal de DREAM Act concedería de hecho ciudadanía a los jóvenes matriculados en nuestros colegios y universidades que reúnan requisitos específicos. Hacer que esta legislatura se promulgue en ley sería de suma importancia para ayudar a los estudiantes universitarios a poner en uso su educación en el mundo profesional para beneficio de su comunidad y nuestra nación. Exhorto a nuestros legisladores federales a que aprueben esta importante pieza de legislación.

Y junto con mis hermanos obispos de los Estados Unidos, pido al Congreso y al Presidente Barack Obama que emprendan una amplia reforma a las leyes de inmigración que proporcione un camino para ganarse la residencia legal para los inmigrantes indocumentados en los Estados Unidos; permita a las familias de status migratorio mixto que sigan juntas mientras sus intentos por lograr la residencia legal estén en proceso; tenga prácticas de ejecución más enfocadas y más humanas que respeten los derechos humanos de todos; y aborde el origen de las causas que provocan la inmigración trabajando con los gobiernos de otras naciones para mejorar su calidad de vida y las oportunidades económicas.

Ofrezco mis bendiciones y mi oración constante por quienes sufren penuarias a causa de la actual ley de inmigración. Ofrezco mi agradecimiento y apoyo a todos los que continúan defendiendo la dignidad del inmigrante y que luchan por un cambio justo.

Que Dios les bendiga.

A story worth remembering

2011-10-05T10:09:00.000-07:00

By Marie Widmann
Director, Pro Life Catholic Ministries

Once upon a time, in a town not so very far away, little boys played in a field of spring wildflowers. There they came upon some boxes and since little boys are curious creatures they peeked inside. But there was no wonderful surprise awaiting them. Upset, the boys ran home to their mothers and told them they had found boxes in the field, boxes filled with babies.

Within hours the news spread across the community. People stopped their everyday activities in shock. How had babies’ bodies come to be discarded in their peaceful little town? Who had hurt these children and dumped them as trash?

Something needed to be done and within hours of the babies’ discovery local churches began organizing a prayer service. Local, county and state authorities conducted an investigation and eventually traced the 54 babies’ bodies to a Los Angeles abortion clinic. What would happen to these babies and how they would affect the community in which they had been discarded would be a story that evolved over one and one half years and receive national, even international attention.

On January 21, 2012 a Mass in Thanksgiving for the Gift of Life will be celebrated by Episcopal Vicar Romeo Seleccion at 9 a.m. at St. Paul the Apostle Church in Chino Hills and an Interfaith Prayer Service will take place at Crestlawn Memorial Park in Riverside to commemorate the 15 year anniversary of the Discarded Babies of Chino Hills.

During October, Respect for Human Life Month, hundreds of churches and thousands of people are committing to each spend one hour to peacefully pray at over 300 abortion clinics as part of 40DaysForLife.com. One hour to pray for families in crisis pregnancy circumstances, to pray for those who have been wounded by abortion, to pray for an end to abortion all together. One hour of spiritual intervention to stop the discarding of our children.

For more information, please contact Marie Widmann, Director of Pro Life Catholic Ministries Diocese of San Bernardino at MWidmann@SBDiocese.org 909.475.5351 or 40DaysForLife.com/Riverside or 40DaysForLife.com/Montclair.

God shines through our clouds

2011-09-29T09:18:00.000-07:00

By Theresa Montminy
Chancellor

When clouds gather, we get discouraged. It’s a natural reaction. Our eyes tell us to run for cover or to hang on for survival. And we believe our eyes. We put an awful lot of faith in what they tell us. We let their information sink into our hearts and thrive there . . . no matter how painful that is. Can peace be the safe harbor we look for when we are in pain? We know that peace can lead us toward joy, patience and faith in the things we cannot see.

Our perspectives can be distorted so easily. We are habitual twisters, making dark things our surest truth, and, God’s light our most uncertain refuge. Such distortion is a sure recipe for despair. Instead, we are to believe what the Word and the Spirit tell us, regardless of the witness of the clouds . . . God always looms larger.

Until we’re trained in this perspective, our mind cannot be at peace. When we are faced with the choice between letting the clouds obscure Him or letting Him obscure the clouds, we must place our hope not in what our eyes tell us ~ that is too often hopeless ~ but in our faith in God. If we do not place our trust in Him we overestimate our problems and to underestimate our God.

So what steps can lead us toward making peace during the moments of storm in our life? First, we are to fix our eyes on hope and to be joyful about it. God has given us a glimpse of reality: His strength, His Kingdom’s inevitability, His promise of intervention, His eternal rewards. Why would we let a few clouds undermine those certainties? Second, we are to be patient in affliction. Those realities are invisible for a time, but they will be clear soon enough. And last, we are to be faithful in prayer. Why? Not because prayer changes things, but because God changes things and we must communicate with Him. His intervention is not arbitrary; it is the result of the give-and-take of relationship, and prayer is the means to that relationship. When we’ve follow these steps, we notice a remarkable transformation: clouds don’t seem to matter so much anymore. We find peace in knowing that we are fulfilling His will with our life.

The Stuff of Happiness

2011-09-15T16:17:00.000-07:00

By Jeanette Arnquist

Director, Ministry of Life, Dignity and Justice

Why did we choose the hottest weekend of the year for a yard sale? It was 111º F and people kept coming all day Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We had a lot of good stuff – our parents had died within eight months of each other and we were left with the daunting task of cleaning out the house.

We had big stuff like the washing machine and dryer, and little stuff like coffee cups, books and humorous plaques. And people wanted it. Some of the people who came by were probably really in need of some of the things that they bought. Others were just looking for a bargain. They just wanted something that was selling at a fraction of its retail value. They wanted more stuff.

The yard sale was just the latest event in the process of saying good-bye. Our parents were wonderful people, faith filled, generous and hospitable, helpful in word and deed. They are going to be missed and remembered for a long time, not just by their descendents, but by their whole community.

In a society where people are judged by what they have, our parents would have been judged as moderately successful. They had a mobile home and a car, all paid for and lots and lots of stuff. Every closet and cupboard was full – really full! But the stuff was not what made them happy. What made them happy was the love they had for God, each other, their many family members and their friends.

Let us hope that the people who shopped at the yard sale know that even though it might be fun to get a bargain, happiness doesn’t come from stuff.

Formal education helps us answer God’s call to learn

2011-09-06T11:37:00.000-07:00

By Bishop Gerald Barnes
Diocese of San Bernardino

Like so many in my generation, I was raised with the idea that a good education was the wellspring for a positive adult life. It would bring blessings for me and, equally important, for the society of which I was a part. My parents, who lived through the Great Depression and whose own experience of formal education was limited, instilled the value of education to my siblings and me, as they say, “early and often.”

My thoughts and prayers are with the young ones in our diocese as we start a new school year and as we continue to celebrate the “Year for Youth” that began last month. There is always excitement and anticipation in the air as we enter the next leg of our educational journey. May this year bring you new knowledge and experiences in your formation as a strong Catholic Christian.

Our faith calls us to seek knowledge, through our own awareness, through interaction with others and in formal education at school. When we gain knowledge in the service of our vocational calling we reach closer to fulfilling our potential as human beings. We are using the gifts and tools given to us by God in whatever discipline we choose to make the world a better place. Along with this comes a sense of personal well-being and worth.

Through the centuries the opportunity to receive a formal education has been expanded to more and more people, a true mark of progress and a blessing from God. Catholic Social Teaching, in fact, holds that education is a God-given right of the people.

Still, we face challenges in pursuing that right today. The stresses that bear on our families in this climate of economic recession and unprecedented secular influence have somewhat clouded our vision of education as a beacon of hope. In California, our budgetary struggles have resulted in millions of dollars in cuts in our public schools and driven up the cost of higher education sharply. High school dropout rates in San Bernardino and Riverside counties remain alarmingly high. I am especially concerned that our Hispanic and African-American young people have disproportionately high dropout rates and disproportionately low college going rates.

These are the crosses we carry today in our educational journey. They are different than those of previous generations, who did not have access to education, but they are no less daunting.

And in this time of economic uncertainty and more competitive job markets, having an education has never been more important. A study released this year by the Social Science Research Council found that about 35% of high school dropouts were unemployed, compared to just 10% of college graduates.

Keeping our youth in school and guiding them toward college or vocational training is not just the job of parents and educators it is a Christian moral responsibility of us all. This means constantly preaching the importance of staying in school to our young people. This means reaching out to provide extra care and attention to struggling students so they don’t leave school. This means advocating to policymakers that even in these difficult economic times our schools must have enough resources to provide quality education. This means helping parents maintain a stable and nurturing home life that is critical to a child’s success in school.

Two years ago we began the Diocesan Education Initiative (DEI) to address some of these issues of concern and to emphasize the commitment of our local Church to support education. DEI is being led by Sister Carmel Crimmins, R.S.M., a lifelong Catholic educator, and Deacon Pete Bond, a retired public school teacher. I offer my gratitude to them and to the many others who have worked with them. I invite all in our diocese to be part of this effort in some way. Tell the young people in your life how important it is to get a good education, and help them on their journey to achieve it.

May God bless you.

Una educación formal nos ayuda a responder al llamado de Dios a aprender

Por Obispo Gerald Barnes
Diócesis de San Bernardino

Al igual que tantos en mi generación, yo fui criado con la idea de que una buena educación era la fuente para una vida adulta positiva. Traería bendiciones para mí y, con la misma importancia, para la sociedad de que yo formara parte. Mis padres, quienes vivieron la Gran Depresión y cuya experiencia propia de una educación formal era limitada, inculcaron en mí y en mis hermanos el valor de la educación, como dicen, “pronta y constantemente”.

Tengo presentes en mis pensamientos y en mis oraciones a los jóvenes de nuestra diócesis al iniciar un nuevo año escolar y mientras continuamos celebrando el “Año de la Juventud” que inició el mes pasado. Siempre hay entusiasmo y anticipación en el ambiente al iniciar la siguiente fase de nuestra jornada educacional. Deseo y espero que este año les traiga conocimientos y experiencias nuevas en su formación como fuertes católicos cristianos.

Nuestra fe nos llama a buscar los conocimientos, mediante nuestro propio conocimiento, mediante nuestra interacción con otros y en la educación formal en la escuela. Cuando obtenemos conocimientos en el servicio de nuestro llamado vocacional nos acercamos a la plenitud de nuestro potencial como seres humanos. Estamos utilizando los dones y herramientas que Dios nos da en cualquier disciplina que escojamos para hacer de éste un mundo mejor. Esto trae consigo un sentimiento de bienestar y mérito personal.

A través de los siglos, la oportunidad de recibir una educación formal se ha extendido a más y más personas, una verdadera señal de progreso y una bendición de Dios. La Doctrina Social Católica, de hecho, sostiene que la educación es un derecho que Dios les da a los humanos.

Aun así, enfrentamos retos en la aspiración a ese derecho en nuestros días. Las tensiones que afectan a nuestras familias en este clima de recesión económica y la influencia secular sin precedentes han, de alguna forma, nublado nuestra visión de la educación como un faro de esperanza. En California, nuestras dificultades con el presupuesto han resultado en recortes de millones de dólares en nuestras escuelas públicas y han elevado severamente los costos en la educación superior. Los índices de deserción escolar en High School en los condados de San Bernardino y Riverside siguen siendo alarmantemente altos. Me preocupa especialmente que nuestros jóvenes hispanos y afroamericanos tengan desproporcionadamente altos índices de deserción escolar en High School y desproporcionadamente bajos índices de asistencia universitaria.

Estas son las cruces que cargamos en nuestros días en nuestra jornada educacional. Estas cruces son diferentes a las de generaciones anteriores, que no tenían acceso a la educación, pero no son menos atemorizantes.

Y en estos momentos de incertidumbre económica y de mercados laborales más competitivos, tener una educación nunca ha sido más importante. Un estudio publicado este año por el Social Science Research Council determinó que aproximadamente 35% de quienes abandonan sus estudios en high school están desempleados, comparados con sólo el 10% de los graduados de la universidad.

El mantener a nuestros jóvenes en la escuela y guiarlos a la universidad o capacitación vocacional no es sólo la labor de padres y educadores, es una responsabilidad moral cristiana de todos nosotros. Esto significa predicar constantemente a nuestros jóvenes sobre la importancia de no abandonar sus estudios. Significa proporcionar asistencia y atención a los estudiantes en dificultad para que no abandonen sus estudios. Significa abogar ante los legisladores, que aun en estos momentos económicamente difíciles nuestras escuelas deben tener suficientes recursos para proveer una educación de calidad. Significa ayudar a los padres de familia a mantener una vida familiar estable y sustentadora, lo cual es de suma importancia para el éxito académico de un niño.

Hace dos años comenzamos la Iniciativa Diocesana sobre la Educación (DEI por sus siglas en inglés) para abordar algunos de estos puntos de inquietud y enfatizar el compromiso de nuestra Iglesia local a apoyar la educación. DEI está bajo la guía de la Hna. Carmel Crimmins, R.S.M., educadora católica de toda la vida, y el Diácono Pete Bond, maestro jubilado de escuelas públicas. A ellos y a los muchos otros que han trabajado con ellos les ofrezco mi gratitud. Invito a todos en nuestra diócesis a ser parte de este esfuerzo de alguna forma. Díganles a sus jóvenes lo importante que es obtener una buena educación, y ayúdenles en sus esfuerzos para lograrla.

Que Dios les bendiga.

Go Make a Difference

2011-08-26T16:22:00.000-07:00

By Kathi Scarpace
Justice for Immigrants Coordinator

“In the Catholic Tradition, responsible citizenship is a virtue, and participation in political life is a moral obligation. This obligation is rooted in our baptismal commitment to follow Jesus Christ and to bear Christian witness in all we do.” (Faithful Citizenship 13). Uh, oh. This hot potato is the teaching of the Church. And this hot potato is something that we should be teaching, and modeling, for our children and teens.

Here is a little examination of conscience.

Are you registered to vote? Do you vote only for the president or do you vote in every election? Have you offered to help your 18-year-old register to vote?

What issues are important to you and why? How does your stand on these issues align with Catholic social teaching? Do you know what Catholic social teaching is?

How do you learn about the issues important to you? Who do you listen to for political advice? Have you asked your teen his or her opinion on an issue that matters to you?

Do you know who your legislators are? Have you ever called or visited an elected official? Why or why not? How do you participate in the life of your town or city?

The word “political” comes from the Greek root word, polis or city. Greeks valued participation in the life of the city. Are you involved in a civic event, e.g., a bike race, a parade, a fundraiser? Do you bring your children with you to help with the event? What lessons are you teaching?

What does “separation of Church and state” mean to you? Have you ever read the bishops’ document, Faithful Citizenship? How does your faith impact your political point of view? If your faith does not influence your political perspective, why not? As Father Bransfield of the US Catholic Conference writes, “Conscience insists that human dilemmas are moral concerns long before they are political points of view.”

“Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.” This dismissal could be translated, “Go and make a difference.” Making a difference, for Catholics, often means charity. Charity is the needed tourniquet that stops the bleeding; political action is a surgery that closes the wound. Young people want to make a difference and an impact on the world. Political actions: voting, participating in civic events, learning about the issues of the day, reflecting on Church teaching and communicating our concerns and values to our legislators and our children, are ways we can fulfill the holy obligation of participation in political life.

Nothing to be scared of.

Destination Madrid: Journeying with Diocesan World Youth Day Pilgrims II

2011-08-20T13:50:00.000-07:00

By Andres Rivera
Communications Department

Today is Virtual World Youth Day in San Bernardino. Today youth from throughout the diocese will arrive at Aquinas High School in San Bernardino to be in solidarity with the hundreds of thousands of youth that have gathered to celebrate their faith in Madrid, Spain with our Pope Benedict XVI.

The participants at Virtual World Youth Day will be able to have their own mini pilgrimage as they spend an afternoon enjoying games, music, talks and more. They will even get to experience a vigil with Bishop Gerald Barnes and sleep under the stars so they may hear our Pope speak at the closing ceremony in Madrid the following day.

Meanwhile in Madrid, similar events have been unfolding yet on a much grander scale. Chatechesis, concerts, Stations of the Cross and various opportunities to take part in the celebration of the Eucharist have been the norm for our diocesan pilgrims. But rather than talk about it, our correspondents in Madrid have been able to capture a little bit on video for us to continue our journey with them. Enjoy, reflect and pray for the pilgrims as they near the end of this unique experience.

*Note: This playlist begins with day one. If you have already seen the first three videos from the last blog post, you may want to skip ahead to day four on the playlist.

Destination Madrid: Journeying with Diocesan World Youth Day pilgrims

2011-08-15T16:18:00.000-07:00

By Andres Rivera
Communications Office

It isn't everyday that we are able to take a spiritual pilgrimage of the magnitude that World Youth Day pilgrims will be experiencing over the next several days. The Diocese of San Bernardino will have roughly 350 in a diocesan group attending. What will they experience? What foods will they eat? Who will they meet? What about the sites, sounds, learning expereinces and moments of profound awe in all that God has to offer us? An even greater notion to reflect on is the fact that they will be gathering along with millions of other Catholics from all nations, cultures and backgrounds ...all with one common purpose: their faith. We can only imagine how excited they might be as the events begin.

Thanks to modern technology we are now able to take a sneak peak at what they are expereincing. And while it is not the same as actually being there, we can still journey with them in some way. The diocese is fortunate enough to offer exclusive videos highlighting daily events during the World Youth Day activities. Images can be found on our Facebook pages and videos are posted on our diocesan YouTube channel.

Need to catch up on what has been going on so far? Here's some of the first videos available to us.

A Workshop Reveals The Gospel Must Be Adapted to All Ages

2011-08-12T09:53:00.000-07:00

By Steve Valenzuela
Director, Small Faith Communities

Recently I was asked to give a workshop for youth and young adults on the new translation of the Mass coming into use this Advent. As I set about preparing for this day long seminar, I knew I needed a hook to hang the ideas I was hoping to communicate to the young people. I knew that what I was suppose to talk about could be pretty heady and boring stuff such as theology, church history (not just any history!) and even an ancient language. If I did not figure out a way to speak to these generations in a language they could understand, we were all doomed to a horrible, terrible, boring day and of course, I would have failed as a teacher and evangelist. As I began my preparation, the words of a friend’s teenage son about his confirmation class haunted me, “don’t they know we’re teenagers!” I was determined not only to remember this reality but succeed in communicating with these young people in a way that would be relevant, but how?

I was scheduled to give this “youth -friendly” seminar the same weekend the final Harry Potter film was opening. While preparing it occurred to me that this movie event was my hook! The current generation of young adults (the 20-somethings) and of high school teens, have all come of age during the “Potter” years (2000-2011). Using images from the films would be a great hook to hang my teaching upon and link this very church-y knowledge to something happening right now in their media driven lives. A college student I know was re-reading all 8 Harry Potter books in prep for seeing the final film and others were re-watching the films. My mind raced as I began to connect the workshop’s formal content to scenes and images from the films. For staying closer to the Latin, there was the scene from the Sorcerer’s Stone of Hermione trying to teach Ron how to pronounce a spell properly. For the introductory rites at the beginning of Mass there were the grand entrances by the other schools in the Goblet of Fire. For the Liturgy of the Word, there were various speeches and proclamations by Dumbledore at the big meals and the continuing stories of the history of Hogwarts and the world of wizardry. The possibilities seemed endless.

As of the writing of this reflection, I had not yet led the seminar so I can’t reflect on how successful my Harry Potter approach was. The experience of preparing though reminded again me that the while the truth of the Gospel is universal, meant for all ages and cultures, it must be adapted and proclaimed into words and expressions that each people and generation can grasp and make their own. When I was a teen (unbelievably over 33+ years ago) I liked learning stuff about church history and tradition as long as it somehow connected to my life. It is still true for me today. To connect meaningfully to today’s youth and young adults, I think means connecting to popular entertainment such as movies and music and to social media such as Facebook and Twitter and soon the new Google+.

Some people, especially from my generation, are sometimes wary of the appropriation of popular media and technology (read Internet) for faith formation and ministry. Yet adapting the message to the hearers from each generation is as old as the Gospel itself. God first used this method by sending his Son to become one of us, as Joan Osborne sang in the 90s. The incarnation (God becoming human) was God’s way of adapting the message to those first human hearers in Palestine over 2,000 years ago. Jesus becoming human means that all that is human may be a conveyor of the divine message. A popular movie may help us understand and connect to an ancient ritual whose roots go back to the Upper Room. A hit song may help us sort out how divinity and humanity relate and a 137 character Tweet (see below) may contain the words of salvation:

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but have eternal life. –Jn 3:16
For Sharing and Reflection:

What popular song, TV show or movie speaks to you about the Gospel message of love, hope, justice and peace?

Hunger and Priorities

2011-08-04T16:32:00.000-07:00

By Jeanette Arnquist
Director, Ministry of Life, Dignity and Justice

I have never experienced real hunger or thirst, not to the point of being in danger, nor do I personally know anyone who has. So it is a little hard to get in touch with severe hunger and thirst. Nonetheless, my faith calls me to be in solidarity with those who lack of access to the basic necessities of food and water.

Today 11 million people in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia are in danger of losing their lives due to the worst drought since 1950-51. Crops have failed and livestock have died from thirst. The United Nations declared a famine on July 20. Refugees, most of whom are women with young children, are walking for weeks to reach overcrowded camps in hopes of finding water, food and help.

In the

United States

, this news is overshadowed by the discussion of the debt crisis. From my perspective the arguments between and within the political parties seem to be over how to cut spending. A budget is a moral document. Fiscal responsibility is important, but it is more important to decide what kind of a country we want to be and then figure out how to achieve that. If we look at this question through the lens of our faith, surely we will find goals more compelling than balancing the budget for the sake of balancing the budget.

How is this related to the crisis in Africa? One of the items being cut is poverty focused international assistance, even though this is less than 1% of our spending. The Holy Father said "It is inadmissible to be indifferent in the face of the tragedy of the hungry and thirsty," Are we being indifferent to the crisis in Africa because we are so immersed in our own political rhetoric?

In last Sunday’s Gospel, the Multiplication of the Loaves as told in Matthew 14, Jesus tells the disciples to “give them some food yourselves.” We can take this reading on the level or being a story about a miracle, which it surely was, or we can go deeper and look at it as Eucharistic. How does Jesus call us to care for the poor and vulnerable, the hungry? “Give them some food yourselves.”

As the Holy Father said: "The love of God is present in the bread of Christ; encountering him, we feed on the living God, so to speak, and we truly eat the bread come down from heaven….In the Eucharist, Jesus makes us witnesses to God's compassion for every brother and sister," (Please see the article from Catholic News Service)

Now, what can we do? We can take action as individuals, as parish faith communities and as a nation.

We can pray. Let us never forget the importance and power of prayer.
We can donate to Catholic Relief Services. visit http://www.crs.org/ to get information on these actions.
Finally, we join Catholics Confront Global Poverty by visiting http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/globalpoverty/.

A Year for Youth

2011-07-27T16:19:00.000-07:00

By Bishop Gerald Barnes
Diocese of San Bernardino

I have spoken often about my great care and concern for the youth of our diocese. I believe that God is calling us today as Catholic Christians to take a fresh look at how we accompany, how we form and how we relate to our young people. This past weekend I released a Pastoral Letter to share more fully my thoughts on the importance of youth in the Diocese of San Bernardino. The letter is printed in the current issue of the BYTE newspaper, and can also be viewed at the diocesan web site at http://www.sbdiocese.org/. I invite you to take some time to read and reflect on the letter.

In recognition of our renewed focus and discernment on the issue of youth I have also proclaimed this coming year the Year for Youth in our diocese. This will be a time for clergy, religious men and women, and the lay faithful of the diocese to look to the Holy Spirit in how they might have a positive impact on our youth, and to begin to act on it. It will be a time for our youth to step forward.

We will inaugurate The Year for Youth with Diocesan Virtual World Youth Day on August 20-21 at Aquinas High School and close it with Diocesan Youth Day on August 4, 2012 at Xavier College Preparatory High School in Palm Desert. The Diocesan Ministry with Youth Office will coordinate many events and programs during the Year for Youth with the help of the newly-created Diocesan High School Youth Council and the Diocesan Youth Ministry Advisory Board. The Ministry with Youth Office will also offer different models of youth ministry for parishes to follow.

While the Year for Youth will last 12 months, it is my hope that the renewed awareness and spirit for youth ministry ignited by this year will only grow stronger and brighter in the years to come. Come Holy Spirit and renew the face of the earth!

May God bless you and this Diocese of San Bernardino as we continue to seek the renewal of our Holy Catholic Church through the care and support of our youth.

Un año para la Juventud

Por Obispo Gerald Barnes

Diócesis de San Bernardino

Ha menudo he expresado mi gran interés y preocupación por los jóvenes de nuestra diócesis. Creo que en estos momentos, Dios nos está llamando como católicos cristianos a analizar de nuevo la manera en que acompañamos, formamos y nos relacionamos con nuestros jóvenes. El fin de semana pasado publique una Carta Pastoral para compartir en mayor detalle mis reflexiones sobre la importancia de los jóvenes en la Diócesis de San Bernardino. La carta está impresa en la edición actual del periódico BYTE, el cual está disponible en su parroquia, y que también pueden ver en el sitio diocesano de Internet www.sbdiocese.org. Con todo respeto les pido que tomen unos momentos para leer y reflexionar sobre la carta.

En reconocimiento de nuestro renovado enfoque y discernimiento sobre el tema de los jóvenes, he proclamado este año próximo el Año de la Juventud en la Diócesis de San Bernardino. Este será un tiempo para que los clérigos, religiosos y religiosas y los fieles laicos de la diócesis busquen la guía del Espíritu Santo para discernir cómo pueden tener un impacto positivo en nuestros jóvenes, y pongan su conclusión en acción. Será una oportunidad para que nuestros jóvenes, y pongan su conclusión en acción. Será una oportunidad para que nuestros jóvenes tomen la iniciativa.

Inauguraremos el Año de la Juventud con la Celebración Virtual Diocesana de la Jornada Mundial de la Juventud el 20-21 de agosto en Aquinas High School y cerraremos con la Jornada Diocesana de la Juventud el 4 de agosto de 2012 en Xavier College Preparatory School en Palm Desert. Durante el Año de la Juventud, la Oficina Diocesana de Pastoral Juvenil coordinará muchos eventos y programas con los recientemente creados Diocesan High School Youth Council y Diocesan Youth Ministry Advisory Board. La Oficina de Pastoral Juvenil ofrecerá también diferentes modelos de pastoral juvenil para que los sigan las parroquias.

Aunque el Año de la Juventud durará 12 meses, tengo la esperanza que la concientización renovada y el espíritu de la pastoral juvenil cuya llama encendió este año se fortalecerá y brillará aun más en años venideros. ¡Ven Espíritu Santo y renueva la faz de la tierra!

Que Dios les bendiga y bendiga a esta Diócesis de San Bernardino al continuar nosotros procurando la renovación de nuestra Santa Iglesia Católica sirviendo y apoyando a nuestros jóvenes.

WWJD? A good question in times of recession

2011-07-20T14:30:00.000-07:00

By Ken Sawa, MSW, LCSW
CEO/Excecutive Vice-President, Catholic Charities San Bernardino/Riverside

Budgets are based on values. This is true when parents decide to forego something they need at Target, so instead a child can pay to go on a school field trip. Or a mom’s frugality during the week makes it possible to afford the extra gas needed to visit family that lives out of the area. Anyone that has to manage finances makes decisions about how to spend their pool of never enough money based on what’s most important and most necessary to them.

Beginning in our childhood and throughout our adulthood, our Catholic Faith is a loyal and constant reminder of the deeply held values of our Catholic Community. As people who belong to the Catholic Community, it is our job to live out those values, so we will make the right choices as we journey through life. The phrase “What Would Jesus Do?” found on bracelets and posters is quite instructive as we each strive to be like Christ in all ways – to be Christ in the world.

There is a very important question looming now that people of faith must contemplate. What would Jesus do during these times of budget crisis at the federal, state, and local levels of government? How would Jesus decide on necessary spending cuts or tax increases?

There are three major themes in Catholic Social Teaching that clearly outline the values of Jesus that can help us think through seemingly complicated budgetary issues that are currently being debated across our country.

Dignity of the Human Person: Human life is sacred, and the dignity of the human person is the starting point for a moral vision for society.

Preferential Option for the Poor: The moral test of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable members. We are called to look at public policy decisions in terms of how they affect the poor and those on the margins of society.

Common Good and Community: The obligation to "love our neighbor" has an individual dimension, but it also requires a broader social commitment. Everyone has a responsibility to contribute to the good of the whole society, to the common good.

Talk of budget deficits, tax increases, percentage of the US budget spent on the military, corporate welfare, Medicare, and budget cuts can be overwhelmingly complicated. Though many of us have grown weary and frustrated by the partisan grandstanding we hear about day after day, we must not grow complacent and just let “them” handle it. For this is a tremendous opportunity for people of faith to interject OUR values into the budget debates occurring now in our cities, counties, state, and country.

We must stand firm on our belief in the value of constantly striving for the common good – not what is in my best interest or in the best interest of other particular individuals or groups who already have their fair share of the economic pie. Seeking the common good also requires that resources are available for the most vulnerable in our society. And our value of the sacredness of life and the dignity of each human person demands that budgets must aim to enhance the lives of people and their families not redlining their needs as too expensive.

Though economics, politics, law, and public policy may be quite complicated for most of us, our values as Catholics are not. It is time for us to make our values known in the public arena as the discussion continues about how to best spend or not spend government resources. Money is spent or cut based on what is most important. So what is most important to a follower of Jesus?

Excitement rises as World Youth Day nears

2011-07-13T14:06:00.000-07:00

By Cristina Ruiz
WYD Pilgrim, St. Bernardine, San Bernardino

Three years ago a group of youth from St. Bernardine Catholic Church had a vision: they were determined to make it to World Youth Day in Spain. Even though this determination was very high, there was one barrier holding them back. The cost was a bit expensive and none of the youth had the money to pay for the trip. Although this was true, it was not enough to hold them back. A decision was then reached that they would work hard and fundraise their way to that ticket.

I am proud to say that I am part of the group of youth that did this and after three years of hard work, we are finally only a couple weeks away from traveling overseas to unite with millions of other Catholic youth like ourselves.

These past three years have been nonstop fundraising and I know it will be worth all the hard work in the end. I believe that having worked so much for this to happen makes it that much better because it really shows how much we have wanted this since day one. Sure, we have had our disagreements and our arguments in the group, but it is only because over this period of time, the group is no longer a group, we are a family. And just like any other family, we have our good and bad moments but we always stick together.

St. Bernardine WYD group at Cinco De Mayo fundraiser.

The date for us to leave is fast approaching and the excitement within each of us is quickly rising. Going on this trip means so much to us because of what we’ve done to reach our goal. For me, personally, it is a chance to grow in my faith and meet others who will be experiencing the same thing. It is amazing to me that all these people from all different backgrounds and cultures are coming together for one simple reason: their faith. We are all so different but these differences don’t even exist when we come together under God.

There are plenty of people who would love to be in my place and I am extremely grateful that I have this opportunity. Even though our parish cannot accompany us, as much as we’d like, we are taking along with us their petitions. This is to show that, they too, in a spiritual way, are joining us in our journey.

We are approaching the day that we have all been waiting for and I am sure I speak for everyone in the world that is attending World Youth Day when I say that I have never been more excited.

True kindness is contagious

2011-07-08T09:10:00.000-07:00

By Theresa Montminy,
Chancellor

Kindness is defined as an attitude or action that benefits others. It is directed toward others, enjoyed by others, and edifying for others. Cruelty, too, is defined as something directed toward others. But those who seek a peace-filled life . . . reconcile hurt with random acts of kindness.

Just as patience ironically promotes those who are most reluctant to promote themselves, so kindness builds up those who are most interested in building up others. Cruel people try to give themselves a boost by harming others, but the strategy backfires. Harming others will eventually cause trouble for the cruel person. Likewise, kindness will eventually be returned to the kind. People who help others resolve conflict ~ also help themselves and so does God. Blessed are the Peacemakers!

But we must be careful how we define kindness. True kindness will prompt a person to speak the truth in love. No one would question Jesus’ kindness, but it could be a very confrontational kindness toward those who distort truth and righteousness. A wise person will accept that: “Let a righteous man strike me ~ it is a kindness; let him rebuke me, it is oil on my head,” wrote David. Kindness is an intentional effort to pursue what is good for another person.

Have people been unkind to you? There is a chance that the reason lies within yourself . . . not that you are unworthy of the kindness of others, but perhaps you have not made an effort to be kind. A person reaps what he sows and if one has sown kindness, he will reap it as well.

Perhaps others take your kindness for granted. God will not! An unbiblical saying asserts that God helps those who help themselves. Biblical truth says that God helps those who help others.

True peace is found in the heart that is inclined toward Him, though it may go through hardship and pain, a heart at peace knows the true joy of reconciliation. As Christians we are called to place every hope in Him. He is our source of strength. Our heart does not need to fear, because we are children of the fearless One.

Losers of the Revolution

2011-06-30T16:06:00.000-07:00

By Father Gregory Elder,
Parochial Vicar, St. Martha, Murrieta

The fourth of July weekend rolls around again, that day on which we recall our nation’s birth and the revolution which won our freedom. That said, it’s a day we celebrate in our family with Mass in the morning and then picnics with friends. But when one, such as myself, is married to a wonderful British woman, one learns to downplay the themes of the inevitable defeat British forces by the brave patriots in the interests of marital harmony. Twenty nine years after her immigration to our great nation, on the Fourth of July, she still carries a British passport, a loyal subject of the Crown. I once asked the esteemed wife how they studied the American Revolution when she was a girl in school.

“We got about twenty minutes on it in modern history,” she replied without looking up from her sudoku puzzle.

“Well that hardly seems right,” I said. “After all regardless of which side one takes, the United States has had a considerable impact on the modern world. Don’t we deserve a little more than twenty minutes? In my high school I had to spend ages on bloody thing.” She looked at me with a sad sweet smile.

“England became a nation around 700 AD. Do you have any idea the number of colonial revolts we have had to face in the past thirteen centuries?” She then just shrugged and went back to the puzzle. “We win some and we lose some. Would you mind putting the kettle on for more tea?” Unlike my ancestors who pitched the stuff in Boston Harbor, I obediently went to the kitchen to brew some more of the British elixir of life.

In our own history we know a great deal about the people who fought and won the war and the signers of the Declaration of Independence. We read of Washington and his Continental army, Ben Franklin and the fifty six men who risked their loves to sign the declaration including, two future presidents. Their ages were from twenty six to seventy, the great majority were devout Protestants including one ordained minister, with a couple of Deists, a Quaker and a Catholic thrown in to the mix. Contrary to popular mythology, only four of the fifty six ever owned slaves and several were quite outspoken for greater rights for women. Many suffered great personal loss from the British during the war as a result of their signing the Declaration.

But what about the losers of the Revolutionary War? They have a story too, and a great many died for their country also, even if it was a very different vision of what the American country might be. Tens of thousands of loyalists fled to Canada and Britain, nations they never knew before. Others fled to parts of the expanding British Empire in India, Australia and beyond. And a great many British and American loyalists rest in unmarked American graves, far from the green hills of England. Let’s look at the ringleaders of the defeated, whose names we studied in school and look at whatever happened to them.

King George III, the villain of the Declaration of Independence, ruled Great Britain from 1760. He was the son of Frederick, Prince of Wales and grandson of George II. George III was not an evil man but he was not particularly intelligent either. His two predecessors in the Hanover dynasty had been born and raised in Germany and did not even speak English, and had become the rulers of Britain because Parliament insisted on Protestant monarchs in the place of the hated Catholic James II and his colorful heirs. The first two Georges left English politics to their ministers of state, but George III was born and raised in England, and he was concerned to return power to the monarch. This was not the best policy to take in keeping the Americans quiet. He also appointed ministers of state based on their personal loyalty to him, rather than choosing the best men for the job, which likewise did not benefit British rule in America. At various times in his life he suffered from porphyria, which caused bouts of mental illness.

George III was very interested in new breeds of livestock for the common people, drainage of swamps for better agriculture, and he encouraged the age of inventions in the Industrial Revolution which began in the textile industry in northern England. Unlike most monarchs, he was loyal to his wife and loved his family. Because of the dangers of France in the later Napoleonic Wars, he became a symbol of British resistance to Bonaparte and is remembered fondly in England today. He died a prisoner, locked up in the palace for his madness, while his worthless and degenerate son misruled the kingdom in his name.

Sir Thomas Gage (1728-1787) who ruled who ruled America when the revolt broke out, was born from an ancient British family which traced its roots back to the Norman Conquest of 1066. He entered the Army in 1840 and served in the French and Indian Wars, as did George Washington. After the defeat of France he served as Governor of Montreal, and was promoted to be Major General and commander in chief of all Brtish forces in America, ruling from New York. Under his administration rebel revolts at Lexington, Concord, and Bunker hill strongly suggested to the Crown that he was unable to put the rebellion down and he was relieved of command. He died in several financial hardship.

William Howe (1729-1814) replaced General Thomas Gage in 1775 as supreme commander of British forces in 1775, A Brilliant general, he defeated Washington at Long Island, Brandywine and retook the city of Philadelphia. However, his victories seemed to pale in the wake of British General John Burgoyne’s defeat by the Americans at Saratoga. In Parliament he was blamed for not doing more to support Burgoyne and was removed from command in 1778, in spite of his proven record of crushing the Americans. This may not have been wise for the British interests. Howe returned to England, married and entered politics and served in Parliament for many years. He was made a nobleman, and died as Viscount Howe.

Lord Charles Cornwallis (1738-1805) was born in London and educated at Eton and entered the Royal army at the age of 18. By 1775 he was a general and was sent to help suppress the rebellion in America, as second in command to General Henry Clinton. Cornwallis fought the revolutionaries in the Carolinas, but confident of victory allowed his numbers and supplies to run low. Ignoring Clinton’s suggestion that he repair to New York, he was defeated by Revolutionary forces and French aid at Yorktown. Blaming his defeat on the enemy French, he was not punished for his defeat and went on to command British forces in India and later was made Governor General of India, and later governor General of Ireland. He died in 1805 and was given great honors.

Benedict Arnold (1741-1801) was born in the colonies and eventually entered the revolutionary militia. He won a number of victories for the American forces including the capture of Fort Ticonderoga. He served bravely in American attacks in Quebec, where he was wounded twice. Washington made him military commander of revolutionary forces in Philadelphia. But patriots in Philadelphia denounced him as being too soft on captured loyalists, and brought charges against him accusing Arnold of financial corruption. His resentment grew when other rebel generals who had done less that he were given higher military commands. Arnold resigned his command in anger and secretly contacted the British to sell them information about American positions and to betray the fort at West Point. When Washington was told the news of Benedict Arnold’s treason, he is supposed to have remarked, “now we can trust no one.” For his betrayal of the Americans he was given an annual pension of 360 pounds a year and a lump sum on six thousand.

When Lord Cornwallis surrendered, Arnold and his moved to England where he hoped to find a new military command and perhaps a position at court for his renewed loyalty to the Crown. He was briefly welcomed by the King but shunned by society and given no position at all, not for his participation in the Revolution, but because he was a traitor to the Americans. Even the monarchists had no time for a man capable of the betrayal of his friends and modern British people think him an idiot. After failing in business Arnold died, unloved in London in 1801, the same year that his former colleague in the cause, the patriot Thomas Jefferson took office as the third President of the United States.

In Honor of the Sick and the Dying!

2011-06-15T15:45:00.000-07:00

By Father Benjamin Alforque, MSC, VF
Parochial Vicar, St. Catherine of Alexandria, Riverside

The debate between Catholic morality and medical ethics, on the one hand, and secular scientific medical ethics, on the other, has been going on among academics, intellectuals and theologians. In a society that is obedient to the law, respectful of the plurality of ideas and tolerant of religious beliefs, this polite conversation may continue until it is shrill to eternity. But the individual remains the final arbiter of his own decisions and actions. God, relegated to the extreme as a subjective idea, has nothing to do with my scientific decision and my consequent free act.

But what escapes from this seemingly peaceful cacophony is the reality of violence that the patient and those who love him experience. The cover-up of this violation of the absolute dignity of the human person and his fundamental rights is provided for by the cultivated regard for the law and by the system that comfortably works. This objective regard finds its anchor in the subjective disposition of the patient and of those who love him: the fear of suffering, the discomfort and stresses of having to care for the sick and the dying.

Violence against human life finds its legal expression once again in the physician-assisted suicide. This physician-assisted suicide was first legalized in Oregon in 1994; a similar one was passed by a November 2008 referendum in Washington, then a Supreme Court decision in its favor in Montana and now the movement goes to other New England and Western states.

In the Catholic tradition, we are taught of the redemptive value of suffering, both for the patient and for those who care for him. The patient, who unites his pains and sufferings with those of Jesus, understands more profoundly the mystery of the cross of Jesus and of God’s loving works of salvation. Those who attend to him are able to participate in the caring compassion of God. They become the instruments of salvation for each other: the wounded heals even as the healer is wounded! The US Catholic bishops might come up with a statement on this matter entitled “To Live Each Day with Dignity”. But will we Catholics ever read it? Will we believe it and live it?

California Bishops give us a good lens to view state budget crisis

2011-06-10T16:02:00.000-07:00

By Jeanette Arnquist
Director, Ministry of Life, Dignity and Justice

On June 9 the California Catholic Conference of Bishops released the statement “In Search of the Common Good: A Moral Framework for Addressing California’s Budget Crisis.” Not only is it an excellent summary of Catholic Social Teaching, laying out the basic principles of the Dignity of the Human Person, Common Good, Subsidiarity and Solidarity, it also accurately describes the dysfunctional atmosphere in Sacramento, and it sets forth a part toward a solution.

It is time to face the fact that California is in the midst of a crisis with moral dimensions. The goal of a budget is not simply to balance California’s check book. A budget is a moral document that articulates the priorities of a society. Rather than arguing over which cuts to make or where to get new revenues, we should decide what kind of a society we want to have. And if we are going to look at that through the lens of our faith, we have the principles mentioned above to guide us.

Our first principle is the Respect for Human Dignity, that gratuitous gift of God, and that leads us to respect and support each human life, whether it is the life of an unborn child, a person in a persistent vegetative state, someone sentenced to die for murder, a welfare mom or an undocumented immigrant.

The Common Good calls us to “look beyond our won self-interest to the interest of the larger society.” Are we to give up something in order that others will have what they need?

Subsidiarity might not be a word in most people’s usage, but it has a long history in Catholic Social Teaching. It helps us understand that we cannot respect the dignity of an individual without looking at the complex web of relationships with family, community and society. In regard to the budget debate it sheds light on the issue of taxation.

In Solidarity, we realize that when one suffers, we all suffer. We all depend on the fabric of society to live out our lives. None of us “are self made.” We benefit from the contributions of others and societal structures like schools, parks, streets, universities, law enforcement and regularity agencies. As Blessed John Paul II said: “We really are all responsible for all.”

These principles are often in tension and they must be taken as a whole. I think of Common Good, Subsidiarity and Solidarity as the three legs of the stool that supports Human Dignity. Together they work to create a society that allows each of us and all of us to grow into the persons God intended.

It is my prayer that as faithful citizens, the members of the Catholic Community will communicate to their legislators the need to abandon partisanship and narrow self interest and tell them that we are willing to accept shared sacrifice because our faith tells us it is the right thing to do.

Las reliquias de los Mártires: Avivamiento de fe e identidad entre las comunidades Hispanas

2011-06-09T13:10:00.000-07:00

Por Petra Alexander
Directora, Asuntos Hispanos

Las reliquias de los Sacerdotes Mártires Cristeros fueron recibidas calurosamente en las comunidades hispanas de nuestra Diócesis. Para muchos, una novedad o, sorpresa, para otros una oportunidad de reavivar la fe. Contestamos preguntas sobre la “Guerra Cristera”, nombre que se da al periodo de persecución en México. Elder Samaniego explicó en la Radio Católica El Sembrador cómo numerosos inmigrantes en los Estados Unidos escucharon de sus abuelo/as relatos increíbles que hablaron de una Iglesia perseguida e impedida de manifestarse. ¿Por qué se silenció todo esto en la historia oficial de México? Comenzamos a saber del sufrimiento de muchos católicos de un periodo tenso en las relaciones Iglesia-Estado, cuando no se dio personalidad jurídica los clérigos. Ahora nos impresiona saber que la fe de nuestro país, pasó una prueba en la que quedaron tantas vidas, de laicos y clérigos, como testimonio del alto valor. Muchos no sabían cuánto costó el grito de: Viva Cristo Rey y Santa María de Guadalupe..

José María Robles de San Eduardo, Corona, nos dijo cuántos sentimientos se despertaron con estos distinguidos embajadores, que nos repiten las palabras: ¿Señor a quién iremos?

Ellos dieron su vida para que pueblo no se quedara sin sacramentos, nosotros ahora tenemos cerca todas las bendiciones de la Iglesia, y, ¿las aprovechamos?

Ruth García, de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe, Ontario observó que en ésa comunidad se experimentó mucha esperanza, porque nuevamente México vive violencia y el deseo de todos es la pacificación. La presencia de las reliquias nos inspiró a mantener nuestra fe a toda consta.

Marta Domínguez, de Perris, comentó cómo en la comunidad de creyentes de nuestra diócesis, hay muchos familiares directos de esta generación de mártires y esto debe desafiarnos a perseverar en nuestra fe y a dejar la semilla de la fe bien plantada en las siguientes generaciones.

Sara Martínez, de San Eduardo, Corona, expresó la enorme bendición experimentada al tocar la cruz con las reliquias, como una prolongación de la gran raíz de tradición y amor a la Iglesia.

Laura Salazar, de Ntra. Sra. de Guadalupe, Ont. Observó en la comunidad mucha gratitud por haber tenido esta presencia, “creo que muchos padres explicaron a sus hijos y a los jóvenes qué significa para nosotros dar testimonio de la fe. Se despertó una identidad muy especial…”

Nuestra gratitud más sincera, a los Caballeros de Colón, por permitirnos este contacto con las reliquias, estamos seguros que despertarán en nuestra comunidad, vocaciones y compromisos de mayor servicio a nuestra Iglesia.

Blessings Continue to Pour!

2011-05-31T12:06:00.000-07:00

By Father Benjamin Alforque, MSC, VF
Parochial Vicar, St. Catherine of Alexandria, Riverside

The months of spring continue to witness the blessings poured down for us from heaven: 3 new priests, a deacon and thousands of our people, most of them young, receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit at Confirmation, prepared well by the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

I asked them if they looked forward to this event. They just glowed with a huge smile, and many with tears of joy. Slowly in this journey, they discovered themselves more deeply, and knew God in their lives more profoundly. They can relate to Christ now more personally. And by the gift of the Holy Spirit, they are now openly proud and happy to be confirmed fully Catholic and fully Christian!

The Sacrament of Confirmation in the Catholic Church is really one of the Sacraments of Christian Initiation. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (1212) says: “The sacraments of Christian initiation - Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist - lay the foundations of every Christian life… "The faithful are born anew by Baptism, strengthened by the sacrament of Confirmation, and receive in the Eucharist the food of eternal life.” (1285) “Confirmation is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace. By the sacrament of Confirmation, [the baptized] are more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed."

The multiplication of God’s blessings continues. How many parents, families, relatives and friends have returned to the Church and to the sacramental life because of the confirmation of their beloved child! For indeed, we all are blessings to one another, and instruments of the multiplication of God’s blessings for all!

There is the blessing of our new graduates too! Men and women equipped with secular and scientific skills, they are tasked to impact society and the world with the holiness of God. They are invited by God to use their knowledge and skills to discover more deeply the love of God in the world, and to fill the world with God’s love.

Sr. Joan Holland, OSF, 50 years a teacher and educator in parish schools and spiritual guide to our students of St. Catherine of Alexandria School, has been such a blessing to the Church, to our community, to our school and to our children and their families. This woman who is a guiding light says of her mission: “God seems to be calling me to places I wouldn't have thought of to heal the wounds of broken relationships among students, faculty, staff and their families. Seeing people making and maintaining productive relationships and solving problems drives my commitment to my ministry: my mission” (OSF Website). Sr. Joan has retired from our school, but her being a blessing continues. Thank you, Sr. Joan, for blessing us with your blessings!

Fast brings us closer to the reality of hunger

2011-05-19T11:25:00.000-07:00

By Jeanette Arnquist
Director, Ministry of Life Dignity and Justice

Saturday, April 30

I opened my email from the Catholic Legislative Network last Friday and there was an invitation to join the First Fridays for Food Security Campaign. I followed the link, and here is what they are asking. Would my family (my husband Cliff and myself) be willing to commit to eating on the amount we would get if we were on the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program – formerly known as food stamps. I like a challenge, so I said “Why not?” Then I asked Cliff and he said “What’s the point?” The point of the fast is to raise awareness about the reality that many of our bothers and sisters face every day, and to experience that reality, ourselves. If we are going to be faithful citizens, we need to do more than read about food policy and study statistics. More information about the campaign can be found at on Facebook or at http://www.cacatholic.org/images/stories/pdfs/fasting-resource-intro-may-6.pdf

Monday, May 2

I looked up the amount. $11.20. At first I thought that was just for dinner. Wrong, that is for the whole day.

Wednesday, May 4

I just calculated that we usually spend about $4.00 on breakfast. We will not be doing that on our fasting Fridays. Lunch is easy – I can keep that around $1 or $2. Now for dinner.

Thursday, May 5

I just looked up how much we spend on groceries this year. $2,052 for 4 months. $17.10 per day. That figure does not include what we spend in cash. We buy most of our vegetables at a farmer’s market, and there are lots of quick trips to the store for one item. It does not include meals eaten out.

We went to market night and spent about $25 on vegetables.

Friday, May 6

Here is the break out:

Breakfast:

fresh orange juice, 1/3 bag of oranges..............$1.00

cold cereal with milk.......................................$0.60

Lunch:

hummus.......................................................$2.00

carrots.........................................................$0.50

soy nut mix..................................................$1.00

Dinner:

lettuce salad.................................................$1.00

pasta with kale.............................................$2.50

Total:...........................................................$8.60

What is not included is olive oil, vinegar, garlic, herbs, Parmesan cheese and a few pine nuts (very extravagant at $14 per pound!). So add another $2.50, which puts us right at the max.

Reflecting on this exercise, I have to say it wasn’t impossible. It took a lot of planning and depended on a well stocked pantry and 45 years of cooking experience. We had enough calories and vegetables, but were too low on protein and too high in carbs for long term. If we were to eat on $336 per month we wouldn’t have on hand large quantities of things like olive oil and Parmesan from the local big box store.

While Cliff and I were able to think hypothetically what it would be like to eat on this kind of a budget, we know it is a daily reality for more people in our diocese than you would think.

In our diocese, alone, 286,000 people are food insecure and they do experience hunger on a daily basis. Our 61 parish food ministries can also attest to local hunger.

Around the world it is even more dramatic: 1.3 billion people live on less than $1.25 per day and 3 billion on less than $2. Every year 15 million children die of hunger.

What can we do about all of this? We can do activities at home or in the parish, such as participating in the First Fridays for Food Security to raise awareness and follow up with discussion. We can take pastoral action by supporting the parish ministry to the poor. And – very important – we can follow the weekly email from the Catholic Legislative Network and take actions that address hunger here and around the world.

A Public Display of Affection Affirms Our Need for Gratitude

2011-05-12T10:21:00.000-07:00

By Steve Valenzuela
Director, Small Faith Communities

On a recent Sunday afternoon the drier in my household went out. I was next in line to do laundry in preparation for the week and was feeling a little anxious. I had put on my last clean pair of everything that morning for Church and could not wait one more day! Just as it was getting dark, I finished the last load, then packing up my damp but now clean private and public wardrobe; I headed out to the local laundry mat to dry. The parking lot was full and as I peered through the large plate glass windows, I saw a lot people in various stages of washing and drying. My heart sank a little. This dreary task was going to take longer than I had hoped. At least I had brought the book I was reading. I realized it being Sunday many individuals and families without their own appliances were getting ready for coming week and today I had the privilege of joining them in this regular ritual. I actually found a working drier, loaded my clothes, put in a hand full of quarters and then sat with my book to wait.

While trying to read under the too-bright florescent lighting, amidst the noisy conversations and the loud humming of both commercial washers and driers, I was distracted from my book by a young attractive Spanish speaking couple who came in carrying bags of laundry and one of the cutest babies I had ever seen. Dad went about “setting up camp” on one of the folding counters, making sure their Gerber-baby was secure in his carrier and could observe all, especially the busy parents. The young mom started to separate laundry into a row of washers. Once their laundry was all washing, they turned their focus to each other and to their off-spring. The affection between the couple and for their child was palatable. They smiled, laughed, joked and even danced in front of the baby to some music that was playing from either a phone or mp3 player. I could not tell.

I had been trying unsuccessfully to finish a book on spirituality called “The Grateful Heart” by Wilke Au and Noreen Cannon Au. In it the authors, a married couple who are a professor of theology and a Jungian therapist respectfully, promote the importance of developing an attitude of gratitude as central to deepening both our emotional and spiritual health. In witnessing this young family’s wonderful public display of affection, I could not help recognizing that this was exactly what the book was describing. Being grateful for our lives today, for the gifts we experience here and now is not simply a mental exercise. Rather it is a rich spiritual approach to everyday life that leads to joy and happiness and can help one find God in everything as St. Ignatius of Loyola taught. As the book noted, gratefulness can help us see God’s love even while doing a dreary task like washing (or just drying) clothes at a laundry mat. At that moment, I felt so grateful for this couple, their beautiful baby and for the great gifts of romantic love and family they so freely shared. Who knew a trip to the local fluff and fold could be such a moment of grace? I felt blessed to have witnessed their loved exposed.

In the Letter to the Ephesians, we read “He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one hates his own flesh but rather nourishes it and cherishes it, even as Christ does the Church, because we are members of his body” (Eph, 5:28). I do not know if the young couple I saw at the laundry mat was officially married, either civilly or sacramentally, but it was clear they cherished each other and the child who had come forth from their romance. Their obvious care for one another was a clear sign of God’s love in the world and the love Christ has for each of us. Even now, in remembering how the young couple danced to the delight of their baby, I imagine God smiling as he tapped his divine toe to the same rhythm.

For Reflection and Sharing:

1. Describe a marriage you know that reflects well the love God has for his people, us.

2. How do you feel in this couple’s presence? What effect does their love have on you?

Mother’s Day: a long and varied history

2011-05-08T21:59:00.000-07:00

By Father Gregory Elder
Parochial Vicar, St. Martha, Murrieta

I was standing in a ruined Egyptian temple, in the far south of Egypt, beyond Karnak and not far from Aswan. In the ruins of the temple, there was a wall painting, which had survived thousands of years. The image above the altar was of the mother goddess Isis, enthroned on a chair, with her divine holy son Horus on her lap. Before the mother and child, the pharaoh knelt, offering gifts to them in worship. Our Muslim tour guide grinned at us.

“Does this look familiar to any of you?” he asked us. I was with a bunch of English tourists, and much as I love the British, they are a very secular lot these days. No one had a clue.

“It looks like a Christmas card” I replied. “Mary and Jesus seated on a throne, while the wise men, kings from the east bring gifts.” He nodded with great glee as if he had exposed some deep mystery to us all. And then he pointed to the wall to the left of the old painting. There, cut into the older temple, was a niche with a little cross above it. “And that” I said, “Is a credence. It’s the place where Mass vessels are put before the priest puts them on an altar. This pagan shrine was used as a church.” The early Christians were quick to use older cults as an evangelistic took to draw peopleto their new faith. From paganism to Christianity, it’s an old story, which I shall say more on in a moment.

Welcome, this week, gentle readers to one of the oldest holy days in the entire world of religion, the cult of Mother’s Day, which we Americans will celebrate next Sunday. Mother Day, in its various forms runs very deep in the human consciousness and goes back to the very earliest times when primitive men and women painted pregnant animals on the walls of their face in ice age France, down to the veneration of Isis in Egypt, Marduk and his mother in Mesopotamia, Rhea, Gaia, and Cybelle in the Greek world. The Romans honored Juno, the goddess of marriage and motherhood, gave her a month sacred for weddings, and June brides honor her without knowing it down to the present day. Pagan Romans prayed for fertility for their women on Matronalia. Devotions to the Blessed Virgin Mary replaced many of these with the spread of Christianity. To this very day, the English “Mother’s Day” is “Mothering Sunday” the Sunday following March 25, the Feast of the Annunciation to the Virgin Mary, nine months exactly before Christmas Day.

Across the world many religions and cultures have days which give honor to mothers. In Nigeria and Ireland it is the Fourth Sunday in Lent, in Hungary, Lithuania, Spain and Portugal it is the first Sunday in May, in Libya, Oman, Syria and the Sudan it is March 21, the Vernal Equinox. in Argentina it is the third Sunday in October, in Russia it is the Last Sunday in November and in Panama it is December 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.

In the United States, Mother’s Day was the creation of a woman named Anna Marie Jarvis, who was born in 1864 in West Virginia, and whose beloved mother died in 1905. Anna turned her grief for her mother into a personal project and lobbied for a creation of a national day honoring mothers. There had been a number of earlier attempts at the same project, some tied to the Temperance Movement and others to women’s rights, but none had captured the public opinion. Jarvis’ own mother had been something of a radical, and had founded a body known as the Mother’s Work Day Clubs, which gave medical aid to soldiers wounded in the Civil War, and encouraged women to give a day to aid the fallen on both sides of that bloody conflict. Jarvis founded the Mother’s Day International Association to lobby for the new holiday. Spending her inheritance on the project, Jarvis approached politicians and clergy and in 1914 persuaded President Woodrow Wilson to declare a national day in honor of mothers, which continues to this present day. Many subsequent presidents have issued Presidential Proclamations on the day.

While Mother’s Day became very popular it turned in directions Jarvis never expected. In her mind, a day dedicated to Mothers and motherhood should reflect respect for women and improvements in care for the elderly. When Mother’s Day become increasingly commercialized and came to focus on sales of jewelry, cards and candy, she publicly turned against the festival she had created. She remarked, “A printed card means nothing except that you are too lazy to write to the woman who has done more for you than anyone in the world. And candy! You take a box to Mother—and then eat most of it yourself. A pretty sentiment.” Anna Marie Jarvis never married and had no children. She died angry in 1948.

Next Sunday, I know that my church will be full of families with friendly looking matrons, many wearing flowers seated with sons and daughters who have that look on their face which says, ”I have no idea how long this service is going to take and I do not know what the minister will do next.” Many have not darkened the door since last Mother’s Day. This is not the same bunch as the Christmas/Easter only crowd. They know that they are officially religious, but just cannot bother to come more often. The Mother’s Day crowd is often clueless about religion, but Mom wants them there and so they will be. The American Restaurant Association has declared that this is also one of their busiest days of the year, which I can attest to as being a former “porcelain maintenance engineer”or dishwasher. Candy and jewelry associations will make similar claims.

You can bet I will be at my evangelistic best to preach to the dearest heathen offspring in my pews in need of a bit of conversion. That’s why Mom brings them to me. The ancient pagan holidays became Christian holidays while the temples of the mother goddesses became churches dedicated to the Blessed Mother Mary. In my trade, we have been busy using this motherhood festival thing to turn pagans into Christians for a very longtime.

A Day of Contrasts

2011-05-02T14:46:00.000-07:00

By Rick Howick,
Principal, St. Catherine of Alexandria School, Riverside

At our school assembly Monday morning, we had so much to discuss and very few ways to keep them clear for children. Osama Bin Laden was dead, John Paul II had been declared blessed, and of course, we had May crowning. As I began to speak, I realized just how important the contrast was between the two events the day before, and that was what I told my students.

John Paul II was declared to have lived a life blessed by God. He was one who preached about mercy, a man who could visit the prison cell of his would-be assassin, hold the hand that held the gun, and forgive him. He was declared blessed on Mercy Sunday, a day dedicated to the mercy of Christ, that all who approach our Lord are promised that no matter how awful the sin, God’s mercy will blot it out. That celebration of mercy on the streets of Rome was contrasted in the evening news with the death of Osama Bin Laden. He organized Al Qaeda and masterminded the bombing of the African embassies, the USS Cole, and the September 11^th attacks. Confronted with arrest, Bin Laden resisted and was killed. The streets of Washington and New York erupted in jubilation.

John Paul was appalled by the events of 9-11 and was grieved at the war which followed. It was fitting that Pope Benedict XVI chose Mercy Sunday to celebrate his declaration that John Paul is among the blessed. It seems also fitting that the news of the evening was such a jarring contrast with the events of the morning. The practical application is that we are always confronted with evil. Do we choose mercy? In John Paul’s life, that choice was consistent and clear, and underscored against the backdrop of events in Pakistan.

For my students, I reminded them that the death of any person is a sad thing, and it is a shame that Bin Laden did not choose a path of mercy. It emphasizes the importance of John Paul’s motto, totus tuus, that our lives dedicated to our Lord through his mother can only lead to mercy. That is the path we are asked to follow in life, one dedicated to the mercy of God in all that we do, which may, in little ways, change the world for good.

Keep a green bough in your heart!

2011-04-28T15:05:00.000-07:00

By Sister Mary Frances Coleman, R.S.M.
Director, Religious & Consecrated Life

Every year it happens: all of life engages in birth, death and resurrection.

Every year cocoons give up their treasures, a dandelion appears through the cement curtains of a cracked sidewalk. We hold images of people being pulled out of their tomb-like enclosures under rubble after the earthquakes in Haiti and more recently in Japan. Their bodies covered in dust and with profound injuries still fought to gasp for air and life again—resurrection!

And we — are not our lives interwoven with experiences and memories of having shared these Paschal cycles? Don’t we experience our death moments? moments of hope breaking through? The peak event of resurrection following the pattern of the passion and death in the life of Jesus, an anchor of hope for us always.

Every year the dull and dead in us meets our Easter challenge, to live on the frontiers of our existence, to see the Lazarus deep inside us pick up his cloak and walk toward the light, to be open to the unexpected, to welcome God in every form and situation and always trust in our own greening.

Easter blessings of joy and peace!

The Triduum, step-by-step

2011-04-20T16:51:00.000-07:00

By Sister Mary Garascia, C.P.P.S.

Pastoral Coordinator, Holy Name of Jesus, Redlands

ONE LONG DAY— that is how the sacred three days of Holy Week, called the Triduum, are described. Lent officially ends at dusk on Holy Thursday, April 21, and we begin the celebration of the death and resurrection of the Lord.

The word “celebration” is used in a special way in liturgical language. When we “celebrate” a mystery of our faith, or celebrate the Mass, we are commemorating an event of scripture or Jesus’ life. But a liturgical celebration is more

than just remembering. Were you there when they crucified the Lord,” a famous English language spiritual asks?

Actually through our celebration of the sacred three days of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday we can say “yes!” We were there! For through our “celebration” of those three days, the events of the Lord’s life come alive. They become not just past events but events in which we participate.

For families with children, Holy Thursday is perhaps the best celebration of these three days. The symbolic action that we participate in this night is washing of our feet. We can wear sandals to Church tonight! This special action invites us to learn with our bodies the lesson Jesus wants to teach us: we are called to be servants of one another as Jesus was for his disciples. Also at this Mass, the three special oils we use for sacraments are presented. The oil of the sick is used throughout the next year in the sacrament of the sick. The oil of catechumens is used to anoint adults preparing for baptism. The oil of chrism is used in the sacraments of baptism and confirmation. The evening ends with a procession with the Eucharist. People stay and pray before the Eucharist, commemorating the time when the apostles prayed in the garden with Jesus, just before his arrest.

Good Friday is a day when Catholics over 14 abstain from meat, and those between 14 and 60 fast. Again the body gets involved in teaching our spirits that we must become empty of worldly things if we want to be filled with the Lord. A few decades ago most businesses closed on Good Friday, and it was traditional to observe silence for three hours, from noon until three. (That was a great challenge for children!) The liturgy of the Church on Good Friday includes the moving veneration of the cross.

Holy Saturday is a day of waiting for dusk when the celebration of Easter begins. It is a day that keeps breaking out in anticipatory joy.

Traditionally Easter eggs are colored on this day, and there is a blessing of foods here at the parish at 9am. Church is getting decorated, choirs are rehearsing, and so are the people who will receive sacraments that evening. The Easter joy bursts out in the evening as we light the new fire, symbolizing Christ alive in our midst. The Easter Vigil begins. Long though it is, this special service is cherished by liturgists and musicians and people, and of course by our new Catholic brothers and sisters. I hope each of you reading this will be able to really celebrate the Triduum this year!

El Triduo, paso a paso

Por Hermana Mary Garascia, C.P.P.S.

Cordinadora Pastoral, Santo Nombre de Jesus, Redlands

UN LARGO DIA-de este modo se describe estos tres días de la Semana Santa, llamados el Triduo. La Cuaresma termina oficialmente al atardecer del jueves Santo, Abril 21, y comenzamos la celebración de la muerte y la resurrección del Señor.

La palabra “celebración” tiene un significado especial en el lenguaje litúrgico. Cuando “celebramos” un misterio de nuestra fe, o celebramos la Misa, conmemoramos un evento de las escrituras o de la vida de Jesús. Pero una celebración litúrgica es mucho más que simplemente recordar. Pregunta un famoso autor espiritual de la lengua Inglesa: “¿Estuviste allá cuando ellos crucificaron al Señor?” En realidad, a través de nuestra celebración del jueves Santo, Viernes Santo y Sábado Santo, podemos responder que “¡sí!” y que ¡Allí estuvimos! Porque mediante nuestra celebración de estos tres días, se vuelven vivos estos eventos de la vida del Señor. No son sucesos del pasado, sino eventos en los cuales nosotros participamos.

Para las familias con hijos, el Jueves Santo es tal vez la mejor celebración de estos tres días. La acción simbólica en la que participamos en esta noche es el lavatorio de los pies. ¡Podemos ir en sandalias a la Iglesia esta noche! Este acto especial nos invita a aprender con nuestros cuerpos, la lección que Jesús quiere enseñarnos: somos llamados a ser servidores los unos de los otros, como lo fue Jesús de sus discípulos. También en esta Misa se nos presentan los tres aceites especiales usados en los sacramentos. El óleo de los enfermos que se usará durante el siguiente año para el sacramento de Unción de los enfermos. El óleo de los catecúmenos que se usará para ungir a los adultos que van a recibir el Bautismo. El santo crisma que es usado en los sacramentos del Bautismo y la Confirmación. La tarde termina con la procesión con la Eucaristía hasta el monumento. Allí, a los pies de la Eucaristía, los fieles oran y contemplan, conmemorando ese rato en que los apóstoles oraron con Jesús en el huerto, momentos antes de ser arrestado.

En el Viernes Santo los católicos mayores de 14 se abstienen de comer carne y los que están entre los 14 y 60, ayunan. De esta forma nuestro cuerpo quiere enseñar a nuestro espíritu que, es necesario liberarse de las cosas terrenas si queremos llenarnos de las cosas de Dios. Hace algunas décadas la mayoría de los negocios estaban cerrados el Viernes Santo y era una tradición permanecer en silencio durante tres horas, desde el mediodía hasta las tres. (Lo cual era muy difícil para los niños.) La liturgia de la Iglesia para este día incluye la procesión para venerar y besar la cruz.

El Sábado Santo esperamos con ansiedad el atardecer, para dar comienzo a la celebración de la Pascua. Es el día en que damos rienda suelta a nuestro gozo anticipado. Ese día se colorean los tradicionales huevos pascuales y hay bendición de los alimentos a las 9:00am en la parroquia. El templo se decora, los coros practican y también lo hacen quienes recibirán los sacramentos esa noche.

Estalla la alegría de la Pascua, cuando habiendo ya anochecido, prendemos el fuego nuevo, que representa que Cristo vivo está en medio de nosotros. La Vigilia Pascual comienza. Y, a pesar de ser larga esta ceremonia, es celebrada con alegría por los liturgistas, los músicos, los fieles y, por supuesto, por nuestros nuevos hermanos y hermanas Católicos. Confío que esta lectura le ayude a celebrar de verdad este Triduo de este año.

Diocese reaches out to victims of violent crime

2011-04-12T16:52:00.000-07:00

By Sister Sue Reif, OSF
Diocesan Director of Restorative Justice

When a crime is committed, it’s like throwing a stone into the water and watching ripples go out and out and out and never seems to stop. One violent act effects more people than we can ever imagine: victims and their families, co-workers, neighbors, friends as well as offenders and their families. Murder encompasses the whole community.

This week is National Crime Victims’ Rights Week and parishes are encouraged to remember victims/survivors of violence in their prayers at Masses and other services.

The diocesan Office of Restorative Justice has committed itself to reaching out to victims of violent crime in a special way. Our work in this area began in February when men and women from 18 different parishes attended a two day training called “Healing the Trauma of Violent Death.” The training was for parish bereavement volunteers with the hope of giving them additional skills to help families who experience tragic death: the murder of a loved one.

Participants learned about the difference between a justice system of retribution and one of restoration, and ways that the Gospel calls us to be instruments of God’s presence and healing to all affected by violence. A panel of men and women shared personal stories of their loved one who was murdered and how one action has had an on-going effect on their lives.

Participants learned about the 12 components of grief unique to surviving violent death; much different that those of the 5 components of “normal” death. Although the focus was on homicide, there was some discussion of the effects of suicide on loved ones.

A panel of speakers came from the District Attorney’s Office in San Bernardino County, explaining how the criminal justice system works, and how that process affects families. Victim advocates were present and told about ways that they assist families.

The training will be repeated this summer with Part 1 on Sunday, August 14and Part 2 on Sunday, August 21. Trainings will be offered in English and Spanish from 9:30am-4:30pm at the Diocesan Pastoral Center.

In the planning stages is an opportunity for a one day retreat in September for adult family members who have experienced the loss of a loved one through homicide.

Anyone interested in attending the next training or the fall retreat should contact Sister Sue Reif in the Diocesan Office of Restorative Justice: sreif@sbdiocese.org or 909-475-5474.

No cross, no peace

2011-04-08T16:46:00.000-07:00

By Theresa Montminy,

Chancellor

There is a saying in the world of sports, “No pain, No gain”. In other words, there’s no victory without effort, even painful effort. There’s no telling how many coaches have drummed this into talks to their losing team in an effort to get them to try harder. What keeps us trying harder during this season of Lent? Maybe we could adapt a similar saying, “No cross, No peace” a reminder that there is no Easter without Calvary, there’s no love without sacrifice, and there’s no triumph without cost.

There’s a true story of a friend of mine that I would like to share that illustrates the power of the cross in an unusual way. My friend was training to qualify for a spot on the USA Olympic team as a high diver. Because she was training, she had special privileges at the pool facilities at the school I attended. One clear night in October with a moon that was big and bright, some time between 10:30 and 11:00 in the evening, she decided to go swimming and to practice a few dives. The pool was housed under a ceiling of glass panes so the moon shone bright across the top of the wall in the pool area. She climbed to the highest platform to take her first practice dive.

She stood on the platform backwards to make her dive, spread her arms to gather her balance, looked up to the wall, and saw her own shadow caused by the light of the moon. It was the shape of a cross. Her heart broke at the symbolic value. At that moment her mind was flooded with the true meaning of the cross and the hope that it represented. It was a moment of conversion. She sat down on the platform to ask God to forgive her sins and to save her. At that moment, she placed her trust in God . . . 20 feet in the air.

Suddenly, the lights came on. Security had come in to check the pool. As she looked down from the platform, she saw an empty pool that had been drained for repairs. She had almost plummeted to her death, but the cross had stopped her from disaster.

No wonder St. Paul glorified the cross. It is God’s plan to save us from disaster. If we are to make peace in our world, we must first discover the strength of cross. It represents our hope and our trust in God . . . as we are, where we are!

I welcome your comments about how “Making Peace” in our world speaks to you as we continue to walk together. Please address your items of interest by electronic mail to officeofthechancellor@sbdiocese.org.

A Small Tire Reveals We are Still a Little Off Kilter

2011-03-31T10:56:00.000-07:00

By Steve Valenzuela
Director, Small Faith Communities

Right after the start of Lent last month, I was driving home from the Pastoral Center and found myself stopped behind a beautifully maintained older large sedan in the left lane, the kind our grandfathers loved. The car had clearly been well kept, very clean and the tan paint job, while not new, was waxed to glossy shine both on the body and the chrome appendages. As I was admiring all the wonderful qualities of this older, well-preserved road boat, the light changed and it drove on ahead. I then noticed it was moving a little off kilter. When we got to the next light, my curiosity got the best of me so I changed lanes and slowly drove up next to the old beauty in the right lane. As I passed up the passenger side of the vehicle I saw why the car was off-kilter – the passenger back tire was smaller than the other three on the car. It was not a “donut” spare but was a regular tire, with the same wire wheel cover as the other tires. Unfortunately, it was a size or two too small! I guessed that this small tire was the best the owners could afford in our current economy.

Over the past couple of weeks I have thought about that car and the contrast of its well maintained exterior with its uneven wheels. It occurred to me that for many of us this off-kilter drive describes our experience of ourselves this Lent. I imagine a lot us entered Lent with some well-intentioned plans to make this year count for us. We would give up, add on and even sacrifice to have some benefit like losing weight and getting healthy. As with that big tan sedan, we would use Lent to clean up our act, letting go of something that can harm or hurt us so we could look and feel good again. Yet if we or someone takes a moment to look a little closely, they would probably notice our journey is a little off-kilter. We still move with one tire too small.

One 20-something I know gives up drinking and smoking each Lent. For him Lent is a kind of spiritual and physical detox though when I suggested he might keep the practice going beyond the Good Friday, he balked and said he already has plans for a very wet birthday celebration around Easter and I thought, “not including Vigil baptisms!” I laughed thinking somehow we must have missed teaching him something important about the purpose of Lenten sacrifices when he was a kid. Still an annual detox must be good for his soul in addition to his body.

All this got me thinking that God probably looks at us kind of like I looked at that car. Admiring the good qualities, the gifts and talents He gave us and reveling in the shiny acts of sacrifice, service and kindness we do this time of year when we let the Spirit inspire us. Yet at the same time I am sure God sees what most us hope (pretend?) He and others won’t notice, that even though we are all “shined up” we are still a little off-kilter. All of us need more work to become who we are meant to be. On the fourth Sunday of Lent we hear from Ephesians just such a truth:

“You were once darkness but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light, for light produces every kind of goodness and righteousness and truth.”

So whether we use Lent to detox, lose weight or live a more prayerful, simple and generous life, all of theses actions are still some “kind of goodness” and help us to be a bit more shiny, to walk (or drive) in the light.

For Reflection:

How have your Lenten practices affected you so far? What still needs some adjustment so you can “walk in the light?”

God is our spiritual GPS

2011-03-24T11:21:00.000-07:00

By Jeanette Arnquist
Director, Ministry of Life, Dignity and Justice

A couple of weeks ago I flew to northern California for a meeting. One of my colleagues picked me up at the airport for the drive to the retreat center where the meeting was going to take place. I had been there before and he had a GPS in his car which dictated every turn. But we were talking, and being attentive to each other. So even though the GPS voice was telling him to get off the freeway and my inner sense of direction should have been doing the same, we missed the exit.

But the GPS lady recalculated, and now aware of our error, we listened closely and arrived at the destination in time for lunch.

I think this is the way it is with God. God is constantly sending us signals, either through our own memory or intuition or through voices around us. But when we are preoccupied, we miss the signals. So many times in the last few months I have acted on an impulse or an intuition and it has “saved” me. For example, last December my husband and I took our Christmas break in Peru, visiting our daughter and her family. About three weeks before I began to gather all of the important things we would need for the trip. And I don’t just mean toys for Zach. I mean things like print outs of our airline tickets and passports.

Now I knew where the passports were – safely tucked into a locking file cabinet. But the electronic tickets were buried somewhere in an email from 6 months before. So I knew it would take a bit of digging to fine them. While my husband was searching his inbox, I was looking for something in my closet and a purse I rarely use fell off the hook. I picked it up. It was heavy – not a good sign. Guess what was in it? Right – the passports! Thank you, God.

What happens when we miss the signals from God? Well, my experience is that God is every bit as faithful as the GPS lady. If we miss one message or messenger, God will send another, attempting time and again to overcome our blindness, deafness and stubbornness.

So this Lent I am listening for the voice of God asking me to recalculate.

In Honor of the Most Reverend Bishop Gerald Barnes

2011-03-15T10:25:00.000-07:00

By Father Benjamin Alforque, M.S.C., V.F.
Parochial Vicar, St. Catherine of Alexandria, Riverside

Our very own Most Reverend Bishop Gerald Barnes was ordained a Bishop on March 18, 1992. Pope John Paul II appointed him Bishop of our local church, the Diocese of San Bernardino on December 28, 1995. “On March 12, 1996, before a crowd of over 2,500 people, he was installed as the second Bishop” of our diocese (Diocese of San Bernardino Website). But who is our bishop as a human person?

Our beloved bishop was born Gerald Richard Barnes in Phoenix, Arizona to George and Aurora. He comes from a large family of five brothers and one sister. He grew up in East Los Angeles, helping his family tend to their grocery store. He knew work and play and study early in his life. He went to public schools and got his religious education from the Victory Noll Sisters at San Basilio Center on

Fetterly Avenue

. He finished high school at Roosevelt High, obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from California State University, Los Angeles and attended seminary formation in St. Louis, Missouri, Dayton, Ohio and the Assumption-St. John Seminary in San Antonio, Texas. In 1975, he became a priest for the Archdiocese of San Antonio, Texas.

His life was graced early on. He was blessed with a large family that exposed him to the value of family life and loving sibling relationships. From early childhood, he learned the value of work, stuffing the grocery store with goods and cleaning it too. Probably it was from there that he was introduced to reading, writing and arithmetic. He probably developed a feel for life, for struggle and love for the poor playing with the kids from around the block. His parents’ religiosity and his religion classes taught him early of the sense of the sacred, even as he ventured more deeply and scientifically into the real world in his high school and studies in political science. The real struggle for him was in his deep desire to obey God’s call. Oh, how he was tested by seminary rectors in the pursuit of his vocation. A life of struggle, study and prayer: these prepared him well to be our great spiritual and pastoral leader and companion in our time.

Our very own Bishop Gerald Barnes is well-respected by his peers, who are inheritors of the apostolic succession. The U.S. Bishops recognized his political acumen and love for the poor. They chose him to chair the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Refugees and Migrants. They deeply respect his administrative skills. They made him member of the USCCB Administrative Committee and the Communications Committee. His sense of internationality and scholarly intelligence is reflected in his membership in the Board of the Mexican American Cultural Center, of the Assumption Seminary, and of the Inland Empire Hispanic Scholarship Fund. He is a member of the USCCB Ad Hoc Committee for the Church in Africa.

We are so blessed to have been gifted by God with a holy bishop who is so human and so understanding, a man of high intellectual caliber, compassionate administrative skills and profound sense of direction in the service of the Church, for the Event of God’s Reign. Let us thank God by supporting our very own Bishop Gerald Barnes!

Lent: An opportunity to be generous

2011-03-09T10:01:00.000-08:00

By Deacon Michael Jelley,
Vice Chancellor of Ecclesial Services

As a teenager in boarding school in the 1950’s I did not attend any particular church. However I did enjoy singing in the school chapel choir on Sundays. It was from some of the other boys in the choir that I learned that Lent was a time of regret and self-imposed punishment for sins. We were to give up something so we could join our suffering to Christ’s suffering. Some gave up candy, others tried to give up using bad language or teasing younger boys. I’m not sure if I was ever able to make it through all 40 days of Lent no matter what I chose to deny myself.

Today my viewpoint has changed and I have come to see Lent as a time to pray for those in need, to reflect on the ways I may serve them, and to thank God for the opportunities I have to share from the many gifts I have received...my time, my talent and my treasure and especially the awesome news that God gives us life and, through Jesus, the gift of eternal life. What does scripture have to say about giving?

No one shall appear before the LORD empty-handed, but each of you with as much as he can give, in proportion to the blessings which the LORD, your God, has bestowed on you. Deut 16:16b,17

My (child), give me your heart, and let your eyes keep to my ways. Prov. 23:26

‘Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him, "You are lacking in one thing. Go, sell what you have, and give to (the) poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.”’ Mark 10:21

‘Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.’ Luke 6:38

‘In every way I have shown you that by hard work of that sort we must help the weak, and keep in mind the words of the Lord Jesus who himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' Acts 20:35

‘What then shall we say to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but handed him over for us all, how will he not also give us everything else along with him.’ Rom 8:31-32

I’m going to give up giving up for Lent! Instead I am going to pray for a more understanding and generous heart, and I will ask God to help me put my prayers into action. In the words of St. Thomas More: “O Lord, give us a mind that is humble, quiet, peaceable, patient and charitable, and a taste of your Holy Spirit in all our thoughts, words and deeds. Give us good Lord, the grace to work for the things we pray for.” We cannot out give God in generosity…this Lent are you wiling to try?

In Honor of the Rising Peoples

2011-03-08T14:52:00.000-08:00

By Father Benjamin Alforque, M.S.C., V.F.
Parochial Vicar, St. Catherine of Alexandria, Riverside

When a composite team of military and intelligence security agents of Martial Law under the Philippine dictator Marcos brought me to the detention cell of the intelligence agents for tactical interrogation, they inventoried my possessions, and told me, “now that you are in our hands, you don’t own anything, not even yourself”. Without due process and without a lawyer, they told me: I was found guilty, and my task was to prove myself innocent. For the first three days and three nights, I was not allowed to sleep. I was not allowed to talk with anyone. Good thing they did not take away from me my watch. It told me of the day and the time.

I was subjected to psychological and physical torture. Because I was then a seminarian, at first the military and intelligence agents hesitated to physically harm me. Instead, they wanted to break me by letting me see and hear the horrors of torture of my co-political detainees. They did not succeed in this, so they tried another trick: putting me in a cell without light for two weeks, telling me I was going to die by musketry and that I could tell them my last request. I asked for my parents and brother and sisters, especially my mother, to see me. After two weeks, on the day that was supposed to be my last, I was led to the first of two iron doors of the cell. I only saw my father. We couldn’t even hug each other because of the iron grills that separated us. The visit lasted for 30 seconds.

Physical torture ironically happened during the military’s so-called formal investigation: still without a lawyer, I was grilled for five days. They could not extract anything from me, so a special investigator was assigned to me. He knew how and where to deliver the blows into my body that didn’t leave any evident mark. But then, they would let me hear the reprimand from another officer disapproving the use of physical torture, but who seemingly sided with me as long as I cooperated. This is called the soft-and-hard tactic of torture. This torturer learned his techniques from a world infamous school of torture.

For the first two months of my detention, I stopped believing in God. For if there was a God, how can He allow this to happen to me, when all I wanted was to be a good boy: to help the poor and serve my neighbor. Then, one evening I couldn’t sleep. I roused from my cot at 2 am, got hold of the last book which I had refused to read. I happened to open it on John 15,13-ff: “Greater love no one has than he who lays down his life for his friends…and if they should torture you and bring you to court, remember that they have done it to me first, and worse!” I felt so small and so ashamed of myself. So in the stillness of the night, I promised Jesus: Ok, I will believe in you again. I will continue to love and serve you among the poor whom you specially love and care for. Then I knew I was free. No one could harm me anymore, not wealth or even death itself!

Lent is an occasion to stand for Life & Dignity

2011-03-03T16:03:00.000-08:00

By Bishop Gerald Barnes
Diocese of San Bernardino

I have stated before my dismay at the lack of civility in politics today, and I know I am not alone.

The hostile tone of speeches and debates, the thinly-veiled use of violent imagery in media and advertising; the callous and inhumane way some of our brothers and sisters are scapegoated for the sake of scoring political points. It’s enough to make you throw up your hands and say ‘I don’t care’ or ‘Why bother?’ If you read the latest public opinion surveys more and more Americans are feeling this kind of frustration and apathy with the political process.

As Catholics we are called to a different response. There is simply too much at stake for us to sit silently when policies and laws are made that impact our families, neighborhoods and society. If those last six words sound familiar it is because they are found in the impact statement of the Diocese of San Bernardino. We set forth, in that vision, to fill lives with hope through the impact of the Gospel. It is in this commitment that we also commit ourselves to proclaiming the teachings of Jesus in public – even in the political arena.

Our Lord calls us to stand up for the dignity of every human person, without exception. So when we see laws debated that impact the unborn, the elderly, the immigrant, the poor, the sick and the imprisoned, or when we hear of policies concerning our God-given right to education, health care or employment, we speak the Gospel truths to those in government.

This month, on March 13, our diocese will celebrate this call to public participation with “Life and Dignity Sunday.” Our parishes will offer those at Mass an opportunity to join the Catholic Legislative Network (CLN), an on-line resource for Catholics to receive regular information about public policy issues that impact Church teaching. The CLN helps us connect the teachings of our faith with the political events and issues of the day. Updates arrive via e-mail once a week. If you feel called to contact your local legislator on one of the issues you read about, the CLN gives you the roadmap to do so.

I strongly urge you join the Catholic Legislative Network. If we are to be a voice for life and dignity we must be aware of the many ways it is threatened, or supported, by our public policies.

Life and Dignity Sunday falls on the first Sunday of Lent this year. Some may wonder why we have chosen the beginning of this holy season, which is characterized by reflection and sacrifice, to promote participation in government. I assert that it is wholly appropriate.

Though many have come to practice almsgiving by sharing their resources with the needy, the call to give alms during Lent is more traditionally equated with “seeking justice for our neighbor.” I can think of few better ways to do that than to stay informed on issues of importance to our faith and speaking out when necessary to those who make the laws.

And think of it this way, if you’re looking to give up something for Lent, join the Catholic Legislative Network and give up 10 or 15 minutes a week to look at public policy issues from the Catholic perspective.

I offer my prayers and blessings to all for the coming Lenten season. May we grow ever closer to the loving presence of our Lord Jesus Christ.

La Cuaresma es una ocasión para pronunciarnos a favor de la Vida y Dignidad

Por Obispo Gerald Barnes

Diócesis de San Bernardino

Anteriormente he manifestado en estas páginas mi consternación ante la falta de urbanidad que vemos actualmente en la política, y sé que no soy el único.

El tono hostil de los discursos y debates, el uso ligeramente disimulado de imágenes violentas en los medios de difusión y publicidad; la manera insensible e inhumana en que nuestros hermanos y hermanas son usados como chivos expiatorios con el fin de ganar puntos en la política. Es suficiente para hacer que te des por vencido y digas ‘no me importa’ o “¿Qué caso tiene?’ Si leen las encuestas más recientes sobre la opinión pública más y más americanos están sintiendo este tipo de frustración y apatía con el proceso político.

Como católicos somos llamados a responder de manera diferente. Simplemente, hay demasiado en juego para que nosotros nos quedemos callados cuando se están haciendo leyes y políticas que afectan a nuestras familias, vecindarios y sociedad. Si esas últimas seis palabras les suenan conocidas es porque se encuentran en la declaración de impacto de la Diócesis de San Bernardino. Expusimos, en esa visión, nuestra misión de llenar vidas de esperanza con el impacto del Evangelio. Es en este compromiso que también nos comprometimos a proclamar las enseñanzas de Jesús en público – aun en el ámbito político.

Nuestro Señor nos llama a defender la dignidad de todo ser humano, sin excepción. Así que cuando vemos el debate sobre leyes que afectan a los no nacidos, a las personas de la tercera edad, a los inmigrantes, los pobres, los enfermos y los encarcelados, o cuando escuchamos sobre políticas concernientes al derecho que nos da Dios a la educación, atención médica o empleo, expresamos las verdades del Evangelio a los funcionarios gubernamentales.

Este mes, el 13 de marzo, nuestra diócesis celebrará este llamado a la participación pública con el Domingo de la Vida y Dignidad”. Nuestras parroquias ofrecerán a los asistentes a la Misa una oportunidad para que formen parte de la Red Legislativa Católica (CLN), un recurso vía Internet para que los católicos reciban información periódica sobre cuestiones de política pública que tienen un impacto en la doctrina de la Iglesia. La CLN nos ayuda a vincular las enseñanzas de nuestra fe con los sucesos y cuestiones políticas del día. La información llega por correo electrónico una vez por semana. Si se sienten llamados a comunicarse con su legislador local sobre una cuestión que se les comunique, la CLN les da las rutas para hacerlo.

Los exhorto enfáticamente a que se unan a la Red Legislativa Católica. Si vamos a ser una voz a favor de la vida y dignidad debemos estar concientes de las muchas maneras en que nuestras políticas públicas la amenazan, o apoyan.

El Domingo de la Vida y Dignidad cae el primer Domingo de Cuaresma este año. Algunos se preguntarán por qué hemos elegido el comienzo de este tiempo sagrado, que se caracteriza por la reflexión y el sacrificio, para promover la participación en cuestiones gubernamentales. Les aseguro que es totalmente adecuado.

Aunque muchos practican las obras de caridad al compartir sus recursos con los necesitados, el llamado a las obras de caridad durante la Cuaresma se iguala tradicionalmente con “procurar la justicia para nuestro prójimo”. Considero que una de las mejores maneras de hacerlo es manteniéndonos informados sobre cuestiones de importancia para nuestra fe y expresando nuestra posición, cuando sea necesario, a quienes hacen las leyes.

Y véanlo de esta manera, si están buscando algo de que privarse durante la Cuaresma, únanse a la Red Legislativa Católica y dediquen 10 o 15 minutos a la semana para ver las cuestiones de política pública desde la perspectiva católica.

Ofrezco mis oraciones y bendiciones a todos para el tiempo de Cuaresma que se avecina. Ruego y espero que nos acerquemos cada día más a la presencia amorosa de nuestro Señor Jesucristo.

Good Neighbors Retreat, a weekend like no other

2011-02-23T13:19:00.000-08:00

By Maria Jose Garcia
Vicariate Consultant, Ministry with Youth Office

My name is Maria Jose Garcia. I am a Consultant for the Ministry with Youth Office in the Diocese of San Bernardino. I am a 28-year-old Hispanic, Catholic, married woman and I would like to share with you an inspiring story.

I got to my office one special day and I noticed that I had received an invitation to participate at a retreat called: “Good Neighbors”, which was going to take place at a resort in La Quinta. I got excited right from the start. The invitation said that it was going to be a time to reflect and share on the current violence among young Hispanics and African-Americans, and to work towards healing and understanding between both cultures.

Coming from my work experience, where I have worked with teens and young adults who have faced the criminal justice system because of these issues and in the worst cases, attended Juvenile Hall… I immediately rushed to finish all of my pending projects and cleared my work schedule so that I could leave for a few days and head my way to La Quinta.

On the first day, I was introduced to my roommate. I was able to spend the entire retreat with a sweet, young, African-American woman. We clicked immediately. In fact, we were asked to participate in an activity before everybody’s time to set up in their rooms. We took the activity very serious and together worked it out. During this time, I got to know a little more about my roommate and noticed that we were very much alike.

During dinner, we were able to share more about each other. I was thrilled to witness the diversity among us and what a good participation there was. There were people from both gender groups, both ethnic groups – Hispanics and African-Americans, people from different faith backgrounds, and also different types of work expertise…However, we all had something in common, and that was that we all worked with youth in some way and that we were all people of faith seeking healing and peace among both cultures.

During the whole retreat experience, there were many interesting and educational talks. There was a lot of time to share and learn from each other and also connect with each other. I believe that this experience helped us open our eyes to a new reality, a new way of understanding and building relationships with our brothers and sisters. Culturally speaking, there were countless things that we did not know about each other and yet we were able to share and learn.

It was also important that we all found a common ground to start: awareness and education. It was said that we need to know were we are all coming from to know where we all are going. Knowing about our history and how African-Americans and Hispanics have helped shape the current values and views of our nation to the point of shaping and influencing the American consciousnesses – freedom, respect and equality; we are all aware of the need for collaborative work between both cultures to better these values and principals.

The Good Neighbors Retreat helped us realize our common and shared history but also challenged us to empower our nation to find perfection. We can start out simple in our communities, work places, and social environment. We all believe that through education, healing, faith sharing and most importantly making connections, this dream can be achieved.

I am grateful for this experience and for the people who made it possible, especially Dr. Daniel E. Walker, who has a passion for bringing peace and healing among both cultures. He is a great example of true commitment, and serves as a model for all of us of what can be done.

If we really want to do something greater, we really need to fight for it now, and also remind ourselves that in order to achieve such a goal we need to start with ourselves, having a true and honest understanding that we are here to love and protect our brothers and sisters…. without judging. Needless to say, we need to be a Good Neighbor to one another.

Good Neighbors Retreat: A project of the BLU Educational Foundation and Reach Out West End, the endeavor is funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s historic Racial Healing Initiative - Inland Empire Organizations Awarded Historic American Healing Grant from W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Project Seeks Pastors to Work on Latino and African American Unity.

A background to modern Egypt

2011-02-15T15:15:00.000-08:00

By Father Gregory Elder
Parochial Vicar, St. Martha Murrieta

I have often written about the wonderful land of Egypt. I have traveled there, met its people, and studied its history and culture for many years. Unfortunately, what most people know about Egypt is the world of antiquity, with its pyramids, golden caskets and the wonders of the pharaohs. But as we watch our television and computer monitors, there is another Egypt to be considered. As we wait for further political developments it is worth recalling the history, religion and culture which has made the modern events what they are.

The lost world of the pharaohs came to an end over a long period of decline in the centuries before Christ. The last Egyptian kings to rule the land was the 30th Dynasty which was defeated by the Persian Empire in 353 BC. Not long after, Alexander the Great conquered Egypt, and after his death the land was ruled by one of his generals, Ptolemy Soter, who founded a dynasty which bore his name for three centuries. The last of the Ptolemy’s heirs was Cleopatra VII, the lover of Caesar and Mark Anthony, who died in 30 BC. Roman Emperors would rule Egypt as their personal province until the decline of that empire, when it passed into the hands of the Christian Byzantine Romans, who ruled from Constantinople.

The Egypt we know is tied to the rise of Islam. When the Prophet Muhammad died in what is now Arabia in AD 632, the world was about to change. By 639 Egypt was overrun by the Arabs, and it was ruled by the Caliphs, or the successors of the Prophet for 600 years. About 1250 AD power was seized by a group of Islamic mercenaries called the Mamluks, who ruled the land until the rise of the Ottoman Turks, who destroyed the last of the Byzantines in Constantinople, modern Istanbul, in 1453. Egypt fell to the Ottomans in 1517, the same year that Martin Luther began the Reformation in Germany. In later centuries, Ottoman rule was not very effective and foreign influence often penetrated the land. This was not a good time for the native Egyptian peoples. But over these centuries of rule by the Arabs, Mamluks and Ottomans, Egypt became an Islamic nation, albeit with a significant Christian minority.

In 1798 the French general Napoleon Bonaparte invaded and occupied Egypt, defeating the power of the Mamluks and the Ottomans. A minor event in this period was the discovery of the Rosetta Stone by French officers, a moment which would later enable the translation of the ancient language of the Pyramid Age, but this was not a major political issue at the time. Napoleon soon fled Egypt in search of greater political prizes, and his French regime was removed in 1801. In the political chaos which followed the French occupation, one man emerged victorious, Muhammad Ali. In many ways, Muhammad Ali is the father of modern Egypt, and he founded a new dynasty of kings who ruled the land until recent times.

Muhammad Ali appears to have hoped for wider conquests, in the Sudan, the holy land and Turkey, but he was checked by the European powers. But he began building a modern military, sent Egyptian students to study agriculture, chemistry and modern sciences in Europe and hoped for the development of his nation. In 1820, cotton was cultivated in the land which brought in rich income from Europe. Clever British investors soon learned that, were the cheap cotton produced by human slaves in the Americas to be ended by the abolition of slavery, Egypt might provide an alternative source of the precious substance for their mills in the age of the textile industrial revolution. It is probable that Egypt’s cotton prevented European intervention into our own Civil War.

Unfortunately for the Egyptians, the Europeans could not keep their hands off of the land. French developers encouraged Muhammad Ali’s heirs to dig the famous Suez Canal, but the Egyptians spent more than they had enabling the French to gain half control of the canal and its revenues. When high taxes forced the Egyptian government to sell the other half to the British, popular discontent rose to the level of rebellion. The British sent in their military and crushed Egyptian resistance. The Egyptian heirs of Muhammad Ali were kept as symbolic heads of state under various titles and in1914, Egypt became a protectorate of Britain. Popular rebellion continued and in 1922 Britain granted the Egyptians more self rule and the ability to elect a prime minister to serve under the Egyptian king. Nonetheless, the British maintained a military presence right through the Second World War. To bring this into modern memory, my wife’s late father served King George VI in Egypt.

The last successor of Muhammad Ali was King Farouk, who was overthrown by a military coup in 1953 after his corrupt rule and colorful morals offended the religiously conservative Islamic Egyptians. The British military was invited to leave the following year and they did. Power was taken by General Gamal Nassar in 1953, who would later take the title of “president.” He nationalized the Suez Canal, took a strong position against Israel with whom he would fight several failed wars. His pro-Russian policies gained him an ally, and the hostility of the United States in the Cold War. Russian funds and workers would build the Aswan dam, enabling the modern electrical power of Egypt. The Egyptian military still carries Russian AK-47 machine guns and flies Russian MIGs. The ones I saw there in 2001 were still in use, a bit battered but still serviceable.

Gamal Nassar died in 1970 and power was taken by Anwar Sadat in 1970. Sadat was significant for his expulsion of the Russian presence, and his participation in a failed 1973 war on Israel along with Syria. Intervention by the USSR, the US and the UN prevented Israeli attacks on Egypt, and although he lost the war, Sadat was enough of a diplomat to regain the Sinai Peninsula for Egypt and made peace with Israel in the Camp David talks of 1979. The destruction of the Egyptian military by Israel nonetheless remained a tragedy in the Egyptian mind and the peace treaty did not sit well with all of the Egyptians. My tour guides in Egypt in 2001 made a point of showing us the war memorial to the slain in the unfortunate 1973 war. Sadat was murdered in 1981 in Cairo by a fundamentalist Islamic military plot.

With the support of the army, Hosni Mubarak took power after Sadat, and he ruled the land with an iron hand until this year. When I was in Egypt, there were military everywhere, with towers on the corners and everywhere were well-armed guards. It was a military state. Both popular democratic protests were crushed as well as conservative Islamic religious movements. One of my Egyptian students said of Mubarak, “he is exactly like Saddam Hussein, except that your country likes him and so you do not hear of the things he does.” I cannot comment of the validity of this statement, but it is well established that the US gives considerable aid to the Egyptian government. I see in the media that exiled fundamentalist Islamic leaders are beginning to return to Egypt. At this writing, Mubarak was removed from power by popular protests as of February 11, and on February 13, the Army dissolved the parliament and has called for national elections. This is the background to the fall of the current pharaoh.

Valentines Day is Actually A Call to Holiness

2011-02-10T12:28:00.000-08:00

By Steve Valenzuela
Director, Small Faith Communities

A colleague recently sent me a text-like email saying “U R a Saint.” I must say I laughed out loud immediately thinking of how un-saintly I often feel and sometimes act. Actually, she was thanking me for helping her at the last minute to get a hold of some large soup pots to use at the reception for a diocesan event.

Her text though got me thinking. “If only being a saint was as easy as borrowing some big soup pots.” Yet as I continued to ponder this, I realized being a saint is in some ways is that simple. Someone is called a saint because they lived a life of holiness. One of the chief ways we live holiness is when we respond openly and freely to the situations and needs of others using our strengths and resources. In Judaism, this act of kindness or goodness is called a Mitzvot and it is the foundation of righteousness. For us followers of Christ, our scriptures teach us, we are acting holy when we respond in love to God and to each other. I think St. Paul said it well as he wrote this Valentine to the churches in Rome:

Love one another with the affection of brothers. Anticipate each other in showing respect. Do not go slack but be fervent in Spirit for he whom you serve is the Lord. -12:10-11

This month we celebrate the dubious holiday named for some early church martyrs called Valentine. Contrary to today’s popular expressions of hearts, candy, roses and romance, one of the Valentines, a priest, was holy in the way St. Paul writes. This Valentine would write “love notes” to comfort and strengthen his fellow Christians who were facing trial and possible execution during Roman persecutions. He took great risk to provide this spiritual care. These notes are a far cry from the silly or sultry cards we send today. Therefore, a true valentine is about loving one another, doing an act of care or service that meets someone’s real need, especially when it is difficult, challenging or even dangerous.

This call to love as a call to holiness is both simple and challenging. Sometimes it is simple like offering to do an errand for someone or agreeing to make a phone call to find some soup pots to borrow. Or it can be difficult, especially with people we are struggling just to tolerate (neighbors, co-workers or family members) or who, especially, have hurt us in the past. To show them any kind of positive response, let alone love, may feel next to impossible. Yet the words of the apostle Paul to the Church in Corinth come to mind, “love is patient, love is kind…”

So perhaps this year, in addition to buying cards, flowers or chocolate for our beloveds, we might consider acts of loving kindness to meet a real need they have. And if we really want to practice being holy we might consider doing something especially kind for that neighbor, co-worker or family member we really can’t stand. We know we all have them so we might as well let them help us reach heaven. Won’t we both be surprised at who we find sitting across from us at the eternal banquet. Happy Valentine’s Day!

For Reflection and Sharing:

What acts of loving kindness might you do for those you love and those you struggle to love this Valentines Day?

Embrace life’s uncertainty

2011-01-31T10:41:00.000-08:00

By Theresa Montminy
Chancellor

Understanding life’s uncertainty can lead to a remarkable shift in values and guide us on our journey toward making peace in our world. Ask anyone who has been given only a short time to live. Their interest suddenly turns to finding those who are most important to them, and, to sharing the time they have left building memories.

How long do you have left to live? It’s a sobering question for this sobering reason: We don’t know the answer. We can’t know. Whether we’ve just been given a clear bill of health or diagnosed with a terminal disease, we still don’t know how long we have in this world. The diagnoses of doctors are always subject to human error. Furthermore, a perfectly healthy person can be killed in a car accident. Only God knows the day of our passage out of these earthen vessels. Many people prefer not to consider such questions. They are too morbid, perhaps, and create a fear-filled soul that disturbs our peace-filled environment.

Far from being a morbid thought . . . understanding the brevity of our earthly life span can bring us a sense of focus like nothing else. We can begin to strive for what is important and forsake whatever isn’t. We can set our priorities.

Do you want that kind of focus? Don’t wait for a doctor’s diagnosis. Go ahead and choose a time. What length of time would give you a proper perspective and help you to live with the right priorities? A year? Five years? Six months? You decide. Then go ahead and live as though you have only a year left (or however much time you’ve chosen.) Assume, for example, that God will take you home one year from today. Watch your priorities change. Watch your relationship with God and with others transform. Begin living in the light of eternity and understand the life God has given you!

2011 can be a year of great joy if we find peace by putting our faith in action . . . together we can impact family, neighborhood and society so that people’s lives are filled with hope!

I welcome your thoughts and comments on how you fill people’s lives with hope by “Making Peace” in our world. Please address your comments by e-mail to officeofthechancellor@sbdiocese.org.

East Highland still digging out of flood – come on down

2011-01-20T17:11:00.000-08:00

By John Andrews
Director, Department of Communications

Many of us have enjoyed the recent return to more typical Southern California weather. It puts the torrential rainstorms of last month a little further in our rearview mirror.

Not so for the folks on

Merris St

and the surrounding neighborhood in East Highland where St. John Bosco Mission is located. Their days are still spent digging out homes and properties that were deluged by the mudslides that resulted from the rain.

Providentially, St. John Bosco received minimal damage in the flood. A good thing because the community center there has served as a gathering place and a resource for residents and those who come daily to help remove the mud – sometime a shovel-full at time. A few families who were displaced by the mudslides actually lived in the center in the immediate aftermath of the disaster.

Despite the physical destruction there, God’s presence is strongly felt in the hope and generosity of the people.

Hundreds continue to come to the area to help, offering food, clothing, water or their own “elbow grease” w/shovel. The business community, public servants and the faith community have all played a part.

Henrietta Chavez

I visited the area this week and there is obviously much work left to do there. Henrietta Chavez and other members of the Ladies Prayer Group at St. John Bosco have logged serious hours at the center. They prepare and serve food to the many who are there digging out the streets and yards, and they receive and distribute donated goods.

While Chavez and others from the Mission have been heavily involved in the recovery, the participation of Catholics beyond that has been low in comparison to other faith groups who have come to help.

Perhaps the need was not well publicized. And there, finally, is the point of this posting. This community needs still needs our help! If you are able to donate food, clothing or water, or if you are willing to roll up your sleeves and help dig, please go to

28991 Merris Street

in Highland. Henrietta will surely find something for you to do.

In violent times we must be sowers of peace

2011-01-13T14:59:00.000-08:00

By Bishop Gerald Barnes
Diocese of San Bernardino

In his parable of the Sower, Jesus tells us that the seeds of God’s kingdom flourish under a certain condition, but can be choked or distorted in other environments.

The past week has been tragically marked with violence as six people were killed and a member of Congress critically wounded in a senseless massacre in Tuscon, Arizona. In our own diocese, two teenage boys were shot dead and two others wounded in Redlands, apparently as a result of a long-running feud amongst some local youth.

We continue to pray for the victims of these attacks and their families, and we ask for God’s strength and healing presence.

As we grapple with this horrifying violence and how we might respond to it as people of faith perhaps the parable of the Sower points the way.

Seeds are constantly being sown – in our words and actions as individuals, in the things we choose to exalt or condemn as a society, in the art and entertainment we consume and, increasingly, in the tone of our discourse.

When an individual commits an act of violence, such as those seen in Arizona and Redlands, it should not be seen entirely as an inevitable result of societal seeds. These were acts of free will unmistakably shadowed by evil.

But our collective behavior creates environments that can be conducive to acts of love or acts of brutality. In that we all bear responsibility. The events in Redlands and Tuscon are an occasion to acknowledge some hard truths: that we have lost a great measure of civility in the way that we talk to each other; that ‘I don’t agree with you’ now equates to ‘I don’t like you’; that popular media often promotes violence as acceptable conflict resolution and minimizes the value of human life to our young people.

In Matthew’s Gospel Jesus teaches us that “the seed sown on rich soil is the one who hears the word and understands it.” This is our cue as Roman Catholics in how to respond to these tragedies of violence. We must sow God’s seeds of peace, of selflessness, of civility and of life as sacred for every human person.

We sow these seeds not just in our own hearts, families and churches but wherever we participate in public life. For the Lord punctuated the parable of the Sower with a very important exhortation – “Whoever has ears ought to hear.”

We cannot always prevent seeds from falling on the path, the rocky ground or among the thorns, but we can resolve together to sow the seeds of love and non-violence in the rich soil that God has provided us.

May God bless you.

En tiempos de violencia debemos ser sembradores de paz

Por Obsipo Gerald Barnes

Diócesis de San Bernardino

En su parábola del Sembrador, Jesús nos dice que las semillas del reino brotan bajo ciertas circunstancias, pero que otros ambientes las pueden ahogar o distorsionar.

La semana pasada quedó trágicamente marcada por la violencia en que seis personas fueron asesinadas y un miembro del Congreso resultó gravemente herido en una masacre sin sentido en Tucson, Arizona. En nuestra propia diócesis, en Redlands, dos muchachos adolescentes fueron baleados de muerte y otros dos resultaron lesionados, aparentemente como resultado de una legendaria enemistad entre jóvenes del vecindario.

Continuamos orando por las víctimas de estos ataques y por sus familias e imploramos la fortaleza de Dios y su presencia sanadora.

Al abordar esta violencia horripilante y cómo podríamos responder a la misma como personas de fe, tal vez la parábola del Sembrador nos muestre el camino.

Constantemente se están sembrando semillas – en nuestras palabras y en nuestros actos como individuos, en las cosas que decidimos exaltar o condenar como sociedad, en el arte y entretenimiento que consumimos y, cada vez más, en el tono de nuestro discurso.

Cuando un individuo comete un acto de violencia, tales como los ocurridos en Arizona y Redlands, no se debe percibir totalmente como el resultado inevitable de las semillas de la sociedad. Estos fueron actos de libre voluntad evidentemente a la sombra del mal.

Pero nuestra conducta colectiva crea ambientes que pueden conducir a actos de amor y actos de brutalidad. De eso todos somos responsables. Los acontecimientos en Redlands y Tucson son ocasión para reconocer algunas duras verdades: que hemos perdido una gran medida de urbanidad en la manera en que nos hablamos los unos a los otros; que ‘Yo no estoy de acuerdo contigo’ ahora equivale a ‘no me caes bien’; que los populares medios de difusión a menudo promueven la violencia como una resolución aceptable de un conflicto y menoscaban el valor de la vida humana entre nuestros jóvenes.

En el Evangelio de Mateo Jesús nos enseña que “la semilla que cae en tierra buena es quien tiene oídos y oye”. Esta es nuestra señal como Católicos Romanos de cómo responder a estas tragedias de violencia. Debemos sembrar las semillas de Dios de paz, de abnegación, de urbanidad y de la vida como sagrada para todo ser humano.

Sembramos estas semillas no sólo en nuestros propios corazones, en nuestras familias y en nuestras iglesias sino dondequiera que participemos en la vida pública. Pues el Señor acentuó la parábola del Sembrador con una exhortación muy importante – “El que tenga oídos, que oiga”.

No podemos evitar siempre que las semillas caigan al borde del camino, en terreno pedregoso o entre la maleza, pero juntos podemos tomar la resolución de sembrar las semillas del amor y la no violencia en la tierra buena que Dios nos ha dado.

Que Dios les bendiga.

Filipino Ministry on a mission

2011-01-11T16:17:00.000-08:00

Naida Castro
Chairperson, Diocesan Filipino Ministry

We of the Filipino Ministry at the Diocese of San Bernardino consider the phenomenon of multi-cultural diversity in the Diocese of San Bernardino as a blessing. This is God's wonderful gift to us. This gift reflects the richness and extravagance of our living God. To promote this multicultural diversity and harmony as richness in the Diocese of San Bernardino, the diocesan Filipino Ministry created and developed its Philippine Exposure Program Discovering and Re-discovering Our Filipino Roots, A Journey to the Philippines The objectives of the exposure program are:

To introduce participants of the exposure program to the current Philippine situation;
To expose Filipino young adults, and their friends to Philippine rural, urban, and indigenous communities as the closest link to Filipino roots;
To appreciate the richness of the Philippines, the land and its people; and
To take a much needed rest and recreation to reflect on our life-experience before, during, and after our journey.

History of the Program

We launched the program in June 2006 with 11 pilgrims/missionaries comprising of five adults and six young adults. We exposed them to rural and urban communities in Manila, Cavite, Agusan del Sur and Surigao del Norte. In June 2007 the program introduced Filipino-Americans and their Irish-American, Caucasian and Mexican-American friends to Philippine history, culture and present day realities – the survival of the poor and the struggles of the marginalized for justice, peace and integrity of creation. It included a four-day stay with the lumad, an indigenous community of the Manobo, Banwaon, Talaandig and Mamanwa tribes at the San Luis Lumad Community High School in Agusan del Sur, a three-day stay at the beautiful white beach in General Luna, Siargao Island, a visit at the Urios College in Butuan City, as well as sightseeing and shopping in Manila, Quezon City and Cebu, conducting interviews and meeting with the children of desaparacidos (or the disappeared). During this exposure, the Filipino Ministry – DSB produced its first documentary: Discovering and Re-discovering the Philippines in collaboration with the Naida and Alex Castro Foundation for Philippine Solidarity and Development and Kodao Productions, a Philippine-based multi-media outfit.

Through the Philippine Exposure Program Discovering and Re-discovering our Filipino Roots, the Filipino Ministry - DSB and its participants experienced a deeper meaning of the social teachings of the Catholic Church.

In February 2009, in collaboration with the University of Santo Tomas Medical Association, we included in the program the medical mission serving the indigents in Isabela, Manila, Batangas, Mindoro and Cavite.

Our Program Today, January 2011

This 2011 we will go for our fourth Philippine Exposure. The Filipino Ministry – DSB, with its team of medical and non-medical professionals, clergies and young adults, will be leaving for the Visayas, Mindanao and Manila on January 12 through January 25, 2011, to provide medical care to the poor, the marginalized and the underprivileged Filipinos. We want to discover and re-discover our Filipino roots, this time, through the medical mission among the poor and indigenous peoples in the Philippines. In this journey to our roots, 47 people make up the medical mission group of six doctors, seven nurses, four priests and 30 volunteers.

Why among the poor? Because they are the ones most affected by the historical social health deprivations in our country. To know their health situation and to respond to their medical needs means for us, health and medical practitioners in the US, to discover and rediscover the causes of the common diseases and health problems besetting our poor people. We also would like to establish solidarity ties with the peoples and groups of the Philippines who are trying to make better our country, on the side of the poor and victims of historical and social maladies. From the perspective of medical and health care, these are the groups of professionals, medical and health care practitioners, who have developed a HOLISTIC MEDICAL CARE. They are in the poor and indigenous communities to help empower these communities in their preventive, curative and post curative phases of health and medical care. Together with these communities they have also developed native and indigenous health practices and medicines, hygiene and social and environmental health, besides making available those medicines that are produced in the market. That is why we link with the Community-Based Health Program (CBHP), Health Alliance for Democracy (HEAD), Community Medicine (COMMED) and Botica sa Barangay (literally, Drugstore of the Village). These organizations are our primary partners; hospitals are our secondary partners. These organizations are the primary partners of the Church: the Dioceses of Bacolod and Iloilo have strong CBHPs.

We do not go there for purely medical and health reasons. We go there to know the history and the situation which create the existing health and medical situation and practice in the Philippines. That is why prior to, during and after the medical mission activities, we will always have a briefing and an orientation on the history of health and medical care in the Philippines, the social and environmental causes of diseases and sickness in the Philippines, and the stage of the people’s initiatives to care for themselves, socially, economically, politically, culturally and medically or health wise. We go there with faith. We hope to develop a spirituality of holistic healing and medical care for the integrity of mind, body and soul. That is why we will have celebrations of the Eucharist; reflection and prayer sessions; integration with the community; rest, recreation and relaxation, besides being able to visit and connect and re-connect with our families.

Our Hope

With the blessing of our Most Rev. Bishop Gerald Barnes, it is our hope that the Filipino Ministry of the Diocese of San Bernardino will be able to help the Filipino Catholics in this diocese discover and re-discover their Filipino roots in a new and more profound way.

The lessons of Manzanar should be heeded today

2011-01-05T11:34:00.000-08:00

By Jeanette Arnquist
Director, Ministry of Life, Dignity and Justice

Even though I had spent most of my elementary school years in California, I had not heard of Manzanar until a friend in graduate school told me of his family’s experience there. At first I didn’t believe him. I did not believe that the United States would forcibly confine Japanese immigrants and native born US citizens of Japanese descent in the middle of the 20th century.

Manzanar is located in the Owens valley, about 250 miles from Los Angeles. Early in 1942 the United States government began to forcibly remove its Japanese residents and citizens of Japanese descent from their homes, their jobs and businesses. They were moved to what we now recognize as concentration camps. Manzanar was one of 10 such camps.

The people being moved lost everything. They were housed in quickly constructed barracks that lacked insulation and privacy. Each family got a room about the size of a 2 car garage. The camps were self sufficient, and offered services such as barber shops, laundry and hospitals. Meals were eaten in mess halls. Bathroom facilities were primitive. There was no air conditioning and whatever heat they had failed to adequately combat the winter winds.

In 1945 the camps were closed and the prisoners were allowed to return home, however, most of them had lost everything and had to start life over again. (You can learn much more with a quick Internet search.)

How could this happen? How could our parents and grandparents have sat back and watched their neighbors disappear? The answer is fear. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor in December of 1941, every Japanese or Japanese appearing person – termed the “yellow menace” - was considered too dangerous to be living in cities or towns.

Most of us felt intense fear on September 11, 2001 as we learned of the attacks and watched the horrifying images again and again. As a result of that fear, we went to war in Afghanistan and it seems that we also went to war with immigrants living in our own country.

Since 2001, the annual number of persons deported for immigration violations has doubled, raising to nearly 400,000. Sometimes a workplace is raided and many people are deported at once. Others are picked up at check points. I was moved by the story of police stopping a car because a crucifix hanging from the rear view mirror “obstructed the view.” The driver was an unauthorized immigrant so he was deported.

For the most part, those who are deported lose everything. Some are actually paying a mortgage on a house, which they lose when the payments stop. Others have less, perhaps an old car and some furniture and clothing. When they arrive back in their country of origin, they are usually destitute.

The correct term for immigrants who are here without proper documents is “unauthorized.” Most of them do possess some documents, so they are not really undocumented. The term “illegal,” which is most often used, plays on fear. It creates an image of someone who is involved in crime, someone from whom we need protection. In the interest of public safety, some say, we should rid our society of the illegals. Just like the “yellow menace.”

How can we allow history to repeat itself?

Keep the peace of Christmas all year long

2010-12-23T15:56:00.000-08:00

By Bishop Gerald R. Barnes
Diocese of San Bernardino

“Peace on earth”

Many greeting cards and signs of the Christmas season offer us this phrase, reflecting the abundance of goodwill and joy that are present at this time of year. We feel peace in our hearts and we hope that our brothers and sisters all over the globe have the same feeling. For our Church this is rooted in the tremendous joy felt when God gifted us with the earthly presence of His son, our Lord Jesus Christ. I share this joy with you and I offer you my prayers and blessings for a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

I also appeal to you that our prayers and wishes for peace extend beyond the Christmas season. Our world surely needs it on a year-round basis. As I write, there is an absence of peace in the Middle East, in Afghanistan, in Sudan, in Korea and in the drug violence that continues to plague our neighbor, Mexico. Our Christian brothers and sisters in Iraq and in the Holy Land are threatened by violence like never before. Please join me in asking God to protect and heal the victims of these conflicts and to change the hearts of those who would make war and violence. And also let us pray for the safety of our men and women in the armed forces.

Many are wishing for peace closer to home. Sometimes there is discord in our homes and families, in our relationships and within ourselves. In this way we can be in solidarity with the many in the world who seek their own kind of peace. Our God hears these cries and ignores not a one.

It has been noted often – and indeed taught to us by our Lord – that meaningful peace can only be achieved when it occurs first and foremost in our own hearts. The kind of conversion that makes the beautiful phrase “peace on earth” more of a reality happens one heart at a time.

So with 2011 fast approaching how do we keep the peaceful feeling of Christmas with us throughout the year? When we seek to encounter Jesus in our daily lives through prayer, the Eucharist and fellowship with our bothers and sisters in faith; when we seek justice for the poor and vulnerable among us through participation in the civic process; and when we show our gratitude for the many gifts God gives us by sharing our abundance with those in great need.

It is well known that the birth of our Savior did not occur in the most peaceful circumstances. The Holy Family traveled a dangerous road and met with rejection on their way to the stable where the Lord was born. Perhaps God was showing us yet again that from the midst of turmoil and unrest the Light of the World shines. As we pray (and work) for peace this year, let us carry this hopeful message in our hearts.

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.” (Colossians 3:15)

Conserven la paz de la Navidad durante todo el año

Por Obispo Gerald R. Barnes

Diócesis de San Bernardino

“Paz en la tierra”

Muchas tarjetas de Navidad y rótulos de la época navideña nos ofrecen esta frase, reflejando la abundancia de buena voluntad y alegría que se viven en este tiempo del año. Sentimos paz en nuestros corazones y esperamos que nuestros hermanos y hermanas en todo el mundo sientan lo mismo. Para nuestra Iglesia esto tiene sus raíces en la inmensa alegría que se sintió cuando Dios nos dio el regalo de la presencia terrenal de su Hijo, nuestro Señor Jesucristo. Comparto con ustedes esta alegría y les ofrezco mis bendiciones y oraciones por una Feliz navidad y un próspero Año Nuevo.

Les pido también que nuestras oraciones y deseos de paz se extiendan más allá de la temporada navideña. Ciertamente, nuestro mundo necesita de esto todo el año. Mientras escribo estas líneas, hay una falta de paz en el Medio Oriente, en Afganistán, en Sudán, en Corea y en la violencia relacionada con las drogas que azota a nuestro país vecino, México. Nuestros hermanos y hermanas cristianos en Irak y en Tierra Santa se ven amenazados por la violencia como nunca antes. Por favor únanse a mí en oración para pedir a Dios que proteja y sane a las víctimas de estos conflictos y que cambie los corazones de quienes practican guerra y violencia. Oremos también por la seguridad de nuestros hombres y mujeres en las fuerzas armadas.

Muchos desean la paz más cerca. A veces hay discordia en nuestros hogares y familias, en nuestras relaciones y dentro de nosotros mismos. De esta manera podemos estar en solidaridad con los muchos en el mundo que buscan su propio tipo de paz. Nuestro Dios escucha estos clamores y no ignora alguno.

Se ha notado a menudo – y de hecho nuestro Señor nos lo enseñó – que la paz significante sólo se puede lograr cuando ésta ocurre antes que nada en nuestros propios corazones. El tipo de conversión que hace de la hermosa frase “paz en la tierra” una mayor realidad ocurre en un corazón a la vez.

Así que, con la rápida proximidad del 2011 ¿cómo conservamos ese sentimiento de paz que trae la Navidad con nosotros durante todo el año? Cuando tratamos de encontrar a Jesús en nuestras vidas cotidianas por medio de la oración, la Eucaristía y el compartir con nuestros hermanos y hermanas en la fe; cuando procuramos la justicia para los pobres y vulnerables entre nosotros mediante nuestra participación en el proceso cívico; y cuando mostramos nuestra gratitud por los dones que Dios nos ha dado compartiendo nuestra abundancia con los más necesitados.

Es muy sabido que el nacimiento de nuestro Salvador no ocurrió en las circunstancias más tranquilas. La Sagrada Familia recorrió un camino peligroso y sufrió rechazo en su camino al pesebre donde nació el Señor. Tal vez de esta manera Dios nos mostraba una vez más que en la agitación y la zozobra brilla la Luz del Mundo. Al orar (y luchar) por la paz este año, llevemos este mensaje de esperanza en nuestros corazones.

“Que la paz de Cristo reine en sus corazones; a ella los ha llamado Dios para formar un solo cuerpo. Y sean agradecidos”. (Colosenses 3:15)

What We Catholics Can All Agree About Immigration

2010-12-20T12:04:00.000-08:00

By Rick Howick
Principal, St. Catherine of Alexandria School, Riverside

A couple of years ago, a Christian family in Iraq asked to place their child in our school under what’s called the I-20 program. They were desperate. The situation for Christians was deteriorating and they feared for his long-term safety. We met telephonically, and agreed to help them get their child to the sanctuary of our school, only to hit a terminal snag in the immigration process. I often think of that family as news of worsening conditions for Christians filter out of Iraq and I pray they find safety and peace.

At the same time, it widens for me the immigration debate we face in California. Immigration is a wonderful example of how politics and religion make a messy mixture – but mix it we must. Most of our attention is turned toward economic immigrants, especially those who have not followed the rules. Hearing of the plight of this Iraqi family, our heart strings are plucked – but seeing the hordes of economic refugees begging for work outside of the Home Depot I pass every day, something else is often triggered. So many with no work, no money, no food, desperate to integrate into their new home can be overwhelming. The call for solutions often morphs into strident shrieks from the political right or left, none of which furthers dialog on what would truly help.

It is hard for the Church to declare any specific bill the morally right solution. Those who support the Dream Act, for example, point out its help for children of undocumented immigrants who were brought here before any age of consent. Detractors talk of how “loopholes” cover so many others, or its passage encouraging others to risk coming illegally in the future. The politics of it as a practical solution is genuinely debatable. The solution, sadly, will likely be found in compromises and half-measures that politicians strike with political expediency, most of which is unsavory to those of us approaching immigration through the lens of faith – what would I do if Jesus were here?

On this, the Church should be clear. We are called to help those we find in our midst, as Lazarus was at the door of the rich man. We are called to welcome the immigrant, to feed the hungry, and to help the poor. The Final Exam question was given to us in advance (take a look again at the Judgment of the Sheep and the Goats in Matthew 25; the only questions asked can be summarized as, “when I was in need, what did you do to help me?”). Our call to help those we find in our community is clear. Our response to those who are sick, homeless, hungry or strangers should bring hope to our neighbors, and reveals clearly to our maker how completely our hearts have been turned toward him.

Our broken system was made real to me in the call I received informing me that the Iraqi family could not come. Yet so many others are here right now who face the real dangers of hunger, poverty and homelessness without real help. The politicians who genuinely care about immigrants may choose from multiple approaches to help in the future, and Christians of good will can and should debate how best to proceed in fixing the long term problem. However, Jesus is in our midst and stands in front of home depot. How will we Christians care for his needs?