Religious jubilarians serving in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles were thanked for their "many years of fidelity to our loving God and service to God's holy people" during the annual celebration in their honor Jan. 27 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.
Some 131 women and men --- celebrating 75, 70, 60, 55, 50, 45, 40 and 25 years of ministry --- were honored at the Mass, during which their renewed their vows and recommitted themselves to serve the Church, which many have done in a variety of ways..
Sister of the Holy Faith Angela Hallahan, "involved in Church at all levels" during her 50 years as a religious, mainly wanted to say a simple "thank you to all those who have been part of my ministry and blessed my life as a Sister of the Holy Faith. I have been privileged to share my faith in education, pastoral ministry and social service." Sister Hallahan is currently coordinator of religious formation and instruction for secondary schools in the Department of Catholic Schools, and director of the Office of Health Affairs.
In his homily, Auxiliary Bishop Gerald Wilkerson thanked the jubilarians for their years of ministry, and spoke especially to women religious, calling them a "remarkable group of women who have been beaten up by the left and by the right - for moving too swiftly or too slowly. You strive to live a celibate life in a sex-crazed society which places little or no value on this sacrificial commitment.
"And despite all of this you have been pioneers blazing new pathways, forging new frontiers with few roadmaps, blueprints or role models to follow. Indeed you are truly survivors, not in the tawdry TV version of that word, but in its finest sense, mainly as women who have fought the good fight, run the difficult race and who have justifiably earned the prize."
Many, Bishop Wilkerson noted, believe that American Catholicism literally owes its life to your energy, devotion and self-less service - to "the constant 'YES' of the generations of women religious who have built the Church, sustained the Church, not through the flashy ease of brick-laying, but where it counts most, in the unsung search for, and care of, its living stones. There is hardly any apostolate of the Church in this country, be it chancery or classroom, healthcare or homeless shelter, parish or prison, that wouldn't collapse in seconds, were it not for the gifts of your presence and commitment.
"For American Catholicism you have been our heart and soul, brains and backbone, the finest exemplars of our compassion, our competence, our integrity and our credibility. Far too often, for all you do, we have failed to appreciate you as you deserve. For time and again, you have shown a knack for making the impossible happen."
Family support
Twenty-three Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet celebrate jubilees in 2008, from 50 to 75 years. Sister Cecilia Joseph Wight, who grew up growing up in St. Dominic Parish, Eagle Rock, and attended Catholic Girls' (Conaty) High School, has ministered in education and healthcare in California and Arizona for 70 years --- this after her mother thought, "She won't stay the week."
Later on, her mom "was proud to say she had a daughter in the community," said Sister Wight. In fact, her mother would often assist those entering the convent as they purchased what they needed, and often said that she "didn't lose a daughter but gained many more."
"It has been a wonderful experience and, in a certain way, an adventure," noted Sister Margaret Callahan, another 70-year CSJ jubilarian. "There's a richness in the adjustment and change. We appreciate that." She recently retired after years in education, as a bi-lingual secretary and in hospital pastoral care, and now lives at Carondelet Center.
Sister of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Joan Condon, a 50-year jubilarian, looks back on her days in education with great fondness. A graduate of Holy Family High School in Glendale, Sister Condon was a primary school teacher for close to 20 years and has continued to teach religious education for most of her years as a BVM.
"I always enjoyed teaching children," she said. "It has been my privilege to help children know God and his son Jesus and to realize how important they are to him, how important it is to stay close to God and be aware of the need to help others."
At one point in her religious life Sister Condon ministered in home health care for those recently released from Santa Teresita Skilled Nursing Care. She continues to teach religious education.
Another golden jubilarian, Capuchin Franciscan Brother Pius Higgins, has taught religious education, been in charge of Boy Scouts, worked in hospital chaplaincy and with vocations, taught at St. Francis High School and done retreat work. Today he is guardian of the Capuchin student house in Berkley. The native of Cork City, Ireland, was impressed with the jubilee celebration.
"I think this is beautiful and it comes at a time when the Church needs a shot in the arm," he said. "It just makes you proud to be who you are in the Church." As a Capuchin, Brother Pius says, "I've grown more and more in love with it each day. And seeing the caliber of young people we have coming to us today is really great. So to me the future looks good."
Fellow Irish-born Capuchin Father Brian McKenna had a unique experience on the day he entered the order. As he walked into the novitiate he saw his twin brother, Jude, who unknown to him was also joining the Capuchins. Father Jude now serves in Zambia, as a missionary and, said his brother, is called the "Father of Zambian Judo" because of his work with street children, training them in martial arts and helping them get jobs.
Father Brian, meanwhile, is a chaplain at Vandenberg Air Force Base and in residence at Mission Santa Ines, Solvang. The brothers were ordained on June 1, their mother's birthday ("She was very instrumental in bringing it all about"), and "even though we are continents apart we have always been very close," said Father Brian. "We share the same kinds of work. You choose the things you love and in the end you become what you love."
This year five religious communities were recognized as they celebrated significant anniversaries: Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (175 years); Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth (150 years); Franciscan Sisters of the Sacred Heart and Franciscan Sisters of Penance and Christian Charity (100 years each); and Father Kolbe Missionaries of the Immaculata (25 years). |