Within a winter's shadow of our new cathedral rests the little parish of St. Ann, nestled in the Elysian Valley, out of sight of the hundreds of thousands of people who daily pass nearby on the Golden State Freeway. It was there on Sunday, June 1 that the multi-ethnic parish exuberantly celebrated the golden jubilee of the ordination to the priesthood of their Pastor Emeritus, Father Hugh Crowe.

I say "exuberantly" because I cannot ever remember a priest receiving such a lengthy applause as he approached the ambo, and again after he completed his few remarks, spoken without a prepared text. But there could be no doubt that the words he spoke flowed from the depths of his heart.

Father Hugh is a man of integrity, a delightfully self-effacing, humble, unobtrusive, gentle human being, a man of utter sincerity, who speaks his mind irrespective of political correctness. I often think of him as another Nathaniel, whom Jesus commended as "a man without guile."

He loves to read and keep abreast of the times political, social and ecclesiastical. He has a special love for Irish literature and drama. Many is the call, as we say in Ireland, I have received over the years to inform me of some upcoming Celtic event. Indeed his parishioners paid tribute to his Irish origin with a troupe of Irish dancers who entertained the guests at the dinner which followed the Mass.

When Father Hugh came to St. Ann's more than 20 years ago, the congregation of Anglos and Hispanics was very small. With the passing of the years the parish developed and expanded as Father Hugh welcomed new parishioners from Vietnam, Thailand and the Philippines. They all turned up for this celebration, packing the church to overflowing, bursting out on every side. How inspiring to see such an ethnically-diverse parish come together in such unity with Father Hugh and with one another.

The languages and cultures melded into a perfectly harmonious celebration, forming one Body in Christ, celebrating the presence of Christ in the Eucharist. What a witness to unity in diversity! The gracious presence of Bishop Gerald Wilkerson added another dimension to this unity by symbolizing the bond uniting the parish with the archdiocese.

The musical ensemble for the liturgy --- which began with the Celtic-flavored, "Lord of All Hopefulness" --- was composed of members of the parish Hispanic choir, the parish organist and the youth of the Marianist Schola Cantorum. The deeply touching liturgical dance and offertory procession was provided by the young Vietnamese, who carried bowls of grapes and artistically arranged sheafs of wheat, as well as flowers to place them in front of the altar. This was complemented by the exquisite singing of the Thai community to the accompaniment of a guitar. After Communion the combined Filipino choirs sang in Tagalog with their own ensemble.

Marianist Father Ted Ley, administrator, coordinated the entire musical program, choirs and musicians, creating a musical celebration to be remembered long after the sun set on this special day of jubilee. The multi-ethnic celebration was carried over to the sumptuous dinner served afterwards, where the Irish dancers provided lively entertainment after dinner.

Father Hugh is normally a shy, retiring man, yet I was amazed at how comfortable he was with everyone crowding around him, actually pushing their way to have their picture taken with him, especially young parishioners. There could be no doubt about how deeply his people love him --- and rightly so, for he has been a faithful servant to God's people, not only in the parish but beyond.

In this time of pain in our Church, a time when faithful priests had to bow their heads in shame, it was encouraging and inspiring to realize that God's People recognize the goodness of a faithful priest and are proud to show their love.

Father Padraic Loftus is pastor emeritus of St. Mel Church, Woodland Hills.