This Week: St. Anne

“Solomon's Ascent in Humility and Fall in Pride”  –Fr. Stephen McKenna

The Bishop’s Note
There are so many things to write about this week that limiting myself to the allotted space will be difficult. Mexico really is as dangerous a place as you hear about in the news because of drug trafficking and cartel wars. Because there is so much corruption in the government and police force Mexico has become a bit like the Wild West. Some police officers work as law enforcement during the day but act as cartel members at night. Major highways are unsafe, and even in the safest towns in Mexico, residents told me they are cautious and avoid going out after a certain hour.

Fr. Siordia, who was ordained by Bishop Dolan in Sharonville in 1997 and worked here for a little bit after ordination, owns the oldest church in Cocoyoc (it was built in 1585), which possesses the miraculous image of Our Lord of the Expiration. There is one Cartel killing per day in Cocoyoc! Father has to deal with this constantly. One of his neighbors is a car-tel leader. Father, being the good pastor that he is, does not hesitate to speak about the evils of participating in that kind of life when it becomes necessary. As a result, they have actually tried to kill him! Still, Father stays cheerful and goes about his apostolate as if there were no problems in the world. That was highly edifying to me. I suppose once a person has per-formed as many exorcisms and seen as many cases of diabolic possession as he has, there is nothing else that can frighten him. Please keep him in your prayers.

My visit to Fr. Siordia’s chapel was most pleasant. His church, though old, is kept immaculately clean. His altar servers were well trained. His choir sings very beautifully. His people are so very loyal and look out for his safety. I have the impression that the people trust him very much. There were a few First Holy Communions and 25 Confirmations in Cocoyoc—including one young lady who is from northern Alabama!

I took a day trip to San Jose Church in a suburb of Mexico City, where Fr. Roberto Mardones has a very beautiful church owned by a wealthy family. The church and the rest of the property are most impressive with their green gardens, elegant walls, and fancy decorations. There were 7 Confirmations at San Jose. Father, as you know, has had a lot of health issues, recently losing a leg because of diabetes. Still, he says daily Mass seated in a wheelchair, hears the people’s confessions, and does as much as he can. Father attended my Mass, meanwhile directing
the servers from his position close to the Gospel side of the altar, and helped with Confirmations as well. Father and his parishioners were most welcoming. I only wish I could have stayed longer to visit with them, but we had to hurry back to Cocoyoc before it got too late.

The other stop was to Dos Ríos, where Fr. Martín Gomez works. The area is very verdant and nestled in a mountainous region. Father is very poor, but he works hard to save up enough money to maintain and improve his church. He goes door to door asking for alms. Those who do not have money to give offer to do work at the church instead. Some of the ladies got together and collected items to recycle, thus gaining a little extra money for the patronal feast. Father proudly told me that he has earned the nickname “Basurero” among the people of the village. Imagine the surprise when I learned that basurero means “scavenger!” That was probably one of the funniest things I heard on this trip! There were a number of First Holy Communions and about 40 Confirmations at his church.

This was truly one of the best trips to Mexico. The priests all say there is so much work to do—so many souls to save, so many churches to take care of—but there aren’t any vocations. This is the same thing that Our Lord complained of during His time: The harvest is great, but the laborers are few. The priests whom I met are already well-seasoned veterans, and are beginning to wonder who is going to continue their work. They wonder, but they are confident that Our Lord will provide. Pray for vocations.

As nice as this trip was, there is no place like home. It is so great to be back to St. Gertrude’s. Unfortunately, I will be gone on vacation beginning mid-week and will be back before the next Fatima Rosary procession. The rest of the year is booked up with trips to do Confirmations in the Texas missions, as well as Milwaukee and our other missions in Illinois, Wisconsin and North Dakota, a trip to the Philippines in late September, and another trip to Mexico. It is good to have such capable clergy here at St. Gertrude’s. I never have to worry about being gone since they do such a wonderful job of looking after things.

– Bishop McGuire

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