The Bishop’s Note
It is a beautiful autumn Friday morning as I write this. All is quiet and calm before the opening of our annual Forty Hours Devotion this evening. Judy is cleaning the priests’ offices and Sr. Eulalia and Fr. Brueggemann are peacefully preparing everything in the sacristy while Sr. Regina and her sister Jacinta are making flower arrangements in Helfta Hall. Our hardworking “Martha’s” are working peacefully and orderly, not with a lot of worry and rushing about. It is quite edifying and sets the tone for a wonderful Forty Hours with Our Eucharistic King.
Poor Fr. Lehtoranta has come down with a cold, but continues to soldier on in spite of it. Tis the season! Fr. McKenna is in Milwaukee this weekend to take care of the good souls at St. Hugh of Lincoln.
Christ is King and every king has his soldiers to defend his royal rights and those of the kingdom. Fourteen new Soldiers of Jesus Christ were made last weekend in the New England area. I confirmed one young lady at Our Lady of the Rosary in Monroe, Connecticut, where Fr. Adan Rodriguez of the Company of Jesus and Mary is pastor. Then, the following day at Sacred Heart Church in Lawrence, Massachusetts, another thirteen were confirmed. Fr. Richards of the Company of Jesus and Mary is the pastor at that church. Br. Gerard has done a fine job fixing up the old church which now looks beautiful. Each time I go there I find some new additions or new projects going on. Br. Jerome is helping to build a little monastery about a half hour away from the church. It is a nice area for retreats and whatnot. If you are interested in seeing Sacred Heart Church and pictures of the ceremonies you can view them on our website, sgg.org.
Two of our seminarians have been quite ill as of late. José Santos Casas has a large blood clot from his leg to near his heart and is now on blood thinners. While he was in the hospital they also found something that might be cancerous. However, they cannot do a biopsy until he is off the blood thinners. He will return to Spain to receive proper treatment. William Suhrie came down with a very severe respiratory illness and has been sick for some time now, unable to attend classes. He, too, will return home temporarily. The other three seminarians, two of whom are from St. Gertrude’s (Alfonso Capetillo and Christopher Brueggemann), are doing quite well and are persevering in their studies. Mr. Brueggemann is scheduled to receive the cassock on the feast of the Immaculate Conception.
This feast of Christ the King is so very important for us these days in which seemingly everyone has abandoned Him and has joined the camps of His enemies, actively fighting against Him. We few true Catholics must be faithful to the bitter end. We may lose friends and family because of our loyalty to Christ. We may feel isolated at times. Those who fight valiantly and give their allegiance to Christ the King will, in the end, receive a crown in His glorious kingdom of Heaven. Mary, our Queen, keep us loyal to your Son. St. Michael the Archangel, first champion of the Kingship of Christ, pray for us!
– Bishop McGuire