Mother Dolores Hart feels very comfortable taking pictures of the visitor with her professional digital camera.
“I want to take pictures of all the people who interview me because it’s the only way to show the sisters what I have been doing,” she smiles while she puts away her Canon.
What she has been doing? It would be an understatement to say she has been an agent of change wherever she has gone:
—Tip-toeing into theater projection rooms at the age of eight, where she watched movies over and over on weekends while being paid a nickel to wake up her grandfather, who worked as a reel operator, minutes before the movie was over;
—Becoming a young Hollywood actress-turned-cloistered Benedictine nun;
—And finally, being named dean of Education at the Abbey of Regina Laudis in Bethlehem, Connecticut.
During most of her 75 years, she says, she has been developing her acting and directing skills. She “desperately” wanted to become an actress, and when she became one with a promising future, she also learned the “behind the scenes” aspects of the business at a young age, including how to shoot a close-up or a double head shot — not your standard “starlet” pursuits in the late 1950s and early 1960s.
“I could have ended up directing movies,” she says matter-of-factly during an interview with The Tidings on a warm June afternoon at the Pauline Media Center in Culver City.
But at 25, Dolores Hart (nee Hicks) took another route and entered a monastery. The path was not easy, but it was revealing and reassuring.
A half century later, Mother Dolores is sharing her life in her autobiography, “The Ear of the Heart: An Actress’ Journey from Hollywood to Holy Vows,” co-written with Richard DeNeut and published by Ignatius Press.
‘We have to stay upbeat’Throughout the years, Mother Dolores grew into a pro-active director within her community, which led to a renewal of the formation process, despite opposition of members attached to pre-Vatican II procedures.
“I believed very strongly that things had to happen to help youth come in,” she noted, “and I wrote a letter to the Abbess giving her the points of what should be done.”
At the core of it was changing the “old practice” of silence, of not sharing personal painful life issues.
“We have to stay upbeat,” she told the Abbess. If the community continued with old practices, “it will never work with the new generations,” she wrote.
“You have to have freedom about what you have in your heart,” she told The Tidings. “Allow people to share whatever they have in their mind. Every person has different ways of viewing things; a different angle and possibilities.”
In her years of contemplative life she came to the realization that there cannot be a separation of the person and her past. “Everyone [entering a religious community] brings what they have with them,” she declared. “You don’t leave it at the gate.”
Dolores Hart had brought sizable baggage (and, at first, some paparazzi) with her to the community, and not just because she was the first girl who kissed Elvis Presley on the big screen. She was born to a young couple from Chicago who seemed to never figure out how to live together and raise their child.
Thus, Dolores was raised by her grandparents, who provided a safe environment and a certain stability, while both parents became alcoholics and went through several divorces. In a way, she admits, becoming an actress fulfilled her parents’ [frustrated] dream, especially her father’s, who had short stints as a Hollywood actor.
She envisioned herself having her own family, but that idea rivaled with the call to a religious life.
“Vocation came to me because I was an actress and was given a tremendous advantage and God said, ‘Now you are really going to be an actress.’”
Then she learned that “monastic way of living has a more incarnational dimension and sexuality is not limited to the genital experience, but part of the development of the whole person.”
It is expressed, she said, through development of capacities and creativity, of skills and gifts.
As an example, she cited the new Abbey’s church, built by three sisters in 1994. Then there is Mother Anastasia, a blacksmith who did all the iron work in the church, and now teaches children. Another sister is a candle maker, another the gardener, still another the photographer, and so on.
The key to developing a healthy spiritual life that could lead to discerning one’s vocation, she asserted, “is to listen. Listen what young people are saying and finding in their own lives.”
She recalls the time spent on film sets with Pat Barto, a costume designer who helped her gain self-confidence and offer tips for life.
Then she reflects on her vocation and the “other dimension,” eternity. “God gives you back your body after you die. He will give me back the body of an actress for eternity.”
She smiles. “I wonder what roles are waiting for me in eternity.”
For more information about “The Ear of the Heart: An Actress’ Journey from Hollywood to Holy Vows,” visit www.earoftheheart.com.
domenica 21 luglio 2013
Pope clears the way to canonize John Paul II, John XXIII
Pope Francis signed a decree clearing the way for the canonization of Blessed John Paul II and has decided also to ask the world's cardinals to vote on the canonization of Blessed John XXIII, even in the absence of a miracle.
After Pope Francis met July 5 with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints' Causes, the Vatican published a list of decrees the pope approved related to Blessed John Paul's canonization and 11 other sainthood causes.
Publishing the decrees, the Vatican also said, "The supreme pontiff approved the favorable votes of the ordinary session of the cardinal- and bishop-fathers regarding the canonization of Blessed John XXIII (Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli) and has decided to convoke a consistory that will also involve the canonization of Blessed John Paul II."
Normally, after a pope signs a decree recognizing the miracle needed for a canonization, the pope consults with cardinals around the world and calls a consistory — a gathering attended by any cardinal who wants and is able to attend — where those present voice their support for the pope's decision to proclaim a new saint.
A date for a canonization ceremony is announced formally only during or immediately after the consistory.
The cardinals and archbishops who are members of the saints' congregation met at the Vatican July 2 and voted in favor of the pope recognizing as a miracle the healing of Floribeth Mora Diaz, a Costa Rican who was suffering from a brain aneurysm and recovered after prayers through the intercession of Blessed John Paul.
The congregation members, according to news reports, also looked at the cause of Blessed John and voted to ask Pope Francis to canonize him without requiring a miracle. According to church rules — established by the pope and subject to changes by him — a miracle is needed after beatification to make a candidate eligible for canonization.
Jesuit Father Paolo Molinari, the longtime head of the College of Postulators — or promoters of sainthood causes — has explained that in the sainthood process, miracles are "the confirmation by God of a judgment made by human beings" that the candidate really is in heaven.
But, Father Molinari also has said that for decades theologians have explored the possibility that such a confirmation could come by means other than someone experiencing a physical healing. For instance, Blessed John Paul beatified Victoire Rasoamanarivo in Madagascar in 1989 after accepting as a miracle the case of a wind-swept brush fire stopping at the edge of a village whose inhabitants invoked her intercession.
Announcing the decision about Blessed John's cause, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, said the discussions about the need for miracles and what can be defined as an acceptable miracle continue. However, he said, the movement in the late pope's cause does not indicate a general change in church policy.
The members of the Congregation for Saints' Causes "have expressed their hope, and the Holy Father has accepted it," Father Lombardi said. If Pope Francis "had any doubts, we wouldn't be here" announcing the consistory to approve Blessed John's canonization.
"As we all know very well, John XXIII is a person beloved in the church. We are in the 50th anniversary year of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, which he convoked. And I think none of us has any doubts about John XXIII's virtues," the spokesman said. "So, the Holy Father is looking toward his canonization."
Father Lombardi also noted that no date for a canonization ceremony was announced, but it is likely that the two popes will be canonized together, possibly "by the end of the year."
In a July 5 statement, New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said: "I know that today's news has gladdened the hearts of the faithful throughout the world, just as it did for me."
Cardinal Dolan said that by convening Vatican II, "Pope John XXIII helped present the timeless teaching of Jesus and his church in the modern age. And, Pope John Paul II helped to bring that teaching to every corner of the globe, as a tireless missionary for the faith."
—CNS
After Pope Francis met July 5 with Cardinal Angelo Amato, prefect of the Congregation for Saints' Causes, the Vatican published a list of decrees the pope approved related to Blessed John Paul's canonization and 11 other sainthood causes.
Publishing the decrees, the Vatican also said, "The supreme pontiff approved the favorable votes of the ordinary session of the cardinal- and bishop-fathers regarding the canonization of Blessed John XXIII (Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli) and has decided to convoke a consistory that will also involve the canonization of Blessed John Paul II."
Normally, after a pope signs a decree recognizing the miracle needed for a canonization, the pope consults with cardinals around the world and calls a consistory — a gathering attended by any cardinal who wants and is able to attend — where those present voice their support for the pope's decision to proclaim a new saint.
A date for a canonization ceremony is announced formally only during or immediately after the consistory.
The cardinals and archbishops who are members of the saints' congregation met at the Vatican July 2 and voted in favor of the pope recognizing as a miracle the healing of Floribeth Mora Diaz, a Costa Rican who was suffering from a brain aneurysm and recovered after prayers through the intercession of Blessed John Paul.
The congregation members, according to news reports, also looked at the cause of Blessed John and voted to ask Pope Francis to canonize him without requiring a miracle. According to church rules — established by the pope and subject to changes by him — a miracle is needed after beatification to make a candidate eligible for canonization.
Jesuit Father Paolo Molinari, the longtime head of the College of Postulators — or promoters of sainthood causes — has explained that in the sainthood process, miracles are "the confirmation by God of a judgment made by human beings" that the candidate really is in heaven.
But, Father Molinari also has said that for decades theologians have explored the possibility that such a confirmation could come by means other than someone experiencing a physical healing. For instance, Blessed John Paul beatified Victoire Rasoamanarivo in Madagascar in 1989 after accepting as a miracle the case of a wind-swept brush fire stopping at the edge of a village whose inhabitants invoked her intercession.
Announcing the decision about Blessed John's cause, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, said the discussions about the need for miracles and what can be defined as an acceptable miracle continue. However, he said, the movement in the late pope's cause does not indicate a general change in church policy.
The members of the Congregation for Saints' Causes "have expressed their hope, and the Holy Father has accepted it," Father Lombardi said. If Pope Francis "had any doubts, we wouldn't be here" announcing the consistory to approve Blessed John's canonization.
"As we all know very well, John XXIII is a person beloved in the church. We are in the 50th anniversary year of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, which he convoked. And I think none of us has any doubts about John XXIII's virtues," the spokesman said. "So, the Holy Father is looking toward his canonization."
Father Lombardi also noted that no date for a canonization ceremony was announced, but it is likely that the two popes will be canonized together, possibly "by the end of the year."
In a July 5 statement, New York Cardinal Timothy Dolan, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, said: "I know that today's news has gladdened the hearts of the faithful throughout the world, just as it did for me."
Cardinal Dolan said that by convening Vatican II, "Pope John XXIII helped present the timeless teaching of Jesus and his church in the modern age. And, Pope John Paul II helped to bring that teaching to every corner of the globe, as a tireless missionary for the faith."
—CNS
Local World Youth Day pilgrims gather for blessing and send-off
Nearly 80 pilgrims from churches and schools across the Archdiocese of Los Angeles will be among the 2 million faithful from all corners of the globe expected to be on hand for World Youth Day (WYD) 2013, scheduled July 23-28 in Rio de Janeiro.
Many of the local youth and young adults preparing for the upcoming journey attended the 10 a.m. Mass on July 7 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles to receive a special blessing and message from Cathedral pastor Msgr. Kevin Kostelnik about WYD, which will be the first such celebration led by Pope Francis.
Sharing the pope’s advice to WYD pilgrims, Msgr. Kostelnik said in his homily: “Prepare yourselves well, especially spiritually, in your communities, so that the encounter may be a sign of faith for the entire world. The youth must announce to the world: it is good to follow Jesus. The youth must announce to the world: it is good to go with Jesus.”
At the close of Mass, the pilgrims gathered at the foot of the sanctuary to receive their blessing.
“My brothers and sisters, as you set out, remind yourselves of the reasons you’re going on this holy pilgrimage,” urged Msgr. Kostelnik. “Go to be strengthened in the Christian way of life, and become more determined to devote yourselves to works of charity.
“God, remain with your servants on this pilgrimage. Guide their way…shelter them with your protection by day, and give them the light of your grace by night,” he continued. “Grow in faith in Rio de Janeiro, and bring your witness of faith home to the City of the Angels.”
Josue Villagomez, young adult ministry leader at Our Lady of Victory Church in Compton and WYD coordinator for the parish, did exactly that after attending WYD 2011 in Spain. Upon his return Villagomez launched a much-needed young adult ministry group at Our Lady of Victory, and went on to share his WYD experience with fellow group members.
“It was just an amazing experience going to Madrid,” he recalled. “Being with people from all over the world, you see how the church is just so universal and so diverse. I just wanted to bring that experience back home to Compton.”
Fellow parishioner and first-time WYD pilgrim Liliana Duran hopes to recreate that experience for herself, and looks forward to “seeing people from so many countries and cultures — with whom we share the same faith — all come together for one same purpose.”
“If there are so many of us, it must be because we are doing something right,” she said. “My expectation is to see the passion that we all have for our faith and feel the love of God.”
At press time, youth, young adults, and chaperones from eight archdiocesan churches and/or schools — as well as several members of the local Jesuit community — were slated to make the journey to Rio. The parishes include: Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Downey (18 pilgrims); Our Lady of Victory, Compton, and St. Philip Neri, Lynwood (eight combined); St. Clare, Santa Clarita (nine); St. Dorothy, Glendora (13); St. Lawrence of Brindisi, Los Angeles (eight); and Visitation, Westchester (four), plus 17 sponsored by the Congregation of St. Joseph from Paraclete High School and Blessed Junípero Serra Church in Lancaster. More than half of the pilgrims participated in the blessing ceremony at the Cathedral.
Julie Bosdachin, liturgy director at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church and WYD coordinator, will be leading her third WYD group in Brazil. She described the preparation process as both exciting and bonding for the young people readying for the journey.
“Over the last couple of years they have been preparing for this special week with the pope in Rio,” she said. “They have been excited, they have been praying, they have been fundraising — they have become a family. They are so anxious to spread that love to the people in Rio.”
Jessa Mine De O Campos, who will be among the 18 OLPH pilgrims making the trip to Brazil, said she hopes to relive her previous positive experiences from WYD 2011 in Madrid.
“It’s an amazing experience, because you see everybody around you chanting a song or praying, and just being loud and proud of their faith, and it’s so encouraging and motivating, and you fall more and more in love with your religion,” she said. “What I’m looking forward to in Rio is reliving that moment, those emotions, feeling that belief and that power.”
Alexander Bosdachin, who also attended WYD in 2011, is excited about “being surrounded by 2 million other young people that have the same love for and faith in Catholicism.”
“It’s really nice to see everybody praying in their own languages and cultures, to see how they share the same Catholic faith in different parts of the world,” he said.
Pope John Paul II initiated World Youth Day (WYD) in 1985 as a special gathering for young Catholics around the world. WYD is observed annually at the diocesan level, and is celebrated at the international level every two or three years at different locations.
WYD 2013 in Brazil — themed “Go and make disciples of all nations” — will present opening ceremonies, catechetical sessions with participating bishops, Stations of the Cross, a walking pilgrimage, afternoon/evening shows, music and prayer.
Many of the local youth and young adults preparing for the upcoming journey attended the 10 a.m. Mass on July 7 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles to receive a special blessing and message from Cathedral pastor Msgr. Kevin Kostelnik about WYD, which will be the first such celebration led by Pope Francis.
Sharing the pope’s advice to WYD pilgrims, Msgr. Kostelnik said in his homily: “Prepare yourselves well, especially spiritually, in your communities, so that the encounter may be a sign of faith for the entire world. The youth must announce to the world: it is good to follow Jesus. The youth must announce to the world: it is good to go with Jesus.”
At the close of Mass, the pilgrims gathered at the foot of the sanctuary to receive their blessing.
“My brothers and sisters, as you set out, remind yourselves of the reasons you’re going on this holy pilgrimage,” urged Msgr. Kostelnik. “Go to be strengthened in the Christian way of life, and become more determined to devote yourselves to works of charity.
“God, remain with your servants on this pilgrimage. Guide their way…shelter them with your protection by day, and give them the light of your grace by night,” he continued. “Grow in faith in Rio de Janeiro, and bring your witness of faith home to the City of the Angels.”
Josue Villagomez, young adult ministry leader at Our Lady of Victory Church in Compton and WYD coordinator for the parish, did exactly that after attending WYD 2011 in Spain. Upon his return Villagomez launched a much-needed young adult ministry group at Our Lady of Victory, and went on to share his WYD experience with fellow group members.
“It was just an amazing experience going to Madrid,” he recalled. “Being with people from all over the world, you see how the church is just so universal and so diverse. I just wanted to bring that experience back home to Compton.”
Fellow parishioner and first-time WYD pilgrim Liliana Duran hopes to recreate that experience for herself, and looks forward to “seeing people from so many countries and cultures — with whom we share the same faith — all come together for one same purpose.”
“If there are so many of us, it must be because we are doing something right,” she said. “My expectation is to see the passion that we all have for our faith and feel the love of God.”
At press time, youth, young adults, and chaperones from eight archdiocesan churches and/or schools — as well as several members of the local Jesuit community — were slated to make the journey to Rio. The parishes include: Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Downey (18 pilgrims); Our Lady of Victory, Compton, and St. Philip Neri, Lynwood (eight combined); St. Clare, Santa Clarita (nine); St. Dorothy, Glendora (13); St. Lawrence of Brindisi, Los Angeles (eight); and Visitation, Westchester (four), plus 17 sponsored by the Congregation of St. Joseph from Paraclete High School and Blessed Junípero Serra Church in Lancaster. More than half of the pilgrims participated in the blessing ceremony at the Cathedral.
Julie Bosdachin, liturgy director at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church and WYD coordinator, will be leading her third WYD group in Brazil. She described the preparation process as both exciting and bonding for the young people readying for the journey.
“Over the last couple of years they have been preparing for this special week with the pope in Rio,” she said. “They have been excited, they have been praying, they have been fundraising — they have become a family. They are so anxious to spread that love to the people in Rio.”
Jessa Mine De O Campos, who will be among the 18 OLPH pilgrims making the trip to Brazil, said she hopes to relive her previous positive experiences from WYD 2011 in Madrid.
“It’s an amazing experience, because you see everybody around you chanting a song or praying, and just being loud and proud of their faith, and it’s so encouraging and motivating, and you fall more and more in love with your religion,” she said. “What I’m looking forward to in Rio is reliving that moment, those emotions, feeling that belief and that power.”
Alexander Bosdachin, who also attended WYD in 2011, is excited about “being surrounded by 2 million other young people that have the same love for and faith in Catholicism.”
“It’s really nice to see everybody praying in their own languages and cultures, to see how they share the same Catholic faith in different parts of the world,” he said.
Pope John Paul II initiated World Youth Day (WYD) in 1985 as a special gathering for young Catholics around the world. WYD is observed annually at the diocesan level, and is celebrated at the international level every two or three years at different locations.
WYD 2013 in Brazil — themed “Go and make disciples of all nations” — will present opening ceremonies, catechetical sessions with participating bishops, Stations of the Cross, a walking pilgrimage, afternoon/evening shows, music and prayer.
Pope calls for repentance over treatment of migrants
Before saying a word publicly, Pope Francis made the sign of the cross and tossed a wreath of white and yellow flowers into the Mediterranean Sea in memory of the estimated 20,000 African immigrants who have died in the past 25 years trying to reach a new life in Europe.
Just a few hours before Pope Francis arrived on the Italian island of Lampedusa July 8, the Italian coast guard accompanied another boat carrying immigrants to the island's port.
The 165 immigrants, one of whom said they were originally from Mali, had spent two days at sea making the crossing from North Africa; the immigrants were accompanied to a government reception center, a locked facility where 112 people — half under the age of 18 — already were being housed. Most will be repatriated, although a few may receive refugee status.
In his homily at an outdoor Mass, Pope Francis said he decided to visit Lampedusa, a small island with a population of 6,000 and just 70 miles from Tunisia, after seeing newspaper headlines in June describing the drowning of immigrants at sea.
"Those boats, instead of being a means of hope, were a means of death," he said.
Wearing purple vestments, like those used during Lent, and using the prayers from the Mass for the Forgiveness of Sins, Pope Francis said the deaths of the immigrants are "like a thorn in the heart," which spurred him to offer public prayers for them, but also to try to awaken people's consciences.
"Today no one feels responsible for this," he said. "We have lost a sense of fraternal responsibility" and are acting like those in the Gospel who saw the man who had been beaten, robbed and left on the road half dead, but they kept walking. The culture of well-being, which leads us to think only of ourselves, makes us insensitive to the cries of others."
Still, the pope praised the many Lampedusa residents, as well as the volunteers and public security officers who do what they can to help the migrants who reach their shores.
Traditionally fishers and tourism operators, the people of Lampedusa have spent decades dealing with the impact of immigrant arrivals and political battles over immigration policies.
When the seas are calm, especially when there are wars and political upheaval in northern Africa, the desperate pay traffickers to give them a place on a boat bound for Europe. Usually the boats are rickety and dangerously overcrowded.
After getting off the coast guard boat that took him to sea, Pope Francis personally greeted more than 50 immigrants. One of them, speaking in Arabic, told the pope that he and his fellow travelers had dealt with several traffickers before reaching Italy.
Pope Francis told the crowd at Mass that the traffickers "exploit the poverty of others" and are "people for whom the poverty of others is a source of income."
The Mass was filled with reminders that Lampedusa is now synonymous with dangerous attempts to reach Europe: the altar was built over a small boat; the pastoral staff the pope used was carved from wood recycled from a shipwrecked boat; the lectern was made from old wood as well and had a ship's wheel mounted on the front; and even the chalice — although lined with silver — was carved from the wood of a wrecked boat.
"Let us ask the Lord for the grace to weep over our indifference, to weep over the cruelty in the world, in ourselves, and even in those who anonymously make socio-economic decisions that open the way to tragedies like this," Pope Francis said.
The United Nations has criticized Italy for conditions at the Lampedusa reception center, which it says can hold 190 people. The United Nations also has questioned the quick pace of Italian processing, which sees only a handful of immigrants being given refugee status and the rest being flown back to Libya — the usual embarkation point — within a matter of days.
At the same time, other European countries have complained that Italy does not patrol the European borders well enough to keep out immigrants who do not have legal permission to enter their countries.
Giusi Nicolini, Lampedusa's mayor, told reporters he hoped Pope Francis' visit would "change history. Europe, with its migration policies, has avoided the problem up until now, pretending not to see the immense tragedy of the voyages of hope across the Mediterranean."
The pope, she said, "has made the invisible visible, restoring to the migrants the dignity which countries always have denied them."
— Catholic News Service
Just a few hours before Pope Francis arrived on the Italian island of Lampedusa July 8, the Italian coast guard accompanied another boat carrying immigrants to the island's port.
The 165 immigrants, one of whom said they were originally from Mali, had spent two days at sea making the crossing from North Africa; the immigrants were accompanied to a government reception center, a locked facility where 112 people — half under the age of 18 — already were being housed. Most will be repatriated, although a few may receive refugee status.
In his homily at an outdoor Mass, Pope Francis said he decided to visit Lampedusa, a small island with a population of 6,000 and just 70 miles from Tunisia, after seeing newspaper headlines in June describing the drowning of immigrants at sea.
"Those boats, instead of being a means of hope, were a means of death," he said.
Wearing purple vestments, like those used during Lent, and using the prayers from the Mass for the Forgiveness of Sins, Pope Francis said the deaths of the immigrants are "like a thorn in the heart," which spurred him to offer public prayers for them, but also to try to awaken people's consciences.
"Today no one feels responsible for this," he said. "We have lost a sense of fraternal responsibility" and are acting like those in the Gospel who saw the man who had been beaten, robbed and left on the road half dead, but they kept walking. The culture of well-being, which leads us to think only of ourselves, makes us insensitive to the cries of others."
Still, the pope praised the many Lampedusa residents, as well as the volunteers and public security officers who do what they can to help the migrants who reach their shores.
Traditionally fishers and tourism operators, the people of Lampedusa have spent decades dealing with the impact of immigrant arrivals and political battles over immigration policies.
When the seas are calm, especially when there are wars and political upheaval in northern Africa, the desperate pay traffickers to give them a place on a boat bound for Europe. Usually the boats are rickety and dangerously overcrowded.
After getting off the coast guard boat that took him to sea, Pope Francis personally greeted more than 50 immigrants. One of them, speaking in Arabic, told the pope that he and his fellow travelers had dealt with several traffickers before reaching Italy.
Pope Francis told the crowd at Mass that the traffickers "exploit the poverty of others" and are "people for whom the poverty of others is a source of income."
The Mass was filled with reminders that Lampedusa is now synonymous with dangerous attempts to reach Europe: the altar was built over a small boat; the pastoral staff the pope used was carved from wood recycled from a shipwrecked boat; the lectern was made from old wood as well and had a ship's wheel mounted on the front; and even the chalice — although lined with silver — was carved from the wood of a wrecked boat.
"Let us ask the Lord for the grace to weep over our indifference, to weep over the cruelty in the world, in ourselves, and even in those who anonymously make socio-economic decisions that open the way to tragedies like this," Pope Francis said.
The United Nations has criticized Italy for conditions at the Lampedusa reception center, which it says can hold 190 people. The United Nations also has questioned the quick pace of Italian processing, which sees only a handful of immigrants being given refugee status and the rest being flown back to Libya — the usual embarkation point — within a matter of days.
At the same time, other European countries have complained that Italy does not patrol the European borders well enough to keep out immigrants who do not have legal permission to enter their countries.
Giusi Nicolini, Lampedusa's mayor, told reporters he hoped Pope Francis' visit would "change history. Europe, with its migration policies, has avoided the problem up until now, pretending not to see the immense tragedy of the voyages of hope across the Mediterranean."
The pope, she said, "has made the invisible visible, restoring to the migrants the dignity which countries always have denied them."
— Catholic News Service
Salvation by faith: ‘Recognizing the primacy of God's gift’
Pope Francis' first encyclical, "Lumen Fidei" ("The Light of Faith"), is a celebration of Christian faith as the guiding light of a "successful and fruitful life," inspiring social action as well as devotion to God, and illuminating "every aspect of human existence," including philosophy and the natural sciences.
The document, released July 5, completes a papal trilogy on the three "theological virtues," following Pope Benedict XVI's encyclicals "Deus Caritas Est" (2005) on charity and "Spe Salvi" (2007) on hope. Publication of the encyclical was one of the most awaited events of the Year of Faith which began in October 2012.
Pope Benedict "had almost completed a first draft of an encyclical on faith" before his retirement in February 2013, Pope Francis writes, adding that "I have taken up his fine work and added a few contributions of my own."
Commentators will likely differ in attributing specific passages, but the document clearly recalls the writings of Pope Benedict in its extensive treatment of the dialogue between faith and reason and its many citations of St. Augustine, not to mention references to Friedrich Nietzsche and Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
On other hand, warnings of the dangers of idolatry, Gnosticism and Pharisaism, a closing prayer to Mary as the "perfect icon of faith," and an entire section on the relevance of faith to earthly justice and peace echo themes that Pope Francis has already made signatures of his young pontificate.
"Lumen Fidei" begins with a brief survey of the biblical history of faith, starting with God's call to Abraham to leave his land — "the beginning of an exodus which points him to an uncertain future" — and God's promise that Abraham will be "father of a great nation."
The Bible also illustrates how men and women break faith with God by worshipping substitutes for him.
"Idols exist, we begin to see, as a pretext for setting ourselves at the center of reality and worshipping the work of our own hands," the pope writes. "Once man has lost the fundamental orientation which unifies his existence, he breaks down into the multiplicity of his desires ... Idolatry, then, is always polytheism, an aimless passing from one lord to another."
Pope Francis sees another way of turning from God in the Pharisees' belief that salvation is possible through good works alone.
"Those who live this way, who want to be the source of their own righteousness, find that the latter is soon depleted and that they are unable even to keep the law," the pope writes. "Salvation by faith means recognizing the primacy of God's gift."
Faith finds its fulfillment in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the pope writes. By virtue of his humanity, Jesus is both the object of faith and the ultimate model and mediator for all believers.
"Christ is not simply the one in whom we believe, the supreme manifestation of God's love," Pope Francis writes. "He is also the one with whom we are united precisely in order to believe. Faith does not merely gaze at Jesus, but sees things as Jesus himself sees them, with his own eyes: it is a participation in his way of seeing."
This participation means that faith inevitably makes a Christian part of Christ's mystical body, the church.
"It is impossible to believe on our own," the pope writes. "By its very nature, faith is open to the 'we' of the church; it always takes place within her communion."
The church transmits the faith across time "through an unbroken chain of witnesses," allowing us to "see the face of Jesus," Pope Francis writes. "As a service to the unity of faith and its integral transmission, the Lord gave his church the gift of apostolic succession. Through this means, the continuity of the church's memory is ensured and certain access can be had to the wellspring from which faith flows."
Accordingly, members of the hierarchy stand as the authoritative teachers of the contents of Christian faith.
The "magisterium of the pope and the bishops in communion with him," the pope writes, "ensures our contact with the primordial source and thus provides the certainty of attaining to the word of Christ in all its integrity."
Yet faith in its fullness is more than doctrine, Pope Francis writes; it is "the new light born of an encounter with the true God, a light which touches us at the core of our being and engages our minds, wills and emotions, opening us to relationships lived in communion."
Thus the primary means of transmitting faith is not a book or a homily, but the sacraments, especially baptism and the Eucharist, which "communicate an incarnate memory, linked to the times and places of our lives, linked to all our senses; in them the whole person is engaged as a member of a living subject and part of a network of communitarian relationships."
The belief that the "Son of God took on our flesh" and "entered our human history" also leads Christians "to live our lives in this world with ever greater commitment and intensity," the pope writes, arguing that faith inspires both the use of human reason and pursuit of the common good.
For faith, Pope Francis writes, truth is not attainable through autonomous reason alone but requires love, a "relational way of viewing the world, which then becomes a form of shared knowledge, vision through the eyes of another and a shared vision of all that exists."
By affirming the "inherent order" and harmony of the material world, and "by stimulating wonder before the profound mystery of creation," Christian faith encourages scientific research, while dispelling the philosophical relativism that has produced a "crisis of truth in our age."
Faith also inspires respect for the natural environment, by allowing believers to "discern in it a grammar written by the hand of God and a dwelling place entrusted to our protection and care."
According to Pope Francis, faith has proven itself essential to the promotion of "justice, law and peace," by contrast with failed modern ideologies that also claimed those goals.
"Modernity sought to build a universal brotherhood based on equality," he writes, "yet we gradually came to realize that this brotherhood, lacking a common reference to a common father as its ultimate foundation, cannot endure.
"We need to return to the true basis of brotherhood," the pope writes. "Faith teaches us to see that every man and woman represents a blessing for me, that the light of God's face shines on me through the faces of my brothers and sisters."
—CNS
The document, released July 5, completes a papal trilogy on the three "theological virtues," following Pope Benedict XVI's encyclicals "Deus Caritas Est" (2005) on charity and "Spe Salvi" (2007) on hope. Publication of the encyclical was one of the most awaited events of the Year of Faith which began in October 2012.Pope Benedict "had almost completed a first draft of an encyclical on faith" before his retirement in February 2013, Pope Francis writes, adding that "I have taken up his fine work and added a few contributions of my own."
Commentators will likely differ in attributing specific passages, but the document clearly recalls the writings of Pope Benedict in its extensive treatment of the dialogue between faith and reason and its many citations of St. Augustine, not to mention references to Friedrich Nietzsche and Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
On other hand, warnings of the dangers of idolatry, Gnosticism and Pharisaism, a closing prayer to Mary as the "perfect icon of faith," and an entire section on the relevance of faith to earthly justice and peace echo themes that Pope Francis has already made signatures of his young pontificate.
"Lumen Fidei" begins with a brief survey of the biblical history of faith, starting with God's call to Abraham to leave his land — "the beginning of an exodus which points him to an uncertain future" — and God's promise that Abraham will be "father of a great nation."
The Bible also illustrates how men and women break faith with God by worshipping substitutes for him.
"Idols exist, we begin to see, as a pretext for setting ourselves at the center of reality and worshipping the work of our own hands," the pope writes. "Once man has lost the fundamental orientation which unifies his existence, he breaks down into the multiplicity of his desires ... Idolatry, then, is always polytheism, an aimless passing from one lord to another."
Pope Francis sees another way of turning from God in the Pharisees' belief that salvation is possible through good works alone.
"Those who live this way, who want to be the source of their own righteousness, find that the latter is soon depleted and that they are unable even to keep the law," the pope writes. "Salvation by faith means recognizing the primacy of God's gift."
Faith finds its fulfillment in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the pope writes. By virtue of his humanity, Jesus is both the object of faith and the ultimate model and mediator for all believers.
"Christ is not simply the one in whom we believe, the supreme manifestation of God's love," Pope Francis writes. "He is also the one with whom we are united precisely in order to believe. Faith does not merely gaze at Jesus, but sees things as Jesus himself sees them, with his own eyes: it is a participation in his way of seeing."
This participation means that faith inevitably makes a Christian part of Christ's mystical body, the church.
"It is impossible to believe on our own," the pope writes. "By its very nature, faith is open to the 'we' of the church; it always takes place within her communion."
The church transmits the faith across time "through an unbroken chain of witnesses," allowing us to "see the face of Jesus," Pope Francis writes. "As a service to the unity of faith and its integral transmission, the Lord gave his church the gift of apostolic succession. Through this means, the continuity of the church's memory is ensured and certain access can be had to the wellspring from which faith flows."
Accordingly, members of the hierarchy stand as the authoritative teachers of the contents of Christian faith.
The "magisterium of the pope and the bishops in communion with him," the pope writes, "ensures our contact with the primordial source and thus provides the certainty of attaining to the word of Christ in all its integrity."
Yet faith in its fullness is more than doctrine, Pope Francis writes; it is "the new light born of an encounter with the true God, a light which touches us at the core of our being and engages our minds, wills and emotions, opening us to relationships lived in communion."
Thus the primary means of transmitting faith is not a book or a homily, but the sacraments, especially baptism and the Eucharist, which "communicate an incarnate memory, linked to the times and places of our lives, linked to all our senses; in them the whole person is engaged as a member of a living subject and part of a network of communitarian relationships."
The belief that the "Son of God took on our flesh" and "entered our human history" also leads Christians "to live our lives in this world with ever greater commitment and intensity," the pope writes, arguing that faith inspires both the use of human reason and pursuit of the common good.
For faith, Pope Francis writes, truth is not attainable through autonomous reason alone but requires love, a "relational way of viewing the world, which then becomes a form of shared knowledge, vision through the eyes of another and a shared vision of all that exists."
By affirming the "inherent order" and harmony of the material world, and "by stimulating wonder before the profound mystery of creation," Christian faith encourages scientific research, while dispelling the philosophical relativism that has produced a "crisis of truth in our age."
Faith also inspires respect for the natural environment, by allowing believers to "discern in it a grammar written by the hand of God and a dwelling place entrusted to our protection and care."
According to Pope Francis, faith has proven itself essential to the promotion of "justice, law and peace," by contrast with failed modern ideologies that also claimed those goals.
"Modernity sought to build a universal brotherhood based on equality," he writes, "yet we gradually came to realize that this brotherhood, lacking a common reference to a common father as its ultimate foundation, cannot endure.
"We need to return to the true basis of brotherhood," the pope writes. "Faith teaches us to see that every man and woman represents a blessing for me, that the light of God's face shines on me through the faces of my brothers and sisters."
—CNS
Father Pat Brennan: Saying ‘yes’ every day to the will of God
On this exceptionally hot summer afternoon in Sierra Madre, a party is brewing on the shaded lawns of Mater Dolorosa Retreat Center: a stage with musical instruments, a mariachi band warming up, chairs, tables, food booths and trees decorated with record albums hanging on threads.
Overhead, a big banner declares “Father Pat’s Mariachi to Motown Party” as guests are just arriving from nearby St. Rita Church. The parish was standing room only for a special eucharistic celebration, filled with well-wishers who were giving Passionist Father Patrick Brennan a heartfelt send-off before he takes on new duties in Detroit as director at St. Paul of the Cross Retreat Center.
(Passionist Father Michael Higgins — currently serving in the provincial offices in Chicago — is slated to become the director at Mater Dolorosa; he served at the retreat center many years ago.)
The Mass and reception for Father Brennan is a way for married couples, young adults and folks of all ages to say goodbye and Godspeed to a man who shepherded them through the retreat process, personal prayers, and one-on-one counseling.
For 18 years, the St. Louis-born Father Brennan served as retreat director for the bucolic center located in the hills above Sierra Madre. Countless retreatants from Los Angeles, Ventura, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties and beyond have experienced Father Brennan’s spiritual direction and Passionist charism. He’s a man whose gentle demeanor, enthusiasm and loving embrace will be missed but, those close to him say that his mission of spreading joy and the love of God will continue.
“I know that the center won’t collapse when he’s gone, but he’s been part of the success of this place and I know that I am going to continue to do the work that he introduced to me when I made my first retreat,” says Joaquin Garay III who waited in the long line in the air-conditioned chapel to have a few minutes with Father Brennan.
Joaquin’s wife Brandi credits Father Brennan with instilling a renewal in not just her husband’s spirit, but her family’s. They had strayed from the church, she admitted, but when Joaquin made his first retreat, “Father Brennan touched Joaquin like he’s never been touched before. Something clicked with Father Brennan and Joaquin has been a changed man. He is now considering becoming a deacon in the church. I get goose bumps thinking about what Father Pat’s presence has brought to my family.”
Those are familiar words to many who have found in Father Brennan a spiritual director who listens, cares and responds to life’s tragedies and triumphs with dignity, an unwavering faith and a touch of humor that no doubt can be traced back to his Irish roots.
‘The church was where we belonged’The second of five children, Father Brennan describes his childhood as family-oriented and Catholic-based. “I have no knowledge of a Sunday, save for one or two times because of illness, when we didn’t go to Mass,” he says, adding that fear had nothing to do with not wanting to miss Mass. Rather, “the church was where we belonged.”
And having the parish priest over for dinner frequently started Father Brennan thinking about a religious vocation. Educated by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and at an all-male high school run by the Christian Brothers, young Pat Brennan also attended Passionist retreats off campus. He was approached by the religious order to join them for high school, but he declined, saying that he wanted to stay in his high school and experience football games and sock hops.
Still, the idea of joining the Passionists was on his mind, and upon graduation from high school, that’s exactly what he did, starting with an “intensive novitiate year,” or “a spiritual boot camp for religious life.”
“Though I freely acknowledge being a dedicated extrovert,” he smiles, “this year of solitude and prayer was perhaps one of the most formative of my entire life.”
Another important moment in his life that helped crystalize his vocation was the death of his older brother James who was serving in Vietnam. James was 22, a year older than Pat. The suffering his family experienced — especially his mother -- pointed the way for the young Passionist.
“Even in that brokenness, I realized what a great gift this was, being about to be compassionate to others in their time of their suffering,” he says thoughtfully. It dawned on him that his profound loss would help him understanding grief in others.
Following his first vows, Father Brennan studied philosophy at Bellarmine University followed by four years of graduate studies in theology at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. He was ordained in May 1973, and continued his studies in the U.S. and in Rome, obtaining degrees and certifications in psychology, pastoral programs and doctoral studies.
Father Brennan first came to Mater Dolorosa in 1973 upon the request of Cardinal Timothy Manning, but he stayed only one year. However, he assisted at various parishes in the Los Angeles Archdiocese including All Souls in Alhambra, St. Philip the Apostle in Pasadena and St. Elizabeth in Altadena. In 1995, he was appointed retreat director at Mater Dolorosa and this time stayed on.
Of course, overseeing a retreat center wasn’t the ideal that Father Brennan had imagined for himself. “I really wanted to bring the Passionist charism to a poor Spanish-speaking country,” he says. “I wanted to see what it meant to be an alien in a foreign country. I guess the Lord has different plans for me.”
Father Brennan’s longevity at Mater Dolorosa could be traced back to a life-and-death incident that put him in a coma for 11 days. Earlier in his travels, Father Brennan visited a foreign country where he caught a virus that lay dormant for 12 years. After being at Mater Dolorosa for about a year, Father Brennan suddenly collapsed and was rushed to the hospital where it was determined that his liver was failing.
“I don’t remember a thing,” he remarks about the time in blackness. “I do remember waking up wondering where I was and how did I get here?”
Father Brennan spent two months recovering in the hospital and eventually received a liver transplant. He stayed in Southern California to be close to the doctors who routinely monitored his progress. Today, he says, “I feel great. Great shape. Never better.”
Preparing for his new chapter in Detroit, Father Brennan says that Mater Dolorosa has taught him to “constantly say ‘yes’ to the Lord.
That is the path to holiness; saying ‘yes’ every day to the will of God. There is a great joy I have knowing that there is still work for me to do and that God isn’t done with me yet.”
Back in the reception line, Father Brennan greets familiar faces with joy, slaps old friends on the back and smiles. “Always good to see you,” “Let’s keep in touch,” “Come and visit in the fall for the fall color.”
He tells a married couple, “You be good to each other” and “Tell those boys of yours I say hello!”
One lady emotionally asks, “Will you come back and visit?” With a glint in his eye, Father Brennan beams before enveloping her in a big bear hug. “I’ll be back, of course! You gotta have faith!”
Overhead, a big banner declares “Father Pat’s Mariachi to Motown Party” as guests are just arriving from nearby St. Rita Church. The parish was standing room only for a special eucharistic celebration, filled with well-wishers who were giving Passionist Father Patrick Brennan a heartfelt send-off before he takes on new duties in Detroit as director at St. Paul of the Cross Retreat Center.
(Passionist Father Michael Higgins — currently serving in the provincial offices in Chicago — is slated to become the director at Mater Dolorosa; he served at the retreat center many years ago.)
The Mass and reception for Father Brennan is a way for married couples, young adults and folks of all ages to say goodbye and Godspeed to a man who shepherded them through the retreat process, personal prayers, and one-on-one counseling.
For 18 years, the St. Louis-born Father Brennan served as retreat director for the bucolic center located in the hills above Sierra Madre. Countless retreatants from Los Angeles, Ventura, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside Counties and beyond have experienced Father Brennan’s spiritual direction and Passionist charism. He’s a man whose gentle demeanor, enthusiasm and loving embrace will be missed but, those close to him say that his mission of spreading joy and the love of God will continue.
“I know that the center won’t collapse when he’s gone, but he’s been part of the success of this place and I know that I am going to continue to do the work that he introduced to me when I made my first retreat,” says Joaquin Garay III who waited in the long line in the air-conditioned chapel to have a few minutes with Father Brennan.
Joaquin’s wife Brandi credits Father Brennan with instilling a renewal in not just her husband’s spirit, but her family’s. They had strayed from the church, she admitted, but when Joaquin made his first retreat, “Father Brennan touched Joaquin like he’s never been touched before. Something clicked with Father Brennan and Joaquin has been a changed man. He is now considering becoming a deacon in the church. I get goose bumps thinking about what Father Pat’s presence has brought to my family.”
Those are familiar words to many who have found in Father Brennan a spiritual director who listens, cares and responds to life’s tragedies and triumphs with dignity, an unwavering faith and a touch of humor that no doubt can be traced back to his Irish roots.
‘The church was where we belonged’The second of five children, Father Brennan describes his childhood as family-oriented and Catholic-based. “I have no knowledge of a Sunday, save for one or two times because of illness, when we didn’t go to Mass,” he says, adding that fear had nothing to do with not wanting to miss Mass. Rather, “the church was where we belonged.”
And having the parish priest over for dinner frequently started Father Brennan thinking about a religious vocation. Educated by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet and at an all-male high school run by the Christian Brothers, young Pat Brennan also attended Passionist retreats off campus. He was approached by the religious order to join them for high school, but he declined, saying that he wanted to stay in his high school and experience football games and sock hops.
Still, the idea of joining the Passionists was on his mind, and upon graduation from high school, that’s exactly what he did, starting with an “intensive novitiate year,” or “a spiritual boot camp for religious life.”
“Though I freely acknowledge being a dedicated extrovert,” he smiles, “this year of solitude and prayer was perhaps one of the most formative of my entire life.”
Another important moment in his life that helped crystalize his vocation was the death of his older brother James who was serving in Vietnam. James was 22, a year older than Pat. The suffering his family experienced — especially his mother -- pointed the way for the young Passionist.
“Even in that brokenness, I realized what a great gift this was, being about to be compassionate to others in their time of their suffering,” he says thoughtfully. It dawned on him that his profound loss would help him understanding grief in others.
Following his first vows, Father Brennan studied philosophy at Bellarmine University followed by four years of graduate studies in theology at Catholic Theological Union in Chicago. He was ordained in May 1973, and continued his studies in the U.S. and in Rome, obtaining degrees and certifications in psychology, pastoral programs and doctoral studies.
Father Brennan first came to Mater Dolorosa in 1973 upon the request of Cardinal Timothy Manning, but he stayed only one year. However, he assisted at various parishes in the Los Angeles Archdiocese including All Souls in Alhambra, St. Philip the Apostle in Pasadena and St. Elizabeth in Altadena. In 1995, he was appointed retreat director at Mater Dolorosa and this time stayed on.
Of course, overseeing a retreat center wasn’t the ideal that Father Brennan had imagined for himself. “I really wanted to bring the Passionist charism to a poor Spanish-speaking country,” he says. “I wanted to see what it meant to be an alien in a foreign country. I guess the Lord has different plans for me.”
Father Brennan’s longevity at Mater Dolorosa could be traced back to a life-and-death incident that put him in a coma for 11 days. Earlier in his travels, Father Brennan visited a foreign country where he caught a virus that lay dormant for 12 years. After being at Mater Dolorosa for about a year, Father Brennan suddenly collapsed and was rushed to the hospital where it was determined that his liver was failing.
“I don’t remember a thing,” he remarks about the time in blackness. “I do remember waking up wondering where I was and how did I get here?”
Father Brennan spent two months recovering in the hospital and eventually received a liver transplant. He stayed in Southern California to be close to the doctors who routinely monitored his progress. Today, he says, “I feel great. Great shape. Never better.”
Preparing for his new chapter in Detroit, Father Brennan says that Mater Dolorosa has taught him to “constantly say ‘yes’ to the Lord.
That is the path to holiness; saying ‘yes’ every day to the will of God. There is a great joy I have knowing that there is still work for me to do and that God isn’t done with me yet.”
Back in the reception line, Father Brennan greets familiar faces with joy, slaps old friends on the back and smiles. “Always good to see you,” “Let’s keep in touch,” “Come and visit in the fall for the fall color.”
He tells a married couple, “You be good to each other” and “Tell those boys of yours I say hello!”
One lady emotionally asks, “Will you come back and visit?” With a glint in his eye, Father Brennan beams before enveloping her in a big bear hug. “I’ll be back, of course! You gotta have faith!”
In L.A.: The arts are transforming Transfiguration
Some 30 third- to fifth-grade girls, dressed mostly in black leotards and pale pink tights, are at wooden barres going through their ballet warm-up exercises at Transfiguration School off of Martin Luther King, Jr., Boulevard.
For the first position, they form a V with their feet pointed out before stretching one leg at a time along the floor to do the tendu exercise. Then, with hands on the barre and knees bent, the neophyte dancers form the classic plié. Finally, they rise on their toes like bantam angels for the releve.
“OK, relax,” says their 23-year-old teacher, Felicia Kelley, before turning to a visitor.
“Getting their leotards and tights and headbands, they have been so excited,” she reports. “They really have been receptive to it. Of course, some of them are like: ‘We want to do hip-hop.’ So we switch back and forth. But they really enjoy this. When they see me in a hallway, they yell out my name and ask, ‘Are we having ballet today?’
“And it’s been that way since I got here a whole year ago,” she adds with a growing grin. “It hasn’t died down. If anything, it’s gotten more intense.”
After class, out in the hallway, four fifth-graders share what they really enjoy about the stylized dance, which traces its roots back to the 15th century Italian and French Renaissance courts.
“What I like about ballet is all the choreography and all the movement,” says Stephanie Glize, 11. And her classmates nod in unison.
Leila Johnson, also 11, stops giggling to observe, “What I like about ballet is that when you’re doing it, you can kind of relax. And I don’t have to worry about what anybody thinks about me.”
Again heads bob up and down.
“Ballet’s a dance art; and I like to dance and I like art,” Keynon Thompkins, 10, explains. “So it makes a good combination for my personality. The art part is when they put different choreography, different dance movements together to make one big show.”
And, in fact, the girls gush about the end-of-the-school-year recital they’re preparing for next week.
The last to speak, Linda Orellana, 11, is barefoot and has turquoise braces on her teeth. “What I like is the movement, the experience of movement that you have,” she says. “Yeah, it’s like when you put art and dance together. It makes a whole new thing that’s just called ballet.”
A bishop’s inspiration
The inspiration for bringing fine and performing arts to Transfiguration came from Our Lady of the Angels Region Auxiliary Bishop Edward Clark. When Father Michael Tang, who had chaired the art and art history department at Loyola Marymount University from 1996 to 2006, came to the urban parish in July 2010, the bishop had the brainstorm of making the parochial school a Catholic magnet academy of the arts, which, hopefully, would attract more students.
Enrollment at the K-8 school in the Exposition Park area south of downtown L.A. was down to 161 students. Of these students, more than 75 percent needed tuition assistance, mostly from the Catholic Education Foundation. Because of the low enrollment, there was a definite possibility Transfiguration might close, after serving the largely African American community of Leimert Park and nearby South L.A. locales for three-quarters of a century.
With his connections to the Jesuit university, however, the new pastor — who had been a member of the Society of Jesus — was able to form a viable partnership with Loyola Marymount University. He enlisted an LMU friend, Judith Scalin — current associate dean of the College of Communication and Fine Arts and former co-chair of the dance department — to get the dance program going at Transfiguration in March of 2012. Shane Martin, dean of the School of Education at LMU, helped to fund a dance teacher.
The William H. Hannon Foundation and the John and Dorothy Shea Foundation came up with most of the funds for the dance studio, which was then built by J.F. Shea Construction, Inc.
The studio features a professionally designed cushioned Marley floor, a wall of eight-foot-high mirrors and wood ballet barres along the sides and down the middle of the large room. With its totally professional look and ambiance, it is easy to imagine being in a practice room of the New York City Ballet.
But not to be outdone, there’s also a piano classroom with a dozen or more individual keyboards with attached headphones, and in the back two concert pianos — I all made possible by a grant from Mr. and Mrs. James Murphy.
In addition, the school’s new fine and performing arts program also incorporates a youth choir directed by former principal Oscar Pratt.
“While other public and private schools are trimming the arts from their curriculum, we thought that we could bring the arts in here and revitalize the school,” says Father Tang. “We needed to reenergize Transfiguration while focusing on meeting the needs of our community. People must see the value of paying tuition for their children to go to a Catholic school not just for the rigorous academic education, but also for the enjoyment of attending school every day.
“But,” he adds in a more cautious tone, “we’re just at the infancy stages — ‘baby steps’ — because the school is still struggling. But our school’s enrollment is up to 218 students.”
Former junior high teacher and incoming principal Evelyn Rickenbacker is excited about helping the fine and performing arts program develop together with the pastor. She says this year’s summer school program is already integrating dance and music into its offerings. And the school is hoping and planning for the day when Transfiguration students can specialize in dance, piano or one of the other arts through additional specialized classes.
Meanwhile, the veteran educator believes the arts are already having a positive influence. “For middle school students, especially, it gives them a different sense of accomplishment,” Rickenbacker reports. “Because in middle school you might be an athlete, and we have a really extensive athletic program here. But I’ve found that the sixth and seventh grade students love piano class. Because if they’re not athletic, they’ve found something else that they can excel in.
“And piano is really good for math,” she points out. “I saw Mr. Nuño teaching a class on music theory, and it was a real good connection with learning fractions — half notes, quarter notes and so on. So it has improved math skills with some students who needed help and were engaged in the piano class.
“The arts gives them a variety of difference types of activities to excel in. And you’ll see students who are at the infancy stage of learning theory and music. Then you’ll see other students who come quite frequently after school, who are learning to actually compose music. So studying piano — or any of the arts — is really, really wonderful.”
Learning scales
Over in the piano room, some 20 seventh-graders are at keyboards while their music teacher, Chris Nuño, is writing on a whiteboard. In the back of the room a boy is pounding out melodic chords on a piano.
“What does this mean, Jonathan?” asks Nuño, pointing to a long Italian word.
A boy with an eager expression raises his hand. “Ritardando means play it softly,” he answers.
Gently, the teacher explains, “No, not softly. Ritardando means — ” but he’s cut off by another boy calling out, “Slow up!”
Nuño nods. “Yes, slow down.”
In the middle of the room, two girls are sharing a keyboard. One is meticulously — and patiently — showing the other where exactly to place her fingers. “She has a little bit more problem doing the scales,” Khaliea White, 12, says. “But scales are pretty easy.”
Winter Ramirez glances up from the keyboard. “She’s helping me with my lesson, because it’s really, really hard for me to do them with my right hand,” the 12-year-old explains. “So Khaliea helps me a lot on my left, and with both hands, too.”
Then Khaliea points out how her older sister helped her learn to play at home, while this is her partner’s first experience playing anywhere.
This makes Winter smile and say, “It’s fun having a partner and learning everything.”
For the first position, they form a V with their feet pointed out before stretching one leg at a time along the floor to do the tendu exercise. Then, with hands on the barre and knees bent, the neophyte dancers form the classic plié. Finally, they rise on their toes like bantam angels for the releve.
“OK, relax,” says their 23-year-old teacher, Felicia Kelley, before turning to a visitor.
“Getting their leotards and tights and headbands, they have been so excited,” she reports. “They really have been receptive to it. Of course, some of them are like: ‘We want to do hip-hop.’ So we switch back and forth. But they really enjoy this. When they see me in a hallway, they yell out my name and ask, ‘Are we having ballet today?’
“And it’s been that way since I got here a whole year ago,” she adds with a growing grin. “It hasn’t died down. If anything, it’s gotten more intense.”
After class, out in the hallway, four fifth-graders share what they really enjoy about the stylized dance, which traces its roots back to the 15th century Italian and French Renaissance courts.
“What I like about ballet is all the choreography and all the movement,” says Stephanie Glize, 11. And her classmates nod in unison.
Leila Johnson, also 11, stops giggling to observe, “What I like about ballet is that when you’re doing it, you can kind of relax. And I don’t have to worry about what anybody thinks about me.”
Again heads bob up and down.
“Ballet’s a dance art; and I like to dance and I like art,” Keynon Thompkins, 10, explains. “So it makes a good combination for my personality. The art part is when they put different choreography, different dance movements together to make one big show.”
And, in fact, the girls gush about the end-of-the-school-year recital they’re preparing for next week.
The last to speak, Linda Orellana, 11, is barefoot and has turquoise braces on her teeth. “What I like is the movement, the experience of movement that you have,” she says. “Yeah, it’s like when you put art and dance together. It makes a whole new thing that’s just called ballet.”
A bishop’s inspiration
The inspiration for bringing fine and performing arts to Transfiguration came from Our Lady of the Angels Region Auxiliary Bishop Edward Clark. When Father Michael Tang, who had chaired the art and art history department at Loyola Marymount University from 1996 to 2006, came to the urban parish in July 2010, the bishop had the brainstorm of making the parochial school a Catholic magnet academy of the arts, which, hopefully, would attract more students.
Enrollment at the K-8 school in the Exposition Park area south of downtown L.A. was down to 161 students. Of these students, more than 75 percent needed tuition assistance, mostly from the Catholic Education Foundation. Because of the low enrollment, there was a definite possibility Transfiguration might close, after serving the largely African American community of Leimert Park and nearby South L.A. locales for three-quarters of a century.
With his connections to the Jesuit university, however, the new pastor — who had been a member of the Society of Jesus — was able to form a viable partnership with Loyola Marymount University. He enlisted an LMU friend, Judith Scalin — current associate dean of the College of Communication and Fine Arts and former co-chair of the dance department — to get the dance program going at Transfiguration in March of 2012. Shane Martin, dean of the School of Education at LMU, helped to fund a dance teacher.
The William H. Hannon Foundation and the John and Dorothy Shea Foundation came up with most of the funds for the dance studio, which was then built by J.F. Shea Construction, Inc.
The studio features a professionally designed cushioned Marley floor, a wall of eight-foot-high mirrors and wood ballet barres along the sides and down the middle of the large room. With its totally professional look and ambiance, it is easy to imagine being in a practice room of the New York City Ballet.
But not to be outdone, there’s also a piano classroom with a dozen or more individual keyboards with attached headphones, and in the back two concert pianos — I all made possible by a grant from Mr. and Mrs. James Murphy.
In addition, the school’s new fine and performing arts program also incorporates a youth choir directed by former principal Oscar Pratt.
“While other public and private schools are trimming the arts from their curriculum, we thought that we could bring the arts in here and revitalize the school,” says Father Tang. “We needed to reenergize Transfiguration while focusing on meeting the needs of our community. People must see the value of paying tuition for their children to go to a Catholic school not just for the rigorous academic education, but also for the enjoyment of attending school every day.
“But,” he adds in a more cautious tone, “we’re just at the infancy stages — ‘baby steps’ — because the school is still struggling. But our school’s enrollment is up to 218 students.”
Former junior high teacher and incoming principal Evelyn Rickenbacker is excited about helping the fine and performing arts program develop together with the pastor. She says this year’s summer school program is already integrating dance and music into its offerings. And the school is hoping and planning for the day when Transfiguration students can specialize in dance, piano or one of the other arts through additional specialized classes.
Meanwhile, the veteran educator believes the arts are already having a positive influence. “For middle school students, especially, it gives them a different sense of accomplishment,” Rickenbacker reports. “Because in middle school you might be an athlete, and we have a really extensive athletic program here. But I’ve found that the sixth and seventh grade students love piano class. Because if they’re not athletic, they’ve found something else that they can excel in.
“And piano is really good for math,” she points out. “I saw Mr. Nuño teaching a class on music theory, and it was a real good connection with learning fractions — half notes, quarter notes and so on. So it has improved math skills with some students who needed help and were engaged in the piano class.
“The arts gives them a variety of difference types of activities to excel in. And you’ll see students who are at the infancy stage of learning theory and music. Then you’ll see other students who come quite frequently after school, who are learning to actually compose music. So studying piano — or any of the arts — is really, really wonderful.”
Learning scales
Over in the piano room, some 20 seventh-graders are at keyboards while their music teacher, Chris Nuño, is writing on a whiteboard. In the back of the room a boy is pounding out melodic chords on a piano.
“What does this mean, Jonathan?” asks Nuño, pointing to a long Italian word.
A boy with an eager expression raises his hand. “Ritardando means play it softly,” he answers.
Gently, the teacher explains, “No, not softly. Ritardando means — ” but he’s cut off by another boy calling out, “Slow up!”
Nuño nods. “Yes, slow down.”
In the middle of the room, two girls are sharing a keyboard. One is meticulously — and patiently — showing the other where exactly to place her fingers. “She has a little bit more problem doing the scales,” Khaliea White, 12, says. “But scales are pretty easy.”
Winter Ramirez glances up from the keyboard. “She’s helping me with my lesson, because it’s really, really hard for me to do them with my right hand,” the 12-year-old explains. “So Khaliea helps me a lot on my left, and with both hands, too.”
Then Khaliea points out how her older sister helped her learn to play at home, while this is her partner’s first experience playing anywhere.
This makes Winter smile and say, “It’s fun having a partner and learning everything.”
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