WALKING WITH MARY

JUNE 12, 2009

Looking back over the last one hundred and fifty years when our Cathedral was dedicated, it is clear that the diocese’s life has been characterized by the very significant role that the Blessed Virgin Mary has played in the life of the Church in South Texas.

In his apostolic exhortation Ecclesia in America, Pope John Paul II tells us that since the first evangelization of our continent, the presence of Mary has been keenly felt in the life of the Church.  Through Mary, our ancestors entered into communion with the Father and the Son.  He concludes his masterful reflection with a reference to San Juan Diego and Our Lady of Guadalupe’s love for the people of this continent.

This brings us to our own story.  When Texas became a part of the United States, Pope Gregory XVI created the Prefecture Apostolic of Galveston to serve the Catholic faithful in the vast territory known as Texas.  Not long after coming to Texas, Bishop Jean Marie Odin invited the Oblates of Mary Immaculate to come to Texas.  They arrived in South Texas in 1849.

As they travelled on horseback from town to town and ranch to ranch along the Rio Grande River and the Gulf Coast, they were welcomed by a people eager to embrace Mary, as their loving mother.  Twenty of our parish churches are dedicated to the honor of Mary under one or another of her many titles; among them, our magnificent Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception and the Shrine Basilica of Nuestra Señora de San Juan del Vallle.

The Oblate missionaries who first came to Texas have been called dauntless. Because they travelled on horseback, they have been dubbed “the Cavalry of Christ,.” And they have been called “dreamers who dared.”  The first pastor of Immaculate Conception Parish, Father Peter Keralum, O.M.I., was certainly one of those.  He dared to build a church large enough to seat 400 persons when the population of the city totaled 1,200.

Fifteen years later, the Church in South Texas had grown sufficiently for Pope Pius IX to establish the Vicariate Apostolic (“minor diocese”) of Brownsville, so in 1874, the beautiful and historic church of the Immaculate Conception became our Cathedral. The growth and success of the church in South Texas is, no doubt, due to the intercession of Mary Immaculate.  In 1912, the territory of the Vicariate Apostolic became the Diocese of Corpus Christi, and in 1965, the four South Texas counties known as the Rio Grande Valley became the Diocese of Brownsville.

Today, we thank God for the countless blessings received during our glorious history; we thank Mary for her maternal care, for bringing her son Jesus into our lives and for her intercession before the Father.  We thank the bishops, priests, deacons, Sisters and Brothers that have contributed to our life of faith. In a special way, we thank the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate for instilling a devotion to Mary in our hearts. 

And now, it is time for us to dream.  Almost fifteen years ago, when I came to serve as your bishop, we embraced the New Evangelization of John Paul II; we designed and launched our efforts through our First Diocesan Synod.  As a consequence, we have rededicated the former Oblate Novitiate at La Lomita to the formation of young men for priestly service.  Our San Juan Diego Ministry Institute now prepares men for the permanent diaconate and lay women and men for service in the church’s varying lay ministry.  Last week, we published the first edition of our diocesan newspaper, The Valley Catholic.  Through our Lenten initiatives, we have reached out in parish centers, and through our television station, in efforts to catechize all those whom we have baptized. And our Disciples in Mission have visited countless homes in our parishes and especially in the colonias.   

Let us dream now about how we can best reflect that love in our own lives, and let us do so in imitation of Mary, Her story begins at the time of her conception; by the power of the Holy Spirit, she was preserved from the stain of original sin.   Immaculate, without sin, she had been chosen to become the Mother of the Son of God.

Let us see what we may learn from Mary at the Annunciation, when she visited her cousin Elizabeth and when she stood at the foot of the Cross.  At the Annunciation, with her response to the Angel’s invitation, in imitation of Moses who had declared himself to be the “servant of the Lord,” she declared herself to be “the handmaid of the Lord.” She submitted totally to his will, with the words, “May it be done to me according to your word" (cf. Luke 1:38). 

In imitation of Mary, prayerfully, each one of us should ascertain God’s will for her or him.  Consequently, what role does God expect us to play in his masterful plan for the salvation of all?  To answer this inquiry, ask yourself these questions:

• Does God want me to be a partner (husband or wife) in a domestic church and form the children he entrusts to me in the faith?
• Does God want me to be a priest or consecrate my life as a religious priest, sister or brother?
• Does God look for me to serve as a permanent deacon?
• How is he calling me to give witness to the gospel daily and proclaim it to others?

And, when you find the answer, respond as Mary did; declare yourself to be his faithful servant.

            St. Luke tells us that, after the Angel left her traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah to visit her cousin Elizabeth. By doing so, Mary portrayed her role as the first evangelizer.  She carried the Divine Word, incarnate in her womb, from Galilee to Judea, the trajectory of the missionary journey that Jesus would make to carry out his mission for the salvation of all. 

Mary showed us, as well, that the role of servant of the Lord requires us to serve our fellow human beings.  She was of service to Elizabeth until her child was born.  In imitation of her, let us not only remain faithful to our ministry, but also serve the needs of others.

Now, let us stand with Mary at the foot of the Cross.  We can see her anguish, as she beholds her son’s pain.  Just as Mary endured the pain of seeing her son die an agonizing death, we will embrace whatever pain, disappointment or suffering we encounter in our own life.  

The Spirit of God was Mary’s constant companion.  Pope Benedict XVI reminded us, at a recent Marian celebration in Rome, that at Calvary Mary witnessed Jesus’ “last words, and his last breath, in which he begins to send out the Spirit…” He went on to say that in “Mary’s school we too learn to recognize the Holy Spirit’s presence in our life.

Because Mary’s school has been the mentor of our life of faith, I make the Pope’s words my own as I say to you, let us continue to “walk with Mary according to the Spirit.”

+Bishop Raymundo J. Peña

last updated 09-Jun-2010 10:44 sitemap