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Today, on the Feast of Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we officially launched the Women en La Frontera podcast. Women en la Frontera features conversations with women from the Rio Grande Valley on topics that impact us all, and that give witness to the incredible ways God works in our lives.

The Feast of Corpus Christi on Sunday, June 19, marked the launch throughout the United States of the National Eucharistic Revival, a three-year process to reinforce one central tenet of the Catholic faith that the Holy Eucharist is the real presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

SAN JUAN — The first phase of the Synod in the Diocese of Brownsville came to an end as summer began: After consultations with more than 8,000 local Catholics at all levels, delegates met June 25 at the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle-National Shrine to hear summations from each deanery, followed by a Mass of celebration with Bishop Daniel E. Flores.

Column by Bishop Daniel E. Flores Summer 2022 Edition of The Valley Catholic

Column by Bishop Daniel E. Flores Summer 2022 Edition of The Valley Catholic

SAN JUAN – A large sculpture of the Blessed Mother embracing the still-unborn Jesus was placed June 27 in front of the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle-National Shrine, marking the start of a two-month stay here. Entitled "Life Monument," the 2-1/2 ton bronze statue, with Jesus in the womb modeled in polished stainless steel, is the work of Canadian sculptor Timothy Schmalz of Ontario. Father Jorge Gomez, rector of the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle-National Shrine, said, “Of all the places it could have gone, we are especially privileged here to have been chosen for its visit.” Father Gomez and Martin Lopez, maintenance department director for the basilica, both noted the remarkable timing of the sculpture arriving at the basilica just as the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the Roe v. Wade decision of almost 50 years ago that legalized abortion. Almost 65 million abortions have been performed in this country since that 1973 ruling. But with trigger laws coming into effect after the June 24 ruling, abortion is already effectively outlawed or soon will be in some 13 states. The pro-life sculpture’s installation here was delayed briefly because its size and weight required bringing in a special crane to move it from the maintenance yard and into its space in the plaza at the base of the basilica’s steps. A smaller model of the statue was placed May 27 at the Church of San Marcello al Corso in central Rome, even as the full-size version went first to Houston before coming to the Rio Grande Valley. When this “colossal” version leaves here, it will go to Washington D.C., to be installed permanently outside the Theological College of the Catholic University of America, right across the street from the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. Schmalz, the sculptor, said his hope is to offer a pro-life message that reminds people of their own gift of life and the beauty of art to touch the hearts of those who are in favor of legalized abortion. The mirroring effect of the womb allows viewers to see themselves there, as a reminder that their lives, too, started in a womb, he said. If proponents of abortion can see the beauty in unborn life, he said, "perhaps that will be some sort of persuasion" to make them think more deeply about all human life as being beautiful. “If I can move that dialogue one step closer to some understanding and love on both sides, then the sculpture is a great tool, it's a great instrument,” Schmalz said. “You have to use beauty and love or it's just not going to work.” _______ Catholic News Service contributed to this report.

The Supreme Court’s decision reversing Roe v. Wade is a welcome step forward toward building a society that truly values and honors human life. Since 1973 the Catholic Church in the United States, together with many other religious and non-religious communities, has publicly expressed its opposition to the Roe v Wade decision. That decision was gravely unjust, and an unprecedented aggression against the life and dignity of the unborn child. It was sweeping in its effects, stripping away all previous legal protections for human life in the womb. That the 1973 decision has now been overturned makes it possible for legal protections for the unborn child to be enacted in the various states. The simple fact is that abortion is not primarily a religious issue, though it is an issue that rightly afflicts a religious conscience. It is a human dignity, human rights and social justice issue. The child in the womb deserves to be protected under law because the child conceived is already a member of the human family. A society cannot turn against its own and hope to survive. It is a matter of justice that the civil order work to promote the viability and flourishing of all human lives, be they in the womb, recently born, in school, in poverty, in danger of violence, in prison, or elderly and in need of medical care. As a community that seeks what is good, just and right, we can and must promote the protection of children in the womb, and promote support for expectant mothers, especially those afflicted by poverty and isolation. For our part, the Catholic Church in the Rio Grande Valley will continue its long-standing efforts to provide resources, human accompaniment, and spiritual support for expectant mothers in difficult circumstances and similar kinds of support for the mother and child after the child is born. And working together with many others in the community who are not Catholic, we hope to expand these efforts. I am grateful to God that the nightmare of Roe v Wade is ending. And I ask all people of good will to work together so that human life may always be welcomed and nurtured in our families, our communities and our country. +Daniel E. Flores Bishop of Brownsville

Today, we give thanks for the stay of execution for Melissa Lucio granted by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. We thank the many who have prayed and worked for this outcome, and we continue to accompany Melissa and her family as they face the future together. Our best hope is to continue in our efforts as a community to make this a less violent, more peaceful world. This requires that we continue to foster a sense of justice that does not include the taking of more lives. Let us pray and work for an end to the death penalty. There are many who are on death row at this time. Their deaths will not serve justice.

Bishop Daniel E. Flores and Auxiliary Bishop Mario A. Avilés will lead a prayer vigil at 7 p.m. Friday, April 22 at the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle-National Shrine, for Melissa Lucio, a death row inmate scheduled for execution on April 27.

Construction workers set a steel roof beam in place on the twin candle rooms taking shape on the north side of the Basilica of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle-National Shrine on Monday, April 11. During peak times, visitors to the Basilica may bring as many as 13,000 candles a week to the shrine -- more than the current candle room inside the Basilica can accommodate. The new candle rooms are expected to be ready by this summer.

By PAUL BINZ The Valley Catholic MATAMOROS, Tamaulipas, Mexico – The synodal process bridged an international border March 27 when the bishops of the Diocese of Brownsville, Texas crossed the Rio Grande into Mexico to celebrate Sunday Mass with the bishop of Matamoros. An afternoon of synod workshops and discussions followed. As late morning Mass began at Catedral de Nuestra Señora del Refugio (Our Lady of Refuge Cathedral), Matamoros’s Bishop Eugenio Andrés Lira Rugarcía opened with a warm welcome to Brownsville’s Bishop Daniel E. Flores and Auxiliary Bishop Mario A. Avilés. The Rio Grande Valley of far South Texas and the border cities of northeastern Mexico have historically enjoyed strong family, business and cultural ties. Although these have been interrupted in recent years by border crossing restrictions, the coronavirus pandemic and immigration issues, Sunday’s events were an opportunity to renew the close relations the two neighboring dioceses have maintained. “The dioceses of Brownsville and Matamoros – we are sister churches,” Bishop Lira said. “This permits us today to have a binational synodal experience.” “We greatly appreciate this invitation, this honor of sharing this Mass that manifests in a very strong way the communion of the Universal Church,” Bishop Flores responded. “We ask Our Lord’s help to keep us on this path that he has shown by his own example, and also the grace of the Holy Spirit to be able to open our hearts to the reconciliation and the communion – the principal themes of today’s Scriptures,” Bishop Flores said. The Gospel for the fourth Sunday of Lent was the story of the Prodigal Son. Angel Barrera, the synod coordinator for Diocese of Brownsville, explained afterward how this parable played a key role in Sunday’s proceedings. “The principal theme of Bishop Flores’s homily was on reconciliation,” Barrera said. “And that was woven in different ways into many synodal moments.” In the parable, after the son squanders his inheritance and is reduced to hiring himself out to tend pigs, he begins to think over what he has done, and how he got there. “In Spanish, the passage reads, the Gospel says, ‘Se puso reflexionar’ – ‘He began to reflect.’ … That’s what we’re doing now. We’re reflecting,” Barrera said. “The other principal action of the son for this conversion was that he remembered. He remembered how good it was with his father. He remembered how generous his father was.” After Mass, the South Texas delegation met with Matamoros’s Bishop Lira and his contingent at the Catholic Universidad del Noreste de México for lunch and then synod workshops. The 43 participants comprised the bishops and five priests, five religious, five lay persons, and five permanent deacons from each diocese. “It was the work of the Holy Spirit to get the right people there,” Barrera said. “Some of our lay people live and work on both sides. So they reside in Brownsville, but their workplace and business is in Matamoros. Many of them were coming from lived experiences of being on both sides, serving people on both sides.” The hospitality continued at the workshop site, Barrera said. “We had a wonderful meal, that amazing image of breaking bread together,” he said. “It was a very celebratory event.” “The way I would characterize (Bishop Lira’s) presence was joyful. Every time I would see him with a group of people he had never met, he was just so joyful, so approachable. He was talking to them like they were dear friends. “It was just a very warm and welcoming experience.” The delegations broke up into working groups for about three hours to discuss issues proposed by the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops. The questions posed to the groups at the meeting included: What has been your experience of “walking together” in the Church, in your family and in society in general? Do you feel that we are reaching the people on the peripheries and those most in need? What steps do you feel the Holy Spirit is asking us to take in order for us to grow “walking together” in the Church, in the family and in society in general? Who would be good to invite to accomplish this together? The questions echoed an oft-repeated theme of both Pope Francis and Bishop Flores about walking or journeying together through life. A saying often appears in Bishop Flores’ sermons: “If we don’t walk together, we’re not going to get there.” The afternoon’s discussions proved to be more of a start than an ending. Barrera noted, “I was encouraged by what Bishop (Flores) said: ‘We didn’t finish, but we’re getting started in articulating this.’” “The questions were helpful, but we don’t have a finished document yet,” Barrera said. “For me, this could be the beginning of a series of conversations, or other ways of having these focused discussions. “So what this really does for us is provides a witness to the communion of the Church, and the potential in the world, because we are two countries. … It’s a sign of us moving toward that together.”

Mis queridos hermanos y hermanas, La obligación de los católicos de asistir a Misa los domingos y días de precepto está arraigada en el deseo de la Iglesia de manifestar en todos sus miembros el amor ardiente que une a Cristo nuestro Salvador con su propio Cuerpo, la Iglesia. Pues por la gracia del Bautismo somos su Cuerpo y en el Sacrificio Eucarístico se nos da la vida que nos sostiene como miembros suyos. Este amor manifestado y en el que participamos cuando nos reunimos para la celebración Eucarística, es nuestra unión a Cristo mientras glorifica al Padre Eterno por el don de sí mismo. Somos participantes en su ofrenda al Padre. La Eucaristía es también la fuente de nuestro amor mutuo en Cristo, y nos provee la gracia por la cual ponemos en práctica su don de amor, perseverante y generoso, por el mundo. La Eucaristía es nuestro alimento para el camino; nos une a Cristo el Señor, así como nos mueve a amarnos unos a otros como Cristo nos ha amado. Nuestro cuidado por los pobres y los enfermos brota de esta altísima Caridad que nos viene de Cristo Crucificado y Resucitado. En efecto, el Sacrificio Eucarístico es la fuente de vida y amor en el mundo. Por caridad, durante el auge de la pandemia, yo otorgue en la Diócesis de Brownsville la dispensa de la obligación dominical de asistir a Misa con el fin de contener la propagación de este virus altamente contagioso y potencialmente mortal. La dispensa fue una respuesta a la grave amenaza, sin precedentes en nuestras vidas, que ha causado el virus COVID. A medida que las condiciones han mejorado, más y más personas han vuelto a la práctica de participar en la Misa los domingos y días de precepto. Este es un signo de gran esperanza, y de nuestro conocimiento, como católicos, de que para ser las personas caritativas que el Señor nos llama a ser, debemos, en la medida que sea posible, buscar el Sacramento de la Caridad, Cristo mismo en la Eucaristía. Tomando en cuenta estas circunstancias, retiraré la dispensa general de la obligación de asistir a Misa los domingos y días de precepto, a partir del día 20 de marzo, 2022, tercer domingo de cuaresma. Esto simplemente significa que se aplican las obligaciones normales en la vida de un católico. Estas obligaciones incluyen participar en la Misa dominical y usar un buen juicio caritativo al acercarnos a la asamblea sagrada. La ley de la Iglesia debe aplicarse siempre con buen juicio. Por lo tanto, incluso después de que se retire la dispensa y la obligación vuelva a su expresión normativa, los católicos, individualmente y en familia, deben usar su buen juicio en aquellos casos en los que asistir a Misa nos pondría en peligro a nosotros mismos o a otros, o nos haría descuidar una obligación en Caridad hacia alguien en casa. La ley no nos ata a lo imposible. Si la opción es entre cuidar a una persona enferma en casa o ir a Misa, debemos elegir, acertadamente, quedarnos con la persona enferma. La Caridad de Cristo, en la Misa misma, exige que no abandonemos a los enfermos. Asimismo, si estamos enfermos, aunque sea con síntomas leves, y posiblemente sea el virus COVID, debemos quedarnos en casa para no poner en peligro a los demás. Es probable que el virus COVID y sus variantes nos sigan afectando. Aquí también debemos usar el buen juicio. Si cree que usted es vulnerable a la infección debido a un estado de salud en riesgo, es sensato limitar su asistencia a las reuniones públicas. Sigo exhortando encarecidamente, a los católicos, a recibir las vacunas disponibles para su propia seguridad y la de la comunidad en general. Animo a que sigamos usando cubrebocas en Misa y que practiquemos los protocolos prácticos de salud. Estos incluyen la desinfección frecuente de manos y mantener distancia razonable entre grupos de familias. De alguna manera, el retiro de la dispensa es una señal de un regreso tentativo a un tipo de normalidad. Pero, al mismo tiempo, no se deben olvidar las lecciones de todos estos meses. Adorar al Padre en unión con Cristo en la santa Misa es una obligación de conciencia. También es nuestra obligación vivir no para nosotros mismos, sino para Cristo y para los demás. Avanzamos juntos tomando en cuenta ambas obligaciones de caridad. Que las oraciones de la Santísima Virgen nos acompañen, y pongo a esta Diócesis bajo la especial protección de Nuestra Señora de San Juan del Valle. En Cristo el Señor +Daniel E. Flores Obispo de Brownsville

To the People of God in the Diocese of Brownsville, My dear brothers and sisters, The obligation for Catholics to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days is rooted in the Church’s desire to manifest in all her members the ardent love that unites Christ our Savior to his very own Body. For we are his Body by the grace of Baptism, and in the Eucharistic Sacrifice we are given the life that sustains us as his members.  This love which is enacted, and in which we participate when we gather for the Eucharistic celebration, is our joining to Christ as he glorifies the Eternal Father by the gift of Himself. We are drawn into His offering to the Father. The Eucharist is also the source of our love for one another in Christ, and it equips us to put into practice his gift of persevering and generous love for the world.   The Eucharist is our food for the journey; it unites us to Christ the Lord, even as it moves us to love one another as Christ has loved us. Our care for the poor and the sick flows from this highest of Charities that comes to us from Christ Crucified and Risen. For indeed, the Eucharistic Sacrifice is the wellspring of life and love in the world.  For charity’s sake during the height of the pandemic, I granted in the Diocese of Brownsville, a dispensation from the Sunday obligation to attend Mass in order to stem the spread of this highly contagious and life-threatening virus. The dispensation was a response to the gravity of the threat, unprecedented in our lifetimes, that the COVID virus caused.  As conditions have improved, more and more people have returned to the practice of participating in the Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation. This is a sign of great hope, and of our awareness as Catholics that to be the charitable people the Lord calls us to be, we must, whenever possible, seek the Sacrament of Charity, Christ himself in the Eucharist.  With these things in mind, I will withdraw the general dispensation from the obligation to attend Mass on Sundays and Holy Days of Obligation effective Sunday, March 20, 2022, the third Sunday of Lent. This simply means that the normal obligations for Catholics apply. These obligations include participating in Sunday Mass and using good charitable judgment when approaching the sacred assembly.  The law of the Church must always be applied using good judgment. Thus, even after the dispensation is withdrawn and the obligation returns to its normative expression, individual Catholics and families must use their good judgment in those instances when to attend Mass, would place us or others in danger, or would cause us to neglect an obligation in Charity to someone at home.   The law does not bind us to the impossible. If the choice is between caring for a sick person at home or going to Mass, we should rightly choose to stay with the sick person. The Charity of Christ in the Mass itself requires that we not abandon the sick. Likewise, if we are sick, even with mild symptoms, and it is possibly the COVID virus, we should stay home so as not to endanger others.  It is likely that the COVID virus and its variants will continue to assail us. Here also we must use good judgment. If you think you are vulnerable to infection due to a compromised overall health condition, limiting your exposure to public gatherings is not unreasonable.  I continue to strongly urge Catholics to receive the available vaccines for their own safety and that of the wider community. I strongly encourage that we continue to use face coverings at Mass, and that we practice the safety protocols to which we have all become accustomed. These include frequent disinfecting of hands, and maintaining a reasonable distance between family groups.  In some ways, the withdrawal of the dispensation is a sign of a tentative return to a kind of normalcy. But, at the same time, the lessons of these many months must not be forgotten. To worship the Father in union with Christ at the Mass is an obligation in conscience. So too is our obligation to live not for ourselves but for Christ and for others. We move forward together keeping both obligations of love in mind.  May the prayers of the Blessed Virgin accompany us, and I place this Diocese under the special protection of Our Lady of San Juan del Valle.  In Christ the Lord, + Daniel E. Flores Bishop of Brownsville

New possibilities unfold with a new year. Beginning with the first month, it’s as if we could hear January say, “Let’s begin anew.” Or as Venerable Bruno Lanteri, who founded the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, advised, Nunc Coepi — now I begin. Ahora empiezo nuevamente.

God created us out of the great love that He has and out of the great love that He is. Genesis 1:26-28: Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. God blessed them…

Like the disciples on the road to Emmaus, many today feel downcast, distraught and discouraged along the road of uncertainty. The global pandemic we are experiencing has left so many grieving the loss of a loved one and living in fear of getting sick. Watching the news every day is very depressing, hearing the numbers of those testing positive for the virus and death tolls as well as the countless left unemployed.

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In our December edition of the newspaper, we include a Year in Review of 2019. It is helpful to pause before the New Year and give thanks for the graces in our lives, to be aware and express gratitude for each gift the Lord has given us. But it’s not enough. We also need to consider how we are giving of ourselves.

As Lent approaches, we recall that this is a very special time set aside to reflect on Jesus Christ — to consider his suffering and his sacrifice, his life, death, burial, and resurrection. In the Gospel of John 3:16, we are reminded that “… God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

Who would have thought a few weeks ago that we would be hearing the words “social distancing,” “self-isolation” or “quarantine”? First, not being able to share the sign of peace at Mass and then not being able to attend Holy Mass, much less not being able to receive the precious Body of our Lord Jesus in the most sacred Eucharist.