Pastor Defies Bishop Peña

Pastor defies Bishop Peña

The Monitor
August 31, 2006
(scanned)

To the editor:
Monsignor Louis Brum, pastor of Holy Spirit Parish in McAllen, continues to ignore Bishop Peña’s direction and advice by leaving in place a ban on participation in parish ministries by parishioners who are members of Call to Action (CTA) or its local chapter, Call to Action-Rio Grande Valley (CTA-RGV).

In August 2005, Monsignor Brum instituted a formal policy of banning CTA and CTA-RGV members from full participation in the parish, calling the organization and its members “anti-Catholic” and “not in good standing with the Church.”

Troubled by this ban and alarmed by these characterizations, I wrote to Bishop Peña asking whether he was in agreement with Monsignor’s statements about CTA. On April 17, 2006, the Bishop replied, “Membership in Call to Action-Rio Grande Valley, in my opinion, does not per se cause a person to be ‘not in good standing’ with the Church.”

In later correspondence the Bishop has said, “I suggested for him (Monsignor Brum) to re-evaluate his policies and redefine the requirements regarding lay participation in various ministries of the parish" (June 6) and “...I have discussed the matter with him and encouraged him to resolve the matter amicably, as soon as possible. It is now up to him to respond to your needs" (June 20).

The exclusion from ministries not only deprives the parish the talents of these people but it shatters the unity of the Body of Christ. The policy must be changed and the damage that has been done must be repaired. Bishop Peña indicates as much when he says that the policy has no basis.

It is odd that Monsignor Brum, a priest who is constantly preaching about obedience to Church authority, persists in defying the Bishop.

Gerald Brazier
Edinburg


Peace and Justice Reminder:
Please join the parish Peace and Justice Committee and the Valley's People for Peace and Justice in a demonstration for peace in the Middle East this afternoon (August 31st) between 4:30 and 6:00pm at the offices of Representative Ruben Hinojosa, on the corner of McColl and Trenton. At 6pm, we will join the Coalition Against the Dealth Penalty, at that same location, for a prayer vigil for Derrick Frazier, who will be executed by the State of Texas at that time. See you there!


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The Lorax

The Lorax
By: Benjamin Salinas

“I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees.
I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues.
And I’m asking you, sir, at the top of my lungs”--
he was very upset as he shouted and puffed--
“What’s that THING you’ve made out of my Truffula tuft?”

Many times in the past 3 years, I have felt like the Lorax, having to ask the strange Once-ler what he has made out of “MY” Truffula tuft.

And I started to think about it, and reread the story, and I realized how well the story of this strange little man fits into many of our lives. I present the following coincidences for your consideration.

A strange man, the Once-ler, comes into a peaceful community and begins chopping down trees.

A small man, the Lorax, decides to speak for the trees and stand up against this man.

The Once-ler argues that he is doing everyone a favor by creating a Thneed, which many people seem to want (though personally, I couldn’t see anyone actually using it).

The Once-ler, in spite of the Lorax, calls in all his friends and family to make a quick buck.

“And in no time at all, in the factory I built,
the whole Once-ler Family was working full tilt”

However, the Once-ler decides that ending one program at a time (err..chopping down one tree at a time) is too slow, and so he invents the “Super-Axe-Hacker, which whacked off four Truffula Trees at one smacker.”

Soon, the Brown Bar-ba-loots, who survived off the shade provided by the Truffula trees (and even were nourished by the FRUITS of these trees) are forced to go elsewhere to find nourishment. To this, the Lorax says:

“They loved living here. But I can’t let them stay.
They’ll have to find food. And I hope that they may".
"Good luck, boys,” he cried. And he sent them away.

But, while the Once-ler was off biggering, the Lorax came back AGAIN. This time to announce that the poor Swomee-Swans could no longer sing a note.

“No one can sing who has smog in his throat.”

And so, the singers leave. The Lorax points out that they are going to have to fly.

“They may have to fly for a month… or a year…
to escape from the smog you’ve smogged-up around here.
There has definitely been smog, smogged up around here."

However, this is not it. The Lorax then points out the “Gluppity Glup” and “Schloppity-Schlopp” and all the other left over goo that gets fed to the fish. (Consider, if you will, that Christ called us to be fishers of men. What does that make the fish?)

Now, consider who we are, most recently, feeding “Gluppity Glup” and “Schloppity-Schlopp” to, forcing them to leave to surrounding communities to live.

Then, we are then met with a wake-up call— "the very last Trufulla tree of them all has finally been chopped down". There is no more damage to be done, and so everyone leaves.

“The Lorax said nothing. Just gave me a glance…

just gave me a very sad, sad backward glance…
as he lifted himself by the seat of his pants.
And I’ll never forget the grim look on his face
when he heisted himself and took leave of this place,
through a hole in the smog, without leaving a trace.”

As the story ends, we learn how the Once-ler has undergone a huge change in ideals. He now speaks of the word “UNLESS.”

Dr. Seuess is describing a seemingly made up world in this book, but it is one very close to home for many of us.

We have seen our trees chopped down and as for our Brown Bar-ba-loots, ones that we have sworn to protect and lived with for years, we’ve seen them sent away. We’ve seen the smoggiest of smog and the gluppiest of glupps send others away. We’ve seen the entire story of the Lorax, unfold before our very eyes.

It is safe to say that one day the Once-ler and his family will realize what they have done and regret it. The question is when? And, more importantly, how much damage will have been done? Will it be possible, as the Once-ler suggests, to plant these seeds of our faith?

Will they regrow what we have lost?

I don’t know...

In the mean time, however, I will leave you with some words by another very wise man, Eric Clapton.

“Let’s make the best of the situation
Before I finally go insane.
Please don't say we'll never find a way
And tell me all my love's in vain.”

Oh, it should also be noted that in the entire book, we never once see the Once-ler’s face.

Tune in next week for an analysis of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas"”.


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Proof Positive!

Proof Positive

Sunday, August 27, 2006
(Click on image to enlarge)

Bulletin Insert
The above letter was included in this Sunday’s Bulletin.

This letter totally exemplifies the exclusionary intentions of our pastor. While the pastor of our sister parish (Our Lady of Sorrows) inserted a "full disclosure" of the financial status of their parish in their bulletin, our pastor is still playing games about who can or cannot be a Eucharistic Minister. Does anyone truly believe that this man has Christ in his heart? Your comments are welcomed.
~Kanickers

Parish Council Meeting
Was at church late one day last week. Parked in front of the church were a Jaguar and two Mercedes-Benz automobiles. Thinking to myself about how the financial caliber of our parishioners seemed to be improving, I wondered if the owners of these fancy cars were here for the same meeting that I was? Not the case,... seems they were here for another one of those “secret” parish council meetings! Too sad for words!
~A parishioner


And this from The Monitor:

The Monitor
August 27, 2006

Bishop: Practice what you preach

To the editor:

In regards to Bishop Reymundo Pena’s commentary “God leads us by many roads; what’s necessary is trust” (The Monitor 8/11/06), it is so true that all of us are in the process of deepening and purifying our relationship to God. Likewise, God is with us, nurturing this process.

I wish though that the bishop would exemplify God’s miraculous process by practicing what he writes. Father Louie Brum, pastor at Holy Spirit Parish, is denying parishioners the opportunity to serve by citing Canon laws to support his actions.

Where is the love of God inside of him that the bishop writes about? Denying some of his parishioners at Holy Spirit Parish the opportunity to participate in its ministries is denying them a part of this process. Letting the pastor be selective as to who can and who can not serve is most surely a detriment to the calling and the answering of God’s will that he writes about.

I urge Bishop Pena not to just write the “good words” but to practice what he writes. He writes about “simply becoming open to God’s overflowing love.” The parishioners at Holy Spirit Parish felt that love by the many ministries the parish once had and served.

The shackles he has put on Holy Spirit Parish does not come from a bishop full of God’s love. A good bishop, like our late beloved Bishop Fitzpatrick, would not be bent on destroying it like he is doing. We are patiently waiting for Bishop Peña’s vessel to be filled with God’s love so we can all do God’s good work.

Ricardo Vasquez,
McAllen



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Eucharistic Minister’s Meeting

Eucharistic Minister’s Meeting
There was an important meeting held at Holy Spirit on Monday night. It was for parishioners who were interested in becoming a Eucharistic Minister. The general parish population knew nothing about this meeting. There was no announcement in the bulletin and no mention of it at any of the Sunday Masses. It seems that it was strictly “by invitation only”.

There must be hundreds of parishioners at Holy Spirit who would welcome the opportunity to give of their time and talent to serve our Lord as a Eucharistic Minister. Unfortunately, our pastor has chosen to allow only those of his choosing to participate in this and other ministries within our parish. How totally unCatholic is that? Christ died for all of us and His teachings were that of the inclusion of all. Am I reading a different Bible? Is this the teachings of the Catholic Church? Excuse me while I throw up!

In the spirit of Reconciliation, I hereby submit the only thing that I felt was Catholic about last Monday’s meeting. Too bad such a wonderful prayer was totally lost to the exclusionary intentions of our pastor.
~Kanickers

Renewal Prayer
Gracious God and Father,
We are your people embraced by your love.
We thank you for your presence with us throughout all time.
Create us anew through Jesus Christ your Son.
Liberate us from all that keeps us from you.
Send your Holy Spirit, enabling us to share in
your work of recreating our world.
Heal us from every form of sin and violence.
Transform us to live your Word more profoundly.
Awaken us to the sacred.
Nurture our relationships.
Enliven our parish. Reunite our families.
Fill us with joy to celebrate the fullness of life.
Empower us to be a community of love, growing in your
likeness by the grace of Christ our Lord.
Amen.


Peace & Justice Update
Join the parish Peace and Justice Committee and the Valley Coalition Against the Death Penalty for a demonstration on Thursday, Aug. 24, at 5:30pm, on the southeast corner of the Edinburg Courthouse. At 6pm, there will be a short prayer vigil for Justin Fuller who will be executed by the State of Texas at that time.

Also, please join the parish Peace and Justice Committee and the Valley's People for Peace and Justice in a demonstration for peace in the Middle East on Thursday, August 31st (4:30 to 6:00pm) at the offices of Representative Ruben Hinojosa, on the corner of McColl and Trenton. At 6pm, we will join the Coalition Against the Dealth Penalty, at that same location, for a prayer vigil for Derrick Frazier who will be executed by the State of Texas at that time.

What you can do:
Educate people in your parish and community about Catholic social teaching and the criminal justice system. Visit the following Web site for the Vatican and U.S. bishops’ statements on the death penalty: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/deathpenalty/dpstatements.shtml



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Why Change our Religious Education Program?

Why Change our Religious Education Program?
Via E-Mail, Aug. 21, 2006

Dear Fellow Parishioners,
It is just unacceptable that the "pastor" of our dysfunctional parish has chosen to change the religious education program that has been so successful for so many years. He has chosen book knowledge over real life living of the Gospel. It is apparent that he has no willingness to serve the "people of God", but rather to study our God.

Our children have had the wonderful experience of learning what it means to be a Catholic Christian through the program that has existed for years. Now he is asking them to be as inexperienced as he apparently is at actually living that life.

Is he afraid of those who might be more educated than he? Is he afraid to take off his collar and actually live the life of Christ? Is he so happy to choose those who are simply open to his directions to lead the parish, rather than those who have successfully done so for years, within the guidelines of the Church and diocese?

It is time to question! It is time to challenge! The lives of our children are on the line. Their commitment to Christianity and the Church lies in their understanding of what Jesus relates in the Gospel.

Christ said, "Do this in remembrance of Me". He did not say study the fruits of the Spirit or the gifts of the Holy Ghost. He gave his apostles the directive to go out and spread the message I have given you. He did not say to hide in a chapel and adore Me. He knew He had accomplished His mission. It was now up to His followers to carry the mission out. You cannot do that behind the walls of a chapel.

He did not say to go and make sure everyone respects you because you wear a collar. He said, "Do unto others as I have done unto you." How can we respect, listen to, and follow someone who has no respect for those who have the knowledge that he apparently lacks.

Our children are going to suffer for lack of leadership in the development of their faith and spiritual guidance. Parents, speak up! Let your needs and the needs of your children be known. Let the pastor know that you want your children brought up according to the mission of the Gospel and not just in the memorization of church teachings.

Our youth group has benefited greatly from the program that has been inspiring and has had an impact in their everyday lives. I see it in my daughter and in all the acquaintances she has among her peers. Through the previous program, they learned to pray together, accept differences among each other and live in harmony as Christians with faith in their Church and each other. Our pastor is attempting to do away with that because he apparently does not understand what that is all about. Just to let him know, "IT IS ABOUT BEING A CATHOLIC CHRISTIAN IN THE TRUE SENSE OF THE GOSPEL." It is LIVING the Gospel and not just memorizing words. It is living the words of the Gospel.

His fundamentalism is contrary to Vatican II, which he apparently has difficulty with. It meant change and learning. I have doubts about his ability to learn, especially if he does not read and is more concerned about his status as boss rather than his ordained ministry to serve others and live the gospel.

It is hard to live without the collar and "wash the feet of others" if you do not believe that is your ministry. It is easy to be an institutional ordained minister because the Church does everything for you. You just have to look important. I just cannot get that message from what I read in the Gospel. But it apparently makes him comfortable while the rest of humanity searches for the truth and reaches out to the needs of those who may be different and less fortunate than he is.

I pray for him. I feel sorry for him. I hope that he will see the light and realize that his mission is to help and serve rather than to hate and create devious plots to eliminate those he disagrees with. I thank God my daughter completed her Confirmation class before this abomination occurred. She will be a much better Christian because of her past experiences and will not have to spend her classes memorizing her faith rather than learning how to live it.

Harold Mosher~ A Catholic Christian who believes in living the faith rather than memorizing and doing nothing about it. Service is not vengeance nor is it exclusionary. It is about being there for all who seek the Word of God, not just those you choose to serve.


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Newsletter of 08/20/06 (Revised)

Somos el Cuerpo de Cristo
Thoughts from Some Fellow Parishioners of Holy Spirit—August 20, 2006

Notes on Religious Education, Part II
The Director of Religious Education (DRE) at Holy Spirit has been removed from her job. No, Martha Sanchez has not been fired, but over the past month or so, piecemeal, virtually all her responsibilities for religious education in the Parish have been parceled out to other people, none of them professionals in religious education. There has been no formal notice of these changes given to her by the Monsignor, instead Martha simply arrives at work and finds yet another thing that she is no longer in charge of: setting the curriculum, ordering materials, recruiting catechists, etc. She has a job and a paycheck but very little real work that is related to her contract as DRE.

Elfida Martinez, the Youth Minister, resigned because the Monsignor was engaging in exactly the same tactics with her, making it impossible for her to carry out her job. Ironically, the Monsignor was not even aware that Elfida was responsible for the middle school religious education program when he accepted the resignation he had maneuvered her into offering.

There has not been a formal evaluation of Martha’s work and no indication from the Monsignor that her work has been substandard. Likewise, there has been no formal evaluation of the religious education program at any of the levels (elementary, sacramental preparation, middle school, high school, or youth groups). There is no model of management, whether we are talking about business, government, education, etc., with which this behavior is consistent—unless we are talking about management by personal whim, the management style of petty tyrants concerned only with demonstrating their own power.

Resources
There are at least three staff members whose responsibilities have been so modified and reduced that it is difficult to reconcile their job descriptions with what they are allowed to do each day. Taking salary and benefits into account, the amount of money committed by the Parish to these positions probably exceeds $75,000 per year. By not allowing these people to do their work, the Monsignor has, at a minimum, wasted the Parish’s money.

In the Canonical Tribunal’s ruling concerning the Parish contract with the UFW a major point was that the previous Pastor had put the Parish resources at risk by binding it to making pension payments for the workers. Refusing to allow people hired to do a job the opportunity to actually do that job is even more obviously a waste of scarce Parish resources—is it not?

Notes on Religious Education, Part II
[The original article was not accurate in its description of the recent staff meeting about religious education—below is a revision. I apologize for the misunderstanding. Editor]

On Friday of last week, the Monsignor finally informed the staff about the plans for the religious education program for the upcoming year.

It appears that parents will be offered the choice of two programs for their children: a once a week, classroom-based program or a once a month program (not clear whether this, in all its details, is the current family-based program). It also appears that any parent choosing the once-a-month program will be interviewed during the course of the year to see how they are progressing with their children.

Actions Speak Louder Than Words
I found the following quote this week and it made me think about how different life in my parish family could be. It is from an article in the Friday, August 18, 2006 edition of The Monitor on how to make meaningful choices as we face life. The words are a wonderful reminder of our call to love. If only all of us, from the diocesan offices on down could dedicate ourselves to the following:

“Jesus also calls us to love, to dedicate our talents and energies to the same purposes for which he lived and died, namely the kingdom of God, a kingdom of love, of justice and truth, of equality, peace and unity.”—Bishop Raymundo J. Peña, Bishop of Brownsville
Submitted by fellow parishioner, Michelle Peña

$$$$$ Update
According to the Sunday bulletins, since 10/16/05 parishioners have donated $68,232.79 less than the $638,000 the parish budget has called for (this includes an estimate for the weekend of April 2, since no data was ever reported for that date). If the spending patterns of the last fiscal year have continued (13.4% over budget), then this gives a total of $153,692.23 of red ink (versus budget) for the period 10/16/05 to 8/13/06. Stretching that pattern for an entire year, the Parish would fall short by $181,636.27.

Redemptive Violence?
The myth of redemptive violence, writes Walter Wink in The Powers That Be: Theology for a New Millennium, “speaks for God; it does not listen for God to speak. It invokes the sovereignty of God as its own; it does not entertain the prophetic possibility of radical judgment by God. It misappropriates the language, symbols and scriptures of Christianity. It does not seek God in order to change; it embraces God in order to prevent change. Its God is not the impartial ruler of all nations but a tribal god worshiped as an idol. Its metaphor is not the journey but the fortress; its symbol is not the cross but the crosshairs of a gun. Its offer is not forgiveness but victory. … It is blasphemous. It is idolatrous. “And it is immensely popular.”

It is difficult to be the shining city on the hill when so much of our effort and treasury and youth is mired in blood-soaked sand.
From the National Catholic Reporter, 8/11/06

Legal Matters—the End of the Tour
This week an agreement was reached between the Diocese and the UFW concerning two separate issues. One was the Holy Spirit contract and the second was the failure of two other parishes to make pension payments required by their contracts with the UFW. In the settlement of these merged cases, the Diocese has agreed to have the parishes make the pension payments for four of the five years of the contract and in turn the UFW has agreed to terminate the contracts immediately. For the Holy Spirit workers this means they are vested in the UFW pension at 80%, but no longer have any protections of the union contract in their employment.

Like so many things that end up in court, this came down to money, not principle. The diocesan administration and our current pastor have behaved shamefully throughout this whole business. What has been gained? What has been lost?


Prepared by RGV Parishioners for Progress and edited by Jerry Brazier. Copy this, and pass it on to fellow parishioners, either by e-mail or paper. If you want an opportunity for prayerful discussion of these and other issues about the parish or have any other comments, please contact us at mailto:gbrazier@rgv.rr.com



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More Peace & Justice

Statements from Church Leaders that we don't hear from the Pulpit:
"I cannot help but think of the situation, ever more serious and tragic, developing in the Middle East: hundreds of dead, many wounded, a huge number of homeless and displaced, houses and infrastructure destroyed, while in the hearts of many hatred and the desire for revenge appear to be growing".

"In the name of God, I call on all those responsible for this spiral of violence so that weapons are immediately laid down on all sides".

"I ask those who govern and the international institutions to spare no effort to obtain this necessary cessation of hostilities"
Pope Benedict - 30 July 06


"As an essential part of its fight against all forms of terrorism, the international community is called to undertake new and creative political, diplomatic and economic initiatives aimed at relieving the scandalous situations of gross injustice, oppression and marginalization which continue to oppress countless members of the human family. History in fact shows that the recruitment of terrorists is more easily achieved in areas where human rights are trampled upon and where injustice is a part of daily life.”
Pope John Paul II


[Israel] reminded me so much of what happened to us black people in South Africa... I have seen the humiliation of the Palestinians at checkpoints and roadblocks, suffering like us when young white police officers prevented us from moving about... Israel will never get true security and safety through oppressing another people. A true peace can ultimately be built only on justice.

If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu



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Peace and Justice News

Peace and Justice News
Join the Holy Spirit Peace and Justice Committee and others from around the area to demonstrate for peace on Wednesday, Aug. 16, from 4:30 to 6:00 pm, at the Corner of Nolana and Jackson in McAllen. These demonstrations will be occurring frequently at various locations. We will keep you posted.

Also, please join the Peace and Justice Committee and the Valley Coalition Against the Death Penalty on Thursday, Aug. 17, from 5:30 to 6:00 pm, at the South East corner of the courthouse in Edinburg, for a demonstration against the death penalty. At 6:00 there will be a short prayer vigil for Richard Hinojosa, who will be executed at that hour by the State of Texas. These demonstrations and vigils are held each time there is an execution by the State of Texas. We will keep you informed.

Click on the following link to view a comprehensive statement by the U.S. Roman Catholic Bishops calling for an end to the Death Penalty in the United States: http://www.usccb.org/sdwp/national/deathpenalty/dpstatements.shtml


What You Can Do
As part of the Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty you can:

Pray for victims of crime and their families, those who have been wrongly convicted, and those awaiting execution.

Learn about Catholic social teaching, U.S. criminal justice policies, and the policies in your state. Go to the web site listed above for more information about the death penalty.

Educate people in your parish or community about Catholic social teaching and the criminal justice system. Visit the web sites listed above for the Vatican and U.S. bishops’ statements on the death penalty, as well as statements from individual bishops and states Catholic Conferences.

Advocate by contacting your elected officials. Discuss Catholic teaching on the death penalty and what steps could be taken at the state and national level to curtail or end its use. To receive information on efforts regarding the death penalty at the national level or to link with a particular state’s efforts, visit the web site listed above.

Reconciliation at Holy Spirit?

August 14, 2006

Bishop Raymundo Pena
CATHOLIC DIOCESE OF BROWNSVILLE
P. O. Box 2279
Brownsville, Texas 78522-2279

Also by email to: rjpena@cdob.org
Also posted on Kanickers Blogspot

Dear Bishop Pena:

You came to our parish at the beginning of Lent to discuss reconciliation. Homilies were given that season by visiting priests addressing the importance of coming together once again as a parish family.

Reconciliation and forgiveness hasn’t happened at Holy Spirit. Most importantly, Msgr. Brum himself has not forgiven nor taken any steps toward reconciliation with those he considers “defiant.”

An excellent example happened two Sundays ago. After the 8:30 mass, several of us (who Msgr. Brum will not allow in ministry) went to a local restaurant for breakfast. As we were getting ready to order our food, Msgr. Brum walked in with his good friend, Sister Cindy. They stopped upon seeing our table, then turned and left the building.

· The restaurant wasn’t full and there was certainly no waiting for a table—so that couldn’t be the reason they left.
· Msgr. Brum has been to the restaurant several times, so he is well aware of the cost and type of food they serve—so that could not have been the reason they left.
· He did, however, make eye contact with our group and immediately turned and left quickly.

To publicly snub parishioners, even those he would rather not have as an active part of his parish, is just wrong.

Reconciliation will never happen at our parish as long as we have a pastor who is not interested in leading the process. A good leader leads by example—refusing to share a restaurant with parishioners shows that Msgr. Brum has absolutely no interest in ending the current situation in our parish.. He wasn’t expected to join us at our table, although we would have welcomed him and his guest, but to have him publicly turn his back on us was ridiculous.

It is actions like this that keep Holy Spirit parish from coming together as the family we once were.

Very sadly, but sincerely,


Bridget Cook
McAllen, Texas 78504
cc: Msgr. Louis Brum


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More About Bishop John Fitzpatrick

More About Bishop John Fitzpatrick

I received the following as a comment to a previous post on Bishop John Fitzpatrick. It came in as an 'anonymous' post, yet it had a signature attached. I have taken the liberty of included the senders name.

Since his death, those of us that loved and respected our previous Bishop now become elated at the very opportunity to share stories about his life, experiances and teachings. I thank this sender for sharing his story with us and I encourage all of you to continue to submit your stories (and pictures) about Bishop John Fitzpatrick to me. I am considering establishing a Web page in his honor, so that his memory can be forever shared and enjoyed by all.
~Kanickers


August 11, 2006
In these days when the immigration debate is raging at a fever pitch, I believe it is worthwhile for Catholics to reflect on the life of John Joseph Fitzpatrick, former bishop of Brownsville, who died July 15 at age 87.

I do not pretend to have been a close confidant of Bishop Fitzpatrick when I was working as a chaplain at the largest U.S. immigration detention center during the last year and a half of his administration. In fact, before my family and I moved to Brownsville in January 1991, I don’t think I had ever heard of Bishop Fitzpatrick.

Before I began my ministry at the Port Isabel Service and Processing Center, I went to introduce myself to Bishop Fitzpatrick.

During our first very short meeting I remember we talked about our common experiences growing up in Western New York. When I asked how he ended up going to work in Florida, he said the bishop of Buffalo had agreed to send several of his priests to the young, growing church in Miami. When I asked if he was ordered to go to Miami, he said, “No, they were asking for volunteers and I couldn’t volunteer fast enough.”

I thought he must have volunteered because of some deep spiritual motive, missionary fervor or sense of adventure. But he simply said, “I was sick of the snow and the cold of Western New York.” No great theological reason but a simple, human, understandable reason.

Without additional probing Bishop Fitzpatrick told me that during his time in South Florida he had grown to love the people there and he had expected to remain there for the rest of his life. He said it was an unexpected shock when he was named bishop of Brownsville. It was an additional shock, he told me, when he arrived here to learn that a number of people were angry that an Anglo had been named bishop of a diocese that was more than 90 percent Hispanic. But, with a twinkle in his eye, he added, “After 18 years I think I have won some of them over.”

Bishop Fitzpatrick was not a great theologian, nor did he seem at all enthusiastic about engaging in the great public policy debates about immigration that were going on at the time. I can’t believe he ever enjoyed seeing his name in The Brownsville Herald during the many years that Central Americans were flowing into and out of Brownsville while the civil wars in Central America were raging.

From what I heard from those much closer to the bishop than I, he was as uncomfortable with those who canonized him for opening the refugee shelter Casa Romero as with those who demonized him for helping “illegals.”

The bishop’s spokesperson regarding the diocese’s work with immigrants and refugees, and my immediate supervisor, Mr. Hernan Gonzalez, made it clear that my job was to treat all people I met, including jailers and immigration officers, with respect and dignity. He reminded me that even those involved in immigration enforcement are good Catholics and members of our parishes. When I asked how I should carry out my ministry, he simply said, “Do anything you can to help the detainees realize that the Church is praying for their welfare and doing everything it can to support them.”

During the time I was chaplain at the Corralon I mailed tens of thousands of detainee letters and made hundreds of phone calls to the families and relatives of Central American detainees. Sometimes Bishop Fitzpatrick would see me with my mailbag in the Chancery. Inevitably, he would say something like, “Oh, I see there is still work to be done out there.” I would respond with some anecdote about my experience within the fences of the Corralon.

Bishop Fitzpatrick would always end our quick conversations by directing me to tell the detainees that he was praying for them at his daily Mass.

Mailing letters and making phone calls did not seem like a big deal back then. But as I reflect on Bishop Fitzpatrick’s uncomplicated approach to ministry I am awed by the thousands of individuals who were consoled by news from a loved one at a desperate moment in their lives. How many mothers and fathers throughout North America were relieved to hear that their children were alive? How many families were re-united because of those letters? How many people were able to escape being killed in Central America because of those letters?

With all of the scandals in the Church these days it is important to remember that the Catholic Church was totally present to the poorest and those in greatest need during that time.

Bishop Fitzpatrick taught me that a leader does not simply take on the burden of the work that must be done, he or she inspires and supports others to take on the work also.

I remember once talking to Sister Juliana Garcia, one of the directors of Casa Romero, in my early, more naive days. I told her that the Central American refugees were fortunate that Casa Romero existed. She looked me straight in the eyes and said something that I will never forget: “God does not need Casa Romero, Bishop Fitzpatrick or me to do his will. We would be arrogant indeed to think of ourselves in such a grandiose manner. It’s easy to run Casa Romero because the diocese gives us money to run it. If I need something I ask Bishop Fitzpatrick and he gives it to me. The real heroes (in all of this) are the hundreds of really poor families in Brownsville that have taken Central American refugees into their homes and are feeding them at their own expense. They are doing it not because it is their job, but because they are moved by their faith and Christian commitment to do it.”

It would not surprise me if Bishop Fitzpatrick ever thought that he was in the wrong place (Brownsville, Texas being the closest U.S. city by land to Central America) at the wrong time (the civil wars in Central America were at their height in the mid 1980s).

I believe we can look back and agree that Bishop Fitzpatrick was in the right place at the right time. And I believe that we who call ourselves Catholic would benefit from remembering his explanation of his actions to his people in the mid-’80s and the early ‘90s as we listen to present-day lengthy, complicated public policy debates on immigration reform. His explanation was not based on complicated and ethereal theology but was simple, understandable and humane. That was simply, “They came and we fed them.”

Paul C. Kavanaugh

Fr. Blum's Response to CTA

Monsignor Brum Responds to Call To Action

The followings letter was received from CTA-RGV:

(Click on image to enlarge.)

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Newsletter of 08/06/06

Somos el Cuerpo de Cristo
Thoughts from Some Fellow Parishioners of Holy Spirit—August 6, 2006


Notes on Religious Education
Elfida Martinez, Director of Youth Ministry and the person primarily responsible for middle and high school religious education at Holy Spirit has resigned. Her resignation came after the Pastor had ignored her written request to meet with him to discuss her responsibilities and the direction of religious education in the Parish.

What many people consider the most important ministry of the Parish is going to suffer from Elfida’s departure, but what everyone should understand is that this most important ministry has been suffering ever since the Monsignor has been in the Parish. For reasons that have never been expressed, he has decided to undermine the religious education staff at every turn. Micro-mismanagement best describes what has been going on: scheduling snafus, missed deadlines, an unwillingness to deal with professional staff professionally, failure to keep those ostensibly in charge informed of events and decisions, etc. It’s a mess and Elfida’s decision to step away from an impossible work situation is very understandable.

It is difficult not to think that the Monsignor’s handling of Elfida’s situation is simply another stage in his calculated war on the Parish, its programs and its professional staff. Prevented by the courts from firing people without cause, he makes their work environment so intolerable that they quit. The fact that this approach leaves exemplary programs in a shambles and leaves the Parish dramatically diminished is completely irrelevant to him—he must, at all costs, win his self-initiated war.

Presbyterian Thoughts
Food for thought, some views on church and disagreements from two Presbyterian Seminary presidents, as presented in God’s Politics, by Jim Wallis.

From Richard Mouw: “I do sense, however, a strong need to keep talking. The church is not some mere voluntary arrangement that we can abandon just because we do not happen to like some of the other people in the group. God calls us to the church, and that means God requires that we hang in there with each other, even if that goes against our natural inclinations.”

From Barbara Wheeler: “How’s this for a model of church that we are called to become: “They confessed that they were strangers and foreigners on earth.” What if instead of denying our estrangement, or bemoaning it, we embraced it as a gift from God?

A church that contains members we think strange, even barbaric, is a healthier setting for us, for our formation as Christians. We like to think that a church of our kind, one that excludes those who believe incorrectly and behave badly by our lights, would be a better school for goodness than the mixed church we’ve got. It is not necessarily so. Familiarity and affinity breed bad habits as well as virtues.

The last and most critical reason for all of us Presbyterian strangers to struggle through our disagreements is to show the world that there are alternatives to killing each other over differences. As long as we continue to club other Presbyterians into submission … we have no word for a world full of murderous divisions, most of them cloaked in religion.” submitted by fellow parishioner, Michelle Peña

Privileges and Rights
In a letter to Call to Action-Rio Grande Valley (CTA-RGV), Bishop Raymundo Peña repeats an oft-cited statement “[T]he exercise of liturgical ministries (lector and extraordinary minister [of] Holy Communion) is a privilege, not a right [emphasis added].” In a very narrow, technical sense, this is correct, but given the way most people tend to interpret and use the words privilege and right the Bishop’s statement is extremely misleading. Privilege carries the connotation of something granted or withheld by authority at its whim, and right carries the connotation of something we are reasonably entitled to if we follow acceptable standards of performance. Neither of these is correct in the narrow sense that the Bishop is using the words.

An example might help. Most of us would think that as citizens and taxpayers of the State of Texas we, and our children, have the right to enroll at a state university. This is not correct. Unlike admission to public education (K-12), which is a right granted to all by the state constitution, admission to a state university is a privilege granted to those who meet requirements. What is important to understand is that the requirements cannot be capricious, but must be based on objective criteria that are related to nature of the university. No one could be excluded from entrance to Texas A&M, for example, because they were partial to wearing orange t-shirts with “Hook ‘em Horns” emblazoned on the front. They could be excluded, however, if their academic preparation made them, in the judgment of the university, unlikely to succeed. Privileges are granted to those who meet requirements, but the requirements must be reasonable and objective. In contrast, rights are not granted; they are unqualified and they exist for everyone.

Of course, being a liturgical minister (or participating in any particular parish ministry, for that matter) could not possibly be a right, in the narrow, technical sense. Someone with a speech defect has no absolute right to be a lector; someone with crippled hands has no absolute right to be a Eucharistic Minister; someone with little aptitude for working with children has no absolute right to teach in a religious education program, etc. So, in this narrow sense, participation in any particular parish ministry is a privilege granted to those who meet requirements—reasonable, objective requirements that are not capricious but are related to the nature of the ministry within the parish. A lector proclaims the Scripture to the community. In that role, the lector does not represent the Pastor, does not exercise authority or leadership in the community, but instead is doing nothing other than serving the community in its Eucharistic celebration. The same analysis applies to Eucharistic Minister, or any other parish ministry.

The privilege-right distinction is, as a practical matter, a meaningless distinction, and when it is used to justify caprice and vindictiveness, it becomes a tool in creating a perversion of the meaning of a parish community.

$$$$$ Update
According to the Sunday bulletins, since 10/16/05 parishioners have donated $63,785.58 less than the $609,000 the parish budget has called for (this includes an estimate for the weekend of April 2, since no data was ever reported for that date). If the spending patterns of the last fiscal year have continued (13.4% over budget), then this gives a total of $145,360.50 of red ink (versus budget) for the period 10/16/05 to 7/16/06. Stretching that pattern for an entire year, the Parish would fall short by $179,970.15.

Peace
Join the Parish community at Wednesday night prayer (9:00 pm)—praying for an end to war, particularly the Israeli-Hezbollah conflict and the American war in Iraq.


Prepared by RGV Parishioners for Progress and edited by Jerry Brazier. Copy this, and pass it on to fellow parishioners, either by e-mail or paper. If you want an opportunity for prayerful discussion of these and other issues about the parish or have any other comments, please contact us at mailto:gbrazier@rgv.rr.com


Posting a Comment: You may now submit a comment simply by clicking "POST A COMMENT" under the "COMMENTS" link below. Approval of comments are done only to prevent any objectionable or advertising type posts. You may also e-mail this article to a friend, by clicking on the envelope icon below.