|
The month of December
brought many vocation
inquiries for Holy Cross in Mexico. Misal Mensual, which is a popular
missalette that individuals buy, ran a (free!) two page vocation ad. The
ad describes the charisms and mission of Holy Cross and mentions the kinds of
work that we do. Pictured in the ad is Alfredo
Ledesma, one of the candidates who is preparing to go to the
novitiate in Peru, Lima this coming January.
The provincial house was again fully decorated
for the holidays. Brother Thomas Krieter,
assistant provincial and steward, set up all of the lights on the house, the
luminarios around the driveway, and the nativity scene on the front porch.
With the Christmas star set up to mark the place, we knew it would not be long
before Father Peter Rocca from Moreau
Seminary at Notre Dame would be able to find his way for his annual trip to
Austin. Fr. Rocca comes every year at this time to visit friends he has
known since his days at St. Ignatius Martyr Church. Welcome Peter!
The priests of the
Austin
South Deanery gathered at St. Catherine's rectory for a luncheon to
visit with Bishop Gregory Aymond, the
Coadjutor Bishop of Austin. Bishop Aymond is familiar with Holy Cross
since his seminary formation and all of his priestly and episcopal ministry
prior to Austin had been in New Orleans. Fathers
Harold Zink and Harold Essling had both been at Sacred
Heart Parish in New Orleans and are now in South Austin. Father
Oliver Johnson, the pastor of St. Catherine's, set up a wonderful
environment and provided a lovely luncheon for the Bishop.
A
good time was had by all!
Father Richard Nowery has
had bypass surgery on his heart. The whole event was quite a surprise
since Dick always watches his diet and regularly exercises. He has been
taking things slowly as he recovers, but he will soon be back to his regular
schedule. Thanks to Father Joe Moyer
for pitching in and helping with things while Dick was on the mend.
The Kellogg Foundation
has renewed its grant with St. Edward's University
for
the Austin ENLACE project. The ENLACE
project is a partnership of St. Edward's University,
Austin Community College (ACC), Dolores Parish, and the Austin Independent
School District (AISD) to improve education for students in the
Montopolis area. The goal is to improve education (seen as K--16,
Kindergarten through a college bachelor's degree) for all the people in the
area. We look forward to great accomplishments!
During the first week of
January, Len
Collins flew down to Lima, Peru with three candidates to take them to
the novitiate. Mario Alberto Guzmán González,
Javier Herminio Garcia, and Alfredo Olvera Ledesma are now novices
for the Congregation, in the Southern Province.
Also during the first week of January,
John
Korcsmar flew out to Tucson, AZ for the annual Target meeting with
the Catholic Campaign for Human Development.
He is the diocesan director for CCHD for the Diocese of Austin. The Diocese
of Austin is a Target Diocese; that means that the diocesan
office of C.C.H.D. "targets" some parishes for some specific goals:
-
increase an understanding of the reality and
causes of poverty in the U.S.
-
increase an understanding of Catholic social
teaching;
-
help people in the parish become involved in
justice ministries;
-
work to raise the collection for
C.C.H.D.
|
