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Maybe We'll Do Penance on Friday

Locals Ponder Holy Year

By Robert Kumpel

On Sunday, January 12th, Bishop Brom proclaimed a holy year for the diocese of San Diego -- to begin immediately and conclude on November 23rd, the feast of Christ the King. Calling for prayer, penance and works of charity, the bishop challenged all San Diego Catholics to follow Pope John Paul II's call to "become more deeply united to Christ and show ourselves as God's children not only in name but in fact." The proclamation was read at all Masses on January 12th where Holy Year prayer cards (a prayer very similar to Brom's prayer for vocations) were handed out.

The response that day at four local parishes:

At Our Lady of Grace parish in Fletcher Hills, 7 a.m. Mass is attended almost entirely by senior citizens. Parishioner Frank Sposato, 70, said that the pastor read the proclamation at Mass. "My first thought was that we should hand these out at our Knights of Columbus meetings and say this prayer before the meetings. Then I thought about taking it with me into the chapel for my holy hour every week. Those are two things that I'm going to be doing with it. I do a lot now for this church, so, to tell you the truth, I don't need to do any more."

Judy Tilaro also heard the proclamation at Mass. "I'll say a few more prayers, using the prayer that they've given us. I think it's a good idea. We need it badly. There's too much evil going on and I think that Satan is just working us over as long as he can! We've got to combat him! There's a whole lot of evil people in the world!"

Margaret Pohl didn't need to wait for Mass to find out about the proclamation. "I got my diocesan newspaper yesterday, and I read it right away. It's very nice, because it puts us right where we should be, focusing right on what the bishop said. And we have a pastor here who focuses on those things all year long -- prayer, penance, and charity. I'm going to try harder with those three things."

Among those exiting 7:30 Mass at Blessed Sacrament in the State College area, parishioner Leo Dupuis: "It's very good. It should keep people together to pray for everything that's happening. I don't know what I'll do -- probably pray the rosary about once a week. That's about it. And church services."

Jerri Hird: "I think that the way the world is now, we all need to come back to the Lord, and I think that by saying the rosary and doing good deeds it will help. I'm going to say rosaries, do more for the poor, and help out at church."

Michael Laterza likes the idea of a Holy Year. "They read the prayer at Mass, and I enjoyed it. I look forward to celebrating it for the rest of the year and beyond. I'm going to try to be a better person, love my neighbor, try to be forgiving, and treat people like I'd like to be treated myself." When asked if more prayers or penance were in store, Laterza was hesitant. "I'd like to say yes, but probably not. There'll be more acts of charity if I can. It may be just greeting someone, saying hello and being friendly."

Karen West was not familiar with the proclamation when she arrived for Mass but agrees with the bishop's idea. "I think we should have it every year everywhere. Everything the bishop said, I already do. I'll have to think about those 'special' things."

Brett Higdon attends St. Augustine High School. "I think it's a pretty cool because we haven't really had one thus far. With all the stuff that's going on in the world, it's a pretty good idea to have a Holy Year. I'll try to go to confession more at my school during our Masses and be a little more tolerant with people and try to act better -- stuff like that.

The fog is starting to lift at St. Therese parish in Del Cerro as parishioners head for their cars after the 9:00 Mass. David and Kathy Campbell, both dressed to meet the morning chill, are less hurried. David: "With all the scandal, it's a great way to focus on what's important for the Church and get back on track. And it's for everybody, the priests, the laypeople, so it's really for us as the whole Church." Kathy agrees. "We need to get back to the basics. We'll have to talk about it as family. Maybe we'll do penance on Friday -- abstaining from meat or maybe fasting on Fridays. We normally pray the rosary, so we'll include the Holy Year prayer in that. We'll have to do some weekly act of charity. Maybe a volunteer project."

Deborah Ek speaks in calm, even tones about the Holy Year. "I think it's something we should do all the time. Just having that to focus on, for some, may be good. I think I'll continue doing what I already do. I deliver meals on wheels for the poor and pray daily. I'm not sure I would do anything different. I hope that I live each day to the fullest as it is."

Barbara Bixel is in favor of a Holy Year. "Any call to prayer, penance and good works is a good call. I'm going to intensify my efforts at good works among other things."

Thomas McNamara, 42, agrees. "I think we need to re-focus on what the Church is all about and get back to the community that the Catholic Church is. Obviously, we've been distracted by all the press about priests and sex abuse. I think people are fearful of what's going on in the world. I think we need to bring it back to the basics. I have two young kids, and I spend a lot of time raising them, but if I could, I'd like to spend more time in the adoration chapel -- maybe just a couple of hours a week."

One elderly man, who asked not to be identified, was suspicious. "I just had dinner the other night with a priest and he had just heard it was coming himself. It sounds like some sort of cover-up to me!"

At Mission San Diego, a popular tourist attraction, it's hard to tell the visitors from the parishioners. Each entrance to the church is jammed as those leaving 10:00 Mass run the gauntlet of those waiting to get in. Erlinda Estudillo, 65, thinks the Holy Year is a "wonderful thing to happen.... San Diego is a place where the first church of California started. In observance of the Holy Year, I want to come to church here."

Marty McCaffrey was enjoying doughnuts with his kids after Mass. "I think it's a wonderful idea, but I think every year should be a holy year. Prayer and acts of charity are wonderful things, but it shouldn't just be for this year. I think it's great for us to concentrate on it now. We've tried to incorporate more prayer in our lives at home, especially the rosary. This will give us more impetus to do that. Before the proclamation, we were doing that quite a bit, but this will focus it a bit more."

Marie Burke, a parishioner at Our Lady of Grace was visiting the mission. She seems pleased with mission pastor Monsignor Thomas Prendergast and the bishop. "He was fantastic. I know him from doing some other activities here at the mission. I think the Holy Year is good, and to hear it from him so down to earth was great. It was nice to hear some positive talking because in the last year it's been so negative. It definitely will be a good Holy Year. I'll try to go to church twice a week instead of once a week. I say the rosary every day -- something that's stayed with me since growing up in Philadelphia."

Before leaving the mission, Marty McCaffrey's wife, Theresa, approached me with a question. "I agree with everything my husband said, but I'm curious to know what authority the bishop has to proclaim a holy year? I have no idea. I'm curious to find out. We just celebrated a Holy Year for the new millennium. It's a wonderful idea and I hope everybody does pray more and good things come from it."

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