Congratulations!
Congratulations to Frater James Nguyen who renewed his vows on Friday, July 29, in the chapel of the Dehon Formation Community in Chicago. Fr. David Szatkowski, a member of the formation team and superior of the community, received the vows.
“What drew me to the Priests of the Sacred Heart is the charism and spirituality found in Fr. Leo John Dehon’s writings,” wrote Frater James last year in his formation autobiography. “Fr. Dehon always found comfort in the knowledge that God loved him tremendously, which is symbolized in the burning Heart of Christ. Fr. Dehon wanted us who are dedicated to the love of God to be living examples of the love that Jesus had. I strive to live in that spirit of our founder daily through my religious vows: ‘In poverty, I desire to give all I have. In chastity, I desire to give all I am. And in obedience, I desire to give all I will become.’”
48 years dedicated to the people of Texas
Fr. Peter Mastrobuono died on July 27 in suburban Milwaukee. He was 76 and had been in nursing care for the past few months.
Originally from Cleveland, Fr. Peter entered the Priests of the Sacred Heart in 1959. On December 17th he would have celebrated his 50th anniversary of priesthood.
Fr. Peter studied philosophy at the SCJs’ Kilroe Seminary in Honesdale, PA, and earned an S.T.B. at the Gregorian University in Rome. On summer break from his studies in Rome he went to Spain to learn Spanish, which proved to be instrumental in his future ministry.
In 1968, after a year at St. Joseph’s Indian School in South Dakota, Fr. Peter was assigned to Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish in Raymondville, Texas.
“Brownsville is a small city which borders Matamoros, Mexico,” said Fr. Peter about his first assignment in Texas. “There I noticed how many people crossed the border from Mexico to work on the American side. Some came with papers, some without. But we treated them all with love and respect.”
He continued to minister in Texas for the next 48 years. Besides Our Lady of Guadalupe in Raymondville, Fr. Peter also served at OLG in Brownsville, OLG in Houston, Our Lady of Fatima in Galena Park, St. Philip of Jesus in Houston, Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Houston, and at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, also in Houston.
Although officially retired in 2009, Fr. Peter continued to assist at Our Lady of Guadalupe in Houston until earlier this year when declining health necessitated that he move to nursing care.
Both the Mass of Christian Burial and the visitation for Fr. Peter will take place at the main chapel at Sacred Heart Monastery / Sacred Heart Seminary and School of Theology at 7335 S. Lovers Lane Road (Hwy 100), Franklin, WI 53132 on Wednesday, August 3. Please note: the death notice in the Milwaukee Journal incorrectly stated that the funeral would be at Sacred Heart at Monastery Lake.
Visitation will be from 9 a.m. until just before the start of the Mass at 10:30 a.m.
Interment will follow at the community mausoleum on the grounds of SHM/SHSST. A luncheon will follow.
Click here to read more about Fr. Peter on the US Province website.
A memorial service for Fr. Peter is tentatively planned for the Houston area; the date has not yet been set.
SCJs continue to provide earthquake relief
Fr. Stephen Huffstetter, general councilor, has been in Ecuador for the past week. In 1888, Fr. Dehon sent the congregation’s first missionaries to the country; due to several complex problems the mission did not succeed and the SCJs left the country in 1896.
One hundred years later the Spanish Province took up the mission anew. The district now consists of two communities in Quito and one on the coast at Bahía de Caráquez. District members come not only from Spain, but also from Venezuela, Brazil and now Ecuador itself.
Fr. Steve has written two blog posts from Ecuador, the most recent from Bahía de Caráquez, one of the areas most significantly impacted by a devastating earthquake in April.
“The plaza in front of Our Lady of Merced Church holds a tent city. We also passed rows of tents on the outskirts of town,” Fr. Steve wrote about his first views of the areas in which the SCJs minister. “At San Jorge church, we saw how the bell tower pulled away from the main building. The office and meeting room building slants noticeably. Workers laid new floor tiles after leveling an eight-inch drop in the main floor. The disaster has caused lots of displacement for normal group meetings and parish programs.
“The Priests of the Sacred Heart have tried to help with housing. At Albergue Sagrado Corazón, one such temporary housing site, metal structures about the size of a backyard tool shed serve as shelter. Blankets draped over the metal add warmth and protection from the wind. People cooked and socialized outside. An elderly woman had her bed brought outside the house so she could be part of the crowd until it was time to go in for the night. While life is hard, people are grateful for the help with meeting basic needs for the moment.
“The town resounds with the sounds of both hammers and wrecking balls. We visited two housing construction sites. The SCJs have helped build 17 homes which rise above cement pads on stilts, and are connected to water and sewer. They cost $3,000 each. At another site we watched workers cutting wire in preparation for prefabricated walls to be brought in. Those homes cost $8,000. In the aftermath of past earthquakes in Chile and Perú, builders have learned what can be quickly and inexpensively built that will work in the area.”
Click here to read Fr. Steve’s full blog post from Bahía de Caráquez. Click here to read his first post from Ecuador, written from Quito.
A “part-time missionary”
Fr. Tom Cassidy visited with staff at the Province Development Office on July 26th to talk about the congregation’s presence in India; he has been serving as a “part-time missionary” in the district for the past two years.
Fr. Tom was a member of the General Council when the decision was made to begin an SCJ presence in India in 1994. However, it wasn’t until 2011 that he visited the country. By then he was provincial superior of the US Province and in that capacity was invited to attend the district ordinations.
He started going to India on a regular basis in 2014, soon after his term as provincial superior ended.
There are currently 84 members of the Indian District, just two less than in the US Province. Begun as an international mission of the congregation, Indian SCJs are now serving throughout the world in places such as Cameroon, Brazil, Venezuela and Italy. Funds raised by the Province Development Office are instrumental not only in building the SCJ presence in India, but in service to the Church around the world.
“Our SCJs in India pray for our benefactors every day,” said Fr. Tom to the development office staff, “as well as for all of you who help in raising funds for the mission.”
Click here to read more about Fr. Tom’s presentation to the Development Office.
A new secretary general
As of today, August 1, Fr. Pedro Iglesias Curto of the Spanish Province is the new secretary general. He succeeds Fr. Heru Ismadi, who has held the position for the past six years. However, Fr. Heru isn’t fully saying “good-bye” to the Generalate – he’ll be back in November to assist with the Major Superiors Meeting and the Secretaries training workshop.
WYD!
Fr. Ed Kilianski joined the group from Our Lady of Guadalupe, Houston, at World Youth Day activities early last week. Fr. Ed wanted to attend WYD not only because of its significance in the Church, but also because of the significance of the group from the US Province: Fr. Ed had been pastor of OLG until his election as provincial superior in 2015. Most of the young adults in the group are people whom he knew as children at the parish, people whose families he was well acquainted with when he was pastor.
From Krakow Fr. Ed wrote:
“They have been keeping us on the go since I arrived on Saturday evening. There are more than 250 Dehonian Youth from approximately 19 countries including the U.S. and Canada. There is an amazing spirit among them. Many new friends have been made across cultures and borders. On Monday, Fr. Heiner celebrated Mass and gave a talk on mercy. He had the youth in the palm of his hand.
“Tuesday we went from the seminary in Stadniki to Kraków. Thousands of young people are in the city from around the world. The spirit among them is incredible! There is lots of singing on the streets and greetings among the nations. Each group carries its national flag. Whenever we passed a group from the US there was always the chant of ‘USA, USA!!’
“Wednesday morning the Dehonian Youth walked to the first and only parish church of St. John Paul II. In the afternoon they had workshops on mercy and Dehonian Spirituality in language groups, followed by a cookout at the seminary in Stadniki. The SCJs from Poland have been most welcoming to us all. There is an excellent spirit of fraternity and community. I feel truly blessed to have this international opportunity with our confreres from around the Congregation. It has also been fantastic to be with the group from Our Lady of Guadalupe. Br. Andy has done an amazing job of organizing the pilgrimage for them.”
There are dozens of links to photos and videos from WYD on the congregation’s Facebook page, DehoniansWorldwide. Click here to visit it.
Provincial’s time
Fr. Ed Kilianski returns to Milwaukee from Poland on August 4. August 7-11 he will be in Montréal for the Canadian Regional Assembly.
