Father Joseph Kentenich (1885-1968) founded the Secular Institute of the Schoenstatt Sisters of Mary in 1926. The Schoenstatt Sisters, with its motherhouse in Germany, provide inspiration and leadership for the Schoenstatt Movement. Their charism is to be Mary and to work like Mary, in the world so that people may encounter Christ in and through them.
During the Evangelii Gaudium and the Hurricane Harvey Service Recognition ceremony Bishop Michael Mulvey said “we are being called to search out the poor, search out the marginalized, not to push them farther away, not to criticize them, but to be with them. And those of you who have experienced that with a strong involvement after Hurricane Harvey, probably experienced some of that. Your faith has been put into action,” he said. “When we serve each other, when we pull down the barriers–our prejudices, our misunderstandings create–we climb.”
The Office of Catholic Schools in the Diocese of Corpus Christi has ramped up its efforts to keep its 18 campuses, 2,953 students, and 312 full and part-time faculty and staff safe from harm with the implementation of a standardized Emergency Operations Plan. The plan, which rolled out in the 2017-2018 school year, outlines actions to mitigate, respond and recover from emergency situations – situations not confined to a disaster like hurricanes, fires and gas leaks, but also includes dangers like shootings, other threats of bodily harm and bullying.
The south Texas sun and high humidity didn’t deter a crowd of people from gathering at St. Mary Star of the Sea Church in Aransas Pass on May 18. They were there seeking help from Catholic Charities of Corpus Christi, who arrived in a van full of food, cleaning supplies and a staff of helpers. The team helped residents’ complete applications for assistance, and assess their needs in the wake of the hurricane last summer.
Baldemar Cardenas has joyfully served as a Eucharistic Minister since he was 24 years old. Today, at 51, he continues his involvement with the Church through various volunteer activities, including a concept called Small Church Communities, which encourages small groups of parishioners to grow and share their faith with others in the Catholic community.
Bishop Michael Mulvey told some 180 people who attended a “Mass of Solidarity” to come out of the shadows and be a part of the diocesan community. The bilingual Mass was celebrated at Holy Family Church to a predominantly Hispanic community on June 26.
Knights of Columbus Council #1653 and St. Joseph Parish in Beeville awarded three $1000 scholarships to seniors Lois Downing, Jacob Olivares and Jaime Whitt on June 17.
Catholic Family Fraternal of Texas – KJZT (CFFT-KJZT) was a supporting sponsor for the Texas Alliance for Life (TAL) who held their annual “Walk for Life” this past Saturday, June 9 at 5 locations in the Austin and surrounding community.
Bishop Michael Mulvey dedicated the newly erected statue, Regina Caeli Shrine, at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church on June 24 after presiding over the 10:15 a.m. Mass. The statue, sculpted by Pedrini Mario & Company, is carved out of Italian White Carrara marble and the sculpture is 7 feet tall. The sculpture is sitting on a 6-foot pedestal in the middle of the new parking lot at the church.
Summertime means travel time whether it is across the state or the country. The sisters in my community, like many travelers, say special prayers for a safe journey even if it is just a visit to the doctor’s office in town. One such travel prayer Catholics have used for centuries is “St. Christopher, protect us."
If your community participates in the National Flood Insurance Program and your property is in a high-risk zone known as a special flood hazard area (SFHA), you are required by law to purchase and maintain flood insurance if you have received federal disaster assistance for flood damage. Otherwise, when disaster strikes again, you will be ineligible for federal assistance for flood damage to your home or its contents.
FEMA has begun calling Hurricane Harvey survivors housed in hotels under the Transitional Sheltering Assistance, or TSA, program to notify them of the program’s upcoming expiration June 30, after 308 days of support. Survivors currently in the program have been notified their final checkout date is July 1.
Local businessman and philanthropist Mr. Eugene Bouligny is now pledging a $1,000,000 gift if other community investors will invest to meet his challenge starting on July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2019!
by Sister Michelle Marie Kuntscher, IWBS Contributor
After 70 years of consecrated life as a sister of the Incarnate Word and Blessed Sacrament, Sister Mary Stella Barrientes, IWBS passed away on Thursday, June 21. Sister enjoyed a long and full life and will be dearly missed.
Seminarian Raymond Pendleton was accepted into the Rite of Candidacy at a Mass celebrated by Bishop Michael Mulvey, Bishop of the Diocese of Corpus Christi at St. Elizabeth of Hungary Parish on June 20.
Marshall Garrett was one of many homeless people who attended the annual Homeless Issues Partnership Resource Fair at Corpus Christi’s Mother Theresa Shelter on June 14.
Nearly 600 U.S. Catholic institutions—including dioceses, communities of men and women religious, health care systems, universities, as well as parishes and schools—signed the Catholic Climate Declaration that affirms the Paris Agreement and supports actions to meet its goals.
Deacon Mark Arnold, the disaster relief coordinator for the Diocese of Corpus Christi, gave testimony at a June 6 Committee on County Affairs addressing issues pertaining to the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. The diocese, along with agencies in the Coastal Bend, were invited to meet with Texas House of Representatives and county officials at the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.