The Chrismal Mass was celebrated on Thursday, April 2, in the Cathedral of St. John in Comalapa.  It was a moment of unequalled depth and emotion.  All the priests who are now present in Guatemala attended. Each of them renewed his sacerdotal commitment. Then the Bishop prayed over each of the priests, each of them prayed over the bishop, and the liturgy of consecrating the anointing oils was observed. The participation on the part of the People of God was huge.

Right:  After renewing their sacerdotal promises, the priests are on their knees praying. The bishop prays over each of them.

 

 

 

 

 

Below left:  Each of the priests prays over the bishop.

Below right:  The oils are prepared for consecration. The bishop is proceeding to prepare a minister to serve one of the villages associated with the Cathedral.

Left: The moment of consecrating the Holy Chrisma:  All the priests raise their hands around the bishop, who is pronouncing the consecrating prayer.

Right: At the end of the Eucharist, the bishop, supported by the priests, blesses the People of God.

During the afternoon of Friday, April 3, the bishop visited the community of Chel to commemorate the 27th anniversary of the martyrdom of the Blessed Martyrs of Chel.  The celebration was moving. For the first time since August 2008, when their death was recognized as martyrdom, they were formally acknowledged as “Blessed Martyrs.” All the People of God were visibly moved by the commemoration.

Above:  the bishop, accompanied by a large crowd, walks toward the bank of the river where the Blessed were martyred.  There the Liturgy of Reconciliation was celebrated.

 

 

 

 

 

Left:  The celebration of the Eucharist in the provisional church.  First Communions and confirmations were also celebrated.

On Palm Sunday the bishop celebrated Mass in two Communities of Central Nebaj, where there are now four Renewed Catholic communities.

 

The first celebration, in the Tumanzano community, was preceded by the procession of palms, beginning on the principal road.  In the photo at the right can be seen part of the procession as it heads toward the church.

 

The second celebration was in the Salquilito community.  Here, after the Eucharist, a meeting took place with some of the leaders. The purpose of the meeting was to begin organizing a committee for extending the pastorate in central Nebaj.

In the afternoon of April 6, the bishop made his first visit to a community that is close to making an alliance with ICERGUA. Its name in Spanish is “Tierra de Pacayas.” Located at some fifteen minutes from Barillas, on the highway that goes to El Quetzal, the community is vibrant and eager to continue working. In this village, all the Catholics are Renewed Catholics. This is true in many other communities, especially in the northern parts of Huehuetenango.

On Good Friday the visit was to the parish of San José Quixabaj, in the western villages of the municipality of Santa Eulalia.

Before the celebration, the bishop met with the Pastoral Council to discus some questions about ministerial care and organization.

In the photo at the right:  In the front, brothers Alonso and Gregorio, Vice-president and President of the Pastoral Council, respectively, during the discussion with the bishop.

On the morning of Holy Saturday the Deanery of Huehuetenango Central was celebrated. This consists of the Region of Soloma and the parishes of Santa Eulalia, San José Quixabaj and the recently created parish of the Holy Archangels (San Rafael la Independencia and San Miguel Acatán).  The meeting was very interesting, for it touched on a series of questions of concern to the participants. Such meetings of the deanery are of inestimable value for deepening spirituality and heightening awareness of our identity.

 

 

 

At the back in the photo are Father Fredi Muz, responsible for the deanery, and Rev. Felipe Corimanya, who is doing his EPS (Ejercicio Pastoral Supervisado; Supervised Pastoral Practice) in this deanery.

During Saturday night, our bishop celebrated the solemn Easter Vigil in Soloma. It began with the blessing of the fire, the procession with the Easter candle, then the song of Pregón, the readings, the blessing of water, baptisms and at the end the Eucharist. Attendance was huge, and the participation of the People of God active.

 

Right:  the Assembly preparing for the blessing of the Easter fire. 

On Easter morning 3000 faithful from different communities of Chiantla celebrated the Easter Mass in Capellanía. In addition marriage and first communions were celebrated.

On Easter Sunday morning the creation of the Parish of Los Santos Arcángeles was proclaimed in the context of the celebration of the Eucharist. It joins communities located in San Rafael La Independencia and San Miguel Acatán.  The parish has three centers—one in San Miguel New Jerusalem, one in San Miguel Asunción and one in San Rafael Cololaj. The parish see is in Jolomcú, a section of San Rafael.

On Easter Monday, April 13, an ecumenical ceremony to bless the cemetery of the village of Chuitzanchaj, (Santa Cruz La Laguna) took place. Various Evangelical communities participated. The presence of the pastor of the Assembly of God was prominent, and there was also a small presence of Roman Catholics. The culminating moment occurred when our bishop celebrated Eucharist and then left to bless the cemetery.

 

Photo:  Partial view of the participants at the celebration. In the back, the majesty of Lake Atitlán.

The first action taken by the new bishop in Mexico was to ordain Francisco Méndez as Deacon. Francisco, who has a Masters Degree in Theology and has been a Presbyterian Minister, chose to join ICREM to support the ministry of Mons. Nicolás. After studying under Mons. Nicolás he worked with him on various projects. In addition, Francisco worked with CLAI (Consejo latinoamericano de Iglesias; Latin American Council of Churches).  The ceremony took place in the traditional Catholic Church of Pius IX, which was founded by Monsignor Severo Aquino.

Photo:  Mons. Eduardo lays his hands ordaining Francisco as Deacon. Mons. Severo Aquino is at the left and Mons. Nicolás Gómez is at the right.

On the invitation of Monsignor José Luis Alejandre, Prelate of the Diocesan Prelature and member of the Worldwide Council of Catholic Apostolic Churches (WCCAC; Spanish:  Comunión mundial de Iglesias Católicas Apostólicas; CICAM), our bishop ordained Brother Noé de Jesús as Deacon on April 17. The ceremony took place in the chapel of a congregation of Religious located in the center of Tlalpan. Present were Mons. Néstor Guijarro and various priests who, along with Mons. Alejandre, form the Province of Santa María de Guadalupe of the WCCAC.

On Saturday the 18th of April there took place a visit to the community of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Ecatepec. A great number of faithful participated in the celebration, during the course of which numerous children and young people made their first communion and confirmation. This community is now committed to deepen its organization and outreach missionary activity.

In the evening of the 18th the Chrismal Mass was celebrated. In it Monsignor Nicolás and Father José renewed their priestly commitments and the oils that will be used by ICREM in administering the sacraments during the coming year were consecrated. The Mass was celebrated with the participation of representatives of four communities of The Charismatic Renewal, located in the center of Ecatepec.

In the morning of April 19, the Eucharist was celebrated with some members of the Community of San Antonio in Ecatepec. This chapel has been officially presented to ICREM, and the community is growing and becoming consolidated.

The culminating moment of our bishop’s visit to Mexico was the celebration of the Eucharist in Querétaro. Here a sister completed her integration into the Body of Christ, and her daughter was baptized. It was an especially emotional moment, full of faith and depth.

On the morning of Friday, April 24, the meeting of the Deanery of Central Quiché took place. It is composed of representatives of the communities of Sacapulas, Cunén and Uspantán.  During the meeting, there was serious discussion of the urgency of deepening the sense that the Eucharistic celebration and missionary work are, as parts of Christians’ commitment, central to the life of the whole Renewed Catholic community. Father Luís Germán Guanopatín, who is in charge of the Deanery, and the Rev. Marcos Caidedo, who is doing his supervised pastoral practice in this area, participated in the meeting. 

Left:  The Community of Media Luna before the beginning of the Eucharist.  The community is in process of completing its church building. Construction material is to be seen in the back part, for they are now finishing the interior walls.

Right:  The beautiful new church that the faithful of Cecilia are completing. At the right can be seen a small part of the present church, which will be used as a meeting hall.  The faithful of Cecilia expect to complete construction very soon.  In fact, before the Eucharist began, the blacksmith who will make the windows and doors of the new church was at the site.

During the afternoon of April 25, the bishop celebrated the Eucharist in the upper part of Uspantán. Hundreds of parishioners participating, several baptisms were celebrated.

 

Left:  At the right of the bishop is Brother Baltazar Us, leader of the communities of Uspantán, and at the left is Father Luís Germán Guanopatín.

On Sunday, the 26th, in the center of the communities of Uspantán, located in Tierra Blanca Jucubí, the bishop celebrated the Eucharist with several thousands of the faithful participating. Father Luís Germán concelebrated, and the Rev. Marcos Caicedo assisted.

 

Right: The bishop greeting the People of God at the end of the Mass.