The Passionists of Holy Cross Province

The Love that Compels

Vowed Ministries U.S.

Lenten Preachers’ Schedules

Preaching continues to define who the Passionists are and remains the foundation of their ministries.  Like St. Paul of the Cross, several Passionists provide parish renewals for families and individuals from all ages and all walks of life.

We invite you to join our Passionist preachers in a Parish Mission Renewal.  Below are their schedules for the Lenten Season.

Fr. Jack Conley, CP:Fr. Jack Conley, CP

March 4 – 8: St. John the Baptist Parish, Winfield, IL. http://www.stjohnwinfield.org/

March 11 – 15: St. Justin Martyr Parish, Eastlake, OH.http://www.stjustin.net/

March 18 – 22: St. James and St. Leo Parish, Solano Beach, CA. http://stjamesandleo.org/

March 25 – 29: St. Catherine Labouré Parish, San Diego, CA.http://stcatherinelaboure.net/

April 1 – 5: Our Mother of Confidence Parish, San Diego, CA. http://omcsandiego.org/

“GOOD NEWS…that is the meaning of the word GOSPEL. This is the real meaning of ‘evangelical’…Or, as Pope Francis encourages us, in his introduction to the Jubilee Year of Mercy, ‘I ask my brother Bishops to welcome missionaries so they can be persuasive preachers of mercy… heralds of joy and forgiveness.’” ~Fr. Jack Conley, CP

Fr. Blaise Czaja, CP:Fr. Blaise Czaja, CP

Feb. 26 – March 1:            St. Luke the Evangelist Parish, Houston, TX. https://stlukescatholic.com/
Fr. Antonio Curto will preach a simultaneous Spanish language Mission.

March 5 – 8: St. Edward the Confessor Parish, Bowie, MD. http://www.stedwardbowie.org/

March 12 – 15:  St. Mary of the Pines Parish, Shreveport, LA. http://www.stmops.org/

March 19 – 22:  St. Mary Our Lady of Lourdes Parish, Caldwell, TX. https://stmaryscaldwell.com/

March 26 – 29: St. Joseph, St. Thomas, and St. Boniface Parishes in Rowena, Miles and Olfen, TX.

St. Joseph Parish, Rowena, TX.

St Thomas Parish, Miles, TX.

St. Boniface Parish, Olfen, TX.

April 2 – 5: St. Mary Star of the Sea Parish, Ballinger, TX.

https://stmarystaroftheseaballinger.org/

“The use of humor, stories rooted in life, and scripture, of course, are the vehicles through which a Passionist preacher may help the congregation reflect on the demands of our contemporary world and the need for spiritual grounding.” ~Fr. Blaise Czaja, CP

Fr. Cedric Pisegna, CP:Fr. Cedric Pisegna, CP

March 4-8th: St. Patrick Parish, Sarasota, FL. www.churchofstpatrick.org

March 11-15th: St. Joseph Parish, Bradenton, FL. www.sjcfl.org

March 25-29th: Our Lady Star of the Sea, New Smyrna Beach, FL. http://ourladystar.com

“Missions renew people in their faith journey, or help them to pray more meaningfully. For others, they begin a whole new relationship with God. Some discover the motivation and grace to move and change. Others celebrate forgiveness for their sins and begin again.” ~Fr. Cedric Pisegna, CP

Fr. Bob Weiss, CP:Fr. Bob Weiss, CP

 

Coming soon!

“Preaching is an honored Passionist tradition. There is true power in the Word. Preached missions can offer the experience of a moment of grace.”  ~Fr. Bob Weiss, CP

 

Fr. Cedric Pisegna CP – TV Ministry

Fr. Cedric Pisegna, CP’s, program, Live with Passion! is on the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). It airs Sundays at 8 a.m. ET, and 5 a.m. PT. Click to visit Fr. Cedric’s website for more information…

Chaplains and Spiritual Directors

Fr. Simon Herbers, Hospice Chaplain

"Being present to those who are dying is a sacred trust."
“Being present to those who are dying is a sacred trust.”

Being present to a person in the final stages of their life is a sacred trust. As physical life draws to a close, a different kind of life begins. It may be a time of solitude or a period of great intimacy with family, friends, and of course, with God. 

Throughout the process of dying, there may be feelings of anger, denial, grief, resignation, or acceptance. Whatever the process, each person approaches death differently.

For Fr. Simon Herbers, CP, it is a privilege to minister to those who have entered into hospice care. “Dying is a part of the normal process of living,” he says, “but it is also the most sacred time of a person’s life.”

When it is determined that medical treatment has been exhausted and a patient’s life expectancy is diminished, the focus shifts from curing disease to maintaining the quality of remaining life. A team of professionals—doctors, nurses, social workers, dieticians, and chaplains—all work together to provide the hospice patient with care that supports their physical, psychological, emotional and spiritual needs. Fr. Simon has worked as a volunteer with the Houston Hospice and Palliative Care System since 1991. Now in his 80’s, he says that sometimes he gets up and he doesn’t feel great. But then he gets the call to come and minister to someone in need, and he feels energized.

“You know, Our Lord talks about the poor, the broken-hearted. You can have the richest man in the world, but at that point, he may be rich in suffering only.” Fr. Simon feels he is treading on holy ground in being present to those who are dying. When you get advanced in years,” he reflects, “it’s all spiritual.”

Think Life

Fr. Simon entered his ministry to hospice patients after his own recovery from colon cancer. He went through a year of chemotherapy after surgery and attended cancer support groups, an experience that helped him to empathize even more with the sick and dying. He recalls that some years later, a fellow group member confessed to him, “When you walked into the group for the first time, I thought ‘he won’t make it.’” “I guess I proved her wrong,” he says with a chuckle.

In addition to ministering to hospice patients, Fr. Simon works in elder care and publishes a newsletter for seniors called “Think Life.” The title says a lot about who Fr. Simon is. To talk with him is to hear a priest of vibrant spirit who embraces life and hope, even in the face of death, and who is very grateful for the opportunity to serve in a ministry that is very much about the Passionist way of reaching out to all with compassion.

Ash Wednesday

On March 2, the Church celebrates Ash Wednesday. 

Most of us learned early in our Catholic lives that Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent, and that is a time of special sacrifice in preparation for the Easter celebration of Jesus’ Resurrection.

Dear brothers and sisters, every moment of our lives is a time for believing, hoping and loving…. These words of Pope Francis, taken from his Lenten Message of last year, 2021, and echoing the virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity, can still inspire our answer to the question: “What am I giving up for Lent?” 

We can draw our Lenten sacrifices out of our daily life: 

Share our faith in God’s presence by sharing in prayer with our family or with those in our parish community.
Share our hope in God’s promises by encouraging positive and respectful dialogue in our family circle and among our friends. 
Share the charity God has bestowed on us in the Passion of Jesus, with those whose sufferings are ignored or aggravated.

Let us pray for one another as we enter the season of Lent. Our Passionist “motto” can be our daily prayer during Lent, “May the Passion of Jesus Christ be always in our hearts.”