When 50 high school students wake up early enough to be at school, on a bus, at 5:30 a.m., that is an event worth noticing. Students from St. John Paul II High School, along with principals, staff, and administrators from theirs and other schools around the diocese, as well as a group of lay people, embarked on a mission March 26. They put their faith in action at the 2019 Texas Catholic Advocacy Day, hosted at the state Capitol by the Texas Catholic Conference of Bishops.

"Do you want to hear a funny story? I thought it was condemned.” Lee Lopez, Chancellor of the Knights of Columbus Council #8170 didn’t even know that St. Theresa (of the Little Flower) Church was a functioning parish, at first. While he was on retreat at Our Lady of Corpus Christi, he ran past it one morning and assumed that it was closed down because of the state of the structures and the landscaping. When a friend informed him that it was indeed open and operational, he knew he needed to help. “It’s amazing what you can do with four phone calls and two text messages,” he said.

Nieves Frazier recalls with great fondness seeing her grandmother and mother using a veil during Mass. Today, Frazier is proud to use her mother’s veil, which is now 60 years old. Churches across the country are seeing a resurgence of ladies wearing a veil during Mass, as a show of ultimate reverence for God, symbolizing the veiled bride of the church.

The film opens on Abby Johnson’s perfect life. She kisses her beautiful family goodbye, drives her perfect red convertible to her executive parking space at Planned Parenthood, exchanges friendly hellos with her coworkers, and hunkers down in her office to work. There are no hints that her life – and perhaps yours – is about to change dramatically. She is asked to help with an abortion. As she holds the ultrasound wand in place so that the doctor can complete the procedure, she is rattled by the sight of the baby writhing in pain and resisting the suction tube as it is dismembered piece by piece.

I was ordained a deacon in 2012, but my diaconate journey began long ago in three phases.

Bishop Michael Mulvey personally invites everyone, especially those who will be receiving their first Communion, to attend the celebration and procession of the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ on June 20 from 6:30-9:30 p.m. at Corpus Christi Cathedral.

Cathedral Knights of Columbus #11107 collected 1,303 pounds of canned food and dry goods thanks to the generosity of Cathedral parishioners and community. The donations went to the local food bank, pantries, soup kitchens, and other food banks throughout the city during the “40 Cans for Lent” campaign.

On April 25 the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis hosted their annual Parish Catechetical Appreciation Dinner at St. Pius X Parish Hall. Approximately 170 parish catechetical leaders from throughout the Diocese of Corpus Christi were in attendance along with Vicar General Father James Stembler, who recognized those with 10-42 plus years of service with an appreciation award. PCLs enjoyed an evening of great fellowship and good food.

Catholics in the Diocese of Corpus Christi celebrated Good Friday by praying the Stations of the Cross at stations in their churches, processing inside parish halls or outside in their community streets as teens act out Jesus’ passion and crucifixion.

Father Joseph Lopez, pastor of St. Gertrude the Great Parish, celebrated Holy Week at St. Gertrude Church on April 20.

Bishop Michael Mulvey celebrated the Easter Vigil at Corpus Christi Cathedral on April 20. This most holy Mass is also known as the solemnity of solemnities and contains four parts. 

Bishop Michael Mulvey celebrated Holy Thursday Mass at the McConnell Unit on April 18 and following the example set by Christ, washed and kissed the feet of 12 men.

Father José Naul Ordonez, the pastor of St. Martin of Tours Parish in Kingsville, celebrated Mass on Holy Thursday, April 18, ceremoniously washing the feet of twelve male parishioners, just as Christ did for 12 of his apostles at the Last Supper.

Catholics in the Diocese of Corpus Christi gathered with Bishop Michael Mulvey and their priests to celebrate the Chrism Mass on April 16.

Churches throughout the Diocese of Corpus Christi celebrated Palm Sunday, the beginning of Hoy Week on April 14. Palm Sunday is the celebration of Jesus' joyful entry into Jerusalem as he arrives on a donkey and the crowd fans him with palms then lays them at his feet, just a few days before their change of heart and he is later arrested and crucified.

The Catholic broadcast ministries of KLUX 89.5-1, CCN Radio 89.5-2 and CCN Video Productions will once again join forces to carry all of the evenings of Holy Week Liturgies LIVE from Corpus Christi Cathedral, as well as 3 hours of special programming on Good Friday. Any programming available on KLUX 89.5HD-1 will also be available simultaneously online as streaming audio at KLUX.org and by way of the KLUX Smartphone APP. All Video Broadcasts will be available as streaming video on the Web at http://GoCCN.org

During my time in seminary with the SOLT community in Rome, we would alternate where we would celebrate the Easter Vigil. One year we would attend the Vigil at St. Peter’s Basilica with Pope Saint John Paul II presiding. The next year, in order to have some firsthand experience of organizing, preparing and serving the Easter Vigil, we would celebrate in our humble basement chapel which was within a huge complex belonging to the Christian Brothers of St. John the Baptist de La Salle, from whom we used to rent out a block of rooms. While of course, the papal celebrations were unforgettable in their grandeur, solemnity and beauty, sometimes, the subtle symbolic significance of very profound liturgical gestures would become more apparent while celebrating the Easter Vigil in our basement chapel. There are two such moments that I would like to share with you here.

Bishop Michael Mulvey celebrated Mass at St. Joseph Seminary in Louisiana on April 4. After Mass, he visited with seminarians from the Diocese of Corpus Christi. The seminarians are Ruben Riojas, Matthew Perales, Michael Winterroth and Aaron Lugo.

Bishop Michael Mulvey concelebrated Mass with Father Philip Panackal on St. Patrick Day, at St. Patrick Mission in San Patricio. After Mass, some 150 parishioners feasted on brisket barbecue and all the fixings.

Allyson Sturgeon with the Corpus Christi Pregnancy Center received a check in the amount of $2,020 from Lawrence “Lorenzo” Garcia, Grand Knight of the St. Joseph Knights of Columbus Council #1653 in Beeville.