MAY 23, 2023 • ARCHGH.ORG/TCH
HOW YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Diocesan Services Fund 2022 Impact Report ▪ SEE CENTER SECTION
FAITH IN COLLEGE
Newman Centers look to boost evangelization, aid efforts on campus ▪ SEE PAGES 6
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MAY CROWNING
Catholic school students embrace annual Marian tradition in faith ▪ SEE PAGE 8
Proclaiming the Good News to the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston since 1964
MAY 23, 2023
Parish Marian celebrations highlight diverse faith, devotions
VOL. 60, NO. 2
‘TUNG HÔ MẸ MARIA!’ - HAIL MARY!
BY JAMES RAMOS Texas Catholic Herald HOUSTON — The alluring scent of roses, orchids and other fresh flowers seemed to be just as noticeable as the flourishing bouquets of greenery and petals that towered over hundreds of Vietnamese Catholics at Our Lady of Lavang Church in northwest Houston. TURNING Gathered for a massive Marian TO THE festival that featured BLESSED special prayers, youth events and speakers MOTHER on May 5 through May 7, hundreds attended outdoor Masses and prayed the Rosary while joining a long Marian procession to honor Mary, Queen of Peace. A bright statue of the Blessed Mother surrounded by flowers followed the procession, with other floats covered with flowers honoring the Holy Family, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, the Image of Divine Mercy, as well as a mobile
PHOTO BY JAMES RAMOS/HERALD
A statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary with the Child Jesus is lit with a glowing white halo while young women from the Vietnamese Catholic community dance to honor the Blessed Mother during a Marian festival at Our Lady of Lavang Parish in Houston on May 6. Catholic schools and parishes around the Archdiocese held May crownings and other special services to celebrate Our Lady. FOR MORE PHOTOS, SEE PAGES 3 AND 8.
See MARIAN, page 2
Three men set to be ordained as priests began as altar servers BY JO ANN ZUÑIGA Texas Catholic Herald HOUSTON — Of the three young men about to be ordained as priests in June, two went to public schools all their lives, and one attended Catholic schools. But all three began considering the priesthood during their childhood as altar servers. “After I received my First Communion, I was invited to be an altar A JOURNEY server. I distinctly remember OF thinking, ‘If I have VOCATIONS to go to Mass, I might as well do something,’” said Deacon Zachary Muldrow. “It certainly wasn’t the most pious response, but God works with what we can give Him.” He and his two fellow transitional
deacons said they most likely would not have thought of priesthood if they had not spent years serving at the altar as children. Deacon J Serrato said, “I was about nine years old when I was ‘voluntold’ to become DEACON an altar server” by his MATTHEW parents. “After I felt KRUSLESKI confident assisting the priest at Mass, I began to enjoy my role.” Serrato said he served in a small mission church belonging to the parish of Our Lady of the Assumption in Michoacan, Mexico. His family moved to the United States when he was still a boy, but religion remained first at their home, he said. “My mother was our first pastor. Home was the micro-ecclesia for us. It
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DEACON ZACHARY MULDROW
DEACON J SERRATO
was where she taught me how to pray, the importance of religion and Christian values,” Serrato said. Deacon Matthew Krusleski said, “When I was an altar server as a kid, I went with a group of servers to the seminary for an ‘Altar Server Appreciation Day’ run by the local Serra Clubs.”
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See PRIESTHOOD, page 4
MASS CONCLUDES 175TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS
Daniel Cardinal DiNardo celebrated the Closing Mass to mark the end of the Archdiocese’s 175th anniversary celebration ▪ SEE PAGE 16
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