June 16, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I received a distressing phone call on June 1st around 10:00 p.m. from Fr. Thomas Naval, pastor of Santiago de Compostela Parish in Lake Forest. Fr. Thomas told me that they had their parish appreciation dinner and that Fr. Marco Hernandez had been enjoying the celebration but then said he wasn’t feeling too well and left. Soon after that Fr. Marco collapsed and we learned that the paramedics were treating him. Subsequently, he was admitted to Saddleback Memorial’s ICU and received the sacrament of the sick. Over the course of the next week, many of us, including all the priests continued to pray for Fr. Marco while his family arrived to be with him. Fr. Marco never regained consciousness and then last Monday we heard he developed sepsis. At that point Bishop Vann went to the hospital to anoint Fr. Marco again and to give him the Apostolic Pardon and prayed with Fr. Marco’s family. A little after 8:00 p.m. Fr. Marco went to the Lord.

Fr. Marco was ordained to the priesthood in 2000 originally for the Franciscans in Guadalajara, Mexico and eventually became a priest our Diocese. He served at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Santa Ana (2015-2018), here at St. Edward’s (2018-2023) and at Santiago de Compostela Church (2023-2024). I found Fr. Marco to be filled with joy, faith, hope and zeal. He was an excellent priest and many of you have shared with me how he touched your life and brought you closer to the Lord. At this writing, we will have a memorial Mass here in our Diocese and Fr. Marco will then be buried in his native Mexico. Please pray for the repose of his soul as well as for the consolation of his family. May he rest in peace.

In Christ,

Bishop Tim Freyer

June 9, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Last month, I was blessed to be part of a delegation from our diocese to go to Mount Angel Seminary in Oregon to celebrate Bishop Vann receiving a Doctor of Ministry degree. This was not an honorary degree that colleges and universities give to commencement speakers. Rather, it was the culmination of three years of classes, reading and writing. One of the reasons Bishop Vann wanted to undertake this course of study is to remind all of us that we should always strive to learn more about our Lord and the Faith. We are blessed at St. Edwards’s to have a number of excellent bible studies as well as opportunities to attend workshops or classes on the Faith. Oue diocesan Lumen Christi institute has a wide variety of in person and online classes available to take.

A week and a half ago we celebrated the graduation of our eighth-grade students with a special Mass followed by the graduation ceremony. It was the nicest elementary school graduation I attended, and it gives me the opportunity to thank Mr. Tom Waszak for his amazing leadership. He has assembled a wonderful, bright and faith-filled team of administrators and teachers. We will miss Mr. Waszak but am grateful for all he has done for our parish school.

I heard wonderful things about the Corpus Christi procession we had last Sunday. People commented on how beautiful, prayerful and inspiring it was. I am grateful to all who helped to plan, organize and participate in the procession.

In Christ,

Bishop Tim Freyer

June 2, 2024

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

On the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ we hear of Jesus saying, “This is my Body…This is my blood.” Earlier, he said, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. 54 Whoever eats[s] my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.” (John 6: 53-55). These and other parts of Scripture are very clear Jesus was not speaking symbolically or metaphorically.

The Lord has created us to be in union with one another and especially with Him. Look at how life was in Genesis before Adam and Eve sinned: God would come down from heaven each day to walk with Adam in the garden. Now that we lost that, the Lord knows that we still are created to be in union with Him. If He were only to give us a sign or symbol or representation it would leave us unfulfilled, distant and eventually empty. But because He loves us so much, he comes down from heaven at each Mass, transforming by the power of the Holy Spirit, bread and wine into His Body and Blood—allowing us to be made present at the Last Supper. He enters our bodies to restore that union with Him and to allow us to experience His love.

Please try to make time this week to see the movie, “Jesus Thirsts” in theaters just for a couple of days. There are showings at 4:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. at the Regal in Aliso Viejo and the Regal at the Irvine Spectrum. You can purchase tickets at https://jesusthirstsfilm.com

In Christ,

Bishop Tim Freyer