July 20, 2021

Archdiocese of Agaña
News Release

 
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AVISO

His Excellency, Most Rev. Michael J. Byrnes, S.T.D.
Metropolitan Archbishop of Agan᷉a
announces the following appointments:


Fr. Patrick Castro OFM Cap.
Pastor
St. Jude Thaddeus, Sinajaña
Effective 01 July 2021


Fr. Joseph English OFM Cap.
Pastor
Santa Teresita Parish, Mangilao
Effective 01 July 2021


Fr. Felixberto Leon Guerrero OFM Cap.
Pastor
St. Francis of Assisi, Yoña
Effective 01 July 2021


Fr. Andre Eduvala OFM Cap.
Pastor
Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, Agaña Heights
Effective 01 July 2021


Fr. Harold C. Prieto
Administrator
San Miguel Parish, Talofofo
 Effective 01 July 2021



Given at the Chancery Office on the 9^th day of June 2021.

(Click here for a PDF copy of the AVISO)





May 20, 2021                                                                                  Protocol No. 2021-043

Archbishop’s message
on lifting of dispensation on Pentecost Sunday

Happy birthday Church!

In a few short days, we will be able to say those words to one another. It is my prayer that there will be a great many more people exclaiming those words of joy within the actual walls of our churches.

The Church will celebrate Pentecost Sunday this weekend on May 23. The feast of Pentecost commemorates that great moment when the Holy Spirit descended upon the Apostles in a powerful rush of wind, with tongues of fire that transformed everyone present.

Filled with the Holy Spirit and speaking to one another in languages that defied their understanding, the disciples who gathered in the upper room were infused with graces during what we know was the beginning of our Catholic Church. Pentecost marks the inauguration of our Catholic Church and is thus considered the birthday of the Church.

The miracle that occurred with the disciples in that room is the miracle that brings us together each Sunday and for some, every day. The gifts of the Holy Spirit bestowed on the disciples in that moment are gifts that continue to be bestowed on us today. It is why we gather regularly inside the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica, in every Catholic church on island, in the Marianas Islands, the Pacific region and in fact across the vastness of the world.

As baptized children of God, we come together to celebrate the Blessed Sacrament made present to us in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.  We partake in the Real Presence of Jesus in the Holy Eucharist.  We receive the real Body and Blood of Jesus Christ and thus are strengthened in our calling to go out and proclaim the Gospel to every creature on earth.

While on earth, now Saint John Paul the Great said, “The Lord unites us with Himself through the Eucharist—Sacrament and Sacrifice—and He unites us with Himself and with one another by a bond stronger than any natural union. Thus united, He sends us into the whole world to bear witness, through faith and works, to God’s love, preparing the coming of His Kingdom and anticipating it, though in the obscurity of the present time.”

We call the celebration and sacrifice of the Mass the source and summit of our Catholic faith. However, for a period of time more than a year ago, our reception of the sacred Body and Blood of Christ suddenly became endangered in the Archdiocese of Agaña. As a startling, life-taking virus descended upon our island and in most parts of the world, the doors of our churches closed, celebration of Masses inside our actual churches ceased for a time and many could not receive Jesus in the Holy Eucharist.

It was necessary for me to grant to all Guam Catholics a general dispensation from the regular obligation of attending Mass on Sundays and other Holy Days of Obligation. Though it was not a pleasant decision to announce, the dispensation was necessary for the health and safety of all the faithful.

Though not completely free of the dangers that the virus poses to all people, it is evident that our community has since made great strides in the protection from, prevention and mitigation of the virus known as COVID-19. I therefore announce that as of Pentecost Sunday, May 23, I am lifting the general dispensation from attending Mass for all Catholics. Everyone should be made aware that as in ordinary times, all Catholics must now resume fulfilling their obligation to participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass on Sundays and on Holy Days of Obligation.

Exceptions in the form of particular dispensations are given to the faithful who are ill, have fragile health, are homebound or susceptible to contracting illnesses. With mercy, our Church must always keep in mind the health and protection of our vulnerable brothers and sisters in any action or decisions that we make.

Consideration is also given to our brothers and sisters who have tremendous anxiety or fear of becoming sick from being in a public setting. In these cases, they are also dispensed from their obligation to attend Mass. For those uncertain about their status in relation to the lifting of the dispensation, please speak to your respective pastor or parish priest for guidance.

Each pastor will be responsible for accommodating the return of more faithful to their actual churches starting this Pentecost Sunday. In certain parishes, livestreaming of the Mass may be reduced in number or cease altogether. However, though it remains at the discretion of individual pastors, I highly encourage all parishes to consider continuing to livestream some of your Masses to the homebound, sick and elderly. Restricted to their homes or senior care facilities, your broadcasts are like lifelines to them.

The lifting of the general dispensation does not mean ceasing other Archdiocesan protocols that are meant to minimize the spread of the virus, such as wearing of protective masks, sanitizing of hands, sanitizing of pews, signing in at the entrances, and maintaining proper spacing between Massgoers. These will continue.

The dispensation that was granted during the start of the pandemic was understood to be temporary. Following Mass through Internet livestreaming or by way of TV or radio broadcasts is never a substitute for attending Mass live and in person. It can never replace being fully present ourselves as we celebrate the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Blessed Sacrament. We pray to our Lord that we never have to resume such conditions again.

I spoke earlier of the gifts of the Holy Spirit that the disciples received on Pentecost. They were transformed with courage and the Holy Spirit itself as they received their mission to proclaim Jesus Christ to all the world.

Pentecost is a good time for each of us to pause and reflect on everything that we’ve experienced during this extraordinary time of the pandemic. Contemplate the gifts that Jesus has given to each of us. Are we making the best use of those gifts? Are we fulfilling our duty to proclaim the Gospel to the world? What difference has Jesus made in your life? How are you sharing him with others?

I called ours the Pandemic Generation during my homily last Sunday, on the Seventh Sunday of Easter and the Ascencion of the Lord. What purpose does God have for us at this time? What are the fruits we derive even from these difficult times? Having experienced the emptiness and loss of not being able to receive Jesus inside our churches, perhaps it has taken this life-changing global threat to better appreciate the beauty and importance of Mass and receiving the Holy Eucharist.

There have been graces. I have seen our parishes become more attentive to individual parishioners for instance, as they spend great care and attention to keeping their churches clean and sanitized and the parishioners well protected. I have witnessed the sacrifices and love that students, families, teachers, staff and administrators have devoted to their schools as they diligently make the adjustments necessary to keep Catholic education thriving at their sites.

Our Catholic churches and schools have developed prowess in the use of technology to regularly livestream Masses and events to their communities and global audiences. They are able to do so because of big-hearted volunteers and staffers with communication skills who give an extra part of themselves operating the cameras and other machines.

To each of you who have contributed to our Church in these and other ways, I express my sincerest gratitude. Thank you as well to all Catholics who have endured these difficult times and have remained supportive.

To one and all, please come back to the Church! Our doors are open. Most important of all, Jesus Christ has never left. He welcomes you!

Yours in Jesus Christ,

/s/Archbishop Michael Byrnes
Metropolitan Archbishop of Agaña

(Note: Click here for a signed PDF copy of the letter)

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Year of St. Joseph a double blessing
for Inarajan parish with its 340th jubilee

By Umatuna Si Yuˈos Staff

In the midst of storms and difficult times, God sends blessings that lift our hearts.

That holds true in these trying times of the pandemic. Even as the Catholic Church grapples with the challenges, hardships and heartbreaking deaths that COVID-19 has brought in the past 14 months, it has been heartened with such graces as Pope Francis declaring a “Year of St. Joseph”.

In his Apostolic Letter “Patris corde” (“With a Father’s Heart”) last December Pope Francis shined a light on the 150th anniversary of the declaration of Saint Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church. The pope proclaimed a “Year of Saint Joseph” which began on Dec. 8, 2020 and ends on December 8, 2021.

T he commemoration has extra significance for pastor, Father Joseph Anore and the parishioners of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Inarajan because they had already begun to celebrate the tremendous 340th year anniversary of the establishment of their church. Though activities have been toned down because of COVID-19, the parish has still managed to honor their patron saint and the legacy of 340 years for St. Joseph Church on island.

St. Joseph parish opened the month of May by celebrating the second of two feast days of their patron saint, St. Joseph the Worker on Saturday, May 1st. Though there was no traditional procession and reception known as Taotaotu manu afterward, the parishioners gathered with visitors as Archbishop Michael Byrnes celebrated the festal Mass with Father Jojo as concelebrant. On the following Sunday, there was a simple, scaled down motorcade with the Statue of St. Joseph traveling through the southern village.

A few months earlier, on March 19, the Inarajan faith community and others observed the festal Mass commemorating St. Joseph, Husband of Mary.
 

FULL PLENARY INDULGENCE
Both the Year of St. Joseph declared by the Holy Father and this Jubilee Year of St. Joseph Church on Guam come with the blessings of a full plenary indulgence by the Holy See. Pope Francis had already granted the plenary indulgence to the Archdiocese and St. Joseph parish in 2020. The actual decree arrived just last April.

The full plenary indulgence took effect May 1 and extends to December 8 of this year, 2021.
“We invite and encourage the entire Faithful on the island to avail this once-in-a-lifetime Blessing and Grace,” said Father Joseph. He explained the following requirements needed in order to avail of the plenary indulgence:

• Make a pilgrimage visit to the church of St. Joseph, Inalahan.
• Go to Confession
• Attend Mass and receive Communion
• Pray for the intentions of the Holy Father

Furthermore, the elderly, the sick and those who cannot leave their home may also obtain the full plenary indulgence, Father Joseph said. They must show sorrow for their sins and observe the three usual conditions, even as they spiritually unite themselves with the Jubilee celebrations and offer to God their own trials and sufferings.

To help and encourage parishioners and other Catholics to avail of the full plenary indulgence, Confession is available 30 minutes before Mass or by appointment at St. Joseph parish. Please call 828-8102.

In his Apostolic Letter, “Patris corde”, Pope Francis said, “The greatness of Saint Joseph is that he was the spouse of Mary and the father of Jesus. In this way, he placed himself, in the words of Saint John Chrysostom, ‘at the service of the entire plan of salvation’.”

Pope Francis continued, “Saint Paul VI pointed out that Joseph concretely expressed his fatherhood ‘by making his life a sacrificial service to the mystery of the incarnation and its redemptive purpose. He employed his legal authority over the Holy Family to devote himself completely to them in his life and work. He turned his human vocation to domestic love into a superhuman oblation of himself, his heart and all his abilities, a love placed at the service of the Messiah who was growing to maturity in his home’.”


 

During Good Shepherd Sunday, Archbishop
discusses grave sin of child abuse committed by clergy in past

Gospel, John 10:11-18

Jesus said: “I am the good shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. A hired man, who is not a shepherd and whose sheep are not his own, sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away, and the wolf catches and scatters them. This is because he works for pay and has no concern for the sheep.

I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep…”

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Archbishop Michael Byrnes spoke frankly about the grave sin of sexual abuse committed in the past by a number of Catholic clergy on Guam including his predecessor, former Archbishop Anthony Apuron during the 9:30 a.m. Mass April 25, 2021 in the Dulce Nombre de Maria Cathedral-Basilica.

During his homily on the Fourth Sunday of Easter, Archbishop Byrnes discussed the Gospel of John and Jesus our Good Shepherd while decrying the so-called shepherds of our diocese who instead acted as hired men and had no regard for the sheep. Instead they harmed the flock.

Archbishop Byrnes also described the responsibility that the Archdiocese of Agana has today. “Since we’re the Church, we have to bear the sins of our predecessors and try to make some recompense to those who have suffered so grievously in the past and (who) continue to suffer in that way,” he said.

“Our aim is to bring some measure of justice, not full justice because there is no capacity for full justice when you’ve been grievously suffered in this way,” the archbishop said. “But we must make some recompense to bring through this proceeding, the greatest measure of justice to the greatest number of victim/survivors.”

“So what I want to say today is that we the Archdiocese of Agaña will give no place to those who serve as hired men, as hired people who let the wolf run free,” he said. “And so, may the Good Shepherd himself strengthen us that we stay true to that conviction and turn that conviction into action.”
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To hear the Gospel and Archbishop Byrnes’ entire homily, view a recording of the April 25, 2021 Fourth Sunday of Easter Mass by visiting the Agana Cathedral’s website at
https://aganacathedral.org/

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