Catholic Schools Week: Twin Day

During Catholic Schools Day, students get to select their twin. Pictured right are Naomi Harris and Kyarra de Chabert.

Ryan Branch and Owen Stewart are in the second grade.

Catholic Schools Week: Senior Roundtables

Seniors at St. Joseph High School on St. Croix were asked to facilitate half hour group discussions for the remainder of the student body and faculty on January 31. They gathered information on a topic (modesty, the effects of alcohol, materialism or bullying/cyber bullying). The four senior groups made the presentations as the other students circulated from one session to the other. The presenters used visual aids and one group demonstrated their perspective with a skit. All groups began their report with a prayer and included Bible passages on the topic.

Catholic Schools Week: Teacher Appreciation Day

Students at St. Patrick School on St. Croix prepared and served breakfast at St. Gerard Hall on Teacher Appreciation Day, January 30.

Catholic Schools Week Presentations

Angeles Cruz, class of 2010, spoke to the students of her alma mater, St. Joseph High School on St. Croix, on the themes of Catholic Schools Week in the St. Joseph Church Hospitality Lounge and Learning Center on January 30.

Prayer Group Celebrates 10 Years

The Humble Servant Prayer Group celebrated its 10th Anniversary with an afternoon of prayer and praise in the Marian Hall of St. Ann Church on St. Croix on January 29. Fr. Stanislaus Birungi (pictured) was the main speaker and Fr. Anthony Abraham, the diocesan director for charismatic renewal, led the empowerment session. More than 200 people attended.

Santo Nino Celebration

His Excellency, Bishop Herbert Bevard, celebrated the Santo Nino Mass at Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas this morning. Pictured right, Filipinos sang hymns in their native tongue.

After Mass, all were invited to a reception in the cafeteria of Ss. Peter and Paul School. The program included Filipino culture and food. Pictured left, several youth performed a traditional dance.

Catholic Schools Week Opening on St. Thomas

His Excellency, Bishop Herbert Bevard, celebrated the opening Mass for Catholic Schools Week at Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas on January 29.

Students and faculty were among those who sang in the choir, brought up the offertory gifts and served as ushers.

Catholic Schools Week Opening on St. Croix

St. Joseph High School on St. Croix launched Catholic Schools Week at Mass at St. Joseph Church on January 28. Students, teachers and parents were in attendance and students took part in serving the Mass and in the offertory procession. Pictured left to right, Fr. John Mark, pastor and principal; Benjamin Alicea (grade 11), acolyte Alvin Bedneau, Jonathan Morales (grade 10), and Deacon Neville Charles stood in the back of the church waiting to start the procession for the beginning of the Mass.

Father Patrick Lynch, CSsR, pastor of St. Patrick Church on St. Croix, celebrated at the Sunday Mass that opened Catholic Schools Week at St. Patrick Church on January 29.

International Food Night

Ss. Peter and Paul School on St. Thomas celebrated its ethnic diversity with an International Foods Night on January 27. Students sold Chinese, French, Italian, Palestinian, West Indian and other foods.

Student Music Ministers

Students at St. Joseph High School on St. Croix attend Mass at St. Joseph Church on Wednesday morning. Pictured left, choir members ministered from the choir loft on January 25.

Former Pastor Visits

Father John McLoughlin, CSsR, former pastor of St. Patrick Church on St. Croix, returned to celebrate Masses on January 25 while the current pastor, Father Patrick Lynch, CSsR, was away.

March for Life

Thirty Virgin Islanders, most of them youth, traveled to Washington, DC to participate in the National March for Life. Pictured right, they attended the morning youth rally and Mass at the Verizon Center on January 23.

Pictured right, Fr. Eduardo Ortiz Santiago, administrator of Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church on St. Thomas, and Fr. Patrick Lynch, CSsR, pastor of St. Patrick Church on St. Croix, were among the representatives from the Virgin Islands.

Our Lady of Altagracia

Two communities celebrated the feast of Our Lady of Altagracia, patroness of the Dominican Republic. Pictured right, the Spanish speaking community at Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral started the Mass with a procession from the waterfront on January 22.

Fr. John Mark celebrated Mass honoring Our Lady of Altagracia at St. Joseph Church on St. Croix on the actual feast day, January 21. While the traditional image is a painting, in this case a small statue was placed in front of the altar.

Parishioners' Wedding

Father John Mark married two of his parishioners, Jules and Joanna Ramirez, at St. Joseph Church on St. Croix on January 21.

Bishop Bevard Meets with Pope Benedict XVI

His Excellency, Bishop Herbert Bevard, and bishops of dioceses from Washington DC to Florida met with the Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI, at the Vatican on January 16-21.

Pope Pius X stated in the Decree for the Consistorial Congregation in 1909 that a bishop needs to report to the Holy See an account of the state of his diocese once every five years, starting in 1911. The ad limina visits included individual and group meetings with the pope, encounters with Vatican officials and prayers at the tomb of St. Peter.

Farewell to Fr. Szorc

The priests of St. Croix shared a farewell luncheon for Fr. Andrzej Szorc, CSsR, at the St. Ann Church rectory this afternoon. Fr. Szorc will be leaving on January 31 for his homeland of Poland. Pictured left to right are Fr. Kevin MacDonald, CSsR, Msgr. Michael Kosak, Fr. Szorc, Fr. John Mark, Fr. Patrick Lynch, CSsR, Fr. Simon Opira and Fr. John Juszczak, CSsR.

Confirmation Class in Spanish

Angela Ramos-Michael of Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas prays with her two students, Adonis and Juan Carlos, after their confirmation classes on Sundays.

Parish Fun Day

Holy Family Church on St. Thomas held its annual Fun Day at the University of the Virgin Islands on January 15.

Pictured right, children played “Stealing the Old Man’s Bacon.”

Ushers Support Youth March for Life

Leopold Sprauve, on behalf of the ushers of Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas, gave a $200 donation to help the youth who were participating in the March for Life in Washington, DC. The ushers raised the money from smoothie sales after Mass in the Hospitality Lounge on January 15.

Child Protection Training

As youth and their chaperones prepared to participate in the March for Life in Washington DC on January 23, Callista Julien, director of the diocese’s Child Protection Services, administered mandatory VIRTUS child safety training in the clubhouse at the Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church on St. Thomas on January 14.

Martin Luther King Award

Sarah-Ann Charles, a senior at Ss. Peter and Paul School, was among the six students honored by the Hebrew Congregation of St. Thomas at a Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., memorial on January 13.

The annual ceremony, which takes place in the synagogue within the context of the Reform Jewish worship service, honors one student from each of the St. Thomas high schools. Principals or guidance counselors nominated these students for leading lives that exemplify Dr. King’s teachings.

Ms. Charles is an altar server at St. Anne Chapel. Working with the Law Enforcement Planning Commission (LEPC) as the Virgin Islands Youth Ambassador against Drugs, Crime and Violence, she led a march and rally where she introduced the youth to outlets in the community where they could turn rather than turning to drugs, crime and violence. She volunteers with the Virgin Islands Resource Center for the Disabled, where she helps the disabled children with educational and recreational activities so they may increase their self-confidence and feel equal to other youth. She also volunteers with the Virgin Islands Horse Rescue, helping to care for horses that were taken away from their abusive owners so that they may be nursed back to health and be adopted by others.

In addition to the recognition, the students received a $500 U.S. savings bond and a book, Shared Dreams: Martin Luther King and the Jewish Community.

Pro-Life Prayer Vigil

The St. Croix pro-life movement prays outside the offices of an abortionist on the second Tuesday of each month. Pictured right, Erol Bruce, Joan Davalos, Provi Bruce, Fr. Patrick Lynch, CSsR, Ivonne Smith and Ned Jacobs gathered outside the office of Dr. Johnston at Beeston Hill on January 10. The next pro-life prayer vigil will be across from Dr. Briscoe’s office at the Sunny Isle shopping center behind Scotia Bank on Tuesday, February 14, at 4 p.m.

Charismatic Renewal Conference

Members of the service team people prayed over Father Anthony Abraham, the Virgin Islands’ diocesan liaison for Charismatic Renewal Services, before he spoke at the Catholic Charismatic Renewal 18^th Caribbean Conference in Trinidad on January 7-8. Photograph courtesy of Catholic News-Trinidad.

Three Kings

The Three Kings brought the offertory at the Spanish Epiphany Mass at St. Joseph Church on St. Croix on January 8.

The Three Kings stopped at the Spanish Epiphany Mass at Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas as well, and gave gifts to the children after Mass in the Hospitality Lounge.

Santo Niño Mass

Bishop Herbert Bevard celebrated a Mass honoring the Santo Niño de Cebú at Holy Cross Church on St. Croix on January 8. Fr. John Juszczak, CSsR, pastor, and Msgr. Antonio Verzosa, parochial vicar of Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas and a native of the Philippines, concelebrated the Mass. The Mass highlighted the faith, music and culture of the Philippines. Pictured right, left to right, are Deacon David Capriola, Msgr. Verzosa, Bishop Bevard, Fr. Juszczak and Deacon George, a seasonal visitor.

Bishop Bevard also celebrates a Mass honoring the Santo Niño at Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas on January 29.

Breakfast for Life

Members of the youth group at Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas held a breakfast after Masses in the Hospitality Lounge on January 8 to raise funds for their trip to the March for Life in Washington, DC.

Rosary Walks

Two groups, one in English and one in Spanish, participated in the monthly Rosary Walk in the neighborhood around Ss. Peter and Paul Cathedral on St. Thomas on January 7.

The Rosary Walks are held the first Saturday of each month at 7:00 a.m. in an attempt to reclaim the neighborhood for Christ and his Church.

Youth Lector

Michelle Olive because the newest -- and youngest -- lector at St. Anne Chapel on St. Thomas when she debuted her new ministry at Sunday Mass on January 1.