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m a g a z i n e • s p r i n g 2 0 1 4
MISSI NSOLT
Sharing the goSpel
Dear Friends of the Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity,
The recently published Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis, evangelii gaud-
ium, is pertinent to all Christians, but holds particular elements that are especially
relevant to religious missionary communities. After reading the exhortation, there
are a number of points that really struck me, a couple of which I will share below.
The first is the joy that should be present in the life of Christians, and in a
particular way in the life of consecrated people. Giving one’s life entirely to the
Lord is certainly a challenging path, but being able to dedicate one’s life in prayer,
community life and in service to the Gospel is also an amazing privilege. By be-
ing joyful, not merely in a superficial way, but in an enduring, abiding manner,
religious missionaries witness to the fact that it is always worthwhile to give one’s
life to the Lord. Through their intimacy and communion with God, consecrated
people are called to be a sign of the joy found in heaven! There is no more ef-
fective evangelizing instrument than the person who witnesses the profound joy
of a life given to Christ. It is a testimony that must be present in order to give
A MessAge froM the generAl priest servAnt
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 1
authenticity to our belief that we are called to live in communion with God in this
life and the next.
As the General Superior of SOLT, one of my responsibilities is to visit the many
missions of our community. One of the key indicators that I look for as a sign of
the effectiveness of a SOLT team in mission is the joyful and peaceful spirit of the
members of the team. Wherever authentic, abiding joy is present, almost cer-
tainly there is a corresponding effectiveness in the pastoral ministry of the team.
One of the other illuminating points of Pope Francis’s exhortation which I
would like to mention here is the notion that our life is meant to be a mission
that is constantly striving to share the Gospel with others. There is no taking a
vacation from the work of evangelization or from religious life! There are always
people to meet, people to speak with, and people in need of hearing the essential
message of our salvation: God loves us personally; He became one of us in Jesus
Christ; He died for us to save us from our sins; and, He opened the pathway for
us to live with Him as His children. While it may not be easy to be an expert in all
areas of Catholic doctrine, each of us can surely appreciate the great importance
of sharing this essential message.
As you read this edition of Mission magazine, you will encounter some of
the stories of SOLT missionaries who strive to serve joyfully in the great work of
the new evangelization while serving our brothers and sisters in Christ. Following
the exhortation of Pope Francis, I pray that each of us will be joyful missionaries
who constantly look for opportunities in our conversation with others to share the
cause of our joy, happiness and hope—Jesus Christ.
Fr. Peter Marsalek, SOLT
General Priest Servant
Society of Our Lady of the Most Holy Trinity
fr. peter MArsAlek, solt
was elected during the july 2013 chapter in corpus christi, tx.
he is originally from burlington, canada.
2 | SOLT Mission Magazine | Spring 2014
“Programs, plans and projects have their place;
but the discernment of a vocation
is above all the fruit of an intimate dialogue
between the Lord and his disciples.”
pope benedict Xvi
sr. MAriA de los Angeles
professed vows on februAry 11, 2014 At our lAdy of
corpus christi perpetuAl AdorAtion chApel.
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 3
Being a perpetually committed lay member of the Society of our lady
serving on an ecclesial Family team at our lady of Corpus Christ
(olCC) continues to be a whirlwind adventure and journey with the
people of god!
our lady of Cor-
pus Christi offers an
incredibly gorgeous
perpetual adoration
Chapel, a wonderful
retreat center and a
beautiful bookstore
to all the faith-
ful. Under Father
Jim Kelleher, our
lady of Corpus
Christi perpetual
adoration Cha-
pel serves the
Diocese of Cor-
pus Christi in
Our Lady of Corpus Christi retreat center and perpetual adoration chapel
4 | SOLT Mission Magazine | Spring 2014
many ways. the chapel is available to all people 24/7
for adoration, daily Mass, 1st Sunday St. peregrine healing Mass,
1st Friday Charismatic Mass and healing Service, tuesday nights Miraculous
Medal perpetual novena and numerous other special events. also, each Fri-
day the Mass is offered for all the living and deceased members of the Solt
Mass association.
olCC retreat Center has a two-fold mission under the leadership of
Father Dan estes. First, it serves the Diocese of Corpus Christi as a facility
available for retreats, such as Journey to Damascus, parish real life, par-
Between the Retreat Center and the Perpetual
Adoration Chapel, our motto
“A place of silence, a place of prayer, a place of peace”
is realized on a daily basis.
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 5
MonA lisA biberstein
and her family became members of solt in 2001 and have been
serving in various ministries in south texas since then.
ish aCtS retreats, Marriage encounter, engaged encounter, rachel’s Vineyard
and many more. Secondly, it offers St. ignatius silent retreats, Divine Mercy
retreats and total Consecration retreats to all. these beautiful and prayer-
ful retreats, led by Father Dan and our “adopted” diocesan brother, Deacon
Bob allen, began in 2010 and have grown to about 15 retreats per year. the
silent retreats are also served by Sister laudem gloriae. We have also held
marriage retreats and women’s retreats which include other members of our
community as speakers such as Sister anne Marie Walsh, Sister Miriam James
heidland and Dr. Joseph Biberstein.
Between the retreat Center and the perpetual adoration Chapel, our
motto “a place of silence, a place of prayer, a place of peace” is realized on
a daily basis.
olCC opened a bookstore in 2011 and now has a coffee shop named
“Café Veritas.” as a team serving the retreats, bookstore and adoration cha-
pel, we are also able to witness our charism of serving in ecclesial Family
teams. it is a joy to have an ecclesial Family team at this mission—priests,
sisters, brothers, and laity serving together a common mission!
Approximately 300 people (half of these for the first time) per week
participate in one form or another in the life at olCC through retreats, ado-
ration, Masses or just want to come and see what’s under the blue dome. it
is a blessing to show people the adoration Chapel, help a group have a good
retreat by making sure their needs are met, and help folks find the right book
or gift in the bookstore. another tremendous blessing is praying with the
team at midday prayers, attending daily Mass, being nourished through our
community, celebrating birthdays or gathering with the larger Solt commu-
nity for the assembly or monthly family days. god is so good!
Be sure to visit our website, “like us” on Facebook at “our lady of
Corpus Christi and Café Veritas” or sign up for a retreat at www.
deepprayer.org. We would love to meet you and show you what’s under
the blue dome!
6 | SOLT Mission Magazine | Spring 2014
doMe fest bAnquet
Saturday, March 1st
fr. toM showAlter MeMoriAl golf tournAMent
Friday, april 25th
upcomingeventsAt olcc
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 7
“Prayer itself, born in Catholic families, nurtured by
programs of Christian formation, strengthened by the
grace of the sacraments, is the first means by
which we come to know the Lord’s will for our lives.”
pope benedict Xvi
8 | SOLT Mission Magazine | Spring 2014
elizabeth Dietrich, Consecrated
Widow (CW), was honored
on her 90th birthday recently
celebrated by family and friends.
Elizabeth’s over fifty years of service
to the Kansas City-St. Joseph diocese
was acknowledged by Bishop rob-
ert Finn. elizabeth served as a leader
of the Diocesan Council of Catholic
Women in Kansas City. She also led
the rosary altar Society, the tab-
ernacle Society, and the Blue army,
which brought the statue of our
lady of Fatima to different parishes
throughout the diocese each first
Saturday. She also has led many dif-
ferent groups on pilgrimages to our
lady’s Shrines throughout the nation.
After five years of temporary
promises, elizabeth recently made
her perpetual promises as a conse-
crated widow of Solt. her service
now is one of intense prayer.
the Consecrated Widows of
Solt, which began in 2000, now has
fifty-three members with another
seven in formation.
Father Flanagan’s (Solt Found-
er) vision of this vocation has been
developed and formed by his writ-
consecrated widowslauded byBishop Finn
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 9
The Consecrated Widows which began in 2000, now has
fifty-three members with another seven in formation.
nicolinA sullivAn
and her late husband dr. george sullivan, have been members of
solt since nearly the foundation of solt in 1958. nikki continues
to serve through her leadership of the consecrated widows.
ings. he has written a Consecrated
Widow Manual, which contain the
rules of formation and his teach-
ings. CW’s make promises to Jesus
through Mary of poverty, chastity
and obedience for one year, and af-
ter five years, may make perpetual
promises. the main work of the Solt
CW’s is to become holy, live a simple
life, remain chaste and pray for fam-
ily and friends. their prayers are very
powerful and they are an example
to many. the CW’s have a special
apostolate to abandoned women
of the world who have no one to
pray for them. Saint Josephine Bakh-
ita, whose feast day is February 8th,
is the patron saint for the Conse-
crated Widows.
Contact nicolina Sullivan at (816)
531-0244 for more information about
the Consecrated Widows of Solt.
10 | SOLT Mission Magazine | Spring 2014
We arrived
in tama-
le, ghana
in September 2012, tired
but excited to start our
new missionary work in
the archdiocese of ta-
male. Fortunately, for
us the archdiocese of
tamale has provided a
beautiful convent to stay in,
which has quickly become
a place to call home. it con-
sists of two buildings, one
serving as a main house
with a chapel, and the oth-
er as sleeping quarters. this
home is surrounded by lo-
cal fruit trees and vegetables which
provide food for the community.
Being invited by Most rev. philip
naameh, our lady’s priests were the
first to arrive in Tamale in Septem-
ber 2011. the church that they were
given to serve did not have a its own
build-
ing, so the priests
said Mass at the pastoral center.
a year later, two Solt Sisters who
are native ghanaians joined the
priests and one year later a third
sister followed.
over the last few years the pa-
rishioners have built a church called
serving the people in Ghana
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 11
St. teresa’s. this parish is a thriv-
ing church, as are most churches in
tamale. We serve the university stu-
dents, in great number. they make
up more than half our parish, are
involved in many groups and run
many activities themselves. Due to
the numerous actives that go on
in this parish, the church serves as
a multi-purpose building which our
enthusiastic youth have single hand-
edly taken over. they use the church
for their spiritual activities and be-
cause of this we are now raising
money to build a bigger church, and
the existing church will become a
Being a culture built on relationships,
it is easy to find oneself smothered with love and
affection everywhere you turn.
serving the people in Ghana
12 | SOLT Mission Magazine | Spring 2014
[The university students] use the church for their
spiritual activities and because of this we are
now raising money to build a bigger church, and the
existing church will become a parish hall.
sr. rejoice MAry enyonAM hoedoAfiA
professed her first vows with solt in 2009.
parish hall. thanks be to god! along with performing their normal priestly
duties, our Solt priests act as spiritual directors for many students as well as
the seminarians. last year we prepared 68 candidates for baptism and at the
moment we are preparing 72 more. We offer spiritual direction to the legion
of Mary group by giving weekly reflections on the bible and other topics for
their spiritual growth. We serve the other small faith groups in the parish
whenever there is a need. the church has a small school attached to it where
the sisters give religious instructions once a week. St. theresa’s parishioners
quickly embraced our little Solt family.
as well as serving our parish, the Solt sisters help to teach in others
schools, give counseling services to children in the a government orphanage
and help archbishop naameh when needed. the team here spends much
time truly living out our Solt identity by building beautiful friendships with
the people. Being a culture built on relationships, it is easy to find oneself
smothered with love and affection everywhere you turn. Spending time with
the people has led many young women to enquire about our community. at
this time we have three women here who have come to see what life is all
about as a Solt sister. in addition to serving in the parish, the sisters work
will extend to formation of women discerning religious life.
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 13
“Indeed I count everything
as loss because of the
surpassing worth of knowing
Christ Jesus my Lord.”
phil 3:8
14 | SOLT Mission Magazine | Spring 2014
V irgin Mother of good
Counsel parish in hythe
is situated in Kent on the
South-east coast of england. this
county was where St. augustine,
sent by pope St. gregory the great
in 596 a.D., came to evangelise the
anglo-Saxon pagan peoples. Solt
began to serve here in 1997 when
Father Jean hart was assigned as
parish priest and assisted by Fa-
ther robert Copsey. Since then
we have had Father Fred alexan-
der as head of the parish assisted
by other Solt priests. two Solt
members died here while serving,
Father richard Merrick and more
recently Brother rick Bunch. Be-
sides the main church in hythe we
have three mission churches in the
Marshes: St Monica’s in Dymchurch;
St augustine’s in littlestone; and St
Virgin Mother Good Counsel
i n hy the , k ent, engl And
of
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 15
Martin of tours in lydd. a team of several Solt priests and sisters pray
and minister together to these areas of england. the parish is also as-
sisted by a married deacon, rev. ray partridge and his wife elizabeth, and
two retired diocesan priests, Monsignor Klyberg and Canon Cronin. Below
are descriptions of the Solt members currently serving and their particu-
lar ministries.
Father avelino Bermundo is the head of the parish and serves in the
administration of the parish as well as pastoral activities and the cele-
bration of the sacraments. Father avelino
works with
many groups, such as the Union of Catholic Mothers (UCM). on sev-
eral occasions he has led the parishioners on pilgrimages to various holy
shrines in the United Kingdom and abroad. he is involved in remembrance
Sister Trinity sees her struggles with
cancer as a gift from God that unites her to His
Pascal Mystery and offers the suffering for
the conversion of England and the work of SOLT.
16 | SOLT Mission Magazine | Spring 2014
Masses, Mass for the housebound, carol services and concerts. Father has
also founded a Filipino presence in the parish with a monthly Mass and
meal, and many other creative activities throughout the year, such as pro-
cessions and programs, which have brought great joy to the parish.
Father Sam Medley has a varied apostolate inside and outside of the
parish. he began a youth group and often works with Youth 2000. he
holds individual rCia classes for converts and has done much to re-es-
tablish a good relationship with nearby St augustine’s primary school, in
which he serves regularly. additionally, Father Sam travels all over england
and europe to give talks on theology of the Body, most recently going to
the Ukraine. he provides human formation classes for the archdiocese
at the Vocation Centre for Seminarians. he also helps with retreats of
various kinds and has an effective ecumen-
ical outreach.
Father robert Copsey
knows the parishioners very well and maintains close
relationships with them. he is especially treasured for his wonderful work
with the sick and the dying. Father robert has been able to reach many
lapsed Catholics through this ministry and has brought quite a number
Spring 2014 | SOLT Mission Magazine | 17
sr. MAry of the trinity vAughAn
is from manchester, england and will be celebrating
her 35th profession of vows on july 16th.
back to the Church. Besides helping with administering the sacraments,
Father robert provides a tridentine rite latin Mass every Friday.
Sister Maria Caritas Wendt is the newest member of team, having ar-
rived in March 2013. Sister Caritas has been a great blessing to our team
as she shares her wide experience of catechesis, youth ministry work and
music ministry. She is supportive, intensely interested in england and serv-
ing with her whole heart.
Sister Mary of the trinity Vaughan arrived in hythe in 2012 after seven
years of service in Wales. the most important reality for her is and has
always been the conversion of her fellow countrymen back to the faith.
Following the call of the new evangelisation, Sisters trinity and Caritas
go door to door visiting all the parishioners to bring them faith shar-
ing, prayer and the Word of god. it has become increasingly fruitful with
wonderful encounters as they try to bring Jesus to them. Sister trinity
also helps with First Holy Communion and Confirmation classes, as well
as some retreats and talks outside of the parish for various groups. Sister
trinity sees her struggles with cancer as a gift from god that unites her to
his pascal Mystery and offers the suffering for the conversion of england
and the work of Solt.
Father Robert Copsey has been able to reach many
lapsed Catholics through this ministry
[to the sick and dying] and has brought quite a
number back to the Church.
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Soci
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