A parish shares hard-learned lessons

WINDSOR, Calif., April 29, 2002 - As many Catholics call for a greater role for the laity, the Church of Our Lady of Guadalupe stands as a model of progress. Members of its multigenerational, multiethnic congregation came together to talk to MSNBC.com about how their parish has dealt with the scandals in their diocese and how their pastor, the Rev. Angelito Peries, has encouraged them to help in the healing process. Says Peries, “I’ve been advocating that people should be valued from day one.”

Guadalupe is a relatively new parish — founded in the mid-1980s as the once sleepy farming town of Windsor swelled with new development.

Whether it’s the parish’s ability to move forward without decades of prior history or the fervent populism of its priests, parishioners here feel distinctly empowered.

The church is not without its detractors, some of whom see Guadalupe’s congregation as too cliquish. But clergy and laypeople alike describe a special sort of church structure, one in which those in the pews take as big a role in guiding the church as those in the pulpit.

Lifelong Catholic Teresa Aranda has been a parishioner at the church for nine years. Aranda, who owns a Mexican bakery in town, has turned to the Bible for answers. She believes punishment for abuse — by priests or anyone else — will come on “God’s timing” and hopes the current scandal won’t hinder faith among the laity. “The real solutions come from parishes like us,” she says.

Dawn Graveson has been a parishioner for eight years and serves as coordinator of religious education at the church. Graveson has used the scandals as the basis for lessons for her students. “It’s a chance for me to remind the children, ‘Your faith is not in your priest,’” she says. “They’re just a man. It’s a chosen career.”

A parishioner for 13 years, Bill Murray describes how the scandals have strengthened the local church community. A longtime Catholic, Murray considered Bishop Patrick Ziemann a friend and was deeply hurt when Ziemann’s sexual and financial improprieties were uncovered and he was forced to resign. He sees a married clergy as part of the solution to the current crisis: “I think it’s something that’s right, and it’s going to become a necessity.”

Retired high school teacher Laura Shenoy has been a parishioner since 1985. Shenoy describes how different generations are approaching the scandals and their faith. She praised Peries for his willingness to stand with his parish, where Ziemann’s accuser, Father Jorge Hume Salas, briefly celebrated Mass. “Father Angelito aligned himself with us parishioners,” she says. “He was on our side.”

Hardware store owner Pete Henderson has been a parishioner since 1986 and serves as the church’s head usher. Henderson, a third-generation resident of the area, laments that the shadow of suspicion has fallen over good priests. He was stunned by the conviction of Father Gary Timmons, the former diocese priest who recently finished a prison term for sexually molesting young boys. Henderson attended Camp St. Michael, where some abuse occurred. He remains committed to reform in his community. “I can’t change what is going on at the Vatican in Rome; I can make a change right here,” he says.

Mary Ann O’Neil was with the church for five years before moving to neighboring Lake County, and was active with the children’s religious education program. She describes a sense of outrage many have felt over the handling of the scandals — including her husband, who converted to Catholicism 10 years ago and has found the various scandals hard to stomach. For her, they have come as a “wake-up call” to make needed changes. “I think this needed to happen,” she says.