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January 25, 2013
Pictured with the 2013 winners are seminarian Richard Gutierrez, at left, Father Joseph Lopez, JCL, center, and seminarian Oscar Chaparro, right. Contest winners, from left, are Gabriella Martinez, high school; Amber del Bosque, middle school; and Damien Cisneros, elementary school. See the essays below.
Understanding the Priests
By Damien Cisneros
5th Grade - 10 years oldSaint Joseph School
Mrs. Barrett’s Class
311 Dewey
Alice, TX 78332The Priest is a very important figure in the Catholic Church. The Priest is an image of God and he is following in God's way. During mass the Priest leads the church with prayer. He is able to turn the bread into body and the wine into blood. The Priest is also a person you can talk to. We are able to go to confession and tell a Priest our sins, and he is able to forgive our sins and give us our penance. A priest is also there when we are sick or dying. They give us the anointing of the sick, and our last rites. The Priests also unites two people in holy matrimony. A priest is very important and also very busy; however, they always find the time to help those who are in need. They serve as God's messenger but also as our friends. God exists in the heavens and the Priests canyon their message here on Earth.
Father Benito Retortillo from St Francis De Paula Church in San Diego has been an influence in my life. My family are active parishioners and Father Benito has always come to talk to me after church. Father Benito is a good friend of my grandparents and has always offered me advice. He even calls me his "mateito," which is Spanish for my middle name of Matthew. I enjoy attending mass and I feel very honored to have known a priest such as Father Benito. It is a great feeling to know that I will always have someone I can talk to in confidence.Vocation Awareness Essay
By Amber Del Bosque
7th Grade - 13 years oldSaint Joseph School
Mrs. Serna’s Class
311 Dewey
Alice, TX 78332The sister I admire the most is Sister Begonia. She no longer is a part of our parish or school, but I will always remember her. I admire her because she is a very devoted catholic, great storyteller, and is a loving and caring person. She also influenced me to be a loving and a caring person.
Sister Begonia is a devoted catholic. Ever since she was a couple of months old her parents would take her to church. This taught her to become devoted to God and live her life serving Him. Giving her life to serve God is very admirable. I think of her every time I attend mass and always have a sense of happiness after the mass has ended.
Sister Begonia was my teacher when I was a first grader and I would always look forward to going to class. She told us interesting and funny stories which would always make us laugh.
One story sticks out the most about a little animal who would follow her around protecting her from harm. This had meaning because God has many angels protecting all His children from evil and sin.
Sister Begonia was a loving and caring person. I would look forward to going to class because she loved us like if we were her own children. She cared enough to inspect our nails, hair and inside of our ears. This always made me feel like my mom taking care of me. Taking God as an example to always love and care for others was how she influenced me to be a good person to my family and friends.
Being a devoted catholic, a great story teller, and a loving and a caring person makes me look up to her as a positive role model. I will always think of her everyday and will carry her in my heart. Anyone who has ever had contact with Sister Begonia would agree with me, she's a great sister.Vocation Awareness Essay
By Gabriella Martinez
12th Grade - 18 years oldBlessed John Paul II High School
3036 Saratoga Boulevard
Corpus Christi, TX 78415My personal understandings of a priest and nun in the present day are individuals who are entirely strong in their dedication and unreservedly love to serve God just as He served us. Both priests and nuns are living images of Jesus who serve the church and us every day. In my view, they are the happiest people and their faith is very powerful. Equally, priests and nuns have put a great impact on my life because I hope to one day become a religious sister in the near future and they are my role models. Believing is one thing, but to be able to say "I am the bride of Christ" is amazing! In being a nun or priest you get to spread the word of God and do great deeds for others and the entire community. There is no greater love than to lay down His whole life as a sign of great love and in doing so; priests do the same with making the vast obligation in serving Him for the rest of their lives. Priests and nuns do not just celebrate mass on Sundays; they celebrate mass every single day. They pour their entire heart in the activities they participate in and they never do anything just for themselves. They place others before themselves with no hesitation, as it should be.
Nuns are extremely courageous due to the fact that they give absolutely everything up from their social life just to become the bride of Christ. Living under the vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience is a challenge, but nuns seem to have no difficulty with making the courageous decision due to how prevailing their love is towards the church as well as God. Of course they go through obstacles along the way, but by praying they get through the tough times. Prayer is what gets both priests and nuns through their day. With any problem or situation they feel they cannot handle, usually prayer and trust is what gets them through things.
I not only admire nuns and priests, but sisters as well, the main order I admire the most are the Carmelite sisters because not only do they work with the young teens and children, but they also get to travel along with the youth to conferences and spend time with them to get to know them better while spreading the word of God to each person. Recently, I had the incredible opportunity of being able to meet and better understand two Carmelite twin sisters while attending the Region X convention in San Angelo Texas and they taught me more about my faith. Religious sisters have this high interest about everything they do for not only themselves or God, but the community as well. When participating in activities whether it be praying, singing, or working around the community, they do it joyfully out of the kindness of their hearts with a smile on their faces. Both priests and nuns take people in when they are having a bad time in their lives and they help the individuals as much as possible to get them back on their feet.
Being in the presence of a priest or nun gives off this great joy of living in this beautiful world today. Even when being in a down mood, when talking to either a priest or nun you feel this sort of beautiful and unconditional love that you have never felt before and it is just amazing to know they do not judge you for the things that you have done, they are only there to listen and give the best possible advice they could give you. In my opinion, talking to priests and nuns is the same exact thing as talking to God because they always know what to say and they are always there for you no matter what happens. Priests and nuns absolutely love to help others out because they love to see everyone equally happy and filled with the Holy Spirit. Living with so much faith can get you a long way and trusting in God, everything and anything is possible.
Attending many different retreats such as the Steubenville retreat, Region X, class retreats that are held at our high school each year, and the Youth Spectaculars have really educated me throughout the years about the priesthood and sisterhood. I understand both priests and nuns live a full life of prayer and worship and these are the main things I think of when hearing the words priests and nuns.