Bishop Edward Malesic paid a visit to one of the newer parishes in the Catholic Diocese of Cleveland when he celebrated the vigil Mass on Jan. 29 at Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish in Grafton. (See photo gallery above.)
The parish community, which consists of about 1,000 families, is marking its 15th anniversary. Father John Seabold is pastor.
The visit was the second time in a month the bishop had been in the Lorain County community of Grafton.
“I was in prison a few weeks ago,” he quipped, recalling his Dec. 19 visit to the Grafton Correctional Institution, a minimum/medium security prison that houses about 1,600 men. “Don’t worry. They let me out after I celebrated Mass there.”
He told the congregation that people sometimes wonder what it’s like to have Mass in a prison. “It is special. People make mistakes, but God never does. God loves us all. And that is no mistake. I learn that every time I visit a prison and think to myself, there but for the grace of God go I. Yet, we are all called to love – even our enemies.”
Reflecting on the long history of the Church in the LaGrange/Grafton area, the bishop noted it dates back to the arrival of immigrants in the 1800s. “You have deep roots with both Immaculate Conception and Assumption parishes,” he said, adding that sometimes people realize it’s better to do things together than alone.
“Together, you were even able to build a new home for your parish family – this beautiful church. You are a witness to the strength, resilience and faith of the Catholic Church, where Jesus is at the center of everything we do. Please keep it that way,” he said. “Jesus is the reason we gather, the source of our hope, the inspiration of our way of living and the strength behind our ability to do what sometimes seemed to be impossible.”
The bishop reminded the faithful that Catholics must love one another because love ties us together. He thanked them for the hard work they put into making the parish a place of worship where the faith is proclaimed and a place of service.
Focusing on love, he explained the classic definition of the word comes from St. Thomas Aquinas, who said love “was willing the good of the other for the sake of the other. Love wants what is good for someone else.”
Love is more than romance. When raised to its highest pitch, love wants what is good for the other person, he explained, adding, “True love is meant to survive the end of puppy love. It is meant to help marriages last beyond the honeymoon phase.”
In our faith, Jesus died on the cross out of love for us, because he wanted our good, our salvation. “Jesus loved from that cross,” he said.
In the second reading, St. Paul provided a good description of love, the bishop said, noting the reading often is used at weddings: “Love is patient. Love is kind.”
But, the bishop said, we must remember that God is patient and kind. He is forgiving and bears all things because he is love and he wants the best for us, so he forgives us, bears with us and is patient with us.
“It’s in this mold that we were cast. We were made as images of God, as images of love,” Bishop Malesic explained, which is why the reading on love from Corinthians 13 speaks so eloquently to the hearts of many wedding couples. He said they want to make the other person happy, to give themselves to the other in marriage and to be true to their spouse. “They want to be like God, who gives and who gave his only Son, so that we might have life.”
As the bishop pointed out, St. Paul describes love as patient, just as God is patient with us. It is kind, not jealous, not pompous or rude, it does not seek its own interests nor is it quick tempered or brooding over injury. “In the end, St. Paul said if we do not love, we are nothing at all,” the bishop said. “This is St. Paul’s good advice: ‘Love never fails.’”
He described every family as “a school of love” where we are forced to live together so we can learn to love together, just like in a parish. There are challenges, but God helps us to think of the other person before we think of ourselves. He commended the parish for exemplifying that spirit in the warmth and hospitality that he said comes from its close-knit community of faith.
“In the end, when we are in heaven, the only thing that will endure is love – our ability to remain together in peace for an eternity – not pointing out our own holiness, but enjoying the glory of those around us, and being glad that we have found their company,” the bishop said.
He encouraged the parish family to stay centered on the Eucharist, which unites them, and to be devoted to the Blessed Mother, who looks after us.
After Mass, the bishop greeted and mingled with parishioners in the gathering space, where they were conducting a get-acquainted weekend, sharing information on various parish ministries and organizations.
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