The Ave Maria University 2022-2023 Academic Year opened with a Mass celebrated by Bishop Frank J. Dewane on Aug. 22, 2022.
The Mass included faculty, who processed in before the opening hymn dressed in their doctoral robes and seated up front while the students sat behind. Concelebrating were priests who serve the spiritual needs of the students on campus and in Ave Maria Parish.
Bishop Dewane welcomed new and returning students for the start of a new Academic Year and noted that they have each been provided with a great opportunity to be at Ave Maria University and said he was praying that they find success in their studies. The Bishop encouraged the students to be open to hear the call of the Lord in their lives and to live that answer each day.
The Mass fell on the Feast of the Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the Gospel reading was from Luke 1:39-56, relating the time Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth and the response of St. John the Baptist who was in the womb.
Bishop Dewane remarked that the title of Queen for the Blessed Virgin implies a struggle, a challenge and even battle, and how the students must be conscious of that in recognizing Mary and her role in Salvation history. Bishop Dewane noted that when regal titles, such as king and queen, are used in Scripture, there is an implied battle.
“We need to search for announcement of the Angel Gabriel in our own life; those things that come from the Lord and bring about change,” Bishop Dewane said. “It might not be the Angel Gabriel, but it might be as when Jesus is on the shore and calls to the Disciples, ‘Come follow Me!’ (Matt. 19:21) As students at Ave Maria University, I want you to listen closely this year, how many times Christ says ‘Come follow Me!’”
The Bishop said we must all be attentive to our response to the call of the Lord, with the knowledge God has an eye out for those who strive to serve Him and do His will. There are clues along the way, but we will only find them if we are ready to respond and have not only our ears open, but our minds, hearts and souls open to that call of “Come follow Me!”
“Pray to hear that call,” Bishop Dewane continued. “Look to the Lord to find what good He gives you in your life and let that guide you to become a faithful spouse, or perhaps to the priesthood or a religious vocation … all of this will be found as you acquire more knowledge of who Jesus Christ is in your life.”
The Bishop said the students attend Ave Maria University with a quest for truth, justice, integrity and they should not settle for less, but he reminded them that during this search for those things in the world around them, they must also look within themselves.
“It is you who has to project those very things you search for in your life,” Bishop Dewane said. “It is no surprise that God brought you here to have an encounter with the Lord… Accept the guidance of the Lord. Go with Him on the journey and be richer for it along the way… Hear that call of ‘Come follow Me!’ and live a true answer to Christ here at Ave Maria University.”
Following closing prayer, the Bishop presided over a commissioning ceremony for four new theology professors, during which each took a Profession of Faith and Oath of Fidelity, vowing to remain faithful to the Teachings of the Church before Bishop Dewane and the entire school community.
After the Mass the Bishop greeted the students who thanked him for his presence and inspiring homily.
Joyce Scott, who for 17 years has led Our Mother’s House of Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice, Inc., has retired. A reception in her honor was held on July 15, 2022. During her time at Our Mother’s House, the program has seen three major expansions. The mission of Our Mother’s House is to offer single mothers and their preschool-age children transitional housing in a safe and secure environment to achieve increased self-sufficiency through education, vocational training, and personal growth.
Father Dennis C. Klemme, who helped establish the Diocese of Venice Marriage Tribunal, and was a longtime priest in the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, and died Aug. 9, 2022, at the age of 90. Father Klemme was born in West Alice, Wisconsin, studied at St. Francis Minor and St. Francis Major Seminaries in Milwaukee. Father was ordained to the priesthood on May 25, 1957. Father Klemme served in Parishes in the Archdiocese for several years before further studies as a Canon Lawyer at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. Father was assigned to the Archdiocese Matrimonial Tribunal and Chaplain at the Carmelite Monastery in Pewaukee. In early 1985, Father Klemme was loaned to the newly established Diocese of Venice to use his experience to set up a Marriage Tribunal, gaining many friends. He returned to the Archdiocese in 1988 and was appointed as Judicial Vicar, a position he served in until retirement in 1999. In his later years, he continued to assist at Parishes and minister to the Carmelite Monastery. A Mass of Christian Burial was held Aug. 18, 2022, at the Basilica and National Shrine of Mary Help of Christians in Hubertus.
Every day, Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice, Inc., serves its most vulnerable population by feeding, housing, empowering, and helping all in need. Time is running out for you to give a gift that makes a difference. Your acts of kindness have the power to transform lives and leave a positive impact in our community. The Catholic Charities Summertime and the Giving is Easy Appeal is asking for your support. The giving is easy! Your gift will make a positive impact on our less fortunate brothers and sisters! Please visit 
For example, the Bible states: 40 days and nights of rain during the great flood, Moses spent 40 days on Mount Sinai; Jonah preached 40 days to Nineveh; Goliath taunted Israel for 40 days; and Jesus fasted for 40 days, as well as other examples.
Word has been spreading about the passionate growth in a love for Christ by the children at the host Parishes achieved in a single 5-day period. There is already a call to bring the missionaries back in the summer of 2023 at more Parishes, reaching even more children and teens.
Bishop Dewane praised the children on their knowledge of the lessons they had learned. These lessons focused on the Luminous Mysteries of the rosary, prayer, key aspects of a devotion to Jesus, all with a special focus on the Mass.
Each Parish hosting the event welcomed children and teens from Monday morning to Friday afternoon. These sessions were divided into daytime camp for children from first grade through sixth, and evening retreats for teens seventh grade through recent high school graduates. The weeks were filled with faith, fun, and friendship as well as games, crazy skits, and music. Throughout, the college-age leaders provided an authentic witness to the students. They were in turn supported by teen helpers for the day camp and adult volunteers in the evenings.
Seminarian Gates enjoyed helping connect the children with the wonders of Christ through the lessons, during Eucharistic Adoration and at Mass. “When you see the faces, the reactions, it is very special. Their enthusiasm validated the hard work we put into each day.”
Pope Francis said that “Mary’s Assumption is a great mystery that concerns each one of us; it concerns our future. Mary, in fact, precedes us on the way on which all those go that, through Baptism, have bound their life to Jesus, as Mary bound her life to Him. That one of us dwells in the flesh in Heaven gives us hope: we understand that we are precious, destined to rise again. God does not allow our bodies to vanish into nothing. With God, nothing is lost… It is beautiful to think that the humblest and loftiest creature in history, the first to win heaven with her entire being, in soul and body, lived out her life for the most part within the domestic walls, she lived out her life in the ordinary, in humility.”
Some are in a seminary college formation program, while others are in advanced programs and nearing the end of their journey, with potential Ordination to the Priesthood not too far off.
Bishop Frank J. Dewane celebrated a Mass for the seminarians on July 25, the Feast of St. James the Apostle. The Bishop encouraged the men to take the time during the Convocation to continue to hear the Call to Holiness and reflect Christ in the life they live.
“Following the Call to Holiness through the coming year will build you up and make you a stronger man of God as you reflect Jesus Christ,” the Bishop concluded. “Continue to listen as the Lord brings you along that journey that He has prepared for you. May each of you be blessed this year to hold before yourselves that Call to Holiness and to live it each day.”
The multi-day retreat occurs late in the summer as a time of prayer and reflection before each man returns to his respective seminary. During the week the seminarians were led by Father Shawn Roser, Diocese Vocations Director, with additional presentations by Father Mark Yavarone, Oblate of the Virgin Mary, Director of Spirituality at the retreat center, and Jesuit Father John Belmonte, Diocese of Venice Superintendent of Catholic Education.
Father Claudio Stewart, Diocese Hispanic Ministries Director, explained that the 2021-2022 program “The Christian Virtues” was a natural follow-up to earlier Faith Formation offerings. That initial three-year program (2018-2020) included a series on the “Magisterium,” with a thorough explanation of the Catechism of the Catholic Church; “Revelation and Introduction to the Sacred Scriptures;” and the “History and Tradition of the Church.” The 2020-2021 offering was on the “The Seven Sacraments.”
The idea behind the initial three-step Spanish Faith Formation Program within the Diocese was to quickly help bridge the gap in formation for Hispanics in the Diocese for whom English is not their first language. This gap had created isolation among some, and the program became empowering to Hispanic Catholics who often felt they were outsiders in the Catholic Church within the U.S., primarily due to the language difference.
The Faith Formation classes were divided into five geographic regions of the Diocese to allow easier access to the courses. Students could participate in-person or online. Instructors included priests, women religious and deacons. Each level became increasingly sophisticated, challenging the participants to take a fresh look at the Catholic Church. The certificates were distributed in June and July at regional locations.
The poignant and emotional Rite places Fathers Chami, Portorreal and Young in a new rank as they are raised to the Order of the Presbyterate where they will now celebrate the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, confer the Sacraments and teach the Gospel.
“Holiness has to be the greatest gift you developed within your relationship with Jesus Christ – you took it into the seminary, and you bring that out to be here today,” the Bishop said. “It is your holiness that will be supported by your daily prayer life… Let that holiness be present always in your life… Let it be a mark of who you are as an example for others.”
When the Rite of Ordination began, the elect were called forth by Father Shawn Roser, Diocesan Vocations Director, and upon hearing their names, each stood and answered “Present.” After the homily, individually, the ordinandi knelt before the Bishop so as to promise respect and obedience to him and his successors. They then prostrated before the altar for the Litany of Supplication/Litany of Saints. The whole assembly joined in the prayer which invoked the intercession of the Saints in heaven.
The Bishop then laid his hands on the head of each man and prayed silently. All of the priests present followed to participate in this part of the Rite. Next was the Prayer of Ordination. These combine to form an essential part of the Liturgy of the Sacrament of Holy Orders.
The palms of the new priests were then anointed with the Sacred Chrism by Bishop Dewane, the sign of the special anointing of the Holy Spirit who will make their ministry fruitful. Next, the Bishop presented each new priest with the chalice (wine) and paten (bread) which they are called to present to God in the Eucharistic sacrifice saying: “Receive the oblation of the holy people, to be offered to God. Understand what you do, imitate what you celebrate, and conform your life to the mystery of the Lord’s Cross.” He repeated this commission, once each for the newly ordained priests.
During the ordination, Deacons Chami, Portorreal and Young freely presented themselves to serve God, the Church and the Bishop of the Diocese of Venice, and his successors. They also made a promise to celibacy and a promise to obedience. The reward for that choice is to serve the people of God.
Father Chami, 28, was born in Montreal, Canada, but raised in Naples, Fla. since the age of 4, and was an accomplished swimmer in high school and is a longtime parishioner of St. William Parish in Naples. He first seriously heard the call to the priesthood while at Florida State University. Since joining the Diocese as a seminarian, Deacon Chami graduated from St. John Vianney College Seminary in Miami and then studied at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. Within the Diocese, he has served pastoral assignments at St. Leo the Great Parish in Bonita Springs, Incarnation Parish in Sarasota, Sts. Peter and Paul the Apostles Parish in Bradenton, and St. Francis Xavier Parish in Fort Myers. Father has been appointed as Parochial Vicar of Holy Cross Parish in Palmetto, effective July 18 until September 30. Father then returns to Rome to complete his Licentiate Studies at the Pontifical Atheneum of St. Anselm.
A donation to support Catholic Charities is an opportunity for the faithful to make an immediate and positive impact on those in need throughout the Diocese, said Bishop Frank J. Dewane.
Step forward to support a child’s success. A child without access to technology is like a child learning without books.
But it is hard to study if you’re hungry. In Florida, one in five children struggles with hunger. Together, we can fight food insecurity by providing food to children, families, and seniors to end hunger in our community.
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With a theme of “Fearless,” the goal of the 14th annual Ave Maria University Youth Conference was to allow high school-aged youth to come to know God in a more personal way as well as to learn how to touch the lives of others through their own life. Many young men and women from throughout the Diocese of Venice participated in the Conference and they were joined by youth from each part of Florida and beyond.
The weekend was not just simply listening to inspirational speakers and musicians who encouraged the young people to become more involved in their faith and to be guided by the Word of Christ; it was an interactive experience meant to awaken the Holy Spirit for the Conference goers.
Bishop Dewane said he prayed the youth took advantage of the Conference and that they “will go forward for the Lord, and the Lord with them.”
Following the Mass, Bishop Dewane took part in a large group picture and other individual and Parish-centered photos, while the youth thanked him for celebrating the Mass and offering his inspiring words. In return, the Bishop again challenged them to live those words each day.
