Bishop Dewane’s 2023 Easter Message (English – Spanish – Creole)

My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad! The tomb is empty! Today we join Christians around the world in proclaiming that Jesus Christ is Risen indeed, Alleluia!  

 Through His death, Christ liberated us from sin; and through His Resurrection he offers all the hope of salvation and eternal life.    

 The Risen Christ lights our path and leads us to our Heavenly Father. Even if darkness and despair enter our lives, He is always with us as He has promised.

 The past few years have been trying for many in Southwest Florida. In addition to our own personal trials in life, the Coronavirus Pandemic and most recently Hurricane Ian, have caused much difficulty and loss. Through it all Jesus has been present in our lives.

 Our world faces many challenges and sorrows – war and unrest, illness, and poverty.  Let our Faith and Hope in the Resurrection bring peace and healing to all who suffer.

 During these next 50 days of the Easter Season, may we reflect on the many blessings God has given us. Truly the greatest of all is his only Son, Jesus Christ, Risen from the dead. 

 Have a Happy and Blessed Easter!

 + Frank J. Dewane

Bishop of the Diocese of

Venice in Florida

 

Spanish

Mis queridos hermanos y hermanas en Cristo

Este es el día que el Señor ha hecho; ¡Regocijémonos y alegrémonos! ¡La tumba está vacía! Hoy nos unimos a los cristianos de todo el mundo para proclamar que Jesucristo ha resucitado, ¡Aleluya!

A través de su muerte, Cristo nos liberó del pecado; y a través de su resurrección nos ofrece la esperanza de la salvación y de la vida eterna.

Cristo resucitado ilumina nuestro camino y nos conduce a nuestro Padre Celestial. Incluso si la oscuridad y la desesperación entran en nuestras vidas, Él siempre está con nosotros como lo ha prometido.

Los últimos años han sido difíciles para muchos en el suroeste de Florida. Además de nuestras propias dificultades personales en la vida, la pandemia de coronavirus y, más recientemente, el huracán Ian, han causado muchas dificultades y pérdidas. A través de todo esto Jesús ha estado presente en nuestras vidas.

Nuestro mundo enfrenta muchos desafíos y tristezas: guerra y disturbios, enfermedades y pobreza. Que nuestra fe y esperanza en la resurrección traigan paz y sanación a todos los que sufren.

Durante estos próximos 50 días del tiempo de Pascua, reflexionemos sobre las muchas bendiciones que Dios nos ha dado. Verdaderamente la más grande de todas es su único Hijo, Jesucristo, resucitado de entre los muertos.

¡Que tengan una feliz y bendita Pascua!

 

+ Frank J. Dewane

Obispo de la Diócesis de

Venice en Florida

Creole

Frè m ak sè m yo nan JeziKri, 

Se jou Bondye fè a! Se pou n celebre, e fè kè n kontan! Tonbo à vid! Jodia nap rejwenn tout kretyen sou tè a pou n proklame ke JeziKri vreman revisite. Alelouya!

Ak lanmò li ,Jezikri libere n ak tout peche n yo, e ak rezireksyon li a ( ak leve li leve byen vivan) li ofri lesperans ke nou sove e asirans lavi ki pap janm fini an.

Kris ki leve pami mó yo, eklere chemen nou e kondwi nou a Papa nou ki nan syel la. Menm lè fènwa ak dezespwa antre nan lavi nou, li toujou avek nou jan l te pwomet la.

Ane k sot pase yo, te yon eprev pou anpil nan nou nan Sid Florida. An plis de problem pèsonel pa nou nan lavi a, pandemi Coronavirus la, e apre sa siklòn Ian, koze anpil difikilte ak pèt.

Nan mitan tout sa, Jezi te toujou prezan nan lavi nou.

Mond nap viv la , fè fas ak anpil defi ak doule-chagrin, laguè ak latwoublay, maladi ak pòvwete. Se pou Lafwa nou lesperans nou nan Jezi ki leve pami mò yo, pote lapè ak laguerizon pou tout moun kap soufri.

Pandan 50 jou sezon Pak yo kap vini an, se pou nou réfléchi sou paket benediksyon Jezi déjà ban nou. Reyelman vre sa ki pi gran pami tout, se sèl pitit li a JeziKri ki leve pami mò yo.

Pase yon Pak kè kontan ak anpil Benediksyon

 

+ Frank J. Dewane

Monseigneur Evèque du Diocèse de

Venice, Florida

 

Many work to make Thanksgiving joyful

Thanksgiving is an annual national holiday to praise and give thanks to God for our blessings of food and life.

In preparation for the holiday, many volunteered to help those who are less fortunate or who are struggling in the wake of Hurricane Ian.

Parishes and Diocesan Catholic school students collected thousands of cans of food and other items to help fill local food pantries. Many also volunteered to distribute food as lines of vehicles twisted through parking lots in hopes of getting items for a hearty meal this year. Some Parishes hosted pre-Thanksgiving dinners to bring holiday cheer wherever they could.

For example, St. Andrew Catholic School students in Cape Coral donated 1,630 pounds of food to a local food pantry while at St. Joseph Catholic School in Bradenton, the student there collected 1,253 items. Similarly, St. John Neumann Catholic School students in Naples held their own food drive to benefit Catholic Charities, Diocese of Venice, Inc., collecting and delivering 6,423 canned goods.

The beneficiary of the St. John Neumann food drive was the Judy Sullivan Family Resource Center of Catholic Charities in Naples. The Thanksgiving food distribution there took place on Nov. 22, 2022.

Allegra Belliard, Program Director, supervised as a steady stream of grateful families came and received a turkey and ham as well as bags of food. The turkey and ham meals were courtesy of Publix Charities.

Belliard said the demand is higher in 2022 as compared to the height of the COVD-19 pandemic. This is because the cost of food is much higher due to inflation combined with many people being out of work because of Ian. The hurricane damaged or destroyed many homes, businesses, and resorts, dramatically impacting those in the service industry. Among the places damaged was the Family Resource Center itself. Storm surge flowed through the building and surrounding neighborhood, but the food pantry part of the building was open within a few weeks as the demand remained high.

Cordelia Fulton felt blessed to have Catholic Charities provide food for her family. “Bless you all,” the mother of three who has been unemployed since Ian said. “It will be a happy Thanksgiving in our home.”

Guadalupe Social Services of Catholic Charities in Immokalee did their own food distribution on Nov. 19. This area had some damage during Hurricane Ian, but the greatest impacts were to the crops which are an important resource for work in the rural community.

Peggy Rodriguez, Catholic Charities Regional Director for Collier County, said teams of volunteers packed more 700 bags of food ahead of Thanksgiving, above what is normally distributed each week. About 200 of those bags were dispersed directly from the Guadalupe Social Services food pantry. Meanwhile, several agencies worked together to deliver the balance of the food to 500 more families who were unable to arrive during regular hours.

Students from St. Joseph Catholic School show off the items collected during a Thanksgiving food drive on Nov. 18, 2022, to benefit the St. Joseph Food Pantry in Bradenton.

In Manatee County, where hurricane damage was scattered, the demand for food ahead of Thanksgiving was still very high at the St. Joseph Food Pantry in Bradenton.

A line of vehicles filled with families seeking a turkey with all the trimmings, twisted its way through the parking lot of St. Joseph Parish on Nov. 21. In a three-day period, the pantry expected to distribute food to 800 families. A generous donation of 2,000 turkeys the week before Thanksgiving enabled the pantry to give every family a turkey, something that isn’t always possible.

Sylvia Trotter said she has been struggling to feed her family while juggling expenses such as caring for two children and her parents. “We combine our money for important things, and we doubted that we would celebrate Thanksgiving this year,” Trotter said. “Everything is a luxury now, which makes these wonderful (volunteers) my heroes.”

Bishop Frank J. Dewane offered the following Thanksgiving message to the faithful of the Diocese:

“Greetings to all and a Blessed and Happy Thanksgiving! In this season of gratitude, let us remember to give thanks to God who has given many great gifts to all. The greatest gift God has given is the body and blood of His Son, Jesus Christ, in the Eucharist. The word “Eucharist” actually means “an act of thanksgiving to God”. By participating in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, we are united as one body, one human family, in Christ.

On Thanksgiving Day, I extend my gratitude to all here in the Diocese of Venice, and to the many around the country, who so generously have provided aid in the aftermath of Hurricane Ian. Know that you remain in my prayers.

Happy Thanksgiving! Have a Blessed Advent Season!”

If you would like to support Catholic Charities, please visit www.catholiccharitiesdov.org or if you would like to support the Diocesan effort to recover from Hurricane Ian, please visit www.dioceseofvenice.org/hurricaneian.

2021 Christmas Message from Bishop Dewane (English, Spanish, Creole)

My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Merry Christmas!

More than 2,000 years ago, the angel brought a message to the shepherds watching over their flocks. “Do not be afraid, for behold, I proclaim to you good news of great joy that will be for all people. For today in the city of David a savior has been born for you who is Messiah and Lord” (Luke 2:10-11).

These words of the Angel are all the more necessary to be heard in context of the Pandemic, when so many of our brothers and sisters live in fear, feel alone and isolated and truly are in need of prayer, our prayers.

Today we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ. Indeed, our world may look very different today, yet the message so many years ago on that holy night, remains the same.  God loved us so much that He sent the wondrous gift of His Son, born in a humble manger, to live among us and to bring joy, peace, and the hope of salvation to the world.

Let us accept this great gift by magnifying and being the light of Christ to others through our thoughts, words and actions.

May the joy of Our Lord be with you, your family and your neighbors this Christmas Season.  Have a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!

 

Mensaje de Navidad de 2021 del obispo Frank J. Dewane

Mis queridos hermanos y hermanas en Cristo,

¡Feliz Navidad!

Hace más de 2.000 años, el ángel trajo un mensaje a los pastores que velaban por sus rebaños. “No teman, porque les traigo una buena noticia, una gran alegría para todo el pueblo: Hoy, en la ciudad de David, les ha nacido un Salvador, que es el Mesías, el Señor. ” (Lucas 2:10-11).

Estas palabras del ángel son aún más necesarias para ser escuchadas en el contexto de la Pandemia, cuando tantos de nuestros hermanos y hermanas viven con miedo, se sienten solos y aislados y realmente necesitan la oración, nuestras oraciones.

Hoy celebramos el nacimiento de Jesucristo. De hecho, nuestro mundo puede parecer muy diferente hoy, sin embargo, el mensaje dado hace tantos años en esa noche santa, sigue siendo el mismo.  Dios nos amó tanto que envió el maravilloso don de su Hijo, nacido en un humilde pesebre, para vivir entre nosotros y traer alegría, paz y esperanza de salvación al mundo.

Aceptemos este gran don agradeciendo y siendo la luz de Cristo para los demás a través de nuestros pensamientos, palabras y acciones.

Que la alegría de Nuestro Señor esté con ustedes, su familia y sus vecinos en este tiempo de navidad.  ¡Que tengan una muy Feliz Navidad y un bendito año nuevo!

 

Frè m ak sè m yo nan JeziKri,

Jwaye Nwel!

Sa fè plis ke 2000 ane, yon zanj pote yon mesaj bay bège kap gade troupo bet yo “ Pa pè map proklame pou nou Bon Nouvel lajwa pou tout pèp. Jodia nan vil David yon  sovè fek fèt Ki se Mesi a, Seyè a. (Luc 2:10-11)

Pawol sa yo Ki sot nan bouch zanj lan, vin pi nesesè pou n tande nan kontex pandemi a, lè nou wè tout frè ak sè nou yo kap viv ak kè sote, yo santi yo sèl, izole, yo vreman bezwen lapriyè, lapriyè nou.

Jodia nap celebre nesans Jezikri. An efè, mond nou an sanble diferan jodia; sepandan,  mesaj nwit sen sa , rete menm , malgré sa pase lontan.  Bondye telman renmen nou, Li voye kado pitit li a, Ki fèt nan touf pay manje bet yo, pou l vin viv nan mitan nou, e pou l pote lajwa, lapè, ak lespwa délivrants pou mond lan.

Ann aksepte gwo kado sa ak gwo kè louvri, e se pou  n vle tounen limyè Kris la pou lòt yo, nan panse nou, pawol nou, ak aksyon nou.

Se pou lajwa Bondye tonbe sou nou, sou fanmiy nou ak vwazen nou yo nan nan sezon Nwel la.