November 13, 2011

Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time: Prv 31:10-13, 19-20,30-31; 1 Thes 5:1-6; Mt 25: 14-15, 19-21

During the 11th Hour on November 7th as I was reading today’sGospel out loud preparing to write this “Pastor Message” Fr. Lorenzo De Dominici opened his eyes for the last time in this world. Fr. Lorenzo went to the Lord with the Salve Regina and his favorite song, “Noi Vogliam Dio”. The chorus of this song is translated, “ O we want God who is our Father; O we want God who is our King.”

The earthly life of Fr. Lorenzo is a great testimony to today’s Gospel. He was born in Savigliano Italy, in the Piemonte Region. At the age of four, Fr. Lorenzo lost his father. A year later at the age of five, his mother passed away and a few months later he lost his younger brother. He was placed in an orphanage separate from his two sisters whom he saw only forty-six years later. In 1934 at the age of eleven, he entered the Minor Seminary and was ordained as a priest on June 29, 1946. After serving ten years in his diocese of Fossano, Italy, he sought to work in the missions and after training was sent to the Archdiocese of Los Angeles to serve the Italian Community. Fr. Lorenzo was a priest for 65 years, of the 55 years served in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles; 35 years were at Mary Star of the Sea Parish.

Fr. Lorenzo did not receive the gift of a stable childhood, but he tookthe gifts that God gave him and lived a life of service to God and the Church. We can only imagine how many children were received into the Sacrament of Baptism, how many Masses were celebrated at the main Altar of Mary Star of the Sea Parish, how many couples he joined in Matrimony, how many souls he healed in the Sacrament of Penance, how many people he anointed and prayed for as they prepared for their journey to heaven and how many souls he prayed for as he celebrated their funerals and interned their mortal bodies in the cemetery. Fr. Lorenzo De Dominici truly invested the talents that God gave him and produced great fruit for the Kingdom of God. I have never witnessed a priest who lived the true spirit of poverty with such great devotion to the Eucharist and prayer and we can be assured that His Master greeted him, “Well done, my good and faithful servant. Since you were faithful in small matters, I will give you great responsibilities. Come, share your master’s joy.” (Mt 25:23)



Not all of us are given the same gifts in this life, but we are all invited to use what we have been given to the best of our ability. Life is not about doing great things for God, it is about doing whatever God desires for us to do well. Proverbs reminds us in today’s First Reading that a good wife is a blessing because of the love she gives to the simple things in the house hold. "Charm is deceptive and beauty fleeting; the woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.” (31:30) That which will make us great in this world will not make us great in God’s kingdom.



A talent, as used in today’s Gospel, was 130lbs of Gold. No small amount. With the price of Gold today none of us would need more than one single talent. What God has given us, however, has no monetary value; His love invested in our hearts is priceless. Our talents are well invested not when we are the most popular people, but when we are the best people; when we are good fathers and mothers, good grandparents, generous givers of ourselves to our community and those in need. God has invested his love in us and expecting this love not to be buried in the ground, but to be shared and to grow in the hearts of others.

The parable also teaches us that God has no personal need forus to return what He has invested in us. The one talent that was buried in the ground is not returned and reposed for some heavenly bank account; it is taken and given to the one who already has more. Why? The one who has more love will continue to grow that love investing it wisely in the world. The Master’s only desire is that what He has given us grows and is shared with others. God gives us grace upon grace upon grace and only hopes that we will share His grace and love with others.



• Archbishop Jose Gomez will celebrate the funeral of Fr. Lorenzo De Dominici on Thursday, November 17 at 10:30 a.m. in our parish church. The Rosary and Vigil will also be at Mary Star on Wednesday, November 16 at 7:00 PM. A priest has no wife or children; his true family is the parish community that he serves. I am grateful for your prayers and support for Fr. Lorenzo and our community during this time. I am especially grateful to Josephine Frka for taking care of Fr. Lorenzo as if he was her own parent during these last fifteen years. I am also grateful to Kathleen Di June who regularly brought him communion and showed him much love over these years. I am eternally grateful to his caretaker Lina Jacela, her loving, faithful 24 hour care. Sr. Angelica Ramos from the Sisters Servants of Mary also showed great love to Fr. Lorenzo as she ministers to all retired priest. Her community has shown great love to the retired priest of Los Angeles.   

• Congratulations to one of our parishioners, Joe Buscaino who is one of the two finalists for the City Council special election in January.

God Bless,

Father John Provenza

Pastor