Hundreds of people filled St. Basil the Great Church in Brecksville the evening of Sept. 11 to welcome Bishop Nelson Perez to the Diocese of Cleveland.
The bishop has 10 meetings on his calendar in every corner of the diocese at which he will celebrate Mass and meet the priests and parishioners. The Cuyahoga Southwest District, which encompasses 18 parishes, hosted the first event at St. Basil?s. Tickets, which were sent in advance to parishes and which were distributed at the pastor?s behest, were required for admission to the Mass because of limited seating in the church.
?I feel joyful and peaceful to be with you here tonight,? Bishop Perez told the congregation. ?I had meetings all day today at the chancery and couldn?t wait to get out, to come here and meet you. This is what a bishop does. We come from different places to be nourished by the Church.?
Father Larry Jurcak, pastor of St. John Bosco Parish in Parma Heights, and presbyteral convener for the district, offered the bishop best wishes from the 18 parishes in the Southwest area. ?We can?t wait to begin to meet you as we begin the 11th chapter in the history of our diocese,? he added.
Bishop Perez acknowledged the differences of everyone, but noted that ?we all have one thing in common: we?re all Church. And you?re the Church in this little area of the diocese,? he added.
He said life has its ups and downs, with things happening daily including joys, successes and failures. ?We never know what we?re going to get,? he said, ?but there is another level, the grace of God
