The 230 students at Our Lady of the Elms School in Akron welcomed Bishop Nelson Perez on March 26 for a school Mass in the auditorium. The enrollment includes grades pre-kindergarten through 12.
Sister Maura Bartel, OP assistant principal/registrar, welcomed the bishop to the Elms, which was founded in 1923, is a ministry of the Dominican Sisters of Peace.
?It?s wonderful to be here with you on this Monday of Holy Week,? the bishop said. He also laughed about being in the minority, since the school enrollment is all girls except for a handful of boys in the pre-kindergarten class.
As he began Mass, he asked the students to remember Bishop emeritus Richard Lennon and Auxiliary Bishop emeritus Roger Gries in their prayers. Both bishops? birthdays are March 26. He also asked the students, faculty, staff and guests to pause for a moment and recall someone special they would like to remember at the Mass.
During the homily, he quizzed students about what was good or special about their school. Answers included ?choco chippers,? good teachers, religion, leadership and ?a chance to be with holy people like you.?
?Wow,? he replied.
The bishop told the gathering that the day?s Gospel talks about love and what it looks like. During his nearly 29 years as a priest, Bishop Perez estimated he married about 500 couples. He said he often asked them why they promised to stay together for the next 50-75 years during their marriage vows.
?That?s like a blank check for the next 75 years,? he quipped, noting that his parents have been together for 67 years.
?And I told them (the couples) not to tell me it was because they love each other. You assume that if they?re getting married. But what happens on days when you don?t feel like you love the other person? Remember, humans are fickle beings,? he said.
Love can be very interesting, the bishop said. ?There?s a ?bad part? of love. If I play nice, you place nice, But if you cross me, I cross you. Sometimes love is very superficial,? he said, noting that we often say we love many things, including certain foods. He also used the analogy of someone who goes on a cruise in the winter and sends a post card with a tropical photo to someone back home in the cold and snow.
?The post card might say, ?I miss you. Wish you were here.? But not really. If they really wanted you there, they?d have invited you and bought you a ticket. That?s not real love; it?s superficial,? he said. ?It?s nice, but it doesn?t really mean anything.?
In the Gospel, Mary, the sister of Lazarus who Jesus raised from the dead, anointed Jesus? feet with expensive, perfumed oil. Judas Iscariot, the disciple who soon would betray Jesus, questioned why the oil was not sold for 300 days? wages and the proceeds given to the poor. As St. John wrote in the Gospel, Judas did not care about the poor. Jesus told him to leave Mary alone. ?Let her keep this for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me,? the Gospel said.
Both Mary and Judas speak of love, but only one has true love, the bishop explained. He said Mary?s love was ?over the top, extravagant and what a life-giving love looks like,? as is described elsewhere in John?s Gospel. He referenced the John 3:16 verses that say God so loved the world that he gave his only son so that those who believe might have eternal life. Also, there is no greater love than one who lays down his life for a friend, he added.
?In my Palm Sunday homily yesterday at the cathedral, I talked about the Passion on two levels. One is the story/narrative and what happened to Christ. But who is his passion? It?s us. The ultimate passion is that kind of powerful, life-giving love. He gives it all and gains it all. That love has him rise from the dead, Bishop Perez said, explaining that life is more powerful that death and good is more powerful than evil.
?The love in today?s Gospel is the extravagant, life-giving kind of love,? he said.
After Mass, Deborah Farquar Jones, Elms president, presented the bishop with a ?swag bag? on behalf of the school. Inside was a check payable to one of the bishop?s favorite charities that benefits immigrants and refugees, she said. The money was raised by students making donations in order to take part in a dress-down day.
Bishop Perez greeted the crowd then enjoyed lunch with all. He was joined at his table by a group of girls representing students in grades 6-12.
