Annual Celebracion De Fe Y Cultura draws hundreds to St. Bernard Parish in Akron

They came by bus, van and car, some traveling from as far away as Painesville Orville and Lorain for the annual Celebracion De Fe Y Cultura (Celebration of Faith and Culture), hosted by St. Bernard Parish in Akron.

The Sept. 19 celebration, which took place during National Hispanic Heritage Month, included Mass, food, music and entertainment. More than 350 people participated, said Hortensia Rodriguez, director of the diocesan Office of Hispanic Ministry, which sponsored the celebration.

Attendees came from across the diocese, including parishes with large Hispanic congregations such as St. Bernard; Sacred Heart Chapel in Lorain; La Sagrada Familia, Our Lady of Lourdes and St. Michael the Archangel in Cleveland; St. Mary in Painesville and St. Agnes in Orville.

The traditional procession of flags representing the various Hispanic/Latino countries and the United States preceded the clergy into the church.

Bishop Evilio Menjivar-Ayala, bishop of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia was the principal celebrant and homilist for the Mass, which was in Spanish. He also provided a reflection later in the day.

Auxiliary Bishop Michael Woost and pastors from several of the Hispanic parishes, including Father Chris Zerucha, St. Bernard; Father Joseph Callahan, Our Lady of Lourdes; Father Steve Vellenga, St. Mary, Painesville; and Father Rob Reidy, former pastor of La Sagrada Familia, concelebrated. Several deacons assisted.

Bishop Woost welcomed everyone and thanked Bishop Ayala for his participation.

In his homily, Bishop Ayala reminded the faithful that the Church in Rome was facing persecution in the year 258. Pope Sixtus II had been martyred, and soon the same fate would befall the deacon, St. Lawrence. He had been ordered to bring the Church’s treasures to the authorities. Three days later, he arrived with a crowd of people, including the poor, widows and the sick, telling the authorities they were the treasures of the Church.

“And today, dear brothers and sisters, as I look at this church – as I gaze upon each of you, the young, the old, the elderly and the many families represented at this Faith and Culture 2026 event – I say the same thing as St. Lawrence: ‘Here is the wealth of the Church. Here is our greatest treasure,’” Bishop Ayala said.

He told them the United States bishops, in their Hispanic Pastoral Plan, “affirmed the truth that the Hispanic/Latino presence is a great blessing from God and a vital force for the Church and the country.” Their story has meaning because it was written by God, therefore, their lives have a future and will have a happy ending.

“In the Eucharist, we find the source and summit of our Christian life … we discover the true measure of love. God gives himself to us entirely and invites us to give of ourselves completely. Each time we celebrate the Eucharist, we are practically in heaven. At this altar, God not only tells us he loves us, but he gives himself up for us. Christ becomes bread – broken and shared – to gather us into one body, to heal our wounds and divisions and to strengthen us as we journey together and to teach us to love as he has loved us,” he said.

“May this Eucharist renew within us today the certainty that we are loved by God and may it grant us the grace, strength and joy to leave this Mass ready to make that love visible in our families, parishes and communities. May Our Lady of Guadalupe help us to be good sons and daughters and joyful missionaries of the Gospel,” the bishop added.

After Mass, everyone moved to the parish hall for lunch, entertainment and Bishop Ayala’s reflection.

He focused on his journey from his native El Salvador to a new life in the United States, explaining that the Salvadoran civil war seemed endless and offered no future for young people like him in his native land. As a teenager, he tried to find a better life in the U.S. On his first attempt, he reached the Tijuana border, where he was detained, jailed and deported. While in jail, a group of people came and distributed food. Inside the food bag he found a rosary.

“That was one of my first experiences with a Church that goes out to meet the migrant … A Church that does not ask questions, but rather helps, protects and accompanies.”

He explained that migrant spirituality begins with “a grateful memory that demands commitment to fellow human beings and prevents us from forgetting where we came from.” Every migration involves “a kind of little death – hence the migratory grief – but it also holds the seed of resurrection, of growth and development, and of a new life. The Christian migrant learns that while we cannot always rely on material things or carry them with us, we can always carry our faith and rely on it,” the bishop said.

The Faith and Culture event illustrates how immigrants live at the intersection of various cultures and realities, he explained. “Integrating does not mean disappearing. True integration also us both to receive and to offer, to be transformed and to transform. We call this ‘interculturation.’”

Christian migration should foster encounters and contribute to the common good, he said. “We are not just guests, but collaborators in the common good … The dignity of the migrant does not depend on a document,” he said, referring to Pope Leo’s “Magnifica Humanitas,” which states that the fundamental dignity of the person is neither acquired nor earned, nor does it need to be proven. “The treatment accorded to migrants and refugees reveals whether a society’s sense of justice is guided by fear or fraternity, and therefore, the Church must defend the dignity of the migrant,” the bishop said.

“When you encounter a migrant, walk with them. Listen to their story. Help them and defend their dignity. Christ continues to come out to meet us along the way … Let us make our parishes and communities places where no one is a stranger, where everyone finds a family and where we can truly say, ‘There is a place for you here. You belong here. Let us walk together and be missionaries of hope.’”

Learn more about the Office of Hispanic Ministry here.