On the evening of January 9, 2015, an altar was blessed in the chapel of the new Seminary. This landmark and joyous occasion was celebrated by His Excellency, Mar Sarhad Yawsip Jammo, as well as His Excellency, Mar Bawai Soro, Archdeacon Fr. Sabri Kejbo, the rector of the Seminary, Fr. Andrew Younan along with a number of clergy including, Fr. Michael Bazzi, Fr. Awraha Mansour, Fr. Fareed Kinna, Fr. Noel Gorgis, Fr. Michael Khosho, Fr. Peter Lawrence and Fr. Michael Barrota who came all the way from San Jose to share in this historic event.

The many donors who helped make the purchase of the new seminary possible were also present. After blessing the altar, Mar Sarhad went through the entire seminary, blessing each room with holy water and incense. Currently, there are 10 seminarians, four of which were ordained Deacons in 2014 and look forward to their priestly ordinations later this year.

May God continue to bless our current Seminarians and grant more vocations for the Church in His grace.

Twenty priests from three vicariates were present at the meetings. They were joined by His Excellency, Mar Sarhad Yawsip Jammo as well as Mar Bawai Soro. St. Peter Diocese is blessed to have such an abundance of clergy serving its faithful.

In celebration of the end of the Year of Faith, the clergy held a Holy Hour at the Cathedral on Friday, October 25, 2013. The celebration was followed by the musical performance, Amyrta Myusarta: The Captive Princess.

In his sermon about the Gospel reading for The Fifth Sunday of The Resurrection Bishop Soro focused on the true meaning of “Resurrection” saying “now God is available” for each and every one of us to call upon Him every time we sin as long as we repent with “contrite heart”; God will forgive, help, and guide us in our lives. He also explained how the Church is “The Place of Conversion” and that during Mass as we pray we ought to ask God to forgive and rid us of all sin. As always he reminded us that we ought to love and forgive one another in order to be Christ-like. His Excellency concluded his sermon by delivering best wishes, love, and regards of our, Beloved Bishop, H.E. Mar Sarhad Yawsip Jammo.

At the end of the Mass SMYLE JR. Kids Ministry gave Bishop Soro beautiful flowers as token of their love and appreciation for him and he truly appreciated and thanked them all; they gathered around him as children do around their father. Bishop Soro spent time talking to them and gave them his blessings.

Later on Bishop Soro joined our congregation at the Parish Hall to have a meal together as we celebrated the memorial of St. George that was prepared by Daughters of Mary Ministry. He then had more time to meet and visit with us and offered prayers and blessings to many.

Last Sunday was indeed a very special day for us at St. Matthew Parish. We, as always, keep our pastors and Bishops in our prayers and we ask our Lord to keep them all in His care. We look forward for next visit by Bishop Soro to our Parish.

Your Excellency, we thank you for your visit and for keeping us always in your prayers. God Bless you.

Summary and Photos by: St. Matthew Catholic Church Media Team

The Church was filled with people cheering and joyful smiles. Bishop Sarhad Yawsip Jammo in the presence of Bishop Bawai Soro and Bishop Jibrael Kassab from Australia and clergy from all over came to witness this tremendous event. Ankido Sipo entered seminary on January 3 2010, and Simon Esshaki entered the house of discernment on January 1 2009 which eventually became the Seminary of Mar Abba the Great. These two men recieved their Bachelor of Science in New Evangelization from John Paul the Great Catholic University and are currently studying from the same school to recieve their Master Degree in Biblical Theology. God willing, they will be ordained Chaldean priests in April of 2015. Continue to pray for these two great young men.

Hundreds of family members, friends, school-mates, came to support Ankido and Simon. During the Divine Mysteries, after the Lakhou Mara, the Deaconate Ceremony began. Ankido and Simon stepped towards the altar before the Bishop to recieve the Sacrament of Holy Orders. They kneeled down before the altar and raised their hands to their ears making a gesture of obiedence, as a sign that they would pay very close attention to the word of the Lord. Later they kissed the Gospel and touched it upon their heads. Finally the Rector, Fr. Andrew Younan, took them by the hands and brought them to the altar, where they each bowed before the altar and kissed it.

The Bishop gave a homiliy immediately after the ceremony about the work of the Holy Spirit and how powerful he is acting in our community. Bishop Sarhad Yawsip Jammo proudly announced that two more very suitbale young men, applied to enter the seminary.

After the Divine Mysteries, everyone went into the Hall of the Church to congradulate the two newly ordained Chaldean Deacons, Deacon Ankido Sipo and Deacon Simon Esshaki.

What a blessing it has been to witness H.E. Bishop Mar Bawai Soro appointed as Bishop in our Chaldean Catholic Church! Here at St. Matthew Catholic Church, Ceres-CA, we, the Choir/Daughters of Charity Ministry, have supported Bishop Bawai Soro for years and we will continue doing so along with many others. We stood by his side as he endured hardship trying to bring Unity to the Church. Today we see the fruit of years long hard work in achieving Church Unity blessed by our Holy Father Pope Francis as he, on 01/11/2014, “assigned the titular see of Foraziana to Mar Bawai Soro, in pastoral service in our Chaldean Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego, CA, USA.” (http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2014/01/11/chaldean_bishop_appointed/en1-763085). Thank you our Holy Father.

We owe our greatest thanks and gratitude to our Lord Jesus Christ Who never leaves His true servants alone. “Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.” James 1:12

We would also like to extend our special gratitude and thanks to our dear Bishop H.E. Mar Sarhad Y. Jammo, as well as many others, for standing unwaveringly besides Bishop Bawai Soro throughout the years; they worked diligently and supported Bishop Bawai Soro and all of us who joined him in his ongoing journey.

In his speech during our jubilant gathering at St. Thomas Catholic Church in Turlock-Ca, as we celebrated this great news on Saturday 01/18/2014, Bishop Bawai Soro told us these are the three things that helped him all these years in his thorny journey working towards our Church Unity: Patience, Love, and Forgiveness. Indeed in his sermons and speeches through the years Bishop Bawai Soro consistently teaches us to be patient, to love those who persecute us, and forgive our brothers and sisters despite of indifference in beliefs and opinions. Our dear Bishops, Mar Sarhad and Mar Bawai, continue teaching us to love our enemies and live in peace with them. Unity and Love is what our Lord Jesus is ALL ABOUT.

We joyfully congratulate Bishop Bawai Soro for his acceptance as Bishop into our Chaldean Catholic Church. We offer our congratulations as well to our dear Bishop Sarhad Y. Jammo. May God bless you both on your ongoing journey as you continue to humbly and unselfishly serve our Lord and His flock.

The Choir/Daughters of Charity Ministry
St. Matthew Catholic Church
Ceres-Ca
01/25/2014

“I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one, that the world may know that you sent me, and you loved them even as you loved me.” John 17:23

The celebration at St. Thomas Catholic Church on Saturday, Jan 18, 2014, began with a procession followed by Eucharistic Adoration Prayer led by our Bishop H.E. Mar Bawai Soro and joined by our Bishop H.E. Mar Sarhad Y. Jammo, deacons and faithful from both St. Thomas Church and St. Matthew Church, as well as friends from other local parishes. We were also blessed to have with us our Pastors Fr. Awraha Mansoor and Fr. Peter Georgis along with Corbishop Samuel Dinkha of St. Paul Catholic Church (N. Hollywood, Ca) and Fr. Michael Barota of St. Mary’s Catholic Church (Campbell, Ca).

Following the prayer Fr. Awraha Mansoor greeted and welcomed both Bishops of our Chaldean Church, the pastors, and all the faithful present. In his opening statement, Fr. Awraha talked about the events leading to this jubilant gathering. The Church service concluded with spiritual and heartfelt messages by both Bishops as they elaborated on the JOURNEY OF UNITY they both traveled for many years and finally arrived at a time in which their UNITY dream came a reality blessed by our Holy Father Pope Francis, on 01/11/201, as he assigned the titular see of Foraziana to Mar Bawai Soro in pastoral service in the Chaldean Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego, CA, USA.

Then we all went to the Church Hall as we spent memorable moments with our dear Bishops. At the Hall speeches were given by representatives of both St. Thomas and St. Matthew Parishes welcoming the Bishops, and expressing sincere gratitude and congratulations to them and all the guests. St. Matthew Kids Ministry, SMYLE Junior, gave a marvelous performance as they sang “Christians Let Us Love One Another” in honor of both our Bishops. Also, St. Matthew Choir, joined by St. Thomas Choir, sang the most fitting song for the occasion “We Are All One” written by our dear Corbishop Samuel Dinkha.

At the end of this joyful celebration, the faithful had a chance to personally greet and speak to our dear Bishop Bawai Soro. They happily conveyed to him their sincere congratulations and best wishes as he takes on his role of pastoral service in the Chaldean Eparchy of Saint Peter the Apostle of San Diego, CA, USA.

We would like to thank our Lord first, our dear Bishop Sarhad Y. Jammo, and all those who helped and supported us in our 8-year-long journey. We wish our dear Bishop Bawai Soro the best on his new journey and we always keep him in our prayers. God bless all.

During his homily, Mar Sarhad spoke of the prayer of Christ and how it was prayed for his disciples to be saved from evil. The prayer of Christ for his disciples and for the Church is that we may be holy, that we may be together in love and not alone. He went on to mention the Epistle from Saint Paul as well, “You are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone.” St. Paul mentions the Apostles together, not as an individual. At the heart of his sermon, Mar Sarhad spoke of his thankfulness to God for allowing his diocese to unite so beautifully, for as he said, “We are living the prayer of Christ.” Things that are worth much are expensive, and though this diocese has paid much for its unity, it was worth the cost. “I will defend this unity,” the Bishop said, “for all of you, for the clergy and for my dear brother, Mar Bawai Soro.” Though the struggle may take time, it is not something to fear. We will stand with Christ beside us and one another. Mar Sarhad ended by saying that we are all members of the same Body of Christ, “and I will defend you as I would for any other member of it.”

Following Mass, Mar Sarhad blessed a number of the faithful who were recently celebrating anniversaries, as well as others who desired a blessing. Afterward, he went outside to greet the children who were waiting for him to bless the plans for a new Basketball court which will be the newest addition to the St. Matthew’s property.

Sixteen priests from three vicariates were present at the meetings. They were joined by His Excellency, Mar Sarhad Yawsip Jammo as well as Mar Bawai Soro. St. Peter Diocese is blessed to have such an abundance of clergy serving its faithful.

Once again, the youth from our Northern California parishes gathered together in a retreat to listen to God and at the same time draw closer to each another.  The retreat, whose theme centered on Samuel’s response to the Lord, was held from Friday, November 11th, to Sunday, November 13th, at the Presentation Center in Los Gatwas os.  H.E. Mar Bawai Soro, Fr. Dimitri Grekoff and Fr. Andrawis Toma, Sr. Tarbytha and Sr. Anahyd, and seminarians Simon and Royal were the honored guest speakers for the 80 youth gathered together from St. Mary, St. Thomas, St. Matthew, and Our Lady of Perpetual Help parishes.

Bishop Bawai started of the talks with a discussion on the call to virtue and the need to draw close to God, which at the same time draws us close to one another.  The sisters of the Workers of the Vineyard talked on vocations and how to discern what God is calling you to.  The seminarians from Mar Abba Seminary discussed the importance of prayer and good friends when discerning a vocation.  Fr. Dimitri, completed the talks with a homily during the celebration of the Divine Liturgy.  He discussed the graces that flow from God, especially in the Sacrament of the Eucharist, and the need for service to God, pointing out the Church’s emphasis of Isaiah 6 in which Isaiah, after his lips have touched the coal, offers his service to the Lord.

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I; send me!’ — Isaiah 6:8

The retreat was filled with fun and spirituality.  In addition to having each others’ company, there were games, sports, and activities designed to get the youth to know one another more closely.  Morning and Evening prayers were accompanied by Rosaries and an hour of Adoration, as well as the station of the cross.  Our priests offered the Sacrament of Confession to many of the youth, with Fr. Dimitri actually hearing confessions until almost 2am.  The Eucharistic celebration formed the high point of the retreat.

Overall, it was a blessed event, and we thank God for the blessings, our clergy for their support, the seminarians and nuns for their camaraderie, being friends and great examples, the youth leaders from all the parishes for their dedicated work in making this retreat possible, and all the youth for their spirit and energy.