Diocese – Saint Matthew Assyrian Chaldean Catholic Church – Ceres, CA

The Clergy of Saint Peter Diocese Meet

admin — Fri, 21 Aug 2020 01:32:48 +0000

The clergy of the Chaldean Catholic Diocese of St. Peter the Apostle gathered at the Diocesan Bishopric on Thursday and Friday, October 24th and 25th, 2013. The biannual meetings are a wonderful opportunity for the clergy to discuss Diocesan, parish, and Liturgical matters. Along with its practical uses, the clergy meetings are also a great way for the clergy to gather as brothers and enjoy one another’s company.

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.

A Call From Christ

admin — Fri, 18 Jul 2014 19:00:30 +0000

July 18, 2014, on the feast of Mar Abba the Great, two seminarians, Ankido Sipo and Simon Esshaki, were ordained Chaldean Deacons by Bishop Sarhad Yawsip Jammo at St. Peter’s Cathedral in San Diego. They are the first deacons to be ordained within the Seminary of Mar Abba the Great.

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.

Clergy of Saint Peter Diocese Gather

admin — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 19:00:31 +0000

The clergy of the Chaldean Catholic Diocese of St. Peter the Apostle gathered at the Diocesan Bishopric on Wednesday and Thursday, April 17-18, 2013. The biannual meetings are a wonderful opportunity for the clergy to discuss Diocesan, parish, and Liturgical matters. Along with its practical uses, the clergy meetings are also a great way for the clergy to gather as brothers and enjoy one another’s company.

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.

Saint Peter Diocese Youth Retreat

admin — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:00:49 +0000

Then Eli understood that the LORD was calling the youth. So he said to Samuel, “Go to sleep, and if you are called, reply, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’” When Samuel went to sleep in his place, the LORD came and stood there, calling out as before: “Samuel, Samuel!” Samuel answered, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” — 1 Samuel 3:8-10

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.