Guadalupe torch a lesson in unity for St. Theresa Parish
July 29, 2019 at 12:37 p.m.
Father Arian Wharff, parochial vicar in St. Theresa Parish, Little Egg Harbor, preached about unity during his homily Nov. 13 as the parish welcomed the Ocean County La Antorcha Guadalupana.
“It’s important how the torch goes from church to church, but the light is in the people,” he said. “It’s the people who carry and spread the light.”
Photo Gallery: Torch visits St. Theresa Parish
In anticipation of the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, parishes around the Diocese have been participating in the series of traveling torch lightings that will culminate in a multicultural – and multi-county – pilgrimage celebration Dec. 3 in Trenton.
Father Wharff said about 700 people – both visitors and parishioners such as Emma Mazanek, 9, who carried the parish’s torch banner – attended the Mass and Latino/American luncheon Nov. 13 that immediately followed.
In addition, morning Mass numbers increased during the torch’s visit: on Nov. 15 alone, the usual 40 to 50 attendance grew to 80. The parish’s daily, bilingual activities during the torch’s visit included private prayer, services, adoration and Novenas to Our Lady of Guadalupe.
“It’s a renewal,” Father Wharff said.
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Father Arian Wharff, parochial vicar in St. Theresa Parish, Little Egg Harbor, preached about unity during his homily Nov. 13 as the parish welcomed the Ocean County La Antorcha Guadalupana.
“It’s important how the torch goes from church to church, but the light is in the people,” he said. “It’s the people who carry and spread the light.”
Photo Gallery: Torch visits St. Theresa Parish
In anticipation of the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, parishes around the Diocese have been participating in the series of traveling torch lightings that will culminate in a multicultural – and multi-county – pilgrimage celebration Dec. 3 in Trenton.
Father Wharff said about 700 people – both visitors and parishioners such as Emma Mazanek, 9, who carried the parish’s torch banner – attended the Mass and Latino/American luncheon Nov. 13 that immediately followed.
In addition, morning Mass numbers increased during the torch’s visit: on Nov. 15 alone, the usual 40 to 50 attendance grew to 80. The parish’s daily, bilingual activities during the torch’s visit included private prayer, services, adoration and Novenas to Our Lady of Guadalupe.
“It’s a renewal,” Father Wharff said.
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