Cardinal Mejia Visit and Reflections
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Digital photo taken by Brooke Hummel Cardinal Jorge Mejia gets a technology lesson from Mrs. Hummel's 1st graders as he is introduced to navigating a Tablet PC |
Digital photo taken by Barbara Hughes Cardinal Mejia trades in his miter for the stylish STPCS baseball cap while posing with Mr. Hammond. |
Digital photo taken by Hannah, Grade 6 Cardinal Mejia celebrated mass during the visit as a part of his special retreat with Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church, hosted by Saint Patrick Catholic School. |
Saint Patrick received a very rare visitation from a member of the Roman Catholic hierarchy, Friday, March 31, 2006. Cardinal Jorge Mejia, librarian for the Vatican, graced the Hampton Roads area with his presence by celebrating mass and giving a talk on Pope Benedict XVI's First Encyclical, Dues Caritas Est (God is Love). The newest Catholic School in Norfolk hosted the Cardinal's retreat with Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church. He was also given a chance to interact with several students while touring the lower school classrooms. Cardinal Mejia celebrated mass for the entire school and parishioners from Blessed Sacrament, Sacred Heart and the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception. Cardinal Mejia's reflection on the first encyclical by the Holy Father was delivered in front of an audience of adults and the middle school students of Saint Patrick. The Cardinal, who is in semi-retirement, co-celebrated mass with his personal assistant, Father Louis "Lucha" Duacastella, Father Joseph Metzger, Pastor of Blessed Sacrament, and Father Tom Powers, a retired priest from the Diocese of Albany on the Hudson (New York).