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A Saint in the Family?
Opening of the Cause for Beatification Yes, we were pushing it: we had decided to travel the same day as the big event. I had set my alarm clock for 5:00 AM. We were leaving for Sacramento at 6:30 AM, which gave me plenty of time to get ready for the seven-hour trip from Oxnard to California’s state capital. The sun was just coming up when I walked over to the dining room, where I was greeted by many of the other friars, students, and visitors who would be making the journey to attend the opening of the cause of beatification of Bishop Alphonse Gallegos, OAR. Everyone was having his wake-up coffee and a bite to eat before starting out. We had decided to pile ourselves and our overnight bags into three vans and to get an early start so that we would be ready to attend the 5:30 PM concelebrated liturgy at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral, presided by Bishop William Weigand. I had just been getting ready to leave for Rome to attend the Priors Provincial meeting in late September, 2005, when I received the welcome news from our postulator general, Fr. Samson Silloriquez, OAR, that we had received formal approval from the General Council of the Order and Bishop Weigand, ordinary of the diocese of Sacramento, to proceed with this first step toward the canonization of Bishop Gallegos. It was the fulfillment of a collective desire by our religious expressed in the determinations of our last two Provincial Chapters! The date for celebrating the opening of this process was set for December 4, 2005. The time in between the announcement and the actual date for the celebration was a flurry of activity - getting the invitation list assembled, preparing and mailing the invitations, making posters to advertise the event, and finally printing up brochures with the Bishop's life and holy cards with a prayer to advance the cause for beatification. Through communication with Fr. Samson ("Sammy") and diocesan officials in Sacramento, a tribunal was appointed with the task of conducting the formal investigation required by the Church before approval of beatification could be given. Fr. Samson, in virtue of his position as postulator general, was automatically a member of the tribunal. The diocese of Sacramento named the judge and the defender of the bond, as well as the presidents of the two commissions (theological and historical) which are to work jointly in conducting the investigation. Province participants on the tribunal included Fr. Eliseo Gonazalez, secretary/notary; Frs. James McGuire and Marlon Beof, theological commission; and Frs. John Oldfield and Matthew Alejo, historical commission. Fr. McGuire was also entrusted with writing press releases for diocesan and secular papers and other media. It was with great anticipation and excitement that we left Oxnard the day of the celebration. The joyful mood of the Recollect travelers was, however, darkened somewhat by the recent and unexpected death of Fr. Eliseo's father, a man greatly loved by both the religious and lay communities of Oxnard for his constant support of the Church and the Order and for his extraordinary example of faith and generous service to all. It was, indeed, fitting that the immediate members of the Gonzalez family, Fr. Eliseo's mother, aunt, sister and brother-in-law, accompanied us to Sacramento to share in the celebration, even as they were dealing with their own great loss. As our three vans started out, winding through the mountains immediately north of Los Angeles, we were joined by other groups of Recollects from our houses in Southern California, from New York, and even from Mexico, who made the journey by land and by air to Sacramento. Nineteen Recollect friars, the students at the Priory, a number of our AR sisters from California, representatives of three of our SAR chapters, and numerous lay people, especially from Cristo Rey and San Miguel parishes, where Bishop Al had been stationed for many years, joined the diocesan priests and people of Sacramento and some 40 members of the Gallegos family for the celebration. The cathedral, with a capacity for approximately 1,200 and just newly reopened after an impressive two-year renovation project, was nearly full when the opening hymn of the Mass began. Our caravan arrived in Sacramento around 1:30 PM, giving us sufficient time to check in to our motel - a scant three blocks from the cathedral - to drop off the brochures and holy cards in the cathedral hall for later distribution and to go for some lunch. On our way to find a place to eat (not an easy thing, strangely enough, in downtown Sacramento!), we were pleasantly surprised to run into Fr. Sammy and members of the SAR chapter from Mary Star of the Sea. The afternoon passed quickly and soon we were assembling in the cathedral vesting area off of the newly refurbished hall, where we would be holding a reception after the Mass. Joining Bishop Weigand, celebrant and presider at the bilingual liturgy to open the beatification cause, was retired Bishop Francis Quinn, ordinary of the diocese of Sacramento during the time Bishop Al was auxiliary. Fr. John Oldfield, who has written a biography of Bishop Gallegos to be published next fall, delivered the homily, in which he spoke about the extraordinary life of Bishop Al, placing his story in the context of the Church's Advent liturgy and of John the Baptist, who pointed out the Lord through his words and witness. Members of the Gallegos family proclaimed the Scripture readings, led the Prayers of the Faithful, and brought up the Offertory gifts. The ceremony was covered by local Spanish and English television stations (who interviewed Frs. Ramon Gaitan and John Oldfield) and was privately video-taped as a suitable memorial for our community and for family members. The actual ceremony of opening the cause of beatification was conducted by Bishop Weigand at the conclusion of the liturgy and consisted in a summary reading of Bishop Al's life and works by Fr. Sammy, the appointment and swearing in of the tribunal members, and the declaration by Bishop Weigand that the cause of Bishop Al was now formally open. Following the ceremony, I offered words of thanks to Bishop Weigand, diocesan officials, and all participants, especially the members of the Gallegos family, and invited everyone present to join in a reception to follow the Mass in the new cathedral hall for refreshments and fellowship. A wonderful spirit pervaded our get-together, as priests, religious, SAR members, and laity mixed, getting reacquainted or meeting for the first time. The Gallegos family was delighted with the ceremony and with the very obvious support and love for Bishop Al that was still apparent 14 years after his tragic death. The cathedral and hall were beautiful and inspiring places for these festivities, and one had only to go outside, stand in Bishop Gallegos Plaza, and gaze at the larger-than-life statue of Bishop Al - strategically and significantly located between state house and cathedral - to see the difference this man’s life and ministry had made for a city and a Church. The following day, before undertaking the long trip back to Oxnard, we drove the short distance to St. Mary's Cemetery, where Bishop Al’s physical remains are buried. After being warmly received by the local staff, we all gathered around the marble niche inscribed with the name Bishop Alphonse Gallegos, OAR. We stood there for a moment of silence before offering a prayer for the success of the beatification process and for perseverance in our own Augustinian Recollect vocations. We left Sacramento about midmorning under a bright, sunny sky, arriving back in Oxnard after dark, tired, yet conscious of the fact that we had been participants in a unique and joyous event, a first for St. Augustine Province. There had been an ongoing discussion during our trip about what it would be like to "have a saint in the family." As we pray for the success of the Cause may we strive to be worthy of the honor and challenge that it implies. Fr. John Gruben, OAR
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