Most Reverend José H. Gomez Archbishop of Los Angeles
Mission San Gabriel Arcangel April 2, 2022
My brothers and sisters in Christ,1
It is a beautiful moment where we gather this morning for the celebration of Holy Mass and then for the beginning of this jubilee pilgrimage.
So we begin this morning, right where we should always begin — giving praise to God and drawing strength from his Word.
But the readings this morning are very challenging. We are, as you know, at the last week in our journey of Lent, and these readings remind us that the road is not easy.
God’s messengers, including Jesus, have always faced misunderstanding and resistance.
Those who follow Jesus, those who try to live by his Gospel — we all face challenges, too. Every day. Especially, as our society becomes more secularized. As we all know, it is not always easy to live our Catholic faith in our jobs, in school, and in our culture.
But, my brothers and sisters, we should never forget that God goes with us, we are never alone. “For to you I have entrusted my cause!” Let’s take those beautiful words from the prophet words this morning, and let’s make them our own. Let’s keep trusting in God, let’s keep asking him for strength, for guidance; let’s keep seeking his will in everything.
Two hundred and fifty years ago, this mission was founded by St. Junípero Serra and his Franciscan brothers, together with the noble Tongva natives, who are the first peoples of this land.
These men and women trusted in God — completely. St. Junípero and his brothers left behind their homes and families, knowing they would never be coming back. So today, let us pray to have that kind of trust, that kind of courage!
They did it all for Jesus — set out for a place they have never seen, to serve a people they do not even know.
And this is the meaning of our lives, brothers and sisters. One word: Jesus. To know Jesus, to love him, to proclaim Jesus as the only name under heaven by which we are saved.
It must have been so amazing, to be in the crowd, to hear Jesus, to watch how he moved, how he handled situations.
Even the soldiers today in the Gospel are astonished. We hear them say: “Never before has anyone spoken like this man.”
So my brothers and sisters, as the saints remind us, our lives are a pilgrimage to the promise land of heaven, to our Father’s house. This a journey we are making, walking with Jesus. Following him. Living with him. Loving as he loved. Sharing in his mission by living his Gospel of love, by our words, by our actions.
So as we begin our pilgrimage today —from this beautiful place where the faith was born in Los Angeles, to the mother Church of the family of God today, our Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels— let us renew our dedication to our mission.
With joy in our hearts, let us commit ourselves again to building God’s kingdom in Los Angeles. In America. And throughout this continent. We are called to change the world through our love, to save souls and to create a beautiful society that serves human dignity and social justice.
May Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Queen of the Angels, keep us close to her Immaculate Heart. May she help us to walk in the footsteps of her Son, and to love him and proclaim him. In our homes, in our parishes and ministries, in our schools, and in our society.
Closing Remarks
My brothers and sisters,
It’s been a long day. Beautiful, but long, isn’t it?
We started early in the morning with the celebration of Holy Mass, then we walked I guess between 10 or 11 miles. That’s still something to resolve by the organizers of the Camino.
But it’s fine.
I think it's just a moment to give thanks to God. It’s been a wonderful day — just being together after these long two years of the pandemic. That we can be together and have this beautiful Camino.
So what I was thinking — I don’t want to talk for too long because I know that you want to go home. And most of you have to go back to the Mission San Gabriel, so that’s going to take a little while.
Anyway, what I was thinking as we were walking together, is first of all: how many beautiful saints we have had in the life of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. It started with St. Junípero Serra and going to all the other saints. Some of them that are already beatified and canonized and some that are in the process of canonization.
So really, Los Angeles, when we think about it, is a city of saints. Not just the ones that are already in this process, but the lives of so many people throughout the years. Through these 250 years they have lived their faith with heroism, with simplicity, and making this city really a very special place.
This Archdiocese is blessed with so many people, including all of you today. We are trying to do our best to follow Our Lord Jesus Christ, and are striving for holiness.
So we should be very happy today, and at the same time it is a moment for all of us to reflect on how we have to go Forward in Mission. So that’s our call.
And when we reflect on what is it that’s going to make a difference, as we heard in the reading this afternoon — what is going to make the difference to really find peace in our families, in our society, in our world is God. Our faith. It’s our personal commitment to follow the teachings and examples of Our Lord Jesus Christ, who is always walking with us.
I don’t know how you were feeling coming, but I was praying — asking Jesus to make sure that I was able to make it to the Cathedral. And I felt the presence of God the whole time during this, let’s say, 11 miles.
And seriously I think it is important for all of us, as we come to the end of the Lenten season with commemoration of the Passion of Our Lord, and then the celebration of his glory and Resurrection, to really go back to that — our personally relationship with Our Lord Jesus Christ is at the end, it’s about Jesus.
It’s about God the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
So I hope all of us can renew our enthusiasm.
So I hope that today will be a new beginning for each one of us, centering our life in the love and presence of Our Lord Jesus Christ. And of course, always counting on the intercession of Mary our Blessed Mother. Isn’t it beautiful the new tapestry of Our Lady of the Angels?
It is beautiful. And we have also the new Stations of the Cross. And of course over there, on my right hand side, is St. Junípero Serra who is always interceding for us in heaven.
So I hope that you had a blessed end of the Lenten season, Holy Week, and also a celebration of the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
1. Readings (Saturday of the Fourth Week of Lent): Jer. 11:18–20; John 7:40–53.