Gulf Pine Catholic

24 Gulf Pine Catholic • January 24, 2025 Bishop’s Column From page 3 Karoline Burroughs Eleventh grade Our Lady Academy, Bay St. Louis I have a regime of prayer I do every day and that helps keep me centered on the Lord. When those days happen, it is an opportunity for me to slow down and be with the Lord. I let the Lord enter what- ever is going on and allow the Lord to guide me and whatever difficulty I am facing. I encourage you to be people of prayer and to have a daily prayer habit. It allows the Lord to enter in and be with you daily through the challenges of life, because stuff happens in life. What would be the significance of someone com- ing up to you and kissing the Bishop’s ring? Reagan Krebs Eleventh Grade Our Lady Academy, Bay St. Louis This ring is called a Concilium ring, which means the Council of Bishops, and on this ring, the bishops and apostles from all the centuries are repre- sented, and it is in the shape of the hat that I wore during Mass, the mitre. Kissing the bishop’s ring is a show of reverence and honor for the bishop and his position, because we are modern-day Apostles. And so, the ring has a lot of meaning. When people kiss the ring, they are not necessarily kissing me, they are honoring the bishops and apostles that have gone before me -- think of Saint Peter and Saint Paul and Saint Andrew and all the Saints of the church. What is your favorite vacation? Isla Vogt Kindergarten Sacred Heart Parish School, Hattiesburg My favorite vacation is going fishing and a chance to relax and read a book! What is your favorite part of Mass? Jeremiah Barquero Third grade Sacred Heart Parish School, Hattiesburg My favorite part is the consecration, when we pray over the bread and the wine and it changes into the body and blood of Jesus. But I also love the Word of God. It is also wonderful and powerful -- and having all of you come together for Mass; it is a very special moment. What are your goals on your faith formation plan? Handley Kirk Fifth grade Nativity BVM Parish School, Biloxi This is a very good question! What are my goals for my faith formation plan? I’m impressed, good man! In terms of knowing Jesus, I am in touch with the word of God personally, and I also get to know Him through you. As I visit the different schools and the different parishes, I grow in love of Him, I bring to Him every moment in my life. I let Him show to me how He has loved me and how I am called to love and then to serve Him as a bishop. I serve everybody in South Mississippi. That means I serve all the priests, all the sisters, all the deacons, all mar- ried couples, all single people, all the youth. We have a million people that live in South Mississippi, and I am called to love and serve them and to wit- ness Jesus like I did today with you. When I cele- brate the Mass, it is a joy, but it’s also a witness moment for me as a priest and as a bishop. Great question! What was your favorite holiday growing up? Charlotte Williams Fourth grade Nativity BVM Parish School, Biloxi Good question! I would say Christmas was prob- ably the favorite of favorites, although Easter was a biggie, too. And then it’s hard not to say celebrating your own birthday, too. That’s probably one of your favorite holidays, right?! Have you ever met the Pope? Juliette Davis Third grade Nativity BVM Parish School, Biloxi I have! I have met a couple of Popes. I have met Pope Francis twice. He meets all the new bishops that he calls to be a bishop in person, so I traveled to Rome to meet him there. He’s a great guy! He really loves the Church! SEE BISHOP’S SPANISH COLUMN, PAGE 8 Columna del Obispo De la página 3 ¿Cuál es tu parte favorita de la Misa? Jeremías Barquero Tercer grado Escuela Parroquial del Sagrado Corazón, Hattiesburg Mi parte favorita es la consagración, cuando ora- mos sobre el pan y el vino y este se transforma en el cuerpo y sangre de Jesús. Pero también amo la Palabra de Dios. También es maravilloso y podero- so, y tenerlos a todos juntos para la Misa; es un momento muy especial. ¿Cuáles son sus objetivos en su plan de for- mación de fe? Daley Kirk Quinto grado Escuela Parroquial Natividad BVM, Biloxi ¡Esta es una muy buena pregunta! ¿Cuáles son mis objetivos para mi plan de formación de fe? ¡Estoy impresionado, buen hombre! En términos de conocer a Jesús, estoy en contacto con la palabra de Dios personalmente y también lo conozco a través de ti. Al visitar las diferentes escuelas y las difer- entes parroquias, me enamoro de Él, le traigo cada momento de mi vida. Dejo que Él me muestre cómo me ha amado y cómo estoy llamado a amarlo y luego a servirle como obispo. Sirvo a todos en el sur de Mississippi. Eso significa que sirvo a todos los sac- erdotes, a todas las hermanas, a todos los diáconos, a todos los matrimonios, a todos los solteros, a todos los jóvenes. Tenemos un millón de personas que viven en el sur de Mississippi y estoy llamado a amarlos y servirlos y a ser testigos de Jesús como lo hice hoy con ustedes. Cuando celebro la Misa es una alegría, pero también es un momento de testimonio para mí como sacerdote y como obispo. ¡Gran pre- gunta! ¿Cuál era tu fiesta favorita cuando eras niño? Charlotte Williams Cuarto grado Escuela Parroquial Natividad BVM, Biloxi ¡Buena pregunta! Yo diría que la Navidad fue probablemente la favorita de las favoritas, aunque la Pascua también fue importante. Y luego es difícil no decir que también celebras tu propio cumpleaños. Probablemente sea una de tus vacaciones favoritas, ¿verdad? ¿Alguna vez has conocido al Papa? Julieta Davis Tercer grado Escuela Parroquial Natividad BVM, Biloxi ¡Tengo! He conocido a un par de Papas. Me he reunido dos veces con el Papa Francisco. Él conoce personalmente a todos los nuevos obispos que llama a ser obispo, así que viajé a Roma para reunirme con él allí. ¡Es un gran tipo! ¡Él realmente ama a la Iglesia! Pray for vocations to the priesthood and religious life in the Diocese of Biloxi by visiting www.invisiblemonastery.com