Holy Wisdom Eastern Catholic Parish

We celebrated our 10th anniversary Divine Liturgy of Thanksgiving on November 4, 2012 at Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center in Citrus Heights. Preceded by Color Guard Knights of Columbus Assembly 2796, the clergy processed to the chapel. Bishop Richard Seminack of the Eparchy of St. Nicholas in Chicago and Bishop Jaime Soto of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Sacramento were greeted with bread and salt by Holy Wisdom parishioners, and then two children from Holy Wisdom parish presented the bishops with bouquets of flowers. Led by the clergy, the bishops processed to the altar while parishioners and guests sang “Protect Us Dear Virgin Mary” in Ukrainian, English, and Spanish. The Divine Liturgy was concelebrated by the bishops and clergy pictured below. We were blessed to have many other members of the clergy, Holy Wisdom parishioners, and guests from far and wide in the congregation.

Bishop Richard delivered the homily and congratulated us on our anniversary. He told us that with faith we can all do great things, especially in our evangelization efforts to bring others into the Church. At the end of the liturgy, (God grant) “Many Years” was sung in Ukrainian and English. Everyone in attendance received a holy card of St. Sophia the Martyr and her three daughters, Faith, Hope, and Charity, patrons of Holy Wisdom Parish. The parish hosted a celebration dinner immediately following the liturgy, as a pianist provided a background of classical music . Many speakers addressed the guests during dinner, including Bishop Soto, who congratulated us and reminded us again of our “job description” as Christians – to go out and be disciples of Christ.

Like the tide, our parish grows and recedes. We like to think of ourselves as a small mustard seed parish; we hope to continue growing into a mature plant. Fr. Deacon Alex Wroblicky challenged us to obtain our own spiritual home in the coming years, and we look forward to meeting that challenge with enthusiasm and confidence. We thank the good Lord for our first ten years and trust that He will see fit for us to have many more happy and blessed years together.

Clergy Back Row (left to right)

1. Fr. Petro Dyachok, Immaculate Conception Ukrainian Catholic Church, San Francisco
2. Fr. Petro Kozar, St. Andrew Ukrainian Catholic Church, Sacramento
3. Fr. Stanislaw Zak, St. Mary Margaret Roman Catholic Church, Oakland
4. Fr. Theodore Wroblicky, Holy Wisdom Eastern Catholic Church
5. Bishop Richard Seminack, Ukrainian Greek Catholic Eparchy of St. Nicholas, Chicago
6. Bishop Jaime Soto, Roman Catholic Diocese of Sacramento
7. Fr. Nabil Moannes, Holy Rosary Maronite Catholic Church, Carmichael
   Fr. Francis Murin, St Philip the Apostle Byzantine Catholic Church, Sacramento
8. Fr. James Strommer, CP, Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center, Citrus Heights

Clergy Front Row (left to right)

1. Fr. Deacon Alexander Wroblicky, St. John the Baptist Ukrainian Catholic Church, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
2. Fr. Michael Kiernan, Our Lady of the Assumption Roman Catholic Church, Sacramento; Liaison, Eastern Catholic Churches, Diocese

    of Sacramento

1. Fr. Dennis Smolarski, SJ, Santa Clara University, Santa Clara
2. Fr. Damien Higgins, Mt. Tabor Monastery, Redwood Valley
   Fr. Johnkutty George, Malabar Community, Sacramento
3. Fr. Ronan Newbold, CP, Christ the King Passionist Retreat Center, Citrus Heights