New York cardinal dedicates 1st church in US for Pinoys
Aug 16, 2005
THE "CHURCH of Filipinos," the first in the United States and only the second in the world dedicated as such, will be officially designated today in New York City, Church officials said yesterday.
(Inquirer News Service, July 30, 2005) Named the Chapel of San Lorenzo Ruiz, its adjoining hall will also be formally dedicated to the memory of the late Manila Archbishop Jaime Cardinal Sin, and named after him.
NY cardinal's choice
Fr. Erno Diaz, coordinator of the Filipino Apostolate in the Archdiocese of New York, said the Chapel, located at 378 Broome St. in Lower Manhattan, will now be named "San Lorenzo Ruiz Church" following its designation on June 15, 2005 as the official "Church of Filipinos" by Archdiocese of New York Edward Cardinal Egan.
Cardinal Egan also appointed Diaz as Director of the Filipino Apostolate, with a three-year term starting Sept. 1, 2005.
"We thank the Almighty for the historic gift of this church that services the tri-state Eastern seaboard population of about
300,000 Filipinos. It is the first church in the United States to be officially designated as 'Church of Filipinos' and second in the world, the first being the Filipino Church in Rome," Diaz said.
Arroyo invited
He said since President Macapagal-Arroyo is scheduled to grace the opening of the United Nations General Assembly in New York for a meeting of heads of state on the UN Millennium Development Goals, the Chief Executive was invited to preside over the official designation of the Church of Filipinos and the dedication of the Cardinal Sin Memorial Hall.
40th day
As the occasion coincides with the 40th day of the passing of Cardinal Sin, Fr. Diaz said a special requiem memorial Mass will be held at the San Lorenzo Ruiz Church in honor of the revered cardinal who, according to Diaz, was "very close to our parish, the Most Holy Crucifix."
Remembering Sin
"It was here in 1984 that the cardinal [Sin] came to rally support for the canonization of then Blessed Lorenzo Ruiz. Two years before Edsa I, he already manifested a clear sign that he was going to lead the people in Edsa. He said Mass in a jampacked St. Patrick's Cathedral and from the pulpit, he led the people in singing "Pilipinas Kong Mahal," which moved many of us to tears," Diaz said.
National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) Executive Director Cecile Guidote Alvarez, who met with Diaz during his recent Manila visit, said the Cardinal Sin Memorial Hall could be a center for culture and values education outreach for Filipinos abroad, especially in New York and New Jersey.
Cultural link
"Through this new Filipino church, the NCCA hopes to create a cultural link with Filipino communities overseas and touch base with them and their children, reminding them and teaching them of the rich cultural heritage of their motherland, also in line with the NCCA's effort to provide Kalahi Cultural Services overseas," she stressed.
New York cardinal dedicates 1st church in US for Pinoys