Dominican Friars

Southern Dominican Friar’s Documentary Wins — Urges Dominicans to Become Filmmakers

Movie poster of award-winning feature documentary, dedicated in commemoration of the Order’s 800th anniversary.

Source:  Armando P. Ibañez
pluma@earthlink.net

The International Independent Film Awards awarded three awards to a feature documentary, written, produced and directed by Armando P. Ibanez, O.P., a friar of the Southern Dominican Province and who also serves as Assistant Professor, Director of Radio-Television-Film at Texas A&M University-Kingsville.

The film—dedicated in commemoration of the Order’s 800th anniversary—received three Gold Awards in Directing, Documentary Feature and Animated Visuals categories.

In addition, Los Angeles CineFest selected the documentary as an Official Selection, and is now in competition with seven other selected films in the feature documentary category, which will be decided later this month.
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Dominicans and Associates attend annual SOA vigil at Fort Benning

Dominicans and Associates from Adrian, Peace, Sinsinawa, Springfield, and the Central Province traveled to Columbus, GA, for the annual SOA (School of Americas) vigil at Fort Benning November 21 and 22, 2015.

Saturday morning found the vigilers driving the 40 miles to Lumpkin, GA, for the rally and 1.7 mile march tomarch the Stewart Detention Center, one of the largest for-profit immigrant prisons in the country (1,752 beds). There are more people inside the prison than in the small, remote rural town. The march was led by those whose lives are
directly impacted by our country’s unjust, inhumane and racist immigration policies. More than 1,000 marchers joined in to raise their voices. They couldn’t see what the site looked like as large buses were parked to block any view of the building.

The Sunday morning funeral procession continues to be a powerful remembrance of those who have died at the hands of military violence. Crosses with the
names of those who have been killed or disappeared due to state violence are raised as the crowd responds with Presente.

After the procession, SOAWatch leaders announced that SOAW is planning to change its focus from Ft. Benning to the U.S.-Mexican border to address the plight of Latin Americans refugees who are fleeing increasingly dangerous conditions, especially those escaping violence in the “northern triangle” of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala.

Christina spent 4 years in a Salvadoran prison after suffering a miscarriage.
Christina spent 4 years in a Salvadoran prison after suffering a miscarriage.

One of the workshops on Saturday afternoon was about the Las 17 (the 17). In El Salvador, abortion is illegal even in cases of rape, incest, and maternal danger. Because of the strictness of the law, women who miscarry are arrested and tried for aggravated homicide, receiving up to a 30-or-40-year prison sentence. Activist groups have identified at least 17 women who have been jailed after losing their babies to medical emergencies. As one would expect, these are poor, rural women.

We carried you with us in prayer and spirit throughout the weekend.

 

800 Years of Singing and Walking with St. Dominic

Singers Dominic DeLay and John Paul Forté, friars of the western province, take Dominicans and their friends on a virtual 800th jubilee pilgrimage with their new music recording, Maintain the Light.  Many of the lyrics are from or inspired by Dominican saints.

Dominic, who is also a filmmaker, is leading an actual Footsteps of St. Dominic pilgrimage in June.  The trip is sponsored by his, John Paul’s, and their magician classmate Daniel Rolland’s creative ministries, Torch3m:  Dominican Movies, Music & Magic.

Maintain the Light has several songs about St. Dominic himself. Speaking to You sings the often-told story that St. Dominic, as he traveled, spoke either to God or about God. Love One Another is a musical setting of his last words. And Light of the Church has new music for the classic hymn about the saint.

St. Catherine’s challenging and encouraging words are set to music in Be Who God Created You to Be. Additional Dominican saints are invoked in the Litany of Light.

Meister Eckhart’s prophetic words are sung in Every Creature is a Word of God. All Dominican women and men, living and dead, could be those huddled around the fire of faith in Keepers of the Flame.

Yes, Dominicans and their companions gather around the flame of faith, but they are also constantly on a journey or pilgrimage. Seek God and Truth tells the gospel story of the rich young man who wasn’t willing to let go of everything to get on the road with Jesus. And Going Deeper recognizes that this journey is most of all an inward one. You Are Closer sings that God walks with us and is, in the words of St. Augustine, closer to us than we are to ourselves.

How will you walk in the footsteps of Christ in the coming year? What saints, friends, and family members have especially paved the way for you and urge you along the path?

Whether you can accompany Dominic and Torch3m on the pilgrimage in June, you can sing this year of jubilee with them and John Paul. As he and Dominic sing in Make Me An Instrument, a song about the legendary meeting of St. Francis and St. Dominic, may we all be made instruments of peace and preachers of truth, the truth that brings freedom.

For more information, visit www.torch3m.org.

 

Western Province friars, sisters host Mass, reception

Sharing a Dominican blessing with candle lighting at the Oct. 31 Mass at St. Dominic’s Church in San Francisco.
The sisters shared a Dominican blessing with candle lighting at the Oct. 31 Mass at St. Dominic’s Church in San Francisco.

Saturday, October 31 was more than Halloween in San Francisco for Dominican friars, nuns, sisters, laity, and friends. It was the culmination of a year of collaborative planning. When it was learned that the Master of the Order, Fr. Bruno Cadoré, would be visiting the Western Province, it was decided to start off the 800th jubilee celebration a little early! A small committee from the province, the San Rafael sisters and the Mission San Jose sisters decided to host a Mass and reception.

The choice of location was particularly special: the first St. Dominic’s Church was built in San Francisco in 1873. This celebration was held in the fourth church that was built in the English Gothic style in 1928 and has been extensively and lovingly restored over the years.

On Saturday the church was full to its capacity of 800+ people – and with the sheer joy of being together for such a momentous anniversary. We worshipped, prayed, received Eucharist, and sang together as the family that St. Dominic envisioned. We could well imagine Archbishop Joseph Alemany, Mother Mary Goemaere, and Fr. Sadoc Vilarrasa, the first three Dominicans to arrive in San Francisco in 1850, smiling at the spectacle.

Afterwards on the sunny, crisp fall day, all repaired to a beautiful black and white tent set up in the church parking lot for refreshments and fond greetings. It was a magnificent celebration on the West Coast!

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