Youth on a Mission

     The month of July has been full of blessings! Capuchin Brothers Music was on call again, as we participated in 2 back-to-back retreats in mid-July. The first one, called Youth on a Mission (YOAM), was a 4 day retreat for high school students who were interested in becoming youth ministers. Maybe 150 young men and women were in attendance from a number of different dioceses in Northern California, including Fresno, Sacramento, Monterey, Reno, Stockton, San Francisco, Santa Rosa, San Jose, and of course Oakland.

     Br. Lance led a small group and did music for Mass as well as praise and worship music. Br. Victor helped in small group activities, did some rap music, and even "battled" some of the youth in a dance-off. 

     Overall, the retreat was amazing to say the least! Arguably the best that we've ever participated in. Why? Because of the enthusiasm, camaraderie, and love of Christ that we saw present in the youth. There was evidently a desire in them to be a true servant for God's Church. 

Br. Lance and his small group

Here's a link for YOAM's blog: http://www.norcalcatholicyouth.com

St. Ignatius Part 2

As promised, here is a short clip from the concert at St. Ignatius in San Francisco. Enjoy!: 

St. Ignatius Church, San Francisco

Last month, Capuchin Brothers Music was invited to perform at St. Ignatius Church for adoration, praise & worship, and a concert. This was a dual event put on by both St. Ignatius Church and St. Dominic's, both in San Francisco. Although there wasn't as many people present as a typical Catholic Underground, we played as if there were, putting our hearts and souls into it. Whether we are playing for 200 people, 100,  or even 1 person, it is all worth it for the glory of God. Praised be Him now and forever, Amen.

Also forgot to mention that our newest member of the band, Devin Twitty, got to perform with us. He played the bass very well, and is an excellent finger-picker. Thanks for joining us Devin!

Look for video clips of this event soon!

PAN DE VIDA: Divine Mercy Weekend

     Last weekend, Capuchin Brothers Music traveled to Star of the Sea Parish in San Francisco for an event called Pan de Vida. The Pan de Vida Retreat is geared to leading young people, through prayer and instruction before the Blessed Sacrament, to a personal encounter and ever-deepening union of heart and mind with the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus Christ. On this particular weekend, the focus was on JPII's Theology of the Body, and the mercy of God, as it was Divine Mercy Weekend.

    We were blessed to be able to do the music for the Vigil Mass that weekend, as well as participate in a discussion panel in which we tried to answer questions of the youth in regards to our faith. An international Rosary was prayed in 5 different languages and a Divine Mercy Chaplet was prayed in front of the Blessed Sacrament. Catechetical talks were given and there were multiple chances to do individual mediation.

    Overall, we were edified by the witness of the youth. In a world where it may seem that "our youth is a lost generation," we got a different picture last weekend. The hunger and thirst for God was evidently present in the young men and women, as they sought to encounter our Risen Lord in an intimate way on this retreat, being pulled into the ocean of God's unfathomable mercy and love. 

    We want to thank Star of the Sea Parish and Peggy for having us this last weekend. We also want to give a shout out to Fr. Jewel Aytona, CPM (a fellow parishioner of Br. Victor back in Rancho Cucamonga) for his witness this weekend, as well as the CFR's, Dominicans, and other priests and religious who attended. 

LA Religious Education Congress 2015

    

    We joined close to 40,000 people this year for the LA Religious Education Congress. It was great to see so many Religious brothers and sisters, priests, deacons, and the laity all together for one reason: Jesus Christ. This year, Br. Lance and Br. Victor were able to perform at the Capuchin Booth. They performed a few of their songs, including "Mary Blessed Mother" and "Brother Francis." What a blessing it was to continue to share our musical gifts with so many people, our brothers and sisters in Christ.

America, The Beautiful

Happy President's Day! Here's a little video of Br. Lance playing a solo bass version of the classic traditional song, "America, The Beautiful". This was inspired by his favorite bassist Jaco Pastorius, who also played this song when he performed. 

So we thank all of our President's for leading this country and we continue to pray for all of our leaders hoping that they will be lead by Christ's love in all their decisions. 

Peace and God Bless!

Walk for Life and Catholic Underground

To reiterate words from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, "As a gift from God, every human life is sacred from conception to natural death. The life and dignity of every person must be respected and protected at every stage and in every condition." Over 50,000 people on Saturday rallied in San Francisco in the promotion of the dignity of human life. We, the Capuchins at St. Conrad Friary, attended the event and it was such a great blessing to be in solidarity with so many people.

Later that evening, we went to St. Mary Magdalen's in Berkeley for the first Catholic Underground of 2015. Fr. Hai Ho, OFM Cap presided, as he did the exposition and benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Brother Alex Rodriguez, OFM Cap and Postulant William Cisneros assisted Fr. Hai as altar servers. Fr. James Johnson, OFM Cap was one of the priests who administered the Sacrament of Reconciliation to many of the young adults there, extending the mercy of God to all who were seeking it. Br. Lance Houck, OFM Cap, led the congregation in beautiful and moving praise and worship, in collaboration with the CFR's who were also in attendance that evening (Br. Malachi and Br. Isaiah), as well as Cecilia Flores (sister of David Flores and a missionary to South America). 

As the event moved underground, the group Celli@Berkeley performed a group of instrumental songs that moved the crowd, and Br. Victor Taglianetti, OFM Cap did an impromptu spoken word and rap with the CFR's Br. Malachi and Br. Isaiah. The night was ended with a performance by IHS Project. Overall, the day was full of grace and blessings. It was a privilege to walk in solidarity with so many pro-lifers as well as use our God-given gifts and talents with our fellow CFR brothers. We hope to continue to work with them in the future as God's will permits. We also want to thank Bishop Michael Barber for his support of the Catholic Underground Ministry and for the gracious words he shared.