Executive Chamber
New York State Governor George Pataki issued an Executive Chamber Proclamation to Celebrate Bishop Garmendia’s 1996 Rosary Rally
Bishop Francisco Garmendia’s Homily on Happy Land
HAPPY-LAND WAS THE NAME.
IT WAS A LAND OF FEASTS, PARTIES, AND THE CELEBRATION OF THE JOYS AND PLEASURES OF THIS WORLD. IT WAS A LAND WHERE THE BONDS AMONG FRIENDS WERE REAFFIRMED. THE FRIENDS CAME FROM OTHER LANDS WHICH WERE SEEMINGLY LESS HAPPY TO THIS COUNTRY OF OPPORTUNITIES IN PURSUIT OF FREEDOM AND, YES, HAPPINESS.
NOW ONLY SMOKE, ASHES, AND SORROW REMAIN OF WHAT WAS AN EXPRESSION OF THE HOPE FOR A LIFE OF WELL-BEING AND PROGRESS IN OUR COUNTRY.
HAPPY-LAND
AN IRRATIONAL PASSION SET ABLAZE THE HOPES OF 87 INNOCENT LIVES EXPOSING THE CONTRADICTIONS, IRRESPONSIBILITY AND NEGLIGENCE OF PUBLIC AUTHORITIES AND PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS, WHICH PERMITTED THE UNSAFE OPERATION OF THIS ESTABLISHMENT.
HAPPY-LAND
ITS RUINS REMAIN A PERMANENT INDICTMENT OF THE CONTRADICTIONS IN OUR SOCIETY.
HAPPY-LAND
A LITTLE BOY SPEAKING WITH ME RECENTLY SAID: BISHOP, THAT WAS NOT HAPPY-LAND. IT IS NOW THAT THEY ARE IN THE HAPPY-LAND OF HEAVEN, IN THE COMPANY OF THE LORD.
THIS LAST MONTH WE HAVE FELT THE FLAMES OF INCOMPREHENSION AND DESPERATION/AWAKEN US TO THE REALITIES OF POVERTY, SOCIAL DETERIORATION, HOPELESSNESS, NEGLIGENCE AND IRRESPONSIBILITY. BUT FROM WITHIN THE ASHES OF THIS TRAGIC REALITY WE HAVE SEEN THE RE-KINDLING OF THE HOPE WHICH CHRIST GIVES TO US IN THE PROMISE OF RESURRECTION, AND A LIFE EVER-LASTING.
WE HAVE WITNESSED A COMMUNITY UNITED IN HOPE AND LOVE, COALESCING/ COMING TOGETHER TO EXPRESS THEIR FULL SOLIDARITY WITH THE SUFFERING OF VICTIMS, THEIR RELATIVES, AND FRIENDS.
MAY THE LORD GUIDE US TO TURN THE FLAMES THAT DESTROYED THESE INNOCENT LIVES INTO FLAMES OF HOPE FOR A BETTER FUTURE.
MAY THIS TRAGEDY IGNITE THE CONSCIOUSNESS OF OUR POLITICAL AND COMMUNITY LEADERS; CONCERNING THE NEED TO TAKE CONCERTED ACTION IN PURSUIT OF PRESERVING THE LIVES OF OUR CITIZENS, PROVIDING SAFER GROUNDS FOR WHOLESOME ACTIVITIES AND THE ENJOYMENT OF OUR YOUTH.
MAY THIS FIRE BURN OUR HEARTS AND MINDS WITH A SENSE OF URGENCY TO ATTEND TO THE REALITIES OF A COMMUNITY WHICH IS ALREADY BEING DESTROYED BY POVERTY, CRIME, DRUG-ABUSE, HOPELESSNESS, AND INDIFFERENCE.
LET US NOT BURY THE PROBLEMS WHICH THE HAPPY-LAND TRAGEDY UNVEILED WITH ITS INNOCENT VICTIMS.
MAY WE FIND IN THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST’S RESURRECTION CONSOLATION FOR OUR ACHING AND GRIEVING HEARTS, AND THE RESOLVE TO PURSUE A COMMITMENT TO SOCIAL JUSTICE, ENFORCEMENT OF OUR LAWS, PROTECTION OF LIVES, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF SAFE AND HEALTHY ALTERNATIVES FOR OUR YOUNG PEOPLE WHO SEEK HAPPINESS AND MEANING IN THEIR LIVES.
SU EXCELENCIA EL CARDENAL O’CONNOR, SR. PRESIDENTE DE LA REPÚBLICA DE HONDURAS, EXCELENTÍSIMO RAFAEL LEONARDO CALLEJAS Y ESCELENTISIMA
Letter to Bishop Garmendia from Bishop McKinney
Letter about the Opening of the Hispanic Charismatic Center to Bishop Francisco Garmendia from Bishop Joseph Crescent McKinney, Auxiliary Bishop Emeritus of Grand Rapids, Michigan
Oremos por todas las vidas que se han perdido
JOSU IRIONDO
El Diario la Prensa/31 mar 2011
JOSU IRIONDO Obispo Auxiliar de la Arquidiócesis de Nueva York.
Han pasado ya cinco años desde la muerte de mi amigo, el Obispo Francisco Garmendia. El Obispo llegó a Nueva York siendo un sacerdote en 1964. En su primera homilía dijo a sus feligreses: “Sus alegrías serán mis alegrías, y sus penas serán mis penas”. Su generosidad, compromiso y dedicación a los más desafortunados sigue siendo un ejemplo para quienes siguen sus pasos.
Si él estuviera vivo y sano, sé que él hubiese dirigido una de sus procesiones públicas para conmemorar la tragedia ocurrida hace 21 años en el club social Happy Land.
Esa madrugada fatal en 1990, un poco de gasolina y dos cerillos iniciaron el fuego que destruyó adonde 94 personas se divertían y 87 de ellos murieron.
El 26 de marzo de 1990, el arzobispo de Nueva York, el Cardenal John O’Connor, y el Obispo Garmendia, pastor de la Iglesia Santo Tomás de Aquino en Crotona Parkway, dirigieron un servicio de oración frente a los escombros de Happy Land. Allí rezaron por los fallecidos y consolaron la comunidad sobreviviente.
Las 87 muertes fueron parte de una tragedia de las personas de diferentes herencias, incluyendo los hondureños, Garifunans, puertorriqueños y otros neoyorquinos.
Todos tenían familias y amigos que los amaban y quieren y los extrañan mucho.
En el 10mo aniversario de la tragedia de Happy Land, el Obispo Garmendia pidió a la feligresía “Den un gran aplauso para esos ángeles que ahora están entre nosotros”.
Yo invito a todos aquellos que rendieron homenaje en la Plaza Ochenta y Siete este año, que recuerden también las bendiciones psicológicas y concretas impartidas por el Obispo Garmendia durante ese momento difícil y los años siguientes.
El amor y la amabilidad que él demostró son inolvidables.
Su compasión por el valor inapreciable de la vida humana, y sus exhortaciones a ser testigos del llamado de Cristo a ayudar al necesitado sigue vivos aún en nuestros corazones.
El centro social, La Línea de La Esperanza, se inició en el sótano de la rectoría de la iglesia Santo Tomas de Aquino. Afortunadamente, ya existía al momento del incendio de Happy Land.
La Línea de La Esperanza continúa creciendo mientras sirve a las necesidades de muchos a través de los bancos de comida y ropa, orientación para la ciudadanía y programas de alfabetización.
El Centro Católico Carismático Hispano, fundado también por el primer Obispo hispano de Nueva York, se abrió en el 1899. Está junto a la Iglesia San Antonio de Padua y proveyendo renovación espiritual y ministrando a las necesidades de la comunidad hispana.
Exhorto a todos a orar por todas las vidas que se han perdido y por sus familiares y amigos que aún lloran sus pérdidas. Comprometámonos a servir a los que viven junto a nosotros y a atesorar el recuerdo de quienes nos enseñaron a amar a nuestro prójimo.
Bishop’s Words Still Echo
Bishop Josu Iriondo
New York Daily News/March 23, 2011
It has been five years since the passing of my friend Bishop Francisco Garmendia.
The Basque bishop came to New York as a young priest in 1964. He told those at his first homily in New York: “Your joys will be my joys, and your sorrows will be my sorrows.”
His generosity, commitment and dedication to the less fortunate continue to serve as an example to others who follow in his path.
If he were alive and well, I believe Bishop Garmendia would lead one of his public prayerful processions on March 25 to commemorate the tragedy that occurred at the Happy Land Social Club 21 years ago.
On that fatal morning in 1990, a dollar’s worth of gasoline and two matches were used to torch a nightclub where 94 people were partying.
Sixty women and men were widowed, and 106 children were orphaned.
On the morning of March 26, 1990, the late John Cardinal O’Connor, who served as the archbishop of New York, and Bishop Francisco Garmendia, who served as the pastor to St. Thomas Aquinas Church on Crotona Parkway, led a prayer service in front of the remains of the Happy Land club.
They gathered to pray for those who had died, and offer comfort to the community that survived.
The 87 fatalities were part of a human tragedy of people from different heritages, including Hondurans, Garifunans, Puerto Ricans and other New Yorkers.
They all had families and friends who loved them and cherished them and miss them dearly.
On the 10th anniversary of the Happy Land Social Club tragedy, Bishop Garmendia lovingly asked the crowd to “Give great applause for those angels who are here among us.”
I invite those who will pay their respects this year at the Plaza of Eighty-Seven, the memorial across the street from the club site, to also recall the spiritual, psychological and concrete blessings offered by Bishop Garmendia during that difficult period and each year that followed.
The love and kindness he displayed for our South Bronx community is unforgettable – especially his pastoral care for the surviving family members of the Happy Land tragedy.
His compassion for the preciousness of all human life, and his reminders of our mission as witnesses to Christ’s calling to help those in need, are very much alive in our hearts.
The Resource Center for Community Development, a social service agency now known as The Hopeline, was begun in the basement of St. Thomas Aquinas rectory by Bishop Garmendia.
Thankfully, it was in place at the time of the tragic Happy Land Social Club fire.
During that relief effort, Bishop Garmendia let people know, “We are trying to deal with the needs of the people as they arise.
“At the moment, these include helping newly arrived immigrants, the poor and those who do not speak English.”
The Hopeline continues to- grow as it serves the needs of many through its food pantry, clothing bank, citizenship orientation and literacy programs.
The Hispanic Catholic Charismatic Center, also founded by New York’s first Hispanic bishop, began 1899 Daly Ave.
It is now located at St Anthony of Padua – bursting with young new members, and providing spiritual renewal and ministries to the corporal and temporal needs of the Hispanic community.
It is wonderful that on ]une 29, there will be a street naming in memory of Bishop Garmendia.
I look forward to celebrating this occasion and also to commemorating the anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood that same day.
So many of us have been blessed by Bishop Garmendia’s examples of generosity and by his dedication to the evangelization of the South Bronx and the Hispanic community.
I encourage all South Bronx residents to pray for all of the lives we have lost and for the families and friends who continue to grieve those losses.
Let’s recommit ourselves to serving those who live among us, and treasuring the memories of those who taught us how to love our neighbor.
Bishop Josu Iriondo is an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York.
Governor Pataki Executive Chamber Citation for Rosary Rally
New York State Governor George Pataki issued the following Executive Proclamation in honor of Bishop Francisco Garmendia’s Rosary Rally that was held in 1996 at Indian Lake in Crotona Park in the Bronx.
Coat of Arms
The colors on the shield represent the flag of the Basque Province of Spain.
The shield is horizontally divided into three parts. The upper section red, the center white, and the lower green. Since the Bishop’s family both maternal and paternal parents are from this area of Spain, it is important on his coat of arms to commemorate this beautiful section of their native country.
In the upper partition of the shield the Cantabrian Mountains and the Bay of Biscay which identify this Province are depicted.
In the upper left corner is a gold star which is the symbol of the Blessed Virgin Mary to whom the Bishop has a special devotion.
In the center there is an open book which in heraldry designates learning. The Bishop has spent years in education; thus this book, tinctured in blue with is the heraldic color of Our Lady is indicative of the Bishop’s dedication to this field of culture.
In the lower section there is an inverted crescent gold and black checky from the coat of arms of St. Francis Xavier who is the baptismal patron of the Bishop.
The motto is, “I am all thine, my queen and my mother.”
His Excellency
The Most Reverend Francisco Garmendia, D.D.
Titular Bishop of Limuisa
Auxiliary Bishop of New York
Homily for the Ordination of Three Bishops
FEAST OF SAINT PETER AND SAINT PAUL June 29, 1977
Homily for the Ordination of Three Bishops
The Most Rev. Francisco Garmendia, D.D.
The Most Rev. Theodore E. McCarrick, Ph.D., D.D.
The Most Rev. Austin B. Vaughan, S.T.D., D.D.
HOMILY – FEAST OF STS. PETER AND PAUL – ORDINATION OF BISHOPS – JUNE 29, 1977
by Fr. Benedict J. Groeschel, O.F.M. Cap. Director of the Office for Spiritual Development – New York Archdiocese
Today, we celebrate the feast of two men who more than any others in the New Testament proclaimed their unworthiness and, who more than any others, made it clear that all they had received was a gift from God to be used for His glory in Christ Jesus. In fact, Peter is the only person in the Gospels to explicitly confess to Jesus that he is a sinful man; while Paul states clearly that he is not even worthy to be an apostle. Today, as we come together to celebrate the bestowal of spiritual gifts on these three priests and on the Church of New York through their ordination to the order of bishop, it is most appropriate for us to mediate on the gospel text for this feast day to learn more deeply the power of the humble confession of faith in the performance of the work of salvation.
The humble fisherman who has confessed “Depart from me for I am a sinful man” (Luke 5:8) hears the Lord not only proclaim him to be the rock and foundation stone of the Church, but he is also told that his faith in Jesus as the Messiah is a gift from the Heavenly Father. He can take no credit for his faith yet he receives blessings for himself and for the whole church because of his faith.
The significance of this confession and of the response of Christ is brought out by St. Augustine who writes “To Peter alone, was it given to play the part of the whole Church…for it was not one man but the unity of the Church which received those keys. By this fact the pre-eminence of Peter was proclaimed in that he was the figure of the very universality and unity of the Church”… (Serm CCXCV). But Peter was told to be more than a rock, more than, as it were, a static foundation to preserve the truth of revelation against the forces of hell. He was told that he must fulfill the more dynamic roles of binding and loosing, of feeding the flock, of strengthening his brethren and with them of carrying the Gospel to the ends of the earth.
But Peter receives these gifts amidst constant reminders of his own personal weakness, of his complete dependency on Christ for salvation. “Remember, Satan has asked for you that he might sift you as wheat but I have prayed for you that your faith may never fail. You, in turn, must strengthen your brothers” (John 22:21). Even when the pastoral office is in all finality bestowed upon Peter by the Risen Lord, “Feed my lambs, feed my sheep,” it is done in the context of the remembrance of Peter’s denial.
And so the office of Chief Bishop and Pastor of the church is first promised and then conferred amid confession of weakness and contrition for sin. How well is this summed up by Paul when he teaches that “this power is made perfect in weakness.” This is not some neat rhetorical abstraction; it is real. Peter had looked with need and repentance to Jesus so often and the look of Jesus had been strength and salvation for him and for the Church.
Moreover, there was that very poignant incident in Peter’s life when it was written that “the Lord looked on him and he went out and wept bitterly” (Luke 22:54-62). St. Augustine writes that “his going out is his confession that he wept bitterly because he knew what it meant to love. He had been bitter with grief but soon there was sweetness,” the sweetness of the loving forgiveness of the Risen Lord followed him.
Today, the office given to the Church and especially to the bishops of the Church through Peter and the apostles is given to these three priests. It is given at a very crucial period of Church history. They, like Peter and the Apostles and the bishops down through the ages, are to be solid foundations for the unchanging dogmas of Christ and the Church. They are to confirm us their brethren in these tunes when many things grow old and change, when new things as well as old, must be brought out of the household closet of the Church. They must feed us the lambs and sheep of Christ with the spiritual food which so many desperately crave in our own highly materialistic and neo-pagan culture. They must go out with compassion to those who are like sheep without a shepherd. The times in which these three men will serve in the office of bishop are times of crisis in so many ways that we do not have time to elaborate them. But every crisis in the history of the Church has offered new opportunities for growth and new testimony to the power of the grace of Christ, as the crises in the work of Peter and Paul have manifested the great things these men were to do in His Name. Do not be without hope.
The painful crisis of our times could well result in the providential healing of the wounds of the Church through Christian reunion. The crisis may lead to a more profound affirmation of the Incarnation and Redemption in contrast to the melancholy skepticism of modern thought. The serious social problems of our age are already providing the church with new and meaningful opportunities for the proclamation of justice and peace founded on the teaching of the gospel. The crisis in moral teaching so confusing to many may shock those who have strayed from the law of the Lord into a heartfelt and profound confession that the peace of Christ is only given to those who obey the commandments.
The possibilities and crises of these times together bring forth great responsibilities. These responsibilities were clearly summed up for bishops in the recent statement of the Holy Father for the American Bishops attending the canonization of St. John Neumann. “The faithful preaching of the word of God, in all its purity, with all its exigencies, in all its power, constitutes the highest priority of our ministry.” Let Peter remind us and Paul proclaim to us that only in humble confession and in complete reliance on the Father and on the power of Christ’s intercession in the Church can you do anything. On one hand, “without Me you can do nothing,” on the other hand, “I can do all things in Him who strengthens Me.”
Dear Theodore, Austin and Francis, today, we all say to you, grow in holiness and humility like Peter and Paul the rest of your days, so that you may be truly fishers of men in our own times; so that you may be rocks of solid doctrine keeping alive and safe the revelation of Christ and the sacred tradition of the Church; so that you may bind and loose for us in our moral lives in this confused and worldly age; so that you may confirm your brothers in hours of trial and moments of shaken faith; so that you may feed the lambs and “sheep that we may not be like sheep without a shepherd.
Keep your eyes always fixed on Jesus; with Peter and Paul, so that the work of Christ may be done in our days, and so that eventually Paul’s vision of the work of the Church be fulfilled; “All of us, gazing on the Lord’s glory with unveiled faces are being transformed from glory to glory into his very image by the Lord who is the Spirit.” (3 Cor. 3:18).
Queridos Theodore, Austin y Francisco, hoy, todos de nosotros les decimos: Cresca en santidad y humildad como Pedro y Pablo; para que sean verdaderamente pescadores do los hombres en nuestros tiempos; para que sean piedras de una fe viva; para que puedan fortalecer la fe de tus hermanos en momentos de tentación y prueba; para que puedan cuidar los corderos.
Levanten la mirada hacia Jesus, del cual viene muestra fe, para que la obra de Cristo sea cumplida en nuestros dias y para que la vision de San Pablo de la obra de la Iglesia también sea cumplida; “Por eso todos nosotros andamos con el rostro descubierto, reflejando como un espejo la gloria del Señor, y nos vamos transformando en imagen suya mas y mas resplandeciente, por la acción del Señor, que es espiritu.”
NOTE: I wish to express my thanks to Father Richard Adams, Spiritual Director of St. Joseph’s Seminary for his assistance with the English and Spanish texts of this homily.
Father Benedict Joseph Groeschel, O.F.M.Cap,
Bishop Garmendia’s Homily on Happy Land
HAPPY-LAND WAS THE NAME.
IT WAS A LAND OF FEASTS, PARTIES, AND THE CELEBRATION OF THE JOYS AND PLEASURES OF THIS WORLD. IT WAS A LAND WHERE THE BONDS AMONG FRIENDS WERE REAFFIRMED. THE FRIENDS CAME FROM OTHER LANDS WHICH WERE SEEMINGLY LESS HAPPY TO THIS COUNTRY OF OPPORTUNITIES IN PURSUIT OF FREEDOM AND, YES, HAPPINESS.
NOW ONLY SMOKE, ASHES, AND SORROW REMAIN OF WHAT WAS AN EXPRESSION OF THE HOPE FOR A LIFE OF WELL-BEING AND PROGRESS IN OUR COUNTRY.
HAPPY-LAND
AN IRRATIONAL PASSION SET ABLAZE THE HOPES OF 87 INNOCENT LIVES EXPOSING THE CONTRADICTIONS, IRRESPONSIBILITY AND NEGLIGENCE OF PUBLIC AUTHORITIES AND PRIVATE PROPERTY OWNERS, WHICH PERMITTED THE UNSAFE OPERATION OF THIS ESTABLISHMENT.
HAPPY-LAND
ITS RUINS REMAIN A PERMANENT INDICTMENT OF THE CONTRADICTIONS IN OUR SOCIETY.
HAPPY-LAND
A LITTLE BOY SPEAKING WITH ME RECENTLY SAID: BISHOP, THAT WAS NOT HAPPY-LAND. IT IS NOW THAT THEY ARE IN THE HAPPY-LAND OF HEAVEN, IN THE COMPANY OF THE LORD.
THIS LAST MONTH WE HAVE FELT THE FLAMES OF INCOMPREHENSION AND DESPERATION/AWAKEN US TO THE REALITIES OF POVERTY, SOCIAL DETERIORATION, HOPELESSNESS, NEGLIGENCE AND IRRESPONSIBILITY. BUT FROM WITHIN THE ASHES OF THIS TRAGIC REALITY WE HAVE SEEN THE RE-KINDLING OF THE HOPE WHICH CHRIST GIVES TO US IN THE PROMISE OF RESURRECTION, AND A LIFE EVER-LASTING.
WE HAVE WITNESSED A COMMUNITY UNITED IN HOPE AND LOVE, COALESCING/ COMING TOGETHER TO EXPRESS THEIR FULL SOLIDARITY WITH THE SUFFERING OF VICTIMS, THEIR RELATIVES, AND FRIENDS.
MAY THE LORD GUIDE US TO TURN THE FLAMES THAT DESTROYED THESE INNOCENT LIVES INTO FLAMES OF HOPE FOR A BETTER FUTURE.
MAY THIS TRAGEDY IGNITE THE CONSCIOUSNESS OF OUR POLITICAL AND COMMUNITY LEADERS; CONCERNING THE NEED TO TAKE CONCERTED ACTION IN PURSUIT OF PRESERVING THE LIVES OF OUR CITIZENS, PROVIDING SAFER GROUNDS FOR WHOLESOME ACTIVITIES AND THE ENJOYMENT OF OUR YOUTH.
MAY THIS FIRE BURN OUR HEARTS AND MINDS WITH A SENSE OF URGENCY TO ATTEND TO THE REALITIES OF A COMMUNITY WHICH IS ALREADY BEING DESTROYED BY POVERTY, CRIME, DRUG-ABUSE, HOPELESSNESS, AND INDIFFERENCE.
LET US NOT BURY THE PROBLEMS WHICH THE HAPPY-LAND TRAGEDY UNVEILED WITH ITS INNOCENT VICTIMS.
MAY WE FIND IN THE MYSTERY OF CHRIST’S RESURRECTION CONSOLATION FOR OUR ACHING AND GRIEVING HEARTS, AND THE RESOLVE TO PURSUE A COMMITMENT TO SOCIAL JUSTICE, ENFORCEMENT OF OUR LAWS, PROTECTION OF LIVES, AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF SAFE AND HEALTHY ALTERNATIVES FOR OUR YOUNG PEOPLE WHO SEEK HAPPINESS AND MEANING IN THEIR LIVES.
SU EXCELENCIA EL CARDENAL O’CONNOR, SR. PRESIDENTE DE LA REPÚBLICA DE HONDURAS, EXCELENTÍSIMO RAFAEL LEONARDO CALLEJAS Y ESCELENTISIMA
World Day of Prayer for Consecrated Life
This news clip and photo from the Catholic New York celebrate the prayerful life Bishop Garmendia led.
