Redemptorist Missionaries Celebrate 80th Anniversary in Baton Rouge

More than 600 people converged at the St. Gerard Majella Church campus in Baton Rouge on Oct. 20 in a homecoming celebration to show their gratitude to the Redemptorist missionaries for establishing and serving the entire Diocese of Baton Rouge for the past 80 years. Hugs, handshakes, looks of surprises, and tears of joy abounded as people were reunited, some having not seen each other for decades.

“I know some of you dream about this place – your school, your church where you were baptized, where you were confirmed, where you married … you name it,” St. Gerard Pastor Father Tat Hoang CSsR said in welcoming attendees before Mass.

“Some of you even built this church,” Father Hoang said.

He added that some of the people still dream about the church and like the idea of a school and church at St. Gerard.
Above right photo: Bishop Michael G. Duca blessed the school gym following Mass.
Above photo: Bishop Duca leads the Eucharistic liturgy surrounded by fellow clergy. Photos by Debbie Shelley | The Catholic CommentatorNumerous attendees stood as Father Hoang called on them to stand when he announced the decades in which they graduated from Redemptorist High School, beginning from the 1950s.

Following Father Hoang’s welcome, the St. Pius X Church in Rouge Choir sang a spirited prelude before Mass began.
 
In his homily, Mass celebrant Bishop Michael G. Duca said the heart of the Redemptorists’ missionary work exemplifies the Gospel reading of the day from Mark 10:35-45.


The motto of the Redemptorists, also known as the Congregation of t
The St. Gerard Redemptorist St. Gerard School Choir  sang “Let There Be Peace on Earth” for the meditation song following the distribution of Communion.  he Most Holy Redeemer, is “Copiosa apud eum redemption,” which means “With God there is plentiful redemption.” Through the Redemptorists’ service, people’s hearts are changed and there is redemption, according to the bishop.

“The Redemptorists gave themselves in service to this neighborhood 80 years ago,” said the bishop.

They serve not only in the parish’s surrounding neighborhoods, but the entire diocese. The bishop thanked the Redemptorist clergy for their service and urged the congregation to continue to support the work they do and to help grow vocations within the diocese.

The St. Gerard Redemptorist School Choir sang the Communion meditation song, “Let There Be Peace on Earth.”

At the conclusion of Mass, Father Kevin Zubel CssR, provincial superior of the Denver Province of the Redemptorists Congregation, noted the celebration was a reunion of “many things.” He had served as local superior and chaplain for the Hispanic Apostolate in Baton Rouge from 2020-2022.
The St. Pius X Church in Baton Rouge performed during the celebration Mass. 
“We give thanks for the 80 years we’ve been able to come here and ask the Lord to send his spirit to continue this mission here,” said Father Zubel.

He spoke about the early history of St. Gerard Church.

As World War II began Louisiana was already a petrochemical center and people moved into the area by the hundreds. There was work with good salaries and nice living conditions. In response to the expansion, a parish was established in North Baton Rouge and Archbishop Joseph F. Rummel put it in the hands of the Redemptorists.

“I’ve come here to say thank you to all those generations who have made St. Gerard possible from the very beginning – this parish you built alongside the family that raised you, the priests that built this parish. The dreams that built this parish are still the same dreams that any hard-working family brought … that their children and future generations might have faith. We have dreamed together since 1944, and we continue to dream today.”

Father Zubel commended the missionaries, parishioners, School Sisters of Notre Dame (SSND), school faculty, and students from the early history of the early church and school for their vision in making Above right photo: Bishop Michael G. Duca blessed the school gym following Mass.
Above photo: Bishop Duca leads the Eucharistic liturgy surrounded by fellow clergy. Photos by Debbie Shelley | The Catholic CommentatorSt. Gerard a beacon of hope for the community.

He thanked them for opening their arms to the missionaries and inviting them into their homes and sitting together at their kitchen tables.

“It remains a place for you to come home to, a place where you build a legacy that continues to be built. That mission has not gone away and in fact it is needed,” Father Zubel said

For many, the anniversary celebration was a chance to catch up on the events in their lives over the decades.

“Everything about the Mass was beautiful and even festive, a packed church. It was a nostalgic but greatly enhanced gym,” said Barbara Bovard, who graduated in 1964 from Redemptorist High School. “I saw many old friends, classmates and acquaintances as well as my sixth grade SSND teacher of 67 years ago – alums who have significantly impacted the quality of life in Baton Rouge.”

Father Kevin Zubel CSsR

Father Tat Hoang CSsR

People who have more recently called St. Gerard “home” experienced the rich history of their parish and appreciated the way the community has embraced them.

Enola Miller was a parishioner at St. Pius X Church from 1975 until it was closed in 2017.
At a Redemptorist High School 60th year high school class reunion held prior to the Redemptorists’ 80th anniversary celebration, Barbara Bovard and a classmate displayed their class rings. 
“This is where the Lord sent me,” said Miller. “I felt at home here and I was welcomed.”

Through promptings from Sandra Brown, whom Miller said, “has been a parishioner forever,” and Father Hoang, who arrived as pastor of St. Gerard a few days after Miller became a parishioner, Miller became involved in several ministries. 

She has served as lector, extraordinary minister of Communion, and volunteers with the St. Gerard council of the Society St. Vincent de Paul, which serves hundreds of meals each week to the poor of the area. 

“What I like about the Redemptorists is they go wherever God sends them. They have to bring people in, let them know more about God. And they devote themselves to the mission, they open themselves up to it,” Miller said.