St Joseph the Worker
Dear Joe, As exams draw near and spring is in the air, you need my help. Well, not exactly my help, but at least a gentle avuncular reminder. Praise and worship is not the exclusive domain of those meetings where you sing songs and share experiences. Those are fine and have their place (I would say an important place for many of us), but the heart of all worship is loving obedience. Adam and Eve sinned because they let their trust in God wane, and therefore disobeyed, dishonoring God, insulting God, rebelling against God. Our worship tries to replace that attitude with an attitude of filial trust, of faith and confidence in God, who is our loving Father. Therefore, when we recognize his will, embrace it, and fulfill it because we know it will be pleasing to him (and good for us as well), we are really offering a wonderful act of worship. Why do I think you need to be reminded of this? Well, has it been easy for you to give your best efforts to your studies these last couple of weeks? Not really, judging from your notes. And yet, as a college student, the primary duty of your state in life (in other words, God’s will for you now, what he wants you to be doing) is precisely your studies. Therefore, remember that every page you turn, every note you take, every formula you memorize can give glory to God. Think about today’s saint, Joseph. The only thing we know about him is that he took care of Jesus and Mary for a few years. He speaks no words in the Scriptures; he just does God’s will. Traipsing to Egypt and back, working away in his carpentry shop, bringing home the bacon (well, probably not; pork was an unclean food for the Jews – but you know what I mean)… dreary inglorious task after dreary inglorious task. And yet, he is the greatest of Patriarchs, the patron of the universal Church: a saint. Therefore, my rambunctious little nephew, enjoy the spring weather, but not at the expense of God’s will – at least, not if you want to be a saint. Yours always, Uncle Eddy P.S. Please wear plenty of sunscreen – your side of the family has a penchant for skin cancer, you know.
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Dóri Hangodi is originally from Budapest, Hungary. After completing her college studies at Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE) in Budapest, she served as an RCMC in Rome. Responding to God’s persistent call, she was consecrated in 1997 in Rome, Italy. After finishing her studies in Spain, she was assigned to youth ministry in the newly established community of consecrated women in Los Angeles. There as a “road team”, she accompanied girls, young adults, and women in their faith journeys, and led numerous camps and retreats across the West Coast. In 2005, she served for five years in southern Germany (Bavaria), where she also founded an official FC Bayern fan club, “Rückenwind” (“Tailwind”), built on spiritual foundations. Afterward, she served two years in Vienna, Austria, and six years in Budapest, Hungary, where she supported the RC school, St. John Paul II School Center and completed her master’s degree in theology. She is currently a member of the Dallas consecrated community and serves as a formation instructor at The Highlands School in Irving, Texas.
Br. José Yotzín Cárdenas is originally from Colima, Mexico. Becoming an altar server ignited his faith and drew him closer to Christ, and he entered the minor seminary. After leaving the seminary to further mature his vocation, he joined Regnum Christi and collaborated with the youth ministry in his diocese and throughout Mexico. During a visit to the Legionary novitiate in Monterrey, he felt immediately that he was home, and that the Legionaries of Christ were his family. Br. José is currently a first-year humanist at LC Cheshire, and made his first profession of vows as a Legionary of Christ in August of 2025.
Kristina Piñero was born in Xalapa, Mexico, and was consecrated in 1993. She has worked in pastoral ministry throughout this time, in the United States, Mexico, Spain, Italy, and Israel, primarily in youth and parent catechetical formation. She has served as principal at two schools, one in Monterrey, Mexico, and another in Rhode Island, USA. She holds two master’s degrees, in Religious Sciences and in Spirituality, and earned her Doctor of Ministry from the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio. Kristina is an Adjunct Faculty member at the Mexican American Catholic College in San Antonio, where she teaches candidates in permanent diaconate formation, first-year seminarians, and courses in Children’s Spirituality. She also serves as a consultant and speaker for the Children’s Initiatives Project at MACC and regularly presents on evangelization and catechetics for children and families.
