GUADALUPANA:
SIMBANG GABI:
HOLINESS:
Annual march venerates Our Lady of Guadalupe
Archbishop celebrates Mass to start annual Filipino tradition
A look at classic cinema’s depiction of saintly character
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CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO Newspaper of the Archdiocese of San Francisco
SERVING SAN FRANCISCO, MARIN & SAN MATEO COUNTIES
www.catholic-sf.org
DECEMBER 13, 2013
$1.00 | VOL. 15 NO. 35
Arab Catholic family balances American dream, Holy Land roots EDISON TAPALLA CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO
Finding a balance between living out the American dream and honoring a unique cultural identity from the Holy Land is of great importance to St. Veronica parishioners Sam and Nancy Shihadeh and their children, Adeeb, Nader and Serena, a family with deep roots in both South San Francisco and Palestine. The Shihadeh family has belonged to the South San Francisco parish for more than 30 years. The children are enrolled in St. Veronica School, where Nancy went to school in her childhood and currently serves as a room mother for the eighth grade class. But the Shihadehs also visit Palestine every other summer, and participate in a local Arab social club where they have been involved since their youth, delivering food and gifts to other Arabs who worked at corner stores through the holidays. Like many immigrant groups, Arabs began operating family-owned grocery stores when they first arrived in the U.S. SEE FAMILY, PAGE 22
(PHOTO BY CHRISTINA M. GRAY/CATHOLIC SAN FRANCISCO)
Making a wish The children of St. Benedict at St. Francis Xavier Church for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing signed their wish list to Santa Claus during the San Francisco parish’s annual Christmas party Dec. 5. Here, Santa makes the American Sign Language sign for “love.” The tight-knit community of deaf or hard-of-hearing adults, seniors, teens, children and their families trek from San Jose, Sacramento, Stockton, Monterey, Fresno and beyond for Mass, fellowship and study in ASL.
Mandela ‘touched my heart, soul, life,’ says ex-fellow prisoner CATHOLIC NEWS SERVICE
JOHANNESBURG – Former South African President Nelson Mandela looked down on the tens of thousands of people gathered at his memorial service in Johannesburg and smiled as he watched them celebrate his legacy, said Andrew Mokete Mlangeni, a Catholic who was imprisoned for decades with the late anti-apartheid icon. The first to address the crowds at the FNB Stadium Dec. 10 after prayers by Christian, Jewish, Muslim and Hindu leaders, 87-year-old Mlangeni said it was a “privilege and honor to say how Madiba touched my heart, my soul, my life.” Madiba was Mandela’s clan name. “He touched many lives around the world. I am overjoyed by the outpouring of love and admiration by all of you here today,” Mlangeni said.
(CNS PHOTO/ADREES LATIF, REUTERS)
Mlangeni, who was on trial with Mandela in 1963-64 and imprisoned with him on Robben Island, said he had occupied a cell next to Mandela. In prison, “Madiba exuded leadership,” said Mlangeni, who was released in late 1989, shortly before the start of negotiations that ended apartheid. Mandela strongly influenced “my own evolvement as a man, South African citizen and ANC (African National Congress) member,” he said, noting that “without his guidance and leadership I would not have been the person I am today.” Mandela’s greatness stemmed from his humility “and his belief in collective leadership,” Mlangeni said. “He created hope when there was none” and was
A woman prays outside the house of former South African President Nelson Mandela in Johannesburg Dec. 7.
SEE MANDELA, PAGE 22
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INDEX On the Street . . . . . . . . . . 4 Christmas Liturgies .10-18 Opinion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19 Faith. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 Calendar. . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . 28