St. Leo the Great celebrates 70 years with Bishop Nelson Perez

70 years ago, Bishop Edward Hoban announced the founding of St. Leo the Great Parish on Cleveland’s West Side.
As part of the commemoration of the parish’s 70th anniversary year, Bishop Nelson Perez celebrated the 4:00 p.m. Mass on Sept. 1 at St. Leo the Great Church. The bishop was joined by Father James Schmitz, pastor of the parish, and Father Dan Schlegel, secretary for clergy and religious at the diocese. Father Schlegel also is Father Schmitz’s cousin.
Several hundred people attended the Mass and heard the bishop talk in his homily about the founding of the parish in 1948.  He thanked the first pastor, Father Sylvester Lux, and founding members of the parish for their vision and courage in doing the difficult work of building a parish. “It’s good to remember where you came from,” Bishop Perez said.
Referencing the second reading from St. James used during the Mass, the bishop suggested the motivation for those founders must have come from having “received the Word of God which was implanted in their heart.”
Bishop Perez also reminded those gathered of the importance of the work that flows from a parish, “A parish is the deepest and most immediate expression of the Church, the Mystical Body of Christ. It is where you and I come to encounter Christ.”
Following Mass, there was a reception in Lux Hall, which is named after St. Leo’s founding pastor.

Bishop Nelson Perez visits our parish, September 1, 2018

It is a joy for me to welcome Bishop Perez to our Parish of St. Leo the Great for the first time, especially as we celebrate our Parish’s 70th Anniversary this year. After he celebrates the 4pm Mass, he will look forward to meeting you in Lux Hall where refreshments will be served. Since you will have an opportunity to introduce yourself to the Bishop after Mass, I would like to share some information about him which is on the website for the Diocese of Cleveland (www.dioceseofcleveland.org/bishopperez/):

Bishop Nelson J. Perez was born in Miami, Florida on June 16, 1961 to David and Emma Perez. He is the brother of the late Dr. David Perez & Louis Martin Perez. Raised in West New York, NJ, Bishop Perez earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from Montclair State University in 1983. He taught at Colegio la Piedad, a Catholic elementary school in Puerto Rico, prior to entering Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary in Philadelphia, where he earned Master of Divinity and Master of Arts in Theology degrees in 1988 and 1989, respectively.

Bishop Perez has served as Parochial Vicar and as Pastor at several Parishes. He also served as assistant director of the Office for Hispanic Catholics & as founding director of the Catholic Institute for Evangelization. His work in education included teaching courses in psychology and religious studies at LaSalle University, Philadelphia. Bishop Perez also taught Developmental Psychology at Saint Charles Borromeo Seminary in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia. In 1998, he was named Chaplain to His Holi- ness, Pope John Paul II, with the title of Monsignor. In 2009, he was named a Prelate of Honor by Pope Benedict XVI.

Pope Benedict XVI appointed Reverend Monsignor Nelson J. Perez Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Rockville Centre in New York on June 8, 2012. He was ordained a bishop on July 25, 2012 in Saint Agnes Cathedral, Rockville Centre, NY by Bishop William F. Murphy.

He served as the Episcopal Vicar for Hispanic Ministry, overseeing fifty-four parishes with pastoral ministry to Hispanics, Formation Programs, and Ecclesial Movements.

As a part of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Bishop Perez serves as a member of the Bishops’ Standing Committee on Cultural Diversity & chair of the Bishops’ Sub-Committee for Hispanic Affairs.

In the year that Bishop Perez has been with us in Cleveland, I have appreciated his constant presence with the People of God in our Diocese. He is known for his kindness, his joy and his pastoral sensitivity. We are grateful to God for his leadership and example in our Diocese. We pray for him at every Mass we celebrate here at St. Leo’s. We thank him for blessing our community this weekend with his presence.

I hope you all enjoy this Labor Day weekend & encourage you to join us for Mass on Monday morning at 9am.

Catholic Directory

The Diocese of Cleveland is pleased to offer its Catholic Directory.  Parishes, schools and organizations are encouraged to download and print (if needed) a copy of the directory.

Click HERE or the directory icon to download the Catholic Directory (revised August 2018) – PDF Version.

The Catholic Directory is best viewed using Adobe Acrobat Reader.  Click HERE to download the latest version of the Adobe Acrobat Reader.

When the directory is opened in Acrobat Reader, it can be searched using the application’s “Find” function (CTRL + F).

When printing the directory, we suggest using 2-sided printing to conserve paper. In addition, the printed copy can be easily inserted into a binder using a 3-hole punch.

 

Printed Copy Order Form (2018-2019 Version)

Those who wish to order a printed copy of the directory can click HERE to download an order form.  Printed copies are $20 each and are not bound.  Copies are 3-holed punched suitable for a binder (not provided). Payment must accompany order form for processing.

 

Honey Hut Gift Card Sale!

Honey Hut Gift Card Sale!

$10 Gift Cards - No expiration date!

20% of each sale benefits St. Leo the Great.

Scoop some up today & support St. Leo’s 8th Grade Programs!

Summer flavors are here and Fall flavors are on the way at everyone’s favorite localice cream shop! Keep a few gift cards in your car for those tasty dessert treats. Gift Cards make perfect gifts for every occasion. Hurry and purchase at the school office or after each mass until Sept. 17, 2018.