The sweet smell of incense filled the crisp autumn air as priests, deacons and cemetery workers processed past tables decorated in warm fall colors and dozens of welcoming faithful sang I Heard the Voice of Jesus Say.
On the morning of Saturday, October 25, Bishop David Bonnar presided over Mass at All Souls Cemetery in Cortland, Ohio. He told those in attendance that, despite the unusual surroundings—a white tent with a steepled roof that he likened to a “makeshift chapel”—they stood on appropriately holy ground.
The Mass was the latest in an ongoing series of celebrations in the Diocese of Youngstown, designed to honor the 2025 Jubilee of Hope, a year-long celebration that Pope Francis proclaimed on May 9, 2024.
“This has been an exciting year for the Church, universal and local,” Bishop Bonnar said, “and as a diocese, we’ve made every effort to embrace it, going back to the beginning where we processed the cross in during that opening Mass, which contains the emblem of the Jubilee, really signifying that we’re seeking in this Jubilee year to follow Jesus as pilgrims of hope.”
The colorful Jubilee logo shows four figures that represent humanity coming from all four corners of the earth. They face right toward a cross, embracing each other in unity and as a sign of faith and hope. Waves underneath the figures underscore that our journeys aren’t always easy, but an anchor at the bottom of the cross penetrates the waves, symbolizing our hope and faith as a stabilizing force throughout the Church faithful’s communal journey.
At St. Columba Cathedral on December 29, 2024, that Jubilee logo adorned a cross at a Mass that opened the Diocese of Youngstown’s year of celebration. The All Souls Cemetery Mass held the following October brought the celebration to Trumbull County, as part of a series of Masses spanning all six diocesan counties.
The All Souls Cemetery Mass was held in honor Saint Pope Callixtus I’s the feast day, celebrated annually on October 14. The venerated martyr was elected Pope in 217 A.D., but only after experiencing financial ruin, imprisonment, forced labor and exile. During his pontificate, he established the Appian Way’s first cemetery, which we know today as the Catacombs of Saint Callistus.
During the Mass, Bishop Bonnar recognized the Liturgical Ministers from the Diocese of Youngstown’s Catholic Funeral and Cemetery Services in attendance, including All Souls Family Service Advisor Taylor Garcia, All Souls Location Manager James Stein, Calvary Massillon Location Manager Becky Tully, Calvary Youngstown Location Manager Bryan Franczowski and Resurrection Location Manager Jack Kramer.
Bishop Bonnar’s homily put a special emphasis on the theological virtues of faith, hope and love.
“I think, when you look at discipleship, it really is a matter of believing, hoping and loving,” he said. “Those are the virtues that we all seek to live by. We walk by faith, as Saint Paul reminds us. We hope, because hope does not disappoint. The love of God has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, and we love because that’s the mandate of Jesus. He says, ‘Love one another as I’ve loved you.’”
According to Bishop Bonnar, those virtues took on a particular meaning on the clear morning of the cemetery Mass and within the Jubilee of Hope year.
“We stand on the shoulders of those who have gone before us—shoulders that really embody faith, hope and love. They set a path, and they are models of discipleship for us. So while we look ahead in this time as Pilgrims of Hope, we can never forget our past and the foundation that has been ours, going all the way back to Jesus and the Apostles. In the over 80 years of our diocese, we behold the many holy men and women who really lived out discipleship in this portion of the Lord’s vineyard.”
Concelebrants included Reverend Christopher Cicero, Pastor, Saint Teresa of Calcutta Parish; Reverend Leo Wehrlin, Pastor, Saint Pope John XXIII Parish; Very Reverend John Kozlowski, Pastor, Saint Rose Parish (Girard); Reverend Edward Brienz, Diocesan Priest; Deacon Edward Kleese, Saint Teresa of Calcutta Parish; Deacon Michael Medvec, Saint Rose Parish (Girard); and Master of Ceremony Deacon Bob Friedman, Saint Patrick Parish (Hubbard). Diocesan Director of Music Ralph Holtzhauser and Cantor Christine Langer led the congregation in song.
For information on remaining jubilee events, visit www.doy.org.
