St Francis Xavier Chapel "Maryknoll" Japanese Catholic Center, 222 S. Hewitt Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Formerly known as "Maryknoll"
Mission Statement
We of Saint Francis Xavier Chapel, as members of the Body of Christ, are called to announce in word and in deed the Good News of the Lord Jesus, through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit.
We recognize our community's call to holiness based on mutuality, reciprocity, and interdependence and its ministry focusing on Japanese Catholics while also welcoming all in our greater community.
Fr. Doan Hoang's Message for May 3, 2026
Dear brothers and sisters,
Today’s reading of “The Acts of the Apostles” tells us that it was in Jerusalem, a town of many widows who could not help themselves. They were poor. They must have been looking for a support group. They found one, the one offered by the new Christian community, a community interested in all. Everyone in that community believed that we had the same origin, the same Father in heaven.
That community had started a soup kitchen, and every afternoon the widows came to get their portion. During the first days, everything went well. Everybody was happy. But then some of the Hebrew windows started to profit from the fact that most of the community’s members were Hebrews. They asked to be helped first. They did not come to the line in front of the house anymore. They were helped first at the kitchen door, and they got the thickest and the best part of the soup, the vegetables, the barley, and the beef.
What had started as a good thing, as a real manifestation of what the followers of Jesus Christ stood for, had turned into the opposite, a countersign. It had become a scandal. It was divisive. It not only sowed hatred, but it also broke the peace and brought war. Complain were heard. They grew louder and louder, and finally the apostles came together and decided to arrange a better division of labor by delegating some laypeople to be responsible for this type of work. They appointed seven deacons, ordering them to be impartial in the distribution of the food.
I think by now everybody understands why this story was told in resurrection time. Over there in Jerusalem, they have been caught in that very old and yet so contemporary trap of dividing humanity according to color, race, and tribe. A division that always leads to war and death.
They came out of it. They rose from that death by remembering how Jesus had said we are brothers and sisters and by having his attitude toward all. That is what they did, and so should we.
親愛なる兄弟姉妹の皆様、
今日の「使徒言行録」の朗読は、エルサレムという町に、自力で生きていくことのできない多くの未亡人がいたことを伝えています。彼女たちは貧しく、きっと支えとなるグループを探していたことでしょう。そして彼女たちは、すべての人に関心を寄せる新しいキリスト教共同体によって提供された、そのような支えを見出しました。その共同体の誰もが、私たちは同じ起源を持ち、天に同じ父を持つと信じていました。
その共同体は炊き出しを始め、毎日午後になると未亡人たちが自分の分を受け取りにやって来ました。最初の数日間は、すべてが順調に進んでいました。誰もが幸せでした。しかしその後、一部のヘブライ人の未亡人たちが、共同体のメンバーのほとんどがヘブライ人であるという事実を利用し始めました。彼女たちは、自分たちを優先して助けてほしいと要求したのです。もはや家の前の列に並ぶことはしなくなりました。彼女たちは食堂の入り口で優先的に世話を受け、スープの中でも最も濃厚で上質な部分、つまり野菜、大麦、そして牛肉を手にしていたのです。
当初は良いこととして、イエス・キリストの信徒たちが掲げる理念の真の現れとして始まったものが、正反対のもの、つまりその理念に反するものへと変貌してしまった。それはスキャンダルとなっていた。それは分裂を招いた。憎しみをまき散らすだけでなく、平和を破壊し、戦争をもたらした。不満の声が上がった。その声はますます大きくなり、ついに使徒たちは集まり、この種の仕事を担うよう一般信徒を任命することで、より適切な役割分担を行うことを決めた。彼らは七人の執事を任命し、食糧の配給において公平であるよう命じた。
今や、なぜこの話が復活の時期に語られたのか、誰もが理解していると思います。あちらのエルサレムでは、人々は肌の色や人種、部族によって人類を分断するという、古くからあるにもかかわらず、今なお現代的な罠に陥っていたのです。それは常に戦争と死へとつながる分断です。
彼らはそこから抜け出しました。イエスが「私たちは兄弟姉妹である」と語られたことを思い出し、すべての人に対するイエスの態度を身につけることで、その死から立ち上がったのです。彼らがそうしたように、私たちもそうすべきです。
in-church masses Schedule
Sunday: 8:30 a.m. Japanese Mass
10:00 a.m. English Mass
Saturday: 5:00 p.m. English Vigil Mass/
Weekday Masses are on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 12:05 p.m.
Weekday Masses are subject to change due to funerals or illness.
Weekday Masses are canceled but will resume on May 5th. . Sorry for the inconvenience.
First Saturday Devotion:
First Saturday Devotion will resume on May 2, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. Mass followed by Rosary and Divine Mercy. Confessions are available after the Mass.
Donations
Thank you for your continued support! We are grateful to all who donate to SFXCJCC. We are open for weekend and weekday Masses. And are slowly opening our facility to our ministries and groups.
We are still in need of your financial help! Would you please continue making your Sunday Collection contributions or donating to St Francis Xavier Chapel?
You can mail checks to the office:
SFXCJCC
222 S Hewitt Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
To donate by credit card, click the button below.
Get Involved
Are you passionate about what we're doing? Let us know! We are always looking for volunteers to help us make our vision a reality. We'll help you find a way to volunteer that best suits you. We're excited to have you join the team!
Thank you!
Whether you help through monetary donations, volunteering your time, or spreading our mission through word-of-mouth, thank you. We couldn't accomplish our goals without the help of supporters like you. .