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 the July 6, 2025
Brothers and sisters,
As you see one word – “Peace” – dominates today’s readings. In Isaiah peace flows like a river through the landscape of the future. Paul, speaking to the Galatians, to the background of divisions in the community, promises peace to all who follow Christ. In our gospel, when sending his disciples out, Jesus tells them that their first message to every house must be: “Peace to this house.” But even as the word is spoken you sense the reluctance of our world to embrace peace. Even the reluctance and inability of the Christians to live it out, to give it more than lip service
Every age in the Church has its own moments of crisis, its own dividing lines. In the gospel we see the disciples returning filled with joy from their success. They are boasting of their success, proud of their preaching and living. Christians are, too often, marked by an arrogance of belief. Such pride swallows the Christ who preached poverty of spirit. It leaves us less compassionate before a world which needs to know the compassion of Christ. Paul puts this with woeful clarity: “The only thing I can boast about is the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world is crucified to me, and I to the world.”
The cross of Christ reveals two things about the world: First, the intense love of Christ for the people of the earth; and second, how divided and broken that world is. Religions go their proud way. Empires and political powers set their own agendas and punish all who question their power over human life and its use and abuse. To remain peacemakers we must remain true to the cross. The poverty and brokenness of Christ on Calvary is the model of how we are in the world. We must live that poverty of spirit: “no purse, no haversack, no sandals.” We must never become proud and arrogant. Christ is a humility before the pride of the world. Christ is free love before the necessities of the powerful. Even those who reject Christ must be loved?” their nearness to his Kingdom must remain our message.
We can only do this in an often cruel world by retaining our faith, hope and love. Our faith in a Christ who died out of love for us all. Our hope is that Christ’s promise and his love are the source of our peace, and that by our living out God’s love of the world and its people the Kingdom of peace will be given to us all.
Fr. Doan
親愛なる兄弟姉妹の皆様、
ご承知のように、今日の朗読では「平和」という言葉が重要な部分を占めています。イザヤ書では、平和は未来の風景の中を流れる川のように流れています。パウロはガラテヤの信徒に向け、共同体の分裂があるということを背景に、キリストに従うすべての人に対して平和を約束しています。福音の中で、イエスは弟子たちを送り出すとき、すべての家への最初のメッセージは「この家に平和があるように」でなければならないと告げます。しかし、この言葉が語られていたとしても、私たちの世界が平和を受け入れることには消極的だと感じられます。キリスト者でさえ、口先だけでなく、現実に平和を実現することについて消極的で無力なのです。
教会のどの時代にも危機の時期があり、分岐点があります。福音書では、弟子たちが成功の喜びに満たされて帰ってくる様子が描かれています。彼らは自分たちの成功を誇り、自分たちの説教と生き方を誇りに思っています。キリスト者は往々にして、その信念の傲慢さが際立っています。そのような高慢さは、心の貧しさを説かれたキリストをも飲み込んでしまいます。キリストの憐みの世界と比べれば、私たち憐みの心など無きに等しいものです。パウロはこのことを極めて明確に表現しています。「わたしたちの主イエス・キリストの十字架のほかに、誇るものが決してあってはなりません。この十字架によって、世はわたしに対し、わたしは世に対してはりつけにされているのです。」
キリストの十字架は、世界について二つのことを明らかにしています。第一に、地上の人々に対するキリストの強い愛です。そして第二に、この世界がどのように分裂し壊れてしまっているかということです。宗教は彼らが誇りとする道です。国家や政治的権力者たちは自分たちの目的を定め、人間の生命とその使用・乱用に対する権力の行使に疑問を呈する者をすべて罰します。平和をもたらす者であるために、私たちは十字架に忠実であり続けなければなりません。カルワリオでキリストが味わった貧しさと屈辱は、私たちがこの世でどうあるべきかの模範です。私たちはその貧しさを生きなければなりません。「財布も袋もサンダルも持たない。」私たちは決して自分を誇りに思ったり、傲慢になったりしてはならないのです。キリストはこの世の高慢さの前にあって、謙虚そのものです。キリストは、権力者の前にあっては無償の愛そのものです。キリストを拒絶している人たちでさえ愛されているのでしょうか？このような神の国への近さが、私たちのメッセージであり続けなければならないのです。
私たちの信仰は、私たち皆のために愛によって死なれたキリストに対するものです。私たちの希望は、キリストの約束とその愛が私たちの平和の源であり、私たちが世界と人々に対する神の愛を実践することによって、平和の王国が私たちすべてに与えられるということです。
ドアン神父
in-church masses Schedule
Sunday, June 29th:
Come meet your fellow parishioners at our quarterly bilingual Mass at 10 a.m. (Japanese and English) Sorry, we will not have 8:30 am Mass. The Japanese and English bilingual Mass is held on the 5th Sunday of the month.
Sunday: 8:30 am. Japanese Mass
10:00 am. English Mass
Saturday: 5:00 pm English Vigil Mass
Weekday Masses are on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays at 12:05 pm.
Weekday Masses are subject to change due to funerals or illness.
First Saturday Devotion: 9:00 am, Mass followed by Rosary and Divine Mercy. Confessions are available after the Mass.
COVID, Cold and Allergies:
- If you are not feeling well, please stay home and get well; you are in our prayers.
- Hand Sanitizers are available for you to use.
- Masks are optional.
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. .