Homily for the Funeral of Bishop Donald Montrose: May 12, 2008

Given by the Most Reverend Stephen E. Blaire at St. Mary's High School in Stockton.

Esclavo soy. I am a servant. These are the words of Donald Montrose’s motto as a bishop. Esclavo soy. They are the words of Mary at the Annunciation. I am the handmaiden of the Lord. They are the words of Jesus. I have not come to be served but to serve. They are the words of every authentic Christian. They are the words of every dedicated priest. Today. May 12, is the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Episcopal ordination of Donald Montrose. On this day in 1983, along with the now Cardinal William Levada, he was ordained a bishop by Cardinal Timothy Manning in the Cathedral of St. Vibiana in Los Angeles. May 7, the day of his death marked his 59th anniversary as a priest. All his years as a bishop and priest he has been a faithful servant of God.

Toda su vida, como sacerdote y obispo, el ha sido un siervo fiel de Dios.

I first met Father Don Montrose after he was appointed Superintendent of Catholic Schools for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in 1964. I was working in the chancery office as a student seminarian and little did I know then that I would be working for him as a teacher and principal in the 1970’s. I had also come to know about Don Montrose from my first pastor, Msgr. John Birch, who had been the associate in the parish where Don grew up and had preached at Don’s first Mass. He always referred to Don as a great guy and a very intelligent man who never had less than an “A” in all his studies. Father John Birch had been the first secretary under Archbishop Lucey, in Texas, for the Committee on the Spanish Speaking, the forerunner of the Catholic Hispanic associations and ministries of today, and after that the Director of the Catholic Youth Organization in Los Angeles. I believe that Father Birch had a significant impact on Don Montrose in his pastoral love and care for the Hispanic peoples and in his work with youth.

Toda su vida, como sacerdote y obispo, tuvo un gran carino y cuidado pastoral por los jovenes y el Pueblo Hispano.

All who worked with Bishop Montrose remember him as a gentle, very good man. If I may be so bold, I would say that he possessed the two qualities prerequisite for sanctity. He was humble and he was stubborn. He always claimed that playing golf was the best teacher of humility. And the stubbornness of will stayed with him to the end. In the hospice when the nurse said to him: Bishop, I am going to turn you, he replied, “Why?” So often today any kind of leadership in society seems to demand an aggressiveness which can be felt and which commands subservience. But from the beginning it was not to be so in the Church. “Whoever wishes to be great among you,” Jesus said, “shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mt. 20:26-28) Bishop Montrose lived this gospel teaching all his years with a gentle determination that was unmatched, with a humility that was genuine and with a sense of humor which engaged his humanity.

Toda su vida, como sacerdote y Obispo, predico’ el evangelio con bondadoza firmeza y determinacion, con humildad y con sentido del humor.

Esclavo soy encapsulated his spiritual life. The front page of the Stockton Record gave the public a photo of Bishop Montrose in his favorite vestment with the picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe, the same vestment in which he requested to be buried. Many years ago he made the DeMontfort Consecration of his life to Mary (not unlike the late Pope John Paul II) and he faithfully lived a dedicated life. After he retired he told me that he made three holy hours every day, one in which he celebrated Mass, one in which he prayed the entire fifteen decades of the rosary, and one in which he prayed the Divine Office. He also was influenced by Concepcion Cabrera de Armida’s spiritualty of the Cross and brought to the diocese the contemplative Sisters of the Cross who pray daily for the people in the diocese and for their priests. The pectoral cross which he will carry with him to the grave bears the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe and a dove symbolizing the Holy Spirit because Bishop Montrose often participated in Charismatic prayer meetings.

Toda su vida, como sacerdote y Obispo tuvo una profunda devoicion a la “Morenita,” la Santisima Virgen de Guadalupe.

Esclavo soy. No image better describes Bishop Montrose as a servant of God than that of the parish priest. Whether he was coaching sports at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana or its principal; whether he was superintendent of schools; whether he was bishop of the diocese of Stockton, but especially when he was pastor of Resurrection Parish in east Los Angeles, he was a parish priest from the word go who loved to be with the people, eating with them, singing with them, and above all celebrating Mass with them and for them. He has always had a particular affection for the Hispanic peoples, bringing Spanish-speaking priests to serve a diocese in which over 50% of the Catholic people are Hispanic. He wore the sombrero almost as much as he did the miter.

Toda su vida, como sacerdote y Obispo, en lo mas intimo de su Corazon, siempre fue un sacerdote del pueblo y para el pueblo.

Every once in a while I would receive a hand written letter from Bishop Montrose, rarely offering direct advice, but often talking about his experiences and what was important to him as a bishop. About priestly vocations he wrote : “If we as a diocese do pray and work for vocations, I do believe that the Lord will respond.” About religious education: “The best thing I have done as bishop was to bring the Eucharistic Franciscan Sisters into the diocese.”

I will conclude my words by saying that Bishop Donald Montrose’s life is the homily for this Mass. Esclavo soy.

Last Update May 12, 2008