Question of Faith
A weekly question of faith answered by Cleveland Catholics. Fr. Damian Ference, Vicar of Evangelization and Deacon Mike Hayes Director of Young Adult Ministry in the Diocese of Cleveland co-host with frequent guests from the Diocesan Office who join in the conversation.
Question of Faith
Who is shadowing in the Diocese this week?
Meet Gianna Koser, not your everyday teenager, but a Catholic whose soulful testament to spirituality and heritage has earned her the Christus Vivit National Youth Award. In a heartfelt conversation, she shares her aspirations, the cultural tapestry of her Slovenian and Lebanese lineage, and how these threads weave into the fabric of her devotion. Gianna's story is a crescendo of youthful exuberance and pious dedication, a narrative that will inspire as she stands on the cusp of new beginnings at the University of Dayton.
The whisper of prayer in a secluded chapel and the jubilant chorus of a parish celebration—these are the moments that define our liturgical life. Join us as we discuss how we honored Sister Jane Nesmeth's 60th jubilee.
Cari Reagan transitions to a new role at St Basil’s . A brief look at the Pentecost readings.
On today's Question of Faith. Who's shadowing in the Diocese this week? Hey everybody, this is Question of Faith. I am Deacon Mike Hayes. I am the Young Adult Ministry Director here in the Diocese of Cleveland.
Speaker 2:And I'm Father Damian Ferencz, the Vicar for Evangelization.
Speaker 3:I'm Carrie Regan, the Youth Ministry Specialist.
Speaker 4:And I'm Gianna Koser. I am the shadower of the Diocese of Clemson, wonderful.
Speaker 2:We didn't even set you up for that, you knew it. You're intuitive, the shadow Great, yeah so you realize that's going to stick.
Speaker 1:Now, right, you know you're just gonna be known as a shadow, like everywhere you go.
Speaker 2:That's good. So, gianna, tell us about yourself. Where are you from? What are you doing here?
Speaker 4:I am from Richfield, Ohio. My home parish is St Basil the Great in Brecksville.
Speaker 2:Nice.
Speaker 4:And I'm here this week to shadow Carrie because for Revere High School all the seniors have to job shadow for the week to get a taste of what they want to go into for college or try something new or something exciting, and I really wanted to dive into a more faithful job.
Speaker 2:Nice, Now you're heading to the University of Dayton, correct. And what is your major? You have it declared or no?
Speaker 4:I have undecided business declared as of right now, but I know that there are so many opportunities for me to go so many different ways, sure.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and you are a little teenage Catholic rock star here, because we met at Tolilege and I also know you're very active at St Basil Parish and their Life Team community. You also were the recipient of an award. Carrie, do you want to talk a little?
Speaker 3:bit about that. It's the Christus Vivi National Youth Award. Bit about that. It's the Christus Vivi National Youth Award. What does that mean? So it's a national youth award that comes from the NFCYM, which is the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry, and it is given to an outstanding teen who, as Christus Vivi, which is as Christus Vivi, which is a document that Pope Francis wrote on youth ministry. It starts off and he says Christ is alive and he wants you to be alive. And so it's given to a teen who is a great evangelist of the faith, who lives their faith loudly and boldly and proudly.
Speaker 2:And this year, and proudly, and this year, as Francine and I were discerning the teen to receive it, we chose Gianna for her just excellent work in evangelization at her parish and throughout the diocese because she also gave her witness in front of 3,000 people at the All Saints Rally. I was there. I was there too. I was proud. I was like proud dad. Actually, I gave you a hug right after I waited on the side of the stage. I was like I remember looking at Sister Jane.
Speaker 1:She's just like nodding oh, yeah, just celebrated 60 years of professorial life so good. I remember sitting in the back with Greg Coogan, who works downstairs in the education department, and I was like, look at, she had it.
Speaker 2:He was like yeah, and I was like wow, okay. Here we go, pure fire.
Speaker 3:Three flame emojis Exactly, and I think it's just such a testament to like.
Speaker 3:sometimes there's just this there's stigma around being a teen and like you can speak more to this Like I mean, I was a teen once too, but like there's like, well, why would you have a teen do it? Like have someone else. It's like no teens are capable, they can do it. You just have to believe in them and prepare them to do so. We met, we talked about what you were going to talk about, you practiced a little bit and you did it. But I knew you could do it and you went for it and did it.
Speaker 1:What do you remember about that day?
Speaker 4:Oh my gosh. We were just talking about that day. Because there was so much emotion leading up to that day for me, because it was November 1st and I had to apply to college, that was like the college deadline so. I was up late the past few nights getting all that situated, and then it was the first snow of the year, so I had to have my dad drive me, because I was too scared to drive down.
Speaker 4:And then it was just there's so much commotion and I really didn't tell anyone else on the youth council, like any of the teens, that I was doing it. So I remember, like Father Eric like mentioned me in the schedule and like all of my girls just kind of looked at me like, are you going to, are you going to talk? And I was like yeah, and they're like, do you want to pray? And so it was like it was so warming. So all of my friends from the council prayed over me and they talked about Mary a lot, which was she's a big, heavy hitter in my faith life. And then my youth minister, Aaron Procott, prayed over me after. So it was like all of that wave and adrenaline and like I walked up on that stage and I couldn't see anyone and I've been on stage before multiple times with with choir and with theater and all that stuff and just to not see anyone, it was like okay, I just got to talk to Jesus, about Jesus, I can do that and it was.
Speaker 4:it was indescribable like being up there, and we've got some video of that too, Maybe, we can put it and connect it in the show notes there.
Speaker 1:Absolutely, yeah, we'll figure that out.
Speaker 2:One of the most interesting things about you, I think, as a young woman in Northeast Ohio, in the Diocese of Cleveland, is your heritage, because you have a very interesting mix. Could you talk about that a little bit?
Speaker 4:So my dad's side of the family is from Slovenia, so my dad is first generation off the boat and then my mom's side of the family is Lebanese, so I had the best food. Yeah, best food Thanksgiving is full of baklava and tabbouleh and it's delicious Anyways. But just that mix of cultures I think also impacted a little bit of kind of how I view life because, like, family obviously is number one with everything, both sides of my family, but especially on my dad's side, my stada mama, that's grandmother in.
Speaker 4:Slovenian. She was a big influence in my upbringing and she would never let you leave the house without being blessed.
Speaker 3:Amen.
Speaker 4:She would bless you and you weren't allowed to leave unless you were blessed.
Speaker 4:So it was something that I always was like, oh, that's kind of so annoying, like I'm going to try to sneak away from Santa Mama's house without being blessed. She'd grab you by the shoulders and she'd go da, da, da da. And I see so much of her in so many other women in my life now. Even though she's not with us, I still bless myself sometimes just to feel that love, and it's something that I don't know. The faith still keeps her alive.
Speaker 2:What parish St Vitus or.
Speaker 4:St Mary's.
Speaker 2:In Collinwood, Father Kumshi.
Speaker 4:Yeah, he baptized me and married my parents.
Speaker 1:Excellent, that's great. So you're off to Dayton. So I'm just going to say this right now, crystal Sullivan is the director of campus ministry at Dayton. Crystal, you are to take really good care of. Gianna number one, but number two. You are not to steal Gianna from Cleveland, you are to educate her well and send her right back to us, because the last person I sent you is now your director of music and you didn't send him back to me. So you owe me, crystal Sullivan. You owe me.
Speaker 2:Well, go where the Lord takes you. That's the Marian posture.
Speaker 1:That's right.
Speaker 2:But it's probably you know, we'd like you in Cleveland, but wherever the Lord takes you is where you go, that's right.
Speaker 1:What are you looking forward to about college?
Speaker 4:Honestly forward to about college. Honestly, I was thinking about this today. There's so many things I'm looking forward to, just to like start this new chapter in my life but honestly, just to kind of be young again, because I think like, especially how I'm structured, like I'm structured to be a leader and I love leading and I love caring for so many people, but I get to be a freshman again and I get to learn everything again and I get to be taught and not have to know all the answers. So I think that's what I'm most excited for actually.
Speaker 1:That's cool Humility.
Speaker 3:That's a great posture to have for it too, because I was like oh no, I'm going to be the bottom of the totem pole again versus no, I get to be the one to be fed, rather than, like I've done a lot of feeding and now I get to be fed yeah, so yeah, as a new deacon of the diocese.
Speaker 1:That's why I feel now. I was like okay, now I get to learn from the other deacons and you know I just finished, you know this formation program, but I still have to learn and I'm sure I'm going to make a mistake. And you know, we celebrated mass today and I'm standing behind Father Damien and I was like, oh, I have to go get the chalice. You know it's like to hold up at the end of the Eucharistic prayer by the way, this is a liturgical question.
Speaker 2:Are you? Am I supposed to give the chalice to you, or can you take it? Did you learn that in class? You are supposed to hand it to me?
Speaker 1:Okay, that's what I thought I wasn. Sometimes a priest will say just take the chalice because I won't remember to give it to you and I'd rather you just take it if I forget. You know that kind of thing Because liturgy is messy, because we're humans.
Speaker 2:And they're always changing what you're supposed to do. So.
Speaker 1:I want to be up to date and they have told us like if he forgets to give it to you, don't just stand there, go over and take it. So I was like okay.
Speaker 2:Now, gianna, so this is your second day shadowing here in the diocese right. You're working with Carrie and Francine. Did you know that there are 207 people that work in this building? Did you know that on the sixth floor we had our own chapel, and what did you think about that?
Speaker 4:today, I learned that this morning we got in the elevator and Carrie's like okay, we're going to Mass, and we went up instead of down. I was like I thought the cathedral was that way, but okay, but I think honestly, today's Mass was my favorite Mass I've ever been to. Oh man and I was the deacon Shredded my heart. Well, because I've been. I'm kind of a nerd, especially after going on Tulelege.
Speaker 4:I love learning about the architecture of different cathedrals or churches themselves and just for it to be such a small room. But the overflow of love in that room was, and like, the walls were kind of bare and there was no music besides Sister Jane, which was beautiful, by the way, but it was just, it was just.
Speaker 2:Jesus Like that's what made it beautiful To fill you all in. So Sister Jane, who is the director of Black Catholic Ministries in the Diocese of Cleveland, is part of Parish Life and she is celebrating her 60th Jubilee as a religious sister.
Speaker 1:That's 60,. By the way, that's what it is. Six Six zero.
Speaker 2:Zero and you'd think she's like 58. Maybe, yeah, I mean, she's got a very young heart. I preached about that in homily and she's a wonderful, wonderful woman and so she wanted to renew her vows in the context of liturgy today, so we were able to pray the prayers of a woman celebrating her jubilee and it was so wonderful and I told Mike after Mass Deacon Mike, after Mass, that I think what we did there is the most important thing we do in parish life. So if someone's sick, we'll come up to the chapel, we'll pray, we'll do anointing of the sick.
Speaker 2:Last year, when it was my 20th anniversary of priesthood, we celebrated mass sister 60 year jubilee. So we celebrate big moments in that chapel. So, yes, we work really hard on our floor, but the most important thing we do is when we pray together and that really forms us to be who we are giving back to God all the good things that he's given to us, and I'm glad you said that and I'm so happy that you were there to experience that, because that's what that's us at our best, absolute best. We're not always best at our meetings or at other things.
Speaker 2:And sometimes those aren't fun, but I've never regretted any time in that chapel or thought any time was wasted. It's like I'm glad. I'm glad you loved it.
Speaker 3:Well, and that chapel was made by.
Speaker 1:Archbishop Perez.
Speaker 3:Because it was supposed to be like. This is the lifeblood of us and this is like what should be the center of our work and how we flow outward to the diocese from the chapel, from the. Eucharist from centering ourselves there and being a part of it.
Speaker 2:So every Wednesday we have what's called Worship Wednesday. We have Mass in that chapel at 8 am. Anybody in the building can come and then, first Wednesday of the month, adoration all through the day and, as long as your director allows it, you can go make half a holy hour. I don't know anyone who doesn't. I encourage my staff, like if you're struggling with something or can't figure something, go up to the chapel and talk to the Lord about it. So we're constantly connecting our life of faith and our life of work, and that's what we are as church.
Speaker 1:You will find me doing evening prayer in there before I go home some days.
Speaker 4:And if I?
Speaker 1:don't do it at my desk. I go. If I can get up and I'm not in a rush like if I'm really rushing somewhere, then I, more importantly, go to the chapel. I'm like okay, I'm in a big rush, I need to clear my head, so I'm not going to sit at my desk today.
Speaker 2:I'm going to go up to the chapel and calm down and then I'll be able to go and do what I need. Historic ones, and even your parish is newer, but it's huge. That is a small space. It probably sits comfortably, maybe 20.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And then it starts to get uncomfortable. But there's something when everybody is in there, wants to be in there, and everybody's singing and praying so hard, man, I love it, I love it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's the intimacy of the space that I think really calls to people For me, like Janet. For me the more intimate masses are the ones that kind of stick with me, or it's sort of like the two extremes, like the more intimate or huge and grand.
Speaker 2:Yeah, our last podcast is like you hear the trumpets and everybody in there. So that's a good iteration of the both and yeah, that's right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it's really nice.
Speaker 3:That's great I even think one of the things that Sister Jane was saying at the end she was just pointing to like well, she was talking and it was such a beautiful mass.
Speaker 3:It was so beautiful and like just absolutely amazing 60 years as a religious like that is such an accomplishment, so beautiful, um. But she was also as you also kind of mentioned in your homily, father damien like it was really cool actually to have like both sister jane, gianna there Sister Jane, who's celebrating a lifetime of service to the church and just all of the amazing things she's done, but also Gianna, who's getting ready to go to college, to take that next step. And in many ways you've given so much to the church but in a lot of ways you have so much more to give and we don't even know what that is yet. And that was just so beautiful to hear from you, father Damien, from Sister Jane as well. But I just have to say, as someone that works in the youth ministry office Sister Jane was talking about, like Gianna, like when you were talking at the November 1st rally, you had so much charisma and all I could think was man, that girl's got riz.
Speaker 2:Riz riz. Yeah, I love that she called you madam. Sister Jane called you madam, that's classic. I missed that.
Speaker 1:Madam, she's like, I'm you, madam. So when did you find out you got this award?
Speaker 4:At CLE 216. Is it still 216? It's 216. 216 now, but I remember sitting next to my dear friend Lucas Torres, who's a seminarian.
Speaker 2:The rapper.
Speaker 4:The rapper and you know Carrie and Francine are explaining the award and he kind of whispers in my ear like hey, like that kind of sounds like you. And you know I laugh it off because I'm like there's no way. And then they keep talking about, then it's what the youth minister said and all my friends just kind of turn to me I'm like oh, that's silly. And then there's a line that goes that she's fashionable and I'm not trying to toot my own horn, but I love my clothes and when that line line was mentioned I kind of looked up and Carrie started getting a little teary-eyed and I was like there's no way. And then they say my name and I just sob, just sob, sob, sob, sob, sob like Maggie who works in the vocations office.
Speaker 3:Wonderful, wonderful person takes great, amazing, amazing. She came up to me after she's like oh, she is not the most beautiful crier, but like also, it was just a complete surprise, because this was also the first time we've ever given this award out. So it wasn't even like there wasn't even so much like anticipation publicity. It was just like here's this award, here we go. And so, yeah, it was a surprise on many.
Speaker 2:What were you wearing? My youth council shirt oh okay, okay, I thought you were wearing Prada, or something. Bell-bottom jeans are a nice thing yeah, that's cool, do what?
Speaker 1:you can with the ensemble that they give you. You have to figure that out.
Speaker 2:I was saying it looked like so many people in the chapel today consulted the same color palette.
Speaker 1:That's right.
Speaker 2:You could be in like a what do you call it? A? Marian blue, yeah, but what's that? It used to be the place in the mall where they'd take your picture together.
Speaker 3:Oh, JC Penney.
Speaker 2:Well yeah, when the family all basically wears the same color palette and take a picture. Well, yeah, when the family all basically wears the same color palette and take a picture, something shots. I don't know what it was called. It was something back in the 90s Like family portraits, yeah, but it had a name. I can't think of it. If you give me five minutes I'll get it, but we don't have the time.
Speaker 1:Don't spit water all over the equipment. That's not a good look For the folks watching on YouTube. I'm sure you saw that, but yeah.
Speaker 2:Glamour shots. That's it, glamour shots. We'll put it in the show notes. If you've seen Napoleon Dynamite his girlfriend kind of works at a place like glamour shots and people would come in dressed in the same color palette to get a picture taken. Right, yes, perfect Got it yes, that makes me. That satisfies me on a deep level when I remember something.
Speaker 1:It does Gianna. I know you go to St Basil's out in Brecksville. Can you tell us a little bit about what you like about St Basil's the most for a church? Church today.
Speaker 4:So living in Richfield technically my home parish is supposed to be St Victor's, but when I was growing up I just remember alternating between St Victors and St Basil's and then we were looking for something to deepen our community. When I was growing up, trying to find a church, and I remember when I was little I joined the church choir, the kids' church choir at St Basil's. So I think the music ministry there is so beautiful and we just got another– I mean, I worked with Stephanie for so long who works at St Basil's, but also we got Mercy Divine, who also does some of the masses.
Speaker 4:So the music there is incredible and music definitely helps me deepen my faith. And just there's so many amazing people at St Basil's and they just really want you to better know Jesus with the Life Teen community and Little Roses, which is our girls group there. There's just so many seeds that have been planted there. I cannot wait to see how much more it will flourish once I leave.
Speaker 2:That's cool, fr Ryan Mann, fr Jeff Liptack, tommy Dome. Soon there will be someone else joining the staff there. Who's that?
Speaker 3:Me it's that, me it's Carrie.
Speaker 2:Regan. Yeah, so we have some transitions. She's leaving the youth ministry office and going to what is her home, parish. She's also very active with the youth ministry core staff, correct? You and John? Yeah, so it's a good fit.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'll miss it here, but it'll be a good change.
Speaker 2:Yeah and you're still part of the diocese. We'll see you around. I'll be around. I'll see you on the Instagrams.
Speaker 1:Deacon Rob Blackburn is really looking forward to you.
Speaker 2:Blackthorn, that's what I called him. He doesn't mind. I asked him can I call you Deacon Blackthorn, Because it sounds like so medieval. He's like okay.
Speaker 1:I I misspoke his name once and then he's like I kind of like that. Okay, that's funny. And so readings for Pentecost coming up this week, and so I'd like to point out in the Gospel of John we hear Peace, be with you, as the Father has sent me, so I send you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them Receive the Holy Spirit. So as you head to Dayton number one, you know, go and Holy Spirit. So, gianna, as you head to Dayton number one, you know, go and bring the Holy Spirit to those in your life that you're going to meet in college and just be you, right, you know that's all you can be. You can't be anybody else but yourself. So go forth from this place filled with the Holy Spirit and bring that to your experience in Dayton.
Speaker 2:Gianna, I don't think you'll be here on the third Thursday of the month, but on the third Thursday we have a gathering of the whole building downstairs and there's always a theme, and this theme is going to be Pentecost and we're serving hot foods and spicy foods and there's going to be the whole playlist is about fire. Kayla and Mary are planning that now. So we have a lot of fun downtown and there's some job openings. So we're always looking for really good, fun, smart missionary disciples to work at Parish Life. So maybe we'll throw up some. We won't throw up, we will post some, maybe some of the job openings that we have here, because we need some new friends on our floor, exactly.
Speaker 3:Well, and for Pentecost. On the youth ministry page you can check out the Tongues of Fire.
Speaker 1:Challenge oh that's right.
Speaker 3:So we have a group of youth ministers and those have been in and around youth ministry that are taking on the challenge this year, eating hot wings and reading the story of Pentecost from the Book of Acts.
Speaker 1:Oh my. So the idea is you eat a hot wing and then you have to read the story without stopping right. Is that the idea?
Speaker 3:Yes. So in years past they've like eaten the wing while reading it and like there's a good like middle part where, like you stop and take your second bite.
Speaker 1:Ah, got it.
Speaker 3:But this year they all decided to just eat the full wing and then read the whole thing. And someone was like the person that went first, um was like I just wanted to get it over with, so I ate the whole wing and then read the whole thing. And she was like she thought about it later and she's like I know that's how they usually do it in other years, like that's how they've done it, like multiple bites throughout, and she said I think we made it worse because, like by the end of it in years previous, they would have been like hitting the full heat of the wing however, because they ate it, let it sit.
Speaker 3:Spoke all like, read the whole reading, then it was hot and they were struggling so but we got them. We had milk for them. We had celery ranch blue cheese. I got chocolate milk Apparently, that works better. We had bread and like, so that they could try and get it out. Yeah, at the end of it, jen Martin, who's at St Mary's in. Hudson was just eating cream cheese.
Speaker 1:Gross yeah, no thanks.
Speaker 2:Mayonnaise.
Speaker 3:Mayonnaise.
Speaker 2:Did you ever have mayonnaise plain?
Speaker 3:No.
Speaker 2:Me neither. Yeah, good, yeah, good cover Father. No, why?
Speaker 1:would I do?
Speaker 2:that it's gross.
Speaker 1:Exactly, it's like eggs, so we'll put a link to the Tongues of Fire challenge when that goes up and we'll have this and a whole lot more next time here on Quest the Favorite.
