By Anthony Richards
The Diocese of St. Augustine honored Bishop Felipe Estévez by hosting an 80th birthday celebration for him at San Jose Catholic Parish in Jacksonville on April 30.
Bishops, priests, deacons and lay people from across the diocese and the state took part in the festive occasion, as well as many members of his family.
Archbishop Thomas Wenski of the Archdiocese of Miami served as celebrant for the Mass held in memorial of the Feast of St. Pius V and Bishop Erik Pohlmeier offered the homily where he focused on Bishop Estévez’s constant striving to abandon himself into the Lord’s hands and how that has guided him throughout his years and continues to this day.
“Bishop Estévez has been a great grace to all of us,” Archbishop Wenski said. “This is a man of great spirituality, of prayer, and of great integrity, and one that we have been blessed to have in our presence for all these years.”
According to Deacon Peter Dang, one of the fruits of Estévez’s time in the Diocese of St. Augustine continues to be the number of seminarians currently in the diocese, which reflects his dedication to vocations.
Father Manuel Puga and Bishop Estévez have maintained a close relationship over the years, who Puga regards as a mentor, and they talk to each other over phone nearly every day.
“Thank you for believing in the power of the seed, which is planting and tending to the word of God,” Father Puga said. “Thank you for teaching us to always see the good side of things and the good side of people.”
One of the aspects that he mentioned that made Bishop Estévez connect deeply with people was his smile that Puga stated has brightened so many people’s days over the years and mentioned that even his sister has the iconic “Estévez smile,” so it must run in the family.
“It was not just his face, his soul is always smiling,” Puga said.
Another who views Bishop Estévez as a mentor is Bishop William Wack of the Diocese of Pensacola-Tallahassee who could not attend the celebration but sent his congratulations via video message.
“It’s an honor to be your brother in the episcopacy,” Bishop Wack said. “I learned a lot from you and thank you so much for mentoring me when I came here eight and a half years ago. I still have a lot to learn, and I would love to be a bishop like you one day.”
The crowd that filled the San Jose parish hall wrapped up the special night with the singing of happy birthday, both in English and Spanish as it reverberated through the hall.
“After listening to all these presentations given out of love, I know that I am a very blessed man, having been chosen to be a priest, chosen to be a bishop,” Bishop Estévez said. “It is a great privilege to serve God’s people.”
Photos by Fran Ruchalski
