Ten years later, LA’s Polish Catholics celebrate the saint who changed their lives
When the relic of St. Pope John Paul II touched his head, Andrew Lelonek felt like a new man.
“I feel rejuvenated,” said a beaming Lelonek, a parishioner at St. Mary Magdalen Church in Camarillo. “I leave with hope for the things I pray for, hope for miraculous change.”
The memorable moment came during a special Mass and celebration April 28 at Our Lady of the Bright Mount Church in LA’s West Adams neighborhood marking the 10th anniversary of the Polish pope’s canonization.
Bright Mount also serves as the Archdiocese of Los Angeles’ official shrine to John Paul, and its only Polish parish. Regional dean Father Luis Espinoza, pastor of nearby St. Agnes Church, presided the Mass offered in English, Spanish, and Polish.