Br. Joseph Filadelphio Romero, OP

Joseph was born April 6, 1923 in Dixon, New Mexico. He died of acute heart failure Dec. 27, 2003, in Highland Hospital, Oakland, California, after a brief stay at nearby Mercy Retirement Center. His last formal convent assignment was St. Albert's Priory where at the age of 17 in 1940 he had entered the Order as a lay brother, and in 1942 made his first simple profession. It was also at St. Albert's that he spent most of his religious life, chasing, as he would smilingly say, the enemy, referring to his main job of keeping chapel, corridors, various rooms free of dirt and dust, and where he was also unfailingly faithful to common prayer in choir as well as his private conversations with the Lord and where he simply enjoyed being with the brethren.

Though Joseph spent most of his religious life at St. Albert's, he had other places of assignment. He spent some years at our novitiate in Ross, a brief time at Phoenix Blackfriars, Arizona, and some years at St. Dominic's, San Francisco. But it seems his most fruitful and happiest time was at St. Peter Martyr's in Los Angeles, where he was in charge of the snack bar at our high school, St. John Vianney. He loved being with the fathers there and serving the students through the whole of the school week. "Made him feel important," he'd smilingly say. This through some 15 years all told.

One of the more edifying and endearing things about Joseph was his continual love of his family, his religious family of course, but also his blood family. He would, whenever he was able, visit with his family and they with him. In fact one of his younger brothers had hoped to join the Order also but found midway in his novitiate that it wasn't for him, though he and Joseph still remained close. His siblings and their children would frequently visit him and he them.. As any true religious he had left father, mother, brothers and sisters for the Lord, but only to find them again with a richer, fuller love. Recently a large contingent of his family visited St. Albert's, once again wanting to see again the places that held their brother/uncle for so many years and wanting to hear still more about hum

May 21, 1992, Joseph celebrated at St. Albert's his Golden Jubilee. The priest who was principal of the high school when Joseph was there preached his eulogy. Many of both his families were present. Joseph chose for his remembrance card a silhouette by our Edmond's Dominican Sister, Jean Dorcy. The card is of our Blessed Mother holding the baby Jesus in her arms, and kneeling before both is a Dominican friar. The friar and Jesus are together fingering a long rosary. And the words written thereon: "Turn then most gracious advocate thine eyes of mercy... now and at the hour of our death, Amen." Pretty much sums up Joseph's life, looking up to Mary and Jesus, holding fast to them and being held by them in and through Mary's great prayer and hoping to die and live again in and through her and her child, Initially in Joseph's life the rosary was the lay brother's common prayer as the breviary was that of the priest. For Joseph the rosary remained such whatever might have been the current practice of others. Prayed well and faithfully it was what kept him united to Jesus and Mary, his brothers and the whole of the Church.

- Fr. Fabian Parmisano, OP

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