 Fr.
Roberto Corral, OP
I was born August 31, 1954 in East Los Angeles,
California, the youngest of seven children: 6 boys and 1 girl. After having
five boys in a row, my parents decided to call it quits with me! They were
both born in Mexico: my father in Magdalena, Sonora, and my mother in
Torreón, Coahuila. My siblings and I were born in southern California, and
everyone is married and has children except for me. I have been surrounded
with love and support all my life by my wonderful, large family. Presently I
have 20+ nephews and nieces and 20+ grand nephews and nieces, and there's no
end in sight! I do lots of family weddings, baptisms and funerals.
A great appreciation for my Mexican heritage and for music have been
passed on to me from my youngest years. Many musicians, singers and dancers
have graced my immediate and extended families in southern California since
the early 1900's. My father, uncles and older cousins formed a group called
the José Arias Troubadours, and achieved quite a level of fame, appearing in
movies, TV programs and cultural events – including the annual Ramona
Pageant in Hemet, CA – for almost ninety years. (Check out the web site:
www.ariastroubadours.com)
I went to St. Alphonsus Grammar School, Archbishop Cantwell High school
and Occidental College, all in the Los Angeles area. My major at Occidental
was mathematics, and it was there that I first met the Dominicans. Frs. Tom
DeMan, O.P., Raymond Finerty, O.P. were the campus ministers during my four
years at Oxy from 1972-76.
In August, 1980, I entered the Dominican Order in Oakland, California and
was ordained in 1988. My first assignment was at Arizona State University as
a chaplain at All Saints Catholic Newman Center from 1988-91. From there I
was assigned to Holy Rosary Parish in Antioch, California from 1991-95. In
1995 I was sent to St. Dominic Parish in San Francisco as pastor for the
first time. In 1999 I was moved to Most Holy Trinity Parish serving as
pastor until January, 2003 when I was elected provincial of the Western
Dominican Province.
A Reflection on Being Provincial
As I look back on my four years as Provincial I can honestly say that I
enjoyed many aspects of the ministry. It was not only exciting to travel to
numerous new destinations in the U.S., Europe, Africa and Latin America and
to meet Dominicans, other religious and Church leaders in those places, but
these experiences also served to broaden my perspective and appreciation for
the diversity in the Order and in the Church.
I also enjoyed getting to know the student brothers as they made their
way through formation. Our students are energetic, devout and anxious to
serve God and the Church. It is heartening to see that young men continue to
be attracted to our way of life.
Most importantly, my time as Provincial enable me to get to know my
Dominican brothers on a deeper level as I was often able to share in their
greatest joys, successes and challenges. It was so good to hear parishioners
at our parishes, Newman Centers and other ministries say again and again how
thankful they are for the preaching, ministry and community of the friars.
There were certainly many challenges that the Church in general and the
Province in particular had to deal with during my four years in office. I
was called upon to make a number of difficult decisions; it was humbling –
and a bit scary – to know that my decisions would impact the lives of the
brothers and the direction of the Province. Thankfully, from the time I was
elected in 2003, I received generous support from so many people within and
outside the Province. I was blessed to work with an energetic and insightful
Provincial Council, a caring and hardworking provincial leadership team and
a dedicated staff at the Provincial Office.
Sabbatical Year
After leaving office in January of 2007 and taking some time for a
retreat and rest, I was blessed to serve at our mission parish in Mexicali
until June. Since then, I have been granted a sabbatical year by the new
Provincial, Fr. Emmerich, for which I am extremely grateful. I will use this
time to engage in some studies at a sabbatical program at the Catholic
Theological Union in Chicago, visit family and friends and travel.
Next summer (2008), I will return to serve the Province in whatever way I
can.
Last Updated: October 4,
2007
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