Seeing Passionist retreat house badly damaged by L.A. fire is ‘heartbreaking,’ director says

LOS ANGELES (OSV News) — The Mater Dolorosa Passionist Retreat Center in Sierra Madre was badly damaged by the Eaton Fire, according to Passionist Father Febin Barose, retreat center director.

In a Facebook post, Father Barose described having to evacuate Mater Dolorosa on the evening of Jan. 7 and later the emotions of seeing the fire and water-damaged facility on the morning of Jan. 8.

“Seeing the area filled with smoke and dust was devastating and heartbreaking,” Father Barose said in the post. “We found the garage, apartment, and hermitage fully burned down. The Seven Sorrows Garden, Paul of the Cross fountain, and Stations of the Cross have fire damage. As we went into the building, we found the De Loor Hall roof thoroughly shattered with water damage.”

Father Barose also reported that several of the center’s offices “have been completely ruined.”

Since it opened 100 years ago in 1924, Mater Dolorosa has been run by the Passionists, a centuries-old religious order of priests. The 83-acre facility frequently hosts parish and high school retreats, addiction and recovery programs, and special events. Located in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains, the campus includes guest rooms, conference spaces, a chapel, gardens, an amphitheater and its popular outdoor Stations of the Cross.

About 60 people were at the center at the time of the evacuation, Father Barose said in the post, and everyone made it out safely, including finding hotel rooms for the Passionist community members.

The Eaton Fire, affecting areas near Altadena and Pasadena, has burned more than 10,000 acres so far and killed five people, while the Pacific Palisades Fire has torn through more than 17,000 acres.

Father Barose said he didn’t know what would happen next, but tried to look at the situation with eyes of faith.

“It makes complete sense to understand that our faith is tested on fire,” he said in the post.
“But we are pilgrims of hope as Pope Francis exhorted us this year. Hope will not disappoint us. We will recover and be back serving you again.”

At nearby St. Rita Church in Sierra Madre, Father Tom Baker, pastor, said that flames came “within a couple of blocks” from the parish and school, but so far have been largely spared, while extending prayers and support for all those affected by the fires.

Baker said he was at a parent-teacher meeting on Jan. 7 at St. Rita’s school when others began receiving notices of power outages and evacuation orders. Seeing the flames from the parish, Baker evacuated later that evening.

Since evacuation orders are still in place in the area, Baker doesn’t know when the parish or school might reopen, but said they’ll assess the damage and how they can support parishioners and the community when that time comes.

In the meantime, school leaders have organized a daily Zoom rosary to pray for all those affected and to keep the school community engaged. Until then, they wait.

“We’re going to try to assess all that once we get back, but it’s hard to know,” Baker said. “I don’t even know if we’re going to have services this weekend. Which is a sad thing, because at this time it’s really what people need.”

The Archdiocese of Los Angeles has announced a special dedicated fund “to support parishes and schools impacted by the fires.” To donate, go to the donation portal at https://lacatholics.org/california-fires.

Resources and updates from around the Archdiocese of Los Angeles can be found at https://lacatholics.org/california-fires.

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