Equestrian Order seeks to increase visibility in diocese

Friday, Mar. 31, 2017

SALT LAKE CITY — The white capes and black gowns of the Knights and Ladies of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem attract attention on formal occasions, but the order’s mission is less visible – a situation local members are working to change.

The EOHSJ “is the only lay institution of the Vatican State charged with the task of providing for the needs of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem and for all the activities and initiatives which are necessary to support the Christian presence in the Holy Land,” according to the organization’s website, holysepulchre.net. 

The roots of the worldwide organization go back to First Crusade; today, under canon law, it is a Public Association of faithful.

Utah, with about 70 EOHSJ members, including Bishop Oscar A. Solis, 10 priests and three deacons, is part of the organization’s Western Lieutenancy, which also includes Nevada, Arizona, Hawaii and southern California. The area councillors, Fred and Pam Strasser of St. Mary of the Assumption Parish, were inducted into the order in 2001.

“For me, to maintain that presence of Christians where Jesus walked is really important,” Fred Strasser said, pointing out that Christians comprise less than 2 percent of the total population of the Holy Land. “The order provides almost 90 percent of the financial support to the Latin Patriarch … Without the Equestrian Order, the Knights and Ladies, the Christian presence would be severely impacted.”

Pam Strasser agreed, saying she feels a duty “to look outside of ourselves and give what we can” to help the Holy Land. “That’s our history. We have to keep it intact and keep it alive,” she said.

In addition to contributing to the worldwide EOHSJ’s financial support of the churches, schools and charitable organizations in the Holy Land, each local group undertakes an annual special project. Last year, Utah’s Equestrian Order members provided backpacks for each student at the Zarqa schools in Jordan; this year, their goal is to provide gym clothes for children at the Zarqa South School.

“We have several members that are teachers or former teachers, so our hearts lie with providing extras for students,” Pam Strasser said. “That to me is giving from our hearts because we know that these kids need every opportunity that other kids have.”

The members of the Western Lieutenancy also gave a grant to the De La Salle high school in Bethlehem to help its debate team travel to an international competition in Slovenia, said Michael Feeley, lieutenant of the Western USA Lieutenancy, who spoke at the Utah group’s midyear meeting on March 25. 

Debating in English, the De La Salle students “beat the French, the Germans, and the Americans,” Feeley said. “This little high school in Bethlehem, because of the generosity of the people here, is learning debate – that they can do something, that they can critically think, that they can compete on the stage. That was an enormous gift that you have given them.” 

Being members of the EOHSJ “has been a very wonderful experience for us, especially as a couple,” said Rolinda Dardano, who with her husband, Raymond, was invested in 2014. “It brings us closer to God, and what a great thing to do! We get to support the Christians in the Holy Land. We do most of this together, and so it just brings us closer as a couple.”

“It’s a new facet of our faith journey,” agreed Raymond Dardano. “When you learn more about what’s been going on in the Holy Land and what has happened there over the past 2,000 years, it really becomes quite a passion.”

The couple, also St. Mary of the Assumption parishioners, are active as lectors, in the women’s group and the Knights of Columbus, as well as in the diocese’s Peace & Justice Committee. They look forward to the annual EOHSJ meeting, which is “like a three-day retreat for us. … an entire weekend of prayer and retreat-type meetings and Mass every day,” Raymond Dardano said.

The EOHSJ organizes a rosary on the first Monday of each month to pray for the support of the people in the Holy Land and for peace in that region. All are welcome to attend a rosary, at 6:30 p.m. at either St. Mary of the Assumption Parish in Park City or St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Salt Lake City.

Attending a rosary is a good way for those interested in the EOHSJ to meet members and learn more about the order, Fred Strasser said. “There are a lot of good Catholics out there that probably would be a good fit for the order; they just don’t know about us.” 

Members of the order also are planning to make short informational presentations at various parishes “to start broadening our visibility,” Pam Strasser said.

Before being accepted into the order, a candidate must be nominated by two members, have their pastor confirm that they are active in the parish, then be approved by the area councillors and the bishop’s office. The nomination then goes to the Western Lieutenancy, and from there to the Vatican, Fred Strasser said.