Meet a La Salette – Brother Carlos Ruiz, M.S.

Where were you born?

My name is Brother Carlos Ruiz. I am most recently from Providence, Rhode Island, but initially, I was born in Guatamala City, Guatemala. Like any immigrant who comes to the United States, I came to this country with a suitcase full of dreams and goals I would like to accomplish.

For many reasons, we were forced to leave our country, also leaving behind our loved ones to pursue the American dream. However, for many immigrants, the American dream is hard to attain because, as immigrants, we face many obstacles, beginning with learning a language that is very different from our vocabulary.

Brother Carlos Ruiz, M.S.When I came to this country, I got my first job at a jewelry factory and later found another job in a restaurant. Working two shifts, I was working to help my mother, Lucia, back in my country. On July 16, 2020, I proudly became an American citizen.

What happened in your first years in this country?

This is an incredible and somewhat traumatic story. One day, when I had my day off, I went out for dinner with one of my friends, and coming back from dinner, someone hit my car, and that car sped away as if nothing had happened. When I caught up to the car, it stopped. I went to ask the driver if he didn't realize he had hit my car. When I approached his car, he began screaming at me, took out his gun, and shot me in the head. I turned to run away, but he shot me again, and I fell unconscious on the ground.

I don't know for long I was unconscious. When I woke up, my friend was helping me to stand up, and the other had already left. A security guard from a nearby building heard the shot and came to see what had happened and when he called the police, the ambulance took me to the hospital.

The next day when I woke up, I did not know what had happened to me. When the doctor came to check on me, he told me that I had surgery to remove the bullets from my head, and also he told me that I was fortunate to be alive. He said that I would recover because the bullet in my forehead did not go through to my brain, and the bullet in my back had not penetrated my back.

How did your friends help you?

Bro. Carlos’ home at the La Salette Retreat Center, Attleboro, Massachusetts USAWhen I left the hospital, all my friends told me that God had some good plans for my life because he had given me a second chance to live. I didn't know what to say. I was just grateful to be alive.

Not everything that happened to me was terrible because, thanks to that, my mother could come to see me from Guatemala and stayed with me for six months during my recovery. Unfortunately, she passed away just three years later.

My recovery was fast, and I went to Sunday Mass with my mother when I felt well enough to drive. At the end of the Mass, I met a friend from Guatemala, and he was surprised when he saw me because my head was now shaved. He offered to help me, and I gladly accepted. He helped me not only financially but spiritually as well.

How did you learn more about what God wanted from you?

Bro. Carlos (back row, thirds from left) with other participants in Perpetual Profession Program on the Holy Mountain, summer of 2022Later, I met Fr. Raymond L. Tetrault, our parish priest at St. Teresa of Avila Church in Providence, RI. I began talking with him and shared my situation. I told him I didn't know what God wanted from me because he had given me another chance to live. Moreover, I felt like I owed something to God and wanted to do something special for him. He asked me what I would like to do? I answered that I wanted to help people. Then he surprised me and said: “Maybe God is calling you to be a priest.”

Soon he talked to the Bishop of the Diocese of Providence, Rhode Island, and the Bishop invited me to attend a Vocational Retreats offered at Our Lady of Providence Seminary. I participated in some and submitted my application to be accepted as a seminarian. But unfortunately, they did not take me because I needed more schooling. They told me to get more education and then reapply. Sadly I couldn’t attend school because I was working full-time as a truck driver and had little time to study.

But I continued my vocational discernment and attended Mass on Sundays at Blessed Sacrament Church in Providence, RI. I joined the Spanish choir, attended the Young Adult group, and attended Bible studies, faith formation workshops, and spiritual retreats offered in the Diocese of Providence.

How did you first hear about La Salette?

I attended a Cursillo Weekend at the La Salette Retreat Center in Attleboro, Massachusetts. I experienced a personal encounter with Christ that was like meeting an Old Friend who knew me very well. That Cursillo completely changed my life. I developed a deep hunger for God and started to serve as part of the team in the Cursillos.

During those retreats, I met Fr. John Sullivan, a La Salette priest, and I shared my vocation discernment with him. He invited me to experience a “Come and See Vocation Weekend” at La Salette in Attleboro. That weekend, I heard about Our Lady of La Salette for the first time.

After that, I soon move into the House of Discernment in Attleboro to experience religious community life. Having that experience, I was accepted to go to Washington, DC, for my Novitiate Year. After taking my first vows, I was assigned to the La Salette Shrine in Attleboro to help Brother Lou Brodeur, M.S, teaching me everything about maintenance, and I enjoyed doing that.

Shrine on the Holy Mountain of La Salette in FranceI decided to become a religious brother because God needs us at any stage of life, and not all of us are called to serve in the same way. The most important thing for me is to serve God wherever he wants me to be. Serving him through serving his people, we can find him in each one of them. My Perpetual Profession of Religious Vows will be celebrated at Mass on Saturday, September 3, 2022 at the La Salette National Shrine in Attleboro, Massachusetts.

What impressed you most about the La Salette Apparition?

That story touched my heart when I heard about our Heavenly Mother weeping for her children who do not obey God. Furthermore, what grabbed my attention was the explanation of the meaning of the hammer and pincers on the crucifix lying over the breast of Our Blessed Mother.

Still, when we approach the Sacrament of Reconciliation, God, in his mercy, uses the pincers to remove the nails from the hands of her Son. I could hear the message of reconciliation and hope from Mary’s Apparition at La Salette – a message for all her needy children.