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November 27, 2022This weekend and next we continue to dive into Advent with the theme of waiting and watching. We are given great visions from both the Old Testament and the Gospel reading. Prophets are ones who know the past, understand the present, and prepare us for the future. We can see and hear the great Prophet Isiah and his extraordinary vision and then the last prophet before Jesus in John the Baptist. We too are prophets who have a vision for the future in our own lives and in our parish.
I recently attended a meeting with the Cardinal and many priests and pastors around the archdiocese. We met to discuss the ten-year learnings of the Disciples in Mission program that was begun to help the church prepare for the future. It anticipates that there will be fewer priests and the need to adjust to this reality. What we learned was that there have been many collaboratives and new parishes that have been formed because of collaborations and mergers. The church as we knew it is changing and a new form is emerging. As a result of the work and sacrifices of many parishioners, staffs, and priests, many parishes will be equipped for a future that will require that we constantly look outward and evangelize and heal. To (partially) quote St. Bishop Oscar Romero, “We are prophets of a future not our own. We plant seeds that one day will grow, we water seeds already planted, knowing that they hold future promise. We lay the foundations that will need further development… We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that. This enables us to do something and to do it well. It may be incomplete, but it is a beginning, a step along the way, an opportunity for God’s Grace to enter and do the rest. We may never see the end results… We are workers, not messiahs, we are prophets of a future not our own”. I hope you will continue to pray for the parish and lovingly support our efforts to ensure that the Gospel of Jesus Christ will never stop being proclaimed in this great city.
Speaking of the future, Small groups are forming and more people are coming forward to lead and participate in this new effort to equip our parish to evangelize and grow disciples. Thanks to Christine Williams for leading this effort. Thanks also to all our Beta group leaders and those who have come forward for training and preparation to be part of this initiative.
Congratulations to Carlos and Maretta Orta and Cameron and Rachel Connolly, who were married at our church this weekend. We wish you lifelong love and the blessings of God as you start your journey of marriage.
Peace,
Father Murray
Building news: The restored painting in the sanctuary will be relit with lighting that will illuminate the whole painting. I am grateful to Henry Rutkowski from the PEM who came and looked at the lights and then offered suggestion as to how best to light the painting in a way that will highlight all the details. (The term experts use is to “wash” the paint in lighting.) In addition, the doors at the entrances need to be a little tightened up, so that is the next small project we are getting underway. I am also beginning to get bids for the outside work on the buildings. Both churches are long overdue for some exterior maintenance.
