Dear Friends,

We always remark how fast time flies, especially when the rhythms of life start to change. People are talking about moving their kids into their dorm rooms and getting family schedules organized around all the extracurricular activities that the children participate in. It’s a lot to juggle to be sure. Every year the hope is that parish life will also be a top priority in family life.

“Back in the day,” as we are wont to say, there were not as many options for other activities as there are today. Prioritizing the Catholic life will make many people stand out from their peers, and this is not something many folks are comfortable doing. What is essential to the Catholic life is the Eucharist and the community that gathers around the table. The obligation to attend Mass is due to two primary aspects of our spirituality. The first is the obligation to give praise and glory to God in prayer and for us in particular in the Eucharist, the source and summit of our lives. The second is to take seriously the role of the parish community. The support of the community for its members will define the commitment to the mission of our faith. Perhaps in the coming weeks folks could take a moment to reach out to old friends and family members and invite them to come to church? Maybe make it a social event and go out to breakfast after Mass! Rebuilding our parish, any parish for that matter, will take time and will take the same approach of Jesus, the one-to-one personal invitation. Look how successful he was!!

Peace,
Fr. Michael