Below find a letter written by Martyr and Saint Paul Chung, translated into English for the first time ever, by our very own Father Stan Lee. He includes the Korean and Chinese above the English translation.
Dear Folks,
It is once againtimefor ourParishLifeWeekend!is is your opportunity to meet some of the wonderful folks who coordinate the many ministries that make our parish work. Some are very visible, some happen quietly behind the scenes, but all of them depend upon parishioners who are willing to give a little of their time and talent.
So, after Mass, please stop by, wander around, ask some questions, and perhaps even sign up for something! If youare reading this bulletin at home later today,I hope you stopped. If you are reading it at breakfast over a cup of coffee, I hope you stopped. And if you are reading this bulletin during Mass… well… you especially have no excuse for not stopping on the way out!
As has become a tradition, purely for your entertainment, and with absolutely no intention of leaving the priesthood for a career in comedy, here are this year’s top ten excuses for not signing up for at least one parish ministry:
“I already volunteer. I hold the door open for people at Costco.”
“I asked ChatGPT to volunteer for me.”
“I am discerning. I have been discerning since the lastMinistry Fair.”
“My spiritual gift is delegation.”
“I don’t want to overcommit. I already have Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime.”
“I am waiting for the Introverts Who Don’t Attend Meetings Ministry.”
“I would volunteer, but I don’t want to deprive someone else of the blessing.”
“My children keep me too busy. I was hoping you could sign them up instead.”
“My wife already signed me up for three things.”
And my perennial favorite:“You talking to me??”
Come and see what is happening in your parish. You don’t have to do everything. You don’t even have to do a lot. But everyone of us has something to offer, and our parish is stronger when we offer it together.
pax,
Father John Mosimann
This weekend is Parish Life Weekend, an opportunity to meet with and discuss opportunities to join some of the 90+ ministries at St Mary’s! Please check out our ministry catalogue below and be prepared to answer the call to serve the Lord!
Dear Folks,
Ballot Initiatives and Parish Life Weekend. First, the unnecessary and extreme ballot initiatives that will be brought before all voters this fall. The bishop has instructed that his letter be read at all Masses this weekend. And it is reprinted in today’s bulletin. Please prayerful read and act.
In 30 years of preaching, I do not recall ever being asked to read a letter on ballot initiatives from the bishop at all Masses. Note that I am carefully saying, ballot initiatives, and not election. These votes are not about your favorite political party seizing the reigns of power, but they are about the most pressing and coercive intrusion of the law into the heart of the family: marriage and the protection of children.
On matters of faith and morals, the Church must not lose her voice. And we must not let others cower us into silence. In twenty years of being a pastor, most election cycles, I have receive threats attempting to silence the pro-life witness of the Church. I expect the same with more venom this year. I also know that some will be energized by the voice of the bishop and pastor to do the exact opposite. Our choices do matter. Our voices matter. “If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.” – Psalm 95:8
In the last several years, most pro-life ballot initiatives have failed. Why? Because when the law changed pushing these onto state ballots, hearts did not change. This year’s ballot initiatives veil extreme positions behind pleasant language.
If you struggle accepting the moral teaching of the Lord, recall how Pope Francis was fond of saying that “the Church is a field hospital for sinners.” Recall the Lord dining with the outcasts and excommunicated of the day, and doing so in order to draw them home to Himself by a path of mercy, and forgiveness.
“If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.”- Psalm 95:8
Next week is our Parish Life W eekend. Another case of ‘what can Jesus do with my talents?’ is parish is big, and is able to accomplish so much, because each parishioner who shares their talents finds them multiplied by the Lord and combined with the gifts of others, no one need bear to great a share.
pax,
Father John Mosimann
