Yet Another Scam Email
Once again, there is another scam email that looks as though it was sent by Fr. Mosimann. It was not. Please do not ever send money to gift cards to anyone who solicits you by email claiming to be from the Church.
St Mary’s Lenten Program
We will be journeying with Bishop Barron this Lent and participating in The Word on Fire~Engage Program. This program allows our entire parish to actively experience the series “The Seven Deadly Sins” electronically, with their family and/or small groups, married couples etc. This powerful series will be emailed to you weekly during Lent at no cost. You will have the opportunity to comment and ask questions directly to Fr. Mosimann as the material is presented. We look forward to this new innovative way to grow in our faith as a parish family. To sign-up for our Lenten Program, visit https://StMaryFredericksburg.flocknote.com/everyone to join Flocknotes via email and join the group entitled “2019 Lenten Parish Retreat”. JOIN TODAY! Note: If you are already a Flocknote member, you must go on the website and join the Lenten Group.
Enroll in Faith Direct for Easy Online Giving
Faith Direct is a program that allows for easy online giving without the hassle. You can select the amount you wish to donate, whether it’s a one time donation, monthly, or weekly offering. Faith Direct also allows for donations to most second collection offerings. No more need to worry about remembering to bring your giving envelopes to Mass or rushing to write out a check before the basket gets to you! Faith Direct handles it all automatically with the option to cancel at any time. Click the link to enroll today!
From Our Pastor
Dear Folks,
I am trying to write this from an airplane as I travel out west for my annual ski trip and I can’t believe how small this seat is. Having lost substantial weight this year with my ski trip in mind, I sit here with my knees wedged against the seat in front of me. Every time I travel on a plane like this I think, “never again, I’m driving everywhere.” But every year I cram into a plane and come skiing- because I love skiing. I leave VA, cling to my laptop on a plane, all for the joy of skiing!
And crammed into this seat, I am thinking of our March 9 Marriage Conference. In Genesis, we hear why man “leaves his mother and father, clings to his wife, and the two become one flesh.” (See what I did there at the end of previous paragraph?) Straight forward marriage stuff right? This is at the heart of the vocation of most of the members of our parish, whereby you share in the love of God for his creation and most especially his bride the Church!
Leave, Cling, One.
Leaving: what do we give up for the things we love? Yes, in marriage you have to leave your family to make a new one. This is about healthy detachment. Every time there is a disagreement with your spouse, you can’t call your mom and complain! Yes, there is healthy support, but there is also unhealthy undermining when we can belittle our spouse in an effort to win the conflict. Can you even leave behind your past and the past of your spouse?
Cling: how firmly do we hold on to and pursue the good of our spouse? Not a selfish ‘make me happy,’ but a selfless pursuit of the good of your beloved. I love to see how much ‘in love’ couples treasure their time together and prioritize it, how much they cling to each other in they cling without crushing and suffocating.
One: union. Two become one. There is vulnerability without shame. Physical, emotional, spiritual, even life dreams. Your spouse isn’t for your wish fulfillment but that you can find the intimacy that you are made for. The means of this union are found in serving one another, or in the words of the old marriage exhortation, “the sacrifice required to achieve this union is often difficult and irksome.”
Leave, Cling, One. If I am going to ski majestic mountains, this uncomfortable flight is the price I must pay.If you want to be truly happy, become what you are in marriage.
And maybe, come to our Marriage Conference on March 9th.
The taller the mountains, the more majestic the views, but the deeper and darker the valleys. Be not afraid.
Pax Et Bonum,
Father John Mosimann