Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church

Dear Folks,

Soooo much going on, and so much of it is a testament to the goodness and generosity of St. Mary IC parishioners!

We made our Bishop’s Lenten Appeal (BLA) goal with $495k pledged! Yowza! 1,163 families pledged that much, which is 18% of the official number of 6344 parish families. Yes, we would always like to see the percentage of families pledging be closer to 28% (that is the diocesan participation goal), but we also know that some families are still sending in gifts and commitments to the BLA! Thank you, and there is a nice note from the bishop in the bulletin this week.

Also, there is a nice note from the parish in Togo where we recently sent a donation to help them rebuild their church! The parish is known to us because it is the home parish of Late Drackey who works here at St. Mary’s. Your generosity arrived to them in a time of great need for their church reconstruction.

The fundraiser for youth mission trip to the Dominican Republic? That brought in over $20k. The “Love Your Neighbor“ collection for Micah, that brought in almost $8k. Then 240 Easter baskets which was twice the number we had hoped for.

All this, and our capital campaign still humming along! In the midst of a recession when prices for food, household items —-everything is THROUGH THE ROOF – the generosity of so many and trustful surrender to God is beautiful to witness and inspiring!

May the good work that the Lord is accomplishing in us be brought to fulfillment in His glorious Kingdom!

pax et bonum,

Father John Mosimann

This week we has had some perfect weather days. It is one of the benefits of living in an all-season region that we truly value these perfect temperature / humidity days because they are so rare! If we lived in San Diego, it would be just another day.

What is it about our human nature that can experience delights and become so accustomed to them so quickly that we have to have more and more? I hope that it is because we are ultimately desiring the Lord God Almighty! The finite and ephemeral nature of earthly pleasures leaves us always hungry for more. The good news is that in heaven, those problems will be solved.

Please be sure to check out the pictures from our first Eucharistic Procession for the students and staff at Holy Cross Academy! One staff member appended this to the end of an email, “… a beautiful Eucharistic procession through the school today. Fr. Mosimann, along with several altar boys and singers, processed through the school with the monstrance and visited each classroom and office. #whyweloveHolyCrossAcademy”

The hashtag put a big smile on my face: #whyweloveHolyCrossAcademy

Also, an expansion of the bonus confession times that Fr. Antony will be offering! See the note in the bulletin here, with confessions every weekday, and multiple times while he is here with us until the end of May!

pax,

Father John Mosimann,

A blessed close of the octave of Easter! This is the greatest eight day celebration and party in the universe! It closes with a celebration of Divine Mercy!

St. Faustina said that her devotion to Divine Mercy was a gift from the Lord that drew strength from Holy Communion: One thing alone sustains me and that
is Holy Communion. From it I draw my strength; in it is all my comfort…. Jesus concealed in the host is everything to me…. I would not know how to give glory to God if I did not have the Eucharist in my heart. …

O living Host, my one and only strength, fountain of love and mercy, embrace the whole world, and fortify faint souls. Oh blessed be the instant and the moment when Jesus left us His most merciful Heart!

Also, a wonderful shout-word of thanks and joy to all who helped with the Easter Baskets for the nursing homes and homebound of our parish! It was so wonderfully and gratefully received! There will be more details in next week’s bulletin, but so many smiles we put on the faces of so many grateful recipients and the folks who delivered them as well!!

Finally, below is a picture of Fr. Antony Doss Manickam, who will be living at St. Mary’s and helping over the next six weeks! Fr. Antony is a Spiritual Director and Professor at Good Shepherd Major Seminary, Coimbatore, South India. He hails from the diocese of Thanjavur in the state of Tamil Nadu.

Fr. Antony will celebrate extra confessions (Monday and Friday @11:30am), and is willing to give spiritual direction by appointment as well. Please call the office if you are interested and we can pass your message along to him. Keep your eyes on this space for more news regarding added confessions! Thank you in advance, for giving him a hearty welcome!

pax et bonum,

Father John Mosimann