Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church

I have encountered no pain greater than a parent losing a child. And when the child is lost during pregnancy, or at birth, it can be even more confusing and heartbreaking. Recently someone in my family walked the Calvary path of knowing by pre-natal diagnosis that their child would not live long after she was born. Her father was able to give her life, and also give her eternal life by baptizing her in her short life on earth.

Back in January of 2020, we offered Mass for parents and families who have lost children, and many folks said that it was such a moment of grace to be able to grieve for these children. So many relayed stories where folks didn’t understand, or they had been told they aren’t allowed to grieve. Grieving a child lost in pregnancy is a rebuke of our culture’s blind and obstinate denial of the gift of life in the womb. This is why January seems an appropriate time to offer this Mass.

Thus, I invite you to a Candlelight Mass offered for The Unborn and Children Who Have Passed, the St. Gerard Majella Mass, this coming Tuesday, January 23 at 7pm. We have so much to do to build a culture of life. The political struggles for the respect of life mean we must build a culture where baby, mother, and father are all loved and supported.

So if you lost a child, in pregnancy, in school, in college, or adulthood this Mass will be offered both for your children and for you. All are invited to come and offer a prayer of support.

pax,

Father John Mosimann

Yesterday (Saturday) we celebrated the success of our Capital Campaign with Tacos!! It was great to be with the families who came out for this celebration!

One of our bedrock principles for the Campaign, was and still remains, to “build what we can afford.” You also tasked me with lowering the parish debt!

Today, I share with you great news: This week we paid off the remaining $1 Million on our parish debt!!! We were able to do this because of your generosity to our Capital Campaign. Since this is one of the Campaign goals, I really like the idea of clearing all debt before we take on the new projects.

Yes, this is a slightly symbolic gesture, because we are now about to sign contracts to expand the school, which will require a bridge loan. Important points to remember:

1. There is a ‘debt reduction’ envelope in the bi-monthly envelopes packets. This is because we expect to sign contracts for the school expansion ASAP, and it is important for folks who were unable to make a pledge to still have this means of supporting our parish projects. The names of envelope will not change, because of lead time on printing and it will support future debt.

2. A bridge loan will be required, as construction will begin and be completed before all pledges are fulfilled. This means that we will have some loan to cover the time from construction bills, until parishioners fulfill their pledges.

3. Paying off the debt now, even knowing that some debt will return, benefits us because we will no longer be paying interest on the loan! Doing this now could save us $30k to 50k in interest this year, depending on the timing of bills for the school expansion!

4. Because we have budgeted for $44k per month debt payment, we will continue putting that same amount into savings every month towards the new projects and the future debt!

This was an important part of our 10-year plan by which we were approved for the HCA Expansion, and allows all parishioners to continue to support our capital needs.

This small poem will prove to you that I should not give up being a priest, and it is not an exact timeline, but it did put a smile on my face as I typed it:

• Debt free in ’23.
• Adore more in ’24.
• Playground revive in ’25.
• Debt fix in ’26
• Debt heaven in ’27

Pax et bonum, peace and all good, paz y bien,

Father John Mosimann