Saint Mary of the Immaculate Conception Roman Catholic Church

My dear young friends, I address you this Vocation Awareness Week drawing on the words of Pope Francis from World Youth Day: “All of us were called by name. At the beginning of the story of our lives, before any talents we may have, before any shadows or wounds we may be carrying in our hearts, we were called. Why? Because we are loved.”

Let that sink in: God loves you, and he calls you by name for a unique and wonderful plan for your life. For many of you, this will be as a husband and father or wife and mother. In God’s mysterious plan, he calls some to the priesthood and religious life, to offer themselves entirely to the service of the Church. This can be unexpected, but as Pope Francis also reminded the young people in Portugal, “God loves surprises,” adding, “he always keeps us alert, and he keeps us surprised.” This is not something to be feared, but rather embraced, trusting in God the Father who loves us.

I encourage you this week to focus not only on the vocation we all have, to be holy, but also on the personal vocation to which God is calling you. Are you willing to spend some time with him? Are you willing to let him lead you, to surprise you, to lead you to a holiness you never thought possible?

Know of my prayers for you, as your Bishop who wants to see each of you fulfilled as God’s beloved sons and daughters.

From Our Pastor

November 4, 2023 St Mary Fred

Folks,

Two celebrations.

Congrats to our Holy Cross Academy Volleyball team! The girls won the championship, defeating Aquinas School, in a match where many tears of joy were shed! See the pictures on this page and rejoice! So proud of the hard work and success of these young ladies! Congrats!

Congrats to our parish family! Our in-pew effort for the Capital Campaign was an amazing success with more than a million dollars pledged and we are on the verge of crossing the finish line!

We have so much to be grateful for:

1000+ families have said ‘yes’ to expanding our parish school!

1000+ families have said ‘yes’ to a bigger and better playground!

1000+ families have said ‘yes’ to replacing all the Heat/AC in the school!

1000+ families have said ‘yes’ to an Adoration Chapel at the parish!

1000+ families have said ‘yes’ to PLC, church, and rectory renovations!

1000+ families have said ‘yes’ to debt reduction!

Our memorial brick wall in the cafeteria will have the theme of loaves and fishes from the scriptures. We may not be a small boy offering 5 loaves and 2 fish, but Jesus takes our gifts of any size and multiplies their efficacy to make wonderful things happen! Thanks be to God!

As promised last weekend, the bids from the contractor are now being reviewed by the diocesan office of planning, construction and facilities! With this review in hand, I will be making a presentation to the diocese on the scope of construction and financing to get the bishop’s approval moving forward!

pax,

Father John Mosimann