It was twelve years ago on the Feast of Divine Mercy that we gathered with Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted and a large number of priests for the Solemn Mass for the Dedication of the Church and Altar. The date was April 11, 2010.

Even though we had our first Mass inside our church on Christmas Eve in 2008, we had been using our temporary wooden altar from the time when we were having Masses in the parish hall. Finally, in 2010, we had the permanent altar that you now see in the church as well as the stone baptismal font and the tabernacle.

This has been a wonderful year as many more parishioners were able to return to the church for Mass. I was very glad to see more faces and catch up with their stories. We still have a weekly live stream Mass for those who need it, but we hope we will see you soon inside the church if you are healthy. We started construction on our Parish Activities Center to include offices, social hall, chapel, meeting rooms etc. We really appreciate our donors and hope you are one of them! I recently announced some priests and staff changes.

As a Catholic priest, more so, as a religious missionary priest, I was always formed and trained to be ready and willing to go anywhere and to any mission or place that the need calls or God’s Spirit leads to through the use of Major Superiors or the Bishop of the Diocese where we work.

After almost 8 years serving at St. Clare of Assisi Catholic Parish, it is now time for change, time to move to another Mission. This time at St. Andrew the Apostle Parish, Chandler, Arizona.

Praying with Scripture can be done alone or with others. When done with others, it can be a means of sharing more deeply the faith that you attempt to live out day by day. We believe that one of the ways God is manifested to us is through the Scriptures. When we prayerfully read the Scriptures, we open our minds and hearts to the Spirit of God. We can be both challenged and affirmed by the Word of God.

In the Gospels, Jesus commands man to deny himself and take up his cross. What does it mean to take up our own cross in our daily lives?

When we think about what our crosses are, we may assume that it could be some sort of physical or emotional burden that has been placed upon us. While these can add stress to our lives, the Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that Jesus has not given us a burden that is too heavy or impossible to bear (CCC 1615).

As we prepare to enter another Lenten season, it is good to remind ourselves that this is not only a time of penance but of conversion as well. That is why there is such a close connection between Lent and the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA). You know that RCIA is a process for those over the age of seven wishing to become Catholic. Some enter the RCIA process as unbaptized people, called catechumens. While others join the process having been baptized in another Christian denomination. We call them candidates.

The Church has celebrated the Eucharist since Jesus’ Resurrection, but it has not always looked the same. Originally, the small Christian communities gathered for the evening meal in one of its members’ houses. Prayers, hymns, and even readings from one of Paul’s letters were included as parts of the meal. Of course, most importantly, the host blessed and shared bread and wine as the body and blood of Christ. St. Paul discusses some of the issues that arise as a result of these early liturgical gatherings in chapter 11 of the First Letter to the Corinthians.

When two baptized people, one man and one woman, enter into marriage they bestow upon each other a Sacrament. For each of the other Sacraments the ordinary Minister is the Bishop, Priest, or Deacon. But in marriage the Bishop, Priest or Deacon is the Church’s witness of the Sacrament which the bride and groom bestow on each other.

Are we controlled by fear? Does it hold us back? Is it preventing us from living fully?

Life is a series of adventures and risks. It seems these days, that a great many people are living in fear. We are afraid of a virus which we do not understand. We are afraid because we have seen so many stories of people who got sick or died, some were even friends, family, fellow parishioners, colleagues, or neighbors. We are afraid to be around people wearing masks or vice versa, people who don’t wear face masks. We are afraid of criminals, the loss of property or violence.

Of the Church’s three Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, and Communion), Confirmation has undergone the most changes.

The Sacraments of Baptism and Eucharist existed in one form or another since the dawn of Christianity. Confirmation, however, has a more convoluted history. Originally, the Holy Spirit was conferred at Baptism with an anointing by the bishop following immersion. In the Eastern portion of Christianity, the post-baptismal rites were presided over by the priest who baptized; but, in the West, those rites were always reserved to the bishop.

Our senses are piqued in many ways at Mass: the sounds of the music and choir, the aroma of the incense, and the images depicted in paintings and stained glass windows. A prominent way that our sense of sight is awakened and helps draw us deeper into the liturgy and its seasons is through the different colors of vestments the priest and deacon wear.

Before the apparition, La Salette was an unknown hamlet lost in one of those giant crevices of the French Alps. Early on September 19, 1846, the two children climb the slopes of the Mount Sous-Les- Baisses, each urging four cows up the mountain. Contrary to their habits, the two children lied down on the grass and fell asleep. The September sun was relaxing and the sky was cloudless. The chattering brook highlighted the mountain stillness. These were quiet moments.

Baptism is the first sacrament a person may receive. It opens the door to the other sacraments and is normally followed by the sacraments of Confirmation and First Eucharist to complete one’s full initiation into the life of Christ within the Catholic Church. Baptism is so important that in danger of death, the Church allows laity to perform baptism with a simple rite pouring water and saying, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Nurses sometimes do this, but it must be done correctly and with the right intention.

When was the last time you thought about what was most important in your life? It will likely be no surprise that no matter what your state of life the Church strongly suggests that you make God your first priority. But what should be number 2, or number 3, etc.? So many good things compete for our attention. Parents, children, family, spouse, friends, ourselves, strangers in need.

If God is our first priority then what order would He have us place the others?