Dear Parish Family:
Jesus is risen Alleluia, Alleluia.
Today we celebrate the Feast of Divine Mercy. Jesus requested that a Feast of Divine Mercy be established in the Church on the Sunday after Easter. He has made a great promise to any soul that would turn to Him by going to Confession and then receiving Holy Communion on that feast-day. He said, “Whoever approaches the fountain of life on this day will be granted the complete forgiveness of sins and punishment”. The Church allows for one to go to Confession for up to about 20 days, before or after Divine Mercy Sunday. Saint Pope John Paul II wrote his last and final statement to express to the world the great importance and the urgency to understand and accept Our Lord’s incredible gift of Divine Mercy. He said to all the people of the world:
"As a gift to humanity, which sometimes seems bewildered and overwhelmed by the power of evil, selfishness, and fear, the Risen Lord offers His love that pardons, reconciles, and reopens hearts to love. It is love that converts hearts and gives peace.”
I want to again thank all those who made Holy Thursday, Good Friday, the Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday services so wonderful. Special thanks for the Knights of Columbus, the sacristans, the deacons, our wonderful choirs, our altar servers, ushers, eucharistic ministers, lectors, and other ministries for all the time and hard work you put into this Holiday. Special thanks to the ladies from OLPH and St. Agnes for the beautiful decoration in our churches.
Next week we will publish our financial statement from the last two fiscal years. You will see that our financial situation is not good. We are pursuing the sales of real estate, and we have worked to reduce expenses and find creative ways to keep our costs down. Unfortunately, our weekly collections continue to decline as you can see reported every week in the bulletin, and I ask for your help and consideration to increase your weekly contributions at the Masses as your means allow.
On a positive note, we are doing well with the Annual Catholic Appeal. As of today, we have achieved 37% of our goal:
- Goal: $67,000.00
- Raised to date: $25,403.00
- % of Goal: 37% (111 Donors)
- Cash Received: $21,726.20
Thank you to those who have already donated to the Appeal. I would respectfully ask all parishioners to contribute as much as you are able to this important fund raiser. The funds from the appeal this year will go towards training for seminarians, youth programs and religious education, and other programs that serve thousands throughout our diocese. If we achieve our goal, the appeal will return much needed dollars to our parish as well.
It is wonderful to see our parish continue to grow in closeness and unity. I feel it more every day. We have new families joining our parish on a weekly basis. Please consider offering your talents to our church by joining one of our volunteer organizations.
Sincerely Yours in Christ,
Rev. Fernando A. Lopez, Pastor