From the Pastor:
The priests of our diocese will be away four days this week in Huron, Ohio for convocation with Bishop Thomas. This gathering occurs every other year and its purpose is for us priests to study and reflect together on the topics presented by various people, including notable bishops and priests from other dioceses. We also take time each day to pray together (morning, midday, evening) and the schedule also allows for some much needed rest. Please keep us priests in your prayers and we will do the same for you!
Since all three of us priests will be away most of this week, there will be only a few weekday Mass options in our three parishes. Please see the bulletins for details. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament will occur as normal thanks to the generosity of Deacons Al and John. As always, you are encouraged to visit Jesus at one of our parishes, taking time for prayer anytime during the day or early evening.
Not long after we return from convocation, Fr. Kevin will make his final preparations to move to Toledo to begin his new assignment serving three parishes and a large Catholic high school. He will be living with the Bishop and three other priests in the Episcopal Residence at the Cathedral. If I need to expedite a message directly to the Bishop, I’m simply going to call Fr. Kevin! He will see the Bishop nearly every day, having breakfast and dinner with him!
As Fr. Kevin moves out of the rectory, Fr. Evarist (pronounced: Ev-ER-ist) will be moving into his new living space with Fr. Kishore and me. We are all different in various ways, yet the same in other ways. We come from different parts of the world, have different experiences growing up, and attended different seminaries, yet it is God, who is One, who unites us all into being one through the teachings and commandments given to us through the Church.
On a different topic, happy Father’s Day to all the fathers in our parishes! This is a day to thank our fathers for being fathers. We are grateful for the love and concern they have shown us in their words, and even more importantly, in their deeds. We need to thank them especially for the times when they modeled our Heavenly Father’s love for us by imitating the sacrificial love of Jesus. We need to encourage fathers not to follow the ways of the world and to do what is right no matter the cost.
Being a father is both a great privilege and a tremendous responsibility. God relies on parents to form His/their children into strong, caring, Godly people. Studies have shown that fathers have a critical role in shaping what the adult lives of their children will be like. The most important role a father has is to help his children know, love, and serve the Lord (as the old Catechism clearly stated). So, dads, never grow weary of loving your children and doing what is right for them. Look to St. Joseph for guidance and ask him to intercede for you.
In His goodness,
Fr. Miller