In addition to “transitional deacons” who are in formation for the priesthood, the Catholic Church provides an     opportunity for men to serve as Permanent Deacons.  Those men who are called to the Permanent Deaconate can be married, and they are ordained usually after a period of five years of training and formation.  Many permanent deacons have secular jobs to support their families, and strive to balance family, Church, work and other responsibilities.

Deacons can: Preside at baptisms and marriages. (Read more…)

This Sunday begins National Vocation Awareness Week here in the United States.  It is an opportunity to remind ourselves of the need to pray for vocations to the priesthood, religious life and married life.  People do not just decide to become priests or religious, it is the result of feeling drawn to the life and the work.  It is born from a growing faith and love of Christ and the Church and the conviction that service to the Church through this vocation will not only bring joy but also better the lives of others who are drawn to Christ. (Read more…)

Today as we celebrate World Priest Day, we honor the men who have dedicated their lives to Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church through the Sacrament of Holy Orders.  Let me then, today take a few moments and reflect on the priesthood.

Sacramentally there are three key things that only priests can do.  Hear confessions and give absolution.  Anoint the sick.  And most importantly: consecrate the Eucharist.

When you consider those three sacraments, they offer a powerful testament to the meaning of the priesthood.  (Read more…)

From the Pastor’s Desk

Catholics throughout the world are invited to recommit themselves to the Church’s missionary activity through prayer and sacrifice by observing World Mission Sunday on October 18th.  Instituted for the whole Church by Pope Pius XI in 1926, it is traditionally celebrated on the next-to-last Sunday each October.

Today, let us join our brothers and sisters around the world who gather at the Lord’s Table to celebrate, with great joy, our common vocation as missionaries.  (Read more…)

From the Pastor’s Desk

Our parish volunteers consist of dedicated lay men and women who do so much for our parish and our parishioners.

Pope Francis clearly appreciates those who work in some capacity for the Church.  Our Holy Father said, “The mission of the Church in the world proceeds through the contribution of those who are part of it.”  He also commented that “some think that there are only priests, the bosses, and then there are workers.  (Read more…)

Sunday, October 4th, we celebrate Respect Life Sunday.  As Catholics, we are encouraged to promote the dignity of all human life from conception until natural death.  We are called to promote the Gospel of Life, and protect and cherish the lives of the elderly, the physically and mentally challenged, and the unborn.  We should never forget that God is the Creator of all life, and all life is precious in His sight.

Pope Francis strongly criticized a “throwaway culture” that places too little value on human life. (Read more…)