Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
During this Easter season, my prayer has been one of remembering with gratitude the many blessings received during Lent and Holy Week. I am grateful for all the liturgical minsters, music ministries, our clergy and staff as well as all who helped with the Soup and Stations, our English and Spanish Lenten mission experiences, our morning of enrichment, all the celebrations of Holy Week and Easter. Countless people spent hours and hours preparing such inspiring celebrations for us. Please know of my deep gratitude.
I am also grateful to all who invited a friend, family member or neighbor to our celebrations. I had the privilege of meeting many newcomers as well as a few that had been away from our parish, and I was edified by the desire of a good number who plan to continue to join us each week at Mass.
I was touched by the number of children and youth that attended the Holy Week services. Seeing some of the kids falling asleep on the floor of Knight Hall on Holy Thursday during adoration reminded me of the Lord’s injunction, “Let the children come to me” and I imagine he was delighted that they were in His presence. By the way, I don’t notice any noise from the kids at Mass, so always bring your children to Mass! You are all very good at taking your children outside or walking them in the back if they get fussy. I would much rather have a church filled with children than a parish that is not showing signs of new life!
Our Easter season continues through Pentecost (May 19th), and I pray that the Lord continues to fill you with Easter joy.
In Christ,
Bishop Tim Freyer