Posted on September 1, 2022 View all Pastor's Letter
Dear parishioners,
This Sunday the gospel places us on the theme of the salvation of souls. This is the core of Christ’s message and the “supreme law of the Church”. The salvation of the soul is a reality, it is a gift from God, but for those of us who have not yet crossed the borders of death, it is only a possibility. Save us or damn us! That is, accept or reject God’s offer of love for all eternity.
In this life there are only two possibilities: either with God, or nothing, because without God nothing makes sense. Seen this way, life, death, joy, pain, love, etc. they are concepts devoid of logic when they do not participate in the being of God. When man sins, he avoids God’s gaze and focuses it on himself. God looks incessantly with love at the sinner, and in order not to force his freedom, he waits for a minimum gesture of will to return. We are free to turn our soul’s gaze to the Savior, and we are also free to persist in rejecting Him. Death will terminate that option for all eternity, in other words; either God or nothing; everyone decides.
Last week the school teachers began to prepare to receive the children, they have had a week of work in the classrooms, with the excitement that they will soon begin with this new challenge: to educate our children. We welcome them and pray for them to have a very blessed year. We also welcome the children who start classes next Wednesday, and we will once again hear their enthusiasm and their games in the school corridors, as well as in the parish parking lot. This year we have 210 children, 170 students receiving face-to-face classes and 40 in virtual clases. We believe that the school will exceed that number because there are still several applications that have not been processed. Welcome everyone and we all wish you a year full of blessings. At the same time, I thank those parishioners who have generously donated scholarships so that underprivileged students can have a quality education at our school. God bless you for your kind generosity.
I also want to let you know that Mrs. Michelle Jacobeen has resigned from her position as music director for our parish. We appreciate her years of service in this precious ministry, she has left a mark and I am sure that many have learned from her experience in this area. We wish you the best in your future and we will keep you in our prayers. I hope to hire her replacement very soon, in the coming weeks I will inform you how the progress is going, I ask for your prayers.
Finally, I thank all those volunteers who have made the success of the festival possible. We made a great team, shepherd and sheep working together, this should encourage us to move forward. In particular, I not only see the economic gain of an activity, but also the spiritual gain that it brings us; because we have all won, we are more friends, we know each other better, we have shared as a family and we have proven that as a parish we are capable of doing and going as far as we want. I also thank many of you who sponsored the festival with your companies, may God multiply your donations.
Thank you for your effort and for supporting me as your pastor, thank you to everyone who gave a little of themselves to make this second festival a success. Let’s hope that the next one will be much better. Remember when we are united we are stronger. May the Queen of Apostles continue to guide and bless us and lead us out into the deep, as Jesus tells us in His gospel.
God bless you.
Fr. Alex
