Posted on May 3, 2024 View all Pastor's Letter
Dear brothers and sisters in Jesus and Mary,
We have begun the month of May, the month of Mary, a month that we dedicate to exalting the virtues of our Mother. As Catholic Christians, we must have a great love for our lady because, as a mother, she constantly intercedes for us, her children. Saint John Bosco said, “Devotion and love for the Most Holy Mary is a protection and a powerful weapon against the snares of the devil,” so this month, let us pray with more intensity with the Holy Rosary and place all our prayers and intentions at the feet of the Mother. In this context, on the weekend of the 11th and 12th of this month, we will carry out the crowning of our Mother, and we will re-consecrate ourselves to her and her maternal protection.
On May 11, 32 children from the Religious Education program of our parish and 15 second-grade students from our school will receive their First Holy Communion. It is a unique celebration because the children are the church’s future and will receive Jesus for the first time in the Eucharist. I congratulate and thank the catechists Joseph and Sharon, and Oscar Bradley, from the Religious Education program; I also thank Catherine Nguyen, second-grade teacher who has prepared the children of our school; they have made an effort to educate them in the faith and show them the way to heaven. After children receive this sacrament, I invite all parents to continue educating them in the faith.
Changing context, I want to share some new projects with you. Some items for liturgical use are already too old and deteriorated and need to be changed; among these are the Eucharistic Adoration candles. Unfortunately, two of the six no longer work for that reason alone; four are still good, give very little light, and can no longer be repaired; they are in very poor condition. I want to buy something similar but buying six of those is too expensive because each one costs more than a thousand dollars. But everything can be done if we work together. We also need to change the humeral veil for Eucharistic Adoration, the humeral cloth, and the canopy for the Corpus Christi procession. If any of you would like to donate one of the candle holders and dedicate it in memory of a loved one, it would be a nice gesture because it would be destined to be next to Jesus in the Eucharist all the time. Don’t hesitate to contact the parish office or talk to me directly if you want to collaborate. God bless you for your generosity.
Finally, in May, a month dedicated to the Virgin Mary, I invite all of us to pray the rosary every day, asking for the intentions of our bishop, our diocese, and our parish, especially so that the Virgin Mary moves more our hearts and we commit ourselves to the evangelizing task. We need more volunteers who are committed to continuing with Jesus’ project.
Happy week for everybody
Fr. Alex
