My greeting certainly goes out to everyone who comes here all the time, but I also want to address you folks who are here for the first time or who haven’t been here in a while. Merry Christmas and Welcome to our parish! You may have received this bulletin either at the Cathedral or St. Moses parish; we are clustered together, and I am pastor of both. Regardless of the building in which you attended Christmas Mass, let me make it perfectly clear: “We are so happy that you came to be with us and we really, really want you to keep joining us!” In other words, we want our parish to be YOUR parish.
I hear again and again from people who come to celebrate with us how much they love it. They love the music (it is unique and glorious at both parishes in our cluster); they love the liturgies (people express how uplifted and connected to the Lord they feel after attending) — they express the gratitude they feel from all of the hospitality they experience, and they feel fulfilled because they are happier than they were before.
I want you to feel the joy of what it means to be fulfilled as well. So, if your life is crazy busy, we get it. If you feel guilty because of some of the stuff going on in your life or stuff from the past, I say, “Who cares? We all need healing.” If you are not sure you really believe all this stuff, I say, “Hey, we all have doubts sometimes, but this is a great place to find beautiful, hope-filled, freedom-giving answers.”
Let me say this again: we want our parish to be YOUR parish. Not because you bring a wallet or manpower, but because Jesus loves you and you can experience what that means here. Come back to us because you are beloved child of God. Your prayers and presence are needed. You are a part of the Body of Christ. Come back despite the fact that we are a group of sinners and won’t always get it right. Come back because you will be better off, and so will we!
God Bless,
Fr. J.J. Mech