Bulletin Column for Sept. 10

Dear friends in Christ,

In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey and the devastating flood waters that followed, we look to our God for comfort and peace. We also look to Him for direction as we move forward. Our New Testament reading from Mass this Sunday gives us a perfect sense of that direction. It comes from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans: “Owe nothing to anyone, except to love another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. ... The commandments are summed up in this saying, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”

We have seen that love of neighbor played out in countless ways in our community and our city throughout the past two weeks, and we will undoubtedly see more of it in the weeks and months ahead. Love of neighbor is not always easy, especially after the immediate impact of a traumatic experience has begun to fade. Let us resolve to keep that commandment always in the forefront of our hearts and minds in all we say and do.

I’m going to recommend that we not use the phrase “now that things have returned to normal.” While the familiarity of our daily routines may be returning for many of us, it is important to remember that “normal” is a long way off for countless others in our community. We won’t soon return to the way of life as it was before the flood, and we should be mindful of those who are still processing the magnitude of their loss. They are experiencing a “new normal” and it is not easy. We can best help them by pitching in and assisting them in whatever way they need.

Our CtR Community Clean-up Response (CCR) will continue for the foreseeable future, but like most efforts in our city, it is in a state of transition. The immediate demand for help with demolition and cleaning has begun to abate, but new needs are continually coming in. Our Command Center is still taking requests for help, both through our website and our dedicated phone number (832-678-6555), and we pledged to respond to the extent we are able now and in the coming weeks. If you or someone you know in the vicinity of our parish needs help, please let us know. We are also partnering with our churches and community organizations throughout the city to help others in their vicinity. We don’t have hard and fast boundaries, but in many cases we can connect those in need with a group that is in close proximity so as to expedite their recovery.

One caveat to all this: I am writing this bulletin letter to you early in the week (Tuesday), so chances are that by the time you read it on Sunday, some of the details of our response effort may have changed or shifted. I apologize for that in advance but please understand we are in a fluid situation. We do have staff and volunteers who are monitoring the situation daily and responding as needed and that will continue for the next several weeks.

That’s also important to remember regarding the schedule of parish events and meetings as listed on page 3 of the bulletin. We have tried to keep it updated, but there may be a few instances where a meeting has shifted or been canceled due to the ministry members having other priorities at this time. Our Parish Library (Room 113) in the Office Building and the Community Center have been overtaken for our CCR operations so any ministries that had scheduled meetings in either of those two places will be relocated. Please be patient as we make adjustments as necessary. Our website has up-to-date information.

There are countless stories from our CCR effort and I hope we can share a good number of them with you in the coming weeks. Let me tell you just one that warmed my heart. I ran into a young woman in the Community Center on Monday (Labor Day) of this past week. She was, like most of our demolition and clean-up team members, sweaty and covered in dust and dirt, but she had a great big smile. Thanking her for her service, but not recognizing her face, I asked her what her connection was with CtR.

Turns out she is Elizabeth Kenney, a PhD candidate in Speech Pathology from the University of Florida, who just moved here a month ago for an internship with Cy-Fair ISD. When the call for volunteers went out, she jumped into service and was connected with Hugo Pena’s team. Their team of eight to 10 people knocked out job after job at flooded homes over the course of several days. Think about it in these terms: in the course of a month, Elizabeth moved to a big city, joined a parish and got involved by giving back to strangers. That is Stewardship, my friends. That’s is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Thank you, Elizabeth, and everyone who – whether you just joined CtR or are a long-time member like Hugo – gave of yourself to help your community help others in need. That’s living our Catholic faith in word and action, and it is a beautiful thing to see!

Thank you as well to all who gave so generously in last week’s second collection for the national Hurricane Relief collection, and those who gave equally generously to our local collection for our outreach at CtR. We are still processing all donations and we will continue to accept them in the coming weeks. We will have more to report soon. The national collection will go to Catholic Charities to help people in the Dioceses of Corpus Christi, Victoria and Beaumont, as well as in our own Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. For donations made directly to CtR, we will work with local groups to get help in the hands of those that need it. As you might imagine, the details are still being worked out, and I pledge to keep you abreast. Rest assured, if you gave it to go to help those in need we will make sure that it goes for exactly that purpose.

I will have more information to share next week. Let us continue to “ora et labora” – pray and work – for all in our community, in Houston, and throughout southeast Texas. May God bless the work of our hands!

Peace,
Fr. Sean