Weekly Letter: May 19, 2024 Bulletin

Dear friends in Christ,

        On the Feast of Pentecost this weekend we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit as promised by Jesus and what has come to be known as the “birthday of the Church.” Gathered together in Jerusalem the followers of Jesus, who were of every race and tongue, soon discovered themselves to be “filled with the Holy Spirit.” It was a microcosm of what the Church would become: faithful believers in the saving work of Jesus Christ who are empowered by the Spirit to go and spread the Good News. That work continues today. We, too, come from different backgrounds and ways of life yet we are united by the Spirit of God to build up the Body of Christ in all we say and do.

    Pentecost is also the close of the 50 days of Easter. For the past 90 days – 40 days of Lent and now 50 days of Easter – we have walked with the Lord. Our journey started way back on Valentine’s Day with Ash Wednesday. From there we shouted “crucify him” on the way to the Garden of Gethsemane, we waited at the empty tomb, we rejoiced in the resurrection, and we witnessed his ascension. What a journey three months have been for us spiritually. I love how the rhythm of the Church’s liturgical seasons helps frame our lives. Now, emboldened by the Spirit at Pentecost, we resolve to go forth to live as intentional disciples to proclaim the Good News through lives of faith!

     I’ve got a handful of diverse items to share with you this week, a mishmash – all good! – of happenings in and around the parish. First, I’m pleased to announce that Monica D’Amico has joined our staff as our Coordinator of Marriage and Family Life. She’s no stranger to CtR, having been a parishioner here for many years, and she herself recently was married here this past January. In fact, that’s what got us thinking about her for the position. She has a professional background in counseling, and that will be invaluable to help us accompany our couples who seek to be married in the Church. She has already hit the ground running and is in touch with many of our couples who are already in the process of their preparation. We expect to celebrate more than 60 weddings here this year, and probably another 60 convalidations, too, of couples married civilly. In short, we have a robust marriage ministry and we’re excited to have Monica bring her pastoral gifts to serve our couples preparing for the sacrament, and life beyond the wedding day as members of the Church. She’ll also work with our Marriage Mentor couples and be a liaison with our Wedding Guild. Welcome, Monica!

     As we welcome Monica, we are preparing to say goodbye to Kathy Schwarzbach, our Business Manager of CtR Catholic School. Kathy has been a tremendous asset to our community in helping steer our school’s financial operations these past four years, and thanks in great part to her sound financial management, along with the support of parents and benefactors, our school operates in the black each year without a subsidy, one of the few schools of the Archdiocese that I know of to do so. She leaves a wonderful template to build upon, so thank you Kathy. With that said, we do have an opening for the School Business Manager, and I ask you to help us spread the word to qualified applicants. A background and experience in accounting or finance is a must, of course, and a complete job description can be found at www.ctrschool.com/workwithus.

     Speaking of the school, the year concludes next week with a Baccalaureate Mass for our 38 graduating 8th graders on Tuesday, May 21 at 6 p.m. We congratulate them and wish them all of God’s blessings as they move on to local Catholic and public high schools. Thursday, May 23, is the last day of school for all students, and they’ll join us for a final Mass at 9 a.m. that day. It was a great 10th anniversary year for us at CtR School, and while the students (and faculty, especially) are looking forward to their break, we’ve still got a handful of openings for new students beginning in the fall. I encourage all parents of school-age children (Pre-K through 8th grade) to take a tour of our facilities and discover the wonderful gift of a Catholic education for your children. Visit the school website at www.ctrschool.com for additional information and to learn how to apply.

     Reservations are now open for our 2024 parish pilgrimage to visit the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and so much more, in and around Mexico City, Sept. 29-Oct. 4. We’ve got a packed itinerary for the trip, with the highlight being Mass and a tour of the Basilica, the most visited Marian shrine in the world. Mexico City will be our home base for the entire six days, but we’ll also take day trips to visit churches and architectural sites in Teotihuacan, Tlaxcala, and Puebla.

     The cost is $1,999.00 per person and includes roundtrip airfare, a first-class hotel, two meals a day, daily sightseeing, bilingual guides, and tips to drivers and guides. As always, Moses Khano and the people of Inspirational Tours will take good care of everyone. See a brochure with all the details and reserve your spot (space is limited) at www.ctrcc.com/parish-pilgrimages.

    Lastly, I ask you to please pray for the priests of the Archdiocese next week who will be gathered in prayer and fraternity along with Cardinal DiNardo for our biennial Priests’ Convocation in Galveston, and know that you will be in our prayers, too. Please note there will be no daily Mass on Tuesday morning or Wednesday morning and evening next week, but our deacons will be leading Morning and/or Evening Prayer each day at the usual time.

Peace, Fr. Sean