The Bishop’s Note
Spring officially begins this week, but the Good God doesn’t need to wait for official dates to send us whatever kind of weather He chooses. It has been a most beautiful week of sunshine and warm days. Fr. McKenna even has a pretty little purple flower growing outside his office window. Bishop Dolan would have told you what the flower is called and said something very poetic about it. Being from a long line of German descendants who were gardeners and farmers I should probably know what the thing is called, but for the life of me I have no idea. I just know that it is beautiful, a little remnant of the original paradise and a reminder of God’s goodness.
Last week’s Catholic Mothers’ Consortium was perhaps the most well attended yet. Everyone seemed to have a good time. Consortium is the Latin word for “fellowship, union, community.” Our Catholic mothers have a very busy life in the home. It is a behind-the-scenes sort of life which comes with many a joy and many a cross which only God and the angels and saints will know about. It is good for these ladies to have other mothers to go to for friendship, to discuss ideas over a nice meal. The Mothers’ Consortium began only a few months ago. The ladies begin the evening with a Mass offered for them, then sit down for a nice potluck supper and friendly chat with one another. It is really encouraging to see them having such a good time! A spiritual talk is given towards the end of the meal, and sometimes one of the other ladies will also give a talk on some topic useful to mothers and the family, while at other times they work together on an edifying project.
Altar Server Day was just yesterday. Fathers Simpson and Brueggemann came up with a few good talking points for the servers. Somehow we overlooked something in the schedule and sent Fr. Simpson on the missions instead of keeping him here for the Servers’ Day as we meant to do. Even Fr. Brueggemann had to leave early to go to missions. Richie started this event many years ago and it became very popular with the young men. Each of the MCs give a talk on certain rubrics that need to be corrected, then they run a practice on certain ceremonies, the priests give a talk and then there are some fun games that they play…all somehow are connected with serving and the liturgy. Oh! and of course pizza is had for lunch. We are all very proud of our young serving crew.
This week we have several feast days worth a special mention. St. Patrick’s Day is on Monday and St. Joseph’s on Wednesday, both of them celebrated with a Solemn High Mass. Don’t forget St. Isidore the Farmer on Saturday. He got left out of the calendar this year, but we mustn’t forget him! St. Isidore’s feast day is not on the Universal Calendar, but is honored on March 22nd in the United States. The National Catholic Rural Life Conference, established in the 1920s by Archbp. Edwin O’Hara, requested that St. Isidore be made their patron. Pope Pius XII allowed this and then gave permission for a more solemn celebration of the saint’s feast day here in America. Interesting history!
May St. Alphonsus grant you the grace of perseverance this Lent!
– Bishop McGuire