My Dear Parish Family,
We are now in Holy Week, a time when we draw closer to our Lord Jesus in His Passion and Death. Because the world is suffering the COVID-19 pandemic, this year God has chosen to give everyone, to give us, an opportunity to experience our Lord’s suffering in an even deeper way.
In this time of great distress and uncertainty, there is so much I want and need to tell you, my dear friends in Christ. For this Blog entry, I want to primarily let you know what I, my brother priests, and our dedicated parish staff are doing to serve you under these most unbelievable circumstances. For more than three weeks, we have been scrambling and working very hard entirely changing the way we carry out our ministry.
What We Do is Supposed be In Person
Up until the stay at home order, all we have done to serve you has been done face to face. Being in-person is how a family best serves one another, how parents best serve and love their children for example.
Just a few months ago, in December, we celebrated the mystery of the Incarnation. God became a human person to have a personal, human relationship with each one of us. He became, one like us in all things except sin, so we can hear Him, touch Him, and, yes, see Him! Our loving God also created the gift of the human family, the gift of friendship, and the gift of fellowship so we can have personal relationship with one another. Because we are made in the image and likeness of God, the Most Holy Trinity, a communion of 3 Divine Person, we are made for and have irreplaceable need of in-person relationships, to be in communion with God and one another. The Church and parish, which is the Church in local a community, is supremely personal – that unique, sacred place where we have this personal encounter, personal relationship, first, with God in the person of our Lord Jesus in the Sacraments, especially the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, and, in Christ, a personal relationship with one another. So, there is a great suffering for both you and for us in this forced separation from the Jesus in the Sacraments and from one another.
However, given the extraordinary circumstances, we needed to do what we could, to do “our part” out of Christian charity, to slow the spread of the virus. Our Bishop Cotta decided to suspend all public Masses and then in compliance with the “stay at home” order of the Governor of California and the directives of local government health officials to even close access to the church building.
Like many of you, I am very frustrated and, I must admit, even angry, we cannot serve you in person. The stay-at-home, which we have been under for almost 3 weeks now, severely limits what we can presently do to fulfill the mission our God has entrust to us as a parish. I know you are frustrated and saddened.
After spending time in prayer, offering my frustrations to our Lord, and commiserating with my brother priests, I have come to see that one of the many good things God is doing in all this suffering is to help us better recognize the reality and primacy of the spiritual life. Our Loving Father wants to show us more clearly the vision of our call as His children who share in His Divine life for which Jesus suffered and died. I firmly believe the Good Lord is using this present evil to help us focus more on the only the life that matters, that is Eternal Life, and to live this life of infinite Love of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit more fervently, more abundantly, here and now in our earthy pilgrimage.
So, by the gift of Faith, we know there is a life, a real life above and beyond what we are experience in our senses. The spiritual life, into which we have been reborn through our Baptism, transcends the limits of the physical world. This means although we are not physically together, not able to be with each other in person, we still are, by power of the Holy Spirit, bound together. We are united with the suffering Lord Jesus and joined as one in His Mystical Body of Christ, the Holy Catholic Church. Because of this spiritual reality, I urge you to remember that each of your homes (your families) are what St Pope John II called a “domestic Church” that is united to the parish and united to whole the universal Church.
With God’s Grace We Still are Fulfilling Our Mission
Together, even in these most trying and difficult circumstances, we still can do what God is asking of us as a parish, the duty to Sanctify, to Teach, and to Govern, although we now are asked to do it in a very different way.
If we approach our present trial with humility, trust, and submission to God Holy will, we can continue to grow in virtue & holiness. We can if we use this unique opportunity, we will come to see God more clearly in our worship and in our love for one another.
I am so thankful to all of you
I am grateful to our Associate Pastors, Fr. Sekar and Fr. Michael and our entire parish Staff. They have done a wonderful job adapting to the present restrictions, having to completely change in this very short time the way we carry out what God is asking of us. I also thank our parish stewards and lay-leaders of our many ministries for keeping in contact and checking in on the members of your various ministries. I want to sincerely thank each of you, my dear parishioners, for your perseverance in our Faith and trust in God. I thank you for praying in your homes with your families including participating in our livestream Masses and devotions. I am grateful you are spending more time together as a family. I also greatly appreciate you checking in on one another. Finally, I want to express my gratitude for your continued generous financial support by sending your weekly gifts to parish.
Through the intercession of the Blessed Mother, may the Good Lord continue to bless and protect you. We pray by offering our suffering to the Father in union Jesus’ passion and death, He will grant us the grace to grow in love of our Lord Jesus and one another.
My Dear Parish Family,
We are now in Holy Week, a time when we draw closer to our Lord Jesus in His Passion and Death. Because the world is suffering the COVID-19 pandemic, this year God has chosen to give everyone, to give us, an opportunity to experience our Lord’s suffering in an even deeper way.
In this time of great distress and uncertainty, there is so much I want and need to tell you, my dear friends in Christ. For this Blog entry, I want to primarily let you know what I, my brother priests, and our dedicated parish staff are doing to serve you under these most unbelievable circumstances. For more than three weeks, we have been scrambling and working very hard entirely changing the way we carry out our ministry.
What We Do is Supposed be In Person
Up until the stay at home order, all we have done to serve you has been done face to face. Being in-person is how a family best serves one another, how parents best serve and love their children for example.
Just a few months ago, in December, we celebrated the mystery of the Incarnation. God became a human person to have a personal, human relationship with each one of us. He became, one like us in all things except sin, so we can hear Him, touch Him, and, yes, see Him! Our loving God also created the gift of the human family, the gift of friendship, and the gift of fellowship so we can have personal relationship with one another. Because we are made in the image and likeness of God, the Most Holy Trinity, a communion of 3 Divine Person, we are made for and have irreplaceable need of in-person relationships, to be in communion with God and one another. The Church and parish, which is the Church in local a community, is supremely personal – that unique, sacred place where we have this personal encounter, personal relationship, first, with God in the person of our Lord Jesus in the Sacraments, especially the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, and, in Christ, a personal relationship with one another. So, there is a great suffering for both you and for us in this forced separation from the Jesus in the Sacraments and from one another.
However, given the extraordinary circumstances, we needed to do what we could, to do “our part” out of Christian charity, to slow the spread of the virus. Our Bishop Cotta decided to suspend all public Masses and then in compliance with the “stay at home” order of the Governor of California and the directives of local government health officials to even close access to the church building.
Like many of you, I am very frustrated and, I must admit, even angry, we cannot serve you in person. The stay-at-home, which we have been under for almost 3 weeks now, severely limits what we can presently do to fulfill the mission our God has entrust to us as a parish. I know you are frustrated and saddened.
After spending time in prayer, offering my frustrations to our Lord, and commiserating with my brother priests, I have come to see that one of the many good things God is doing in all this suffering is to help us better recognize the reality and primacy of the spiritual life. Our Loving Father wants to show us more clearly the vision of our call as His children who share in His Divine life for which Jesus suffered and died. I firmly believe the Good Lord is using this present evil to help us focus more on the only the life that matters, that is Eternal Life, and to live this life of infinite Love of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit more fervently, more abundantly, here and now in our earthy pilgrimage.
So, by the gift of Faith, we know there is a life, a real life above and beyond what we are experience in our senses. The spiritual life, into which we have been reborn through our Baptism, transcends the limits of the physical world. This means although we are not physically together, not able to be with each other in person, we still are, by power of the Holy Spirit, bound together. We are united with the suffering Lord Jesus and joined as one in His Mystical Body of Christ, the Holy Catholic Church. Because of this spiritual reality, I urge you to remember that each of your homes (your families) are what St Pope John II called a “domestic Church” that is united to the parish and united to whole the universal Church.
With God’s Grace We Still are Fulfilling Our Mission
Together, even in these most trying and difficult circumstances, we still can do what God is asking of us as a parish, the duty to Sanctify, to Teach, and to Govern, although we now are asked to do it in a very different way.
- To Sanctify – Of course, we are still celebrating the Mass, in which you can participate by livestream. Although you are not here in-person, the unique and sanctifying graces flow from the altar to all our parishioners, to each of you in your homes and hearts. Even for our parishioners who are not able to participate (we have many who are not connected to us even by these means), they too are receiving the graces.
- To Teach - Our Religious Education Department is continuing to fulfill our parish mission to form our adults, confirmation students, and younger children in catechism in the gift of their Faith, helping them to grow in a deeper relationship with Jesus through religious instruction. We are trying our best to make high quality, solid, and instructive videos as quickly as possible. The videos we have done so far are currently available for everyone to view at on our “stjmod” YouTube Channel.
- To Govern – We are being good stewards of what you have already given and encourage you to continue your financial support of our parish. We humbly ask you if possible, understanding we are now in uncertain times, to continue to make your weekly contributions either electronically or by mail so we can maintain our dedicated staff and facilities.
If we approach our present trial with humility, trust, and submission to God Holy will, we can continue to grow in virtue & holiness. We can if we use this unique opportunity, we will come to see God more clearly in our worship and in our love for one another.
I am so thankful to all of you
I am grateful to our Associate Pastors, Fr. Sekar and Fr. Michael and our entire parish Staff. They have done a wonderful job adapting to the present restrictions, having to completely change in this very short time the way we carry out what God is asking of us. I also thank our parish stewards and lay-leaders of our many ministries for keeping in contact and checking in on the members of your various ministries. I want to sincerely thank each of you, my dear parishioners, for your perseverance in our Faith and trust in God. I thank you for praying in your homes with your families including participating in our livestream Masses and devotions. I am grateful you are spending more time together as a family. I also greatly appreciate you checking in on one another. Finally, I want to express my gratitude for your continued generous financial support by sending your weekly gifts to parish.
Through the intercession of the Blessed Mother, may the Good Lord continue to bless and protect you. We pray by offering our suffering to the Father in union Jesus’ passion and death, He will grant us the grace to grow in love of our Lord Jesus and one another.
RSS Feed
