Dear Friends,

Last weekend, I gave you my state of the parish address, reflecting on my past year as your Pastor and laying out my plans for our parish going forward. I pointed out how excited and blessed I am to be your pastor. I reminded myself, too, as I often do, how grateful I must always be to God and to the several people that God brought into my own life over the years. That now includes you! It is this sense of gratitude that always brings a bright smile to my face, if you are wondering!

However, I also realized that things have not always been so rosy in my first year here as your pastor. There were times I felt like I had totally failed and got on the verge of being discouraged until the grace of God always brought me back. When I was feeling this sentiment of failure, I was encouraged by the story of another priest who thought he had failed. I would like to share a modified version of this story as a part of my article today. Some of you may relate to this story or have even read it.

According to this story, the new pastor of a small town arrived at the Church encouraged and motivated to celebrate an evening Mass, but as hours passed, no one came. After a long time, three little children entered; 20 minutes after that, two young people entered. So, the priest decided to start the Mass with the five people. Over the course of Mass, a couple came in who sat on the last benches of the church. When the priest preached and explained the Gospel, another half-dirty person came in with a rope in his hand. Disappointed and not understanding the cause of the weak involvement of the faithful, the priest nevertheless celebrated Mass with love and preached with enthusiasm and zeal.

On his way back home, he was robbed and beaten by two thieves who carried his folder where his Bible and other valued belongings were. Arriving at his rectory and bandaging his wounds, he described that day as: “The saddest day of my life, a failure of my ministry, and the most unfruitful day of my career; but... never mind, I do everything with God and for Him”.

After five years, the priest decided to share this story with parishioners at church. When he was finished telling the story, a couple in that parish stopped him and said, "Father, the couple in the story that sat at the back was us. We were on the brink of separation because of several problems and disagreements in our home. That night, we finally decided to divorce, but first, we decided to come to church one last time as a couple, and then each one would follow their path. However, we left the thought of divorce aside after listening to your homily that same night. As a result of your homily, today we are here with our home and family restored."

As the couple spoke, one of the most successful entrepreneurs who helped in the livelihood of that church raised his hand, asking to speak, and when given the opportunity, he said, "Father, I am the person who came in half dirty with a rope in my hand. I was on the verge of bankruptcy, lost in drugs, and my wife and my kids had left home on account of my behavior. That night, I tried to kill myself, but the rope broke, so I went out to buy another one. When I got on my way, I saw the church open; I decided to come in even though I was so dirty and had a rope in my hand. That night, your homily pierced my heart, and I walked out of here a changed person. Today, I'm off the drugs, my family came home, and I became the most successful businessman in the town."

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