Dear Friends,

Three weeks ago, I announced in this column that Bishop Dolan has asked me to step down as Parochial Administrator (aka, Pastor) of OMLC. In that regard, “thank you” to all who have expressed your gratitude for the service I have been able to offer you over these past months.

Dear Friends,

We have two very special Lenten events coming up this week that I hope you will put into your calendars. On Wednesday, Dcn. Dennis Lambert, an author and Deacon of our Diocese, will come to speak to us about the Real Presence of the Eucharist. For Catholics, the belief that Jesus Christ is truly present in the Holy, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity is (or should be) a given. This doctrine, above all others, is the bedrock of our Catholic Faith.

Dear Friends,

Three weeks ago, we hosted an exposition depicting some of the great Eucharistic miracles that have occurred throughout the centuries. While the circumstances of every miracle were different, in each case the events had the effect of reminding people anew that Jesus, the Son of God, is truly present in the Holy Eucharist.

It can be so easy for us to grow inattentive or even indifferent to this startling reality. After all, the species still has the appearance of ordinary wheat bread and grape wine even though it really is the Body and Blood of Christ. If we lose sight of this fundamental truth or it no longer moves us, then we are in danger of questioning everything else the Church teaches. The Fathers of the Church described this phenomena with the Latin term, Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi—the way we pray and worship will shape what we believe.

Dear Friends,

It has been two years since Bishop Olmsted asked me to serve at Our Lady of Mt Carmel as interim pastor. Our original agreement was for me to serve for one year after Fr John’s departure until a permanent pastor could be appointed. But it seems the Lord had other plans.

As many of you by now have heard me recount, shortly after my arrival the Lord, in many ways, made it clear that He wanted an Adoration Chapel for the parish. Following that prompting, which was confirmed at each step, and in consultation with Bishop Olmsted, I agreed to continue to serve for as long as it would take to complete the chapel.

Dear Friends,

If you have been a Catholic for a while, you have lived through many Lents. For most of us, the success rate is a mixed bag. Some Lents have been very fruitful and have prepared us for a joyful Easter; others, less so. Many of us are stuck in a pattern of doing the same things every Lent, even if they don’t have a very deep impact on us. Father Mike Schmitz, the popular priest from Minnesota was recently interviewed to get some tips on how best to approach Lent. Below are the questions and his answers.

Dear Friends,

Lent begins this Wednesday with the imposition of ashes, which throughout the Bible symbolize mourning, mortality and penance. In the early Church, repentant sinners who were required to do public penance had ashes sprinkled on their heads before leaving confession. In the Middle Ages (at least by the time of the eighth century), those who were about to die were laid on the ground on top of sackcloth sprinkled with ashes. The priest would bless the dying person with holy water, saying, “Remember that thou art dust and to dust thou shalt return.” After the sprinkling, the priest asked, “Art thou content with sackcloth and ashes in testimony of thy penance before the Lord in the day of judgment?” To which the dying person replied, “I am content.”

Dear Friends,

The primary role of the pastor is to foster an environment where the flock can encounter the Lord in the reverent celebration of the sacraments and to foster unity in the community. But because he wears many hats, with the counsel of qualified advisors, he must see to it that the temporal goods of the parish are carefully and wisely stewarded.

I think it is important for the community to have a basic understanding of the financial condition of the parish. Below is a summary of the income and expenses for the first 6 months of the fiscal year. Because of your generous tithes and donations, we are able to stay on budget as we carry out our mission.

Dear Friends,

The Bishop’s annual Charity and Development Appeal (CDA) campaign begins this week. If you are new to the Church, each year the Bishop seeks to raise funds that will support many of the charitable outreaches of the Diocese, provide assistance to schools and parishes in very poor circumstances and train seminarians for the priesthood. For a number of years, I was part of the CDA Allocations Committee, which assigns CDA funds to organizations seeking grants. From that experience, I can assure you that each and every dollar raised is used to support over 70 ministries and charitable organizations such as St. Vincent de Paul, Catholic Charities, Maggie’s Place, Aid to Women’s Center, First Way, the Nazareth House (our seminarian formation center), outreach to the elderly and our schools on the Indian Reservations. Your generous donation makes it possible for these groups to continue their spiritual and corporal works of charity.

Dear OLMC Community,

This week is Catholic Schools Week- a week where we celebrate Catholic schools, specifically, Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and all the wonderful things they do. OLMC has always been a special place of faith, community and strong academics, preparing our students for their future. OLMC recognizes parents as the primary educators of their children. Parents develop their children's attitudes, values, and moral integrity. The role of Our Lady of Mount Carmel School is to provide a Catholic Christian environment that nurtures and develops the soul, mind, and body of each child. Within this environment, religious traditions are celebrated, intellectual skills and critical thinking are developed, and students are prepared to live in and become vital contributors to a changing society. OLMC recognizes and appreciates each individual's significance as a member of a family, parish, and community. With love, respect, and support, every child learns and grows. Our students learn how to live their faith and in that process, they are developing a deeper relationship with Jesus and learning to prepare for Heaven.

Dear OLMC Community,

Upon the Lord’s invitation, on Oct 28, 2016, the Sisters of the Servants of the Plan of God began serving at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel. We were warmly and lovingly welcomed to this parish.

Some of you might still recall the welcoming party at the airport; the children with their signs and flowers, joined by numerous parishioners and staff. Many of you helped in the preparation of our convent, providing the furniture, furnishings and décor and even the garden. It made us all feel very welcome.

Dear Friends,

Fr Robert will be having back surgery on Tuesday morning followed by several weeks of recovery. Please pray that the surgery and the recovery period go very well.

For the past few weeks we have been promoting the Viri Virtutes formation program for young men. Working in collaboration with two other men, we developed the course in the Fall of 2020 and first presented it in the Spring of 2021. We offered it again this past Spring and are now preparing to do it for a third time starting in a couple of weeks.

The following is taken from Benedict XVI — Priest, Prefect, Pope, Rest in Peace,  by Edward Petin.

Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI died at the age of 95 on Dec 31.  After lying in state and views by hundreds of thousands, he was buried on Jan 5.

Benedict’s pontificate — which began with his election in April of 2005, succeeding Pope St. John Paul II, and ended with his almost unprecedented resignation in February of 2013 --  was peppered by a series of trials, including the clerical sex-abuse crisis, the leaking of confidential papal documents, a Muslim backlash and communication mishaps. At the same time, these years marked a period of liturgical restoration that aimed to reverse the abuses of the past, the initiation of a process of reform of the Curia, most notably in the area of finance, and a continuation of the central themes of the post-conciliar New Evangelization of the Church that had been emphasized throughout John Paul II’s groundbreaking 27-year pontificate.

Dear Friends,

I hope that your Christmas celebrations were full of joy and harmony among all of your loved ones. Today we inaugurate 2023 by celebrating the Feast of Mary, the Mother of God. How blessed we are to have her as our Protector and Intercessor.