Weekly Message from Fr. Bob

This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it”. (Psalm 118:24). I want to inform you that Frank and Andrea Gude have been chosen from our Parish as the recipients of St. Jude Medal. Frank Gude, who is 95 years of age, is the oldest member of the Parish and has always been one of the Parish’s most active and dedicated members. He has been singing in our church choir for seventy years and he continues to sing in the choir at the 8 a.m. Mass every Sunday. He has served the Parish as a Lector, Eucharistic Minister, as President of the Men’s Club, and as a member of the Parish Council. He was very involved in establishing our Sacred Heart Early Childhood Center. He has always been someone we can count on to get things done. Frank and his late first wife Rosemary, who also received the same award in 2014, donated the tabernacle to the Parish. Andrea Gude also has been a long time parishioner of our Parish. She has served the Parish as a Sacristan, Lector, Eucharistic Minister, member of Women’s club, Martha’s Table, and, recently, head of the healing ministry. Andrea was instrumental in starting the Human Trafficking Ministry in our Parish by inviting an officer from Pasco Sheriff’s Office to speak on Human Trafficking last year. Frank and Andrea are an example of doing God’s work in their every activity and we are blessed to have them as members of our Parish. This weekend we are hosting our Parish Ministry Fair after all the Masses. We have a number of exciting ministries that have been established. I urge you to attend the Ministry Fair and accept God’s invitation to become involved in one or more of these ministries. By doing God’s work, through these ministries, we put our Faith into action. It takes hard work to organize a Ministry Fair and to prepare a ministry brochure. My heartfelt gratitude goes to our Ministry Organizers, Mary Andrysiak and Kelli Crabb, our staff, Iris Alicea, our Parish Administrator, Jennifer Caiazzo, our DRE, and John Bard, who is in charge of maintenance for the Parish, for their roles in organizing the Ministry Fair. I also want thank Peggy Moffett, President of Women’s Club and the members of the Club for providing refreshments during the Ministry Fair. Please join your fellow parishioners in attending the Ministry Fair, and learn all of the ways you can serve God and your Parish.  See you all at the Ministry Fair.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,  “ This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it”. (Psalm 118:24) This weekend we celebrate World Mission Sunday. Our Holy Father Pope Leo XIV has urged all of us to take part in World Mission Sunday. I have previously highlighted World Mission Sunday in last week’s bulletin and asked all parishioners to help our Holy Father by generously donating towards the Missions in the second collection at all Masses this weekend. Who is a Missionary? The answer: All baptized Christians are commissioned by Christ to spread the Gospel and to be His missionaries. We are all Missionaries of Hope to the people we interact with. Some of us are called to go overseas to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ to people who have never heard of Him, while others remain at home where they are called to live the Gospel message of love of God and neighbor. The charge to all of us-- parents, grandparents, teachers, Catechists, Priests and elders—and yes, even children—is to be missionaries in our daily lives. Where does our “mission” begin? The answer: Right outside the Church door as we leave Mass We enter into our own “Mission land” as we walk to the parking lot to get into our cars. We enter into this “Mission land” as we go to school or work and interact with others every day. This is how we live the Gospel in our daily lives. Another way of being a “missionary” for Christ and participating in World Mission Sunday is by taking an active role in our Parish ministries. There is a ministry or committee for everyone where their interests and talents can be used to serve others. As we host our Parish Ministry Fair next weekend, please make it a point to learn about the ministries in the Parish and become involved in at least one ministry. This is the way we serve Christ as His “missionaries”, show our faith in our actions and teach our children and youth to be actively involved in the Church. Prayer for Missionaries: Lord, bless all the missionaries, those who proclaim the Gospel in homeland and those overseas taking the Word of God to people in distant lands. Amen. God bless you! Fr. Bob Romaine