|
|
My Dear People,
Freedom, is a word, often used during the fourth of July celebrations. In the United States, we associate freedom with our separation from the English rule. Most times when we think of being “free,” it usually involves a departing from someone or something. When Jesus speaks of “freedom,” it is always in reference to being set free “for” something, and not “from” something. Our true freedom lies in our choice to make ourselves available for Christ, and His Father’s will for us.
 Fr. Mark Bozada In our Gospel today, Luke tells us that Jesus selected “72″ disciples for the sake of announcing the Kingdom of God. “The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few.” Our Lord appoints these men to “free” people from the bondage of sin and the second death. They were to live a radical and simple lifestyle, focused on “service.” As the 72 go forth preaching in the Name of Jesus Christ, even the demons run from them. Ultimately, the disciples were seeing the victory being won in the Name of the Lord. We benefit from this victory of Christ. Are you willing to be set free to serve the Lord? Are you really free for His service? Are you ready to follow Him?
Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark Bozada
May we learn to more deeply trust God to provide us with all that we need.
Then, “I urge you to seek the mercy of Jesus through the Sacrament of Confession that you may be absolved from the great evil this president says he will do.”
Why? “Those who voted for this president will now share in the indirect responsibility and guilt for these killings.”
Father John Cihak Gives Hope to the Pro Life Cause
 Father John Cihak Father John Cihak is the director of the Respect Life Office in the Archdiocese of Portland, Oregon and Pastor of Sacred Heart-St. Louis in Gervais. He is also responsible for a discernment weekend at Quo Vadis Days .
This was posted in this Church Bulletin after the election of Obama. His following prophetic letter includes the prediction of the disaster for the poor, closing of Catholic Hospitals, increased euthanasia and more innocent life lost. A special thank you to Mary Locke, a faithful subscriber, for finding this article.
Pastor’s Corner 11-9-08
Brothers and Sisters,
For most people this week, the presidential election was first and foremost in mind. As the pastor of the souls of this parish, for whom I will have to give an account to the good God, it is important to put before you a few observations. Voting in a democracy is very serious business. It is a sacred duty and the exercise of power that can have far reaching consequences for our lives and the lives of others.
A majority of Americans, including those who identify themselves as Catholic (54% if the exit polls are correct), chose to elect our new President. The election of this candidate to the presidency will have far reaching consequences. Our Lord Jesus tells us to judge a tree by its fruit. A good tree produces good fruit, a bad tree bad fruit. I would urge us a rational persons to look beyond the smile and mesmerizing words and pay attention to the deeds – these will show what kind of president we will have.
In my view as a priest, scholar and professor, never before has the Culture of Death been given so much power in this country. Our new president is committed to promoting and protecting with law intrinsically evil acts, acts that are never justified and should never be done by a rational person. The fruit of this conviction is that he is committed to creating and ratifying unjust laws. The clearest deed that will reveal this truth is when he signs the ‘Freedom of Choice Act’ into law, which was one of his campaign promises. This legislation will virtually abolish ANY restrictions on abortion that exist now. This legislation will result in the killing of tens of thousands of innocent children. The killing of the innocent is a sin that cries out to Heaven for justice (Gen. 4:10). Those who voted for this president will now share in the indirect responsibility and guilt for these killings. Such is the serious nature of voting.
But I Voted For Social Justice Issues
Those who voted for him may respond that their vote was not based on his pro-abortion stance but other social issues. The response I gave in a previous homily is that clearly and logically this election did not involve a situation of ‘proportionate reason’ mentioned in the USCCB’s Faithful Citizenship. The issues of quality of life come into play only when candidates vying for office are equal on the issues dealing with life itself.
My Predictions
The ‘Freedom of Choice Act’, and other unjust legislation like it that will likely be proposed, also has the potential to force the Church out of health care. The Church, as the bearer of the Gospel of Life, will refuse to take part in committing intrinsically evil acts. The names like Providence, St. Vincent, Sacred Heart may remain on the outside of the hospitals, but their internal policies may no longer meaningfully reflect the teachings of Christ and His Church. Thus the legislation would spell disaster for the poor and will create a huge societal problem since the Church is one of the major providers of health care in the country, especially to the poor. Moreover, if the Church is not providing health care, then those with terminal illness and those who do not seem to have a sufficient ‘quality of life’ will lose their last protection from those who will want to kill them to save health care dollars – still more innocent lives lost.
Some may be reading this thinking that I’m being overly dramatic, that I’m over reacting. I would ask you to pay attention to the fruit; pay attention to actions and deeds and not the smile or soothing words. Beneath the smile and words is one who has already identified himself through his actions that he is against Christ and His Church on fundamental, non-negotiable issues.
The Coming Tribulation
For those followers of Christ who are serious about following Him understand that we may be entering a very difficult and trying period of history. The Church has had such times in the past and will again have them in the future. In the late 1990s, then Cardinal Ratzinger commented that he thought the Church was entering a period of trial, a time when the Church was to be more of a persecuted Church, a time when it would be most costly to follow Jesus, and thus a time when many of those who identify themselves as Catholic will fall away. Now he is Pope Benedict XVI, the successor of St. Peter and our chief Shepherd. It will become increasingly evident as the years pass whether he is a prophet. Personally, I believe him to be right. In my prayer over the past few years, I have sensed the same thing. It may take many years for it to come into full view, but with this ascendency of the Culture of Death we may see the beginnings of it in the next few years.
Be Prepared! Seek Mercy!
And so as the pastor of your souls and as your spiritual father, I urge you to prepare yourselves spiritually, through prayer, fasting, virtuous living and most of all faith, hope and love, for what is to come. Let us recommit ourselves in joy to protect and cherish the weak and vulnerable among us. If you are one who cast your vote for our new president, I urge you to seek the mercy of Jesus through the Sacrament of Confession that you may be absolved from the great evil this president says he will do. Jesus Christ has already definitively broken the power of evil and death. He will never abandon us or the world. He may be asking the members of His Body to have a deeper share with Him in the Cross, that the world might be saved.
Be A Saint!
We do not have to be afraid. We did not choose to live in these times, but He chose us to live in these times (In. 15:16) – that is a comforting truth. It is in times of trial that the members of Christ shine more brightly. St. Paul tells us as he told the Philippians, ‘Do everything without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine like lights in the world” (Phil. 2:14). Now is the time for saints! We stand with Our Lord Jesus and His angels and saints and will bring down the Culture of Death through the might of the divine love because with St. Paul we can say, “I can do all things in him who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13).
Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. John Cihak
“To Remain Silent Is Not An Act of Charity”
LifeSiteNews-Those who refuse to take Catholic pro-abort politicians to task for their words and actions not only fail the standards of fraternal charity, but embolden such individuals to commit even greater acts of evil against human life and dignity, according to Bishop Thomas Olmsted of Phoenix.
 The remarks appeared in a short exposition of the nature of scandal in a column for the Catholic Sun of Phoenix last month. In the article Olmsted, one of the strongest defenders of the unborn among U.S. Catholic hierarchy, explained the need to correct public figures who profess to reconcile their Catholic faith and pro-abortion agenda, as well as other individuals who give public scandal.
“A failure to call evil by its name inevitably leads to more evil acts in the future,” wrote Olmsted. “Evil acts, in themselves, are the greatest source of scandal. When the perpetrators are not called to account, then they are emboldened to do even worse deeds.”
The prelate quoted Archbishop Raymond Burke, Prefect of the Apostolic Signatura, who noted that, “it is particularly insidious that our society which is so profoundly confused about the most basic goods also believes that scandal is a thing of the past.”
The bishop pointed out the greater impact of scandal from public figures, who “fulfill an office of greater authority, enjoy more popularity or prestige, or [are] in a position to exercise political, economic or spiritual power or to make decisions that impact a large number of people.” “The greater their influence the greater their ability to inspire what is right and good but also the greater their ability to give scandal,” he said.
Thus when public officials “claim to be Catholic” but fail to promote the dignity of the human person, true marriage, and religious freedom, said the bishop, they give “grave scandal” – especially when justifying their stance “by claiming they cannot ‘impose their religious views on others.’”
“Their words and actions allow such fundamental evils as abortion and embryonic stem cell research to continue to kill thousands of the littlest and most innocent members of the human family,” wrote Olmsted. “Their false argumentation also gives the mistaken impression that abortion is just a matter of religious opinion,” whereas life is “a basic human right inscribed in every human heart.”
“Since some scandals are more grievous than others, remaining silent about the scandal given by those with greater influence in the Church or society has far more toxic effects than silence about other scandals.”
Olmsted emphasized that “to remain silent about scandalous activity is not an act of charity; for charity is inauthentic if it is not linked with truth.”
“Fraternal correction is not an act of presumed superiority,” he wrote. “It is an act of fraternal love that desires our brother to see and admit his mistake, to repent and find new life in the rich mercy of God. It is also an act of love for all those who might otherwise be led astray if the scandalous behavior were not publicly confronted.”
The bishop quoted the “quite emphatic” words of Jesus in the Gospel of Luke: “Scandals inevitably arise, but woe to him through whom they come. He would be better off thrown into the sea with a millstone around his neck than giving scandal to one of these little ones. Be on your guard. If your brother does wrong, correct him.’”
Olmsted also pointed out the grievous effect on the laity that arises from misconduct on the part of Catholic clergy, which he said causes “great harm within the Church and society.”
“Sadly, the sexual abuse of children and youth by a small percentage of the clergy has reminded everyone of the devastating results of such scandalous behavior, and the need to decisively address this scandal,” he wrote.
By: Kathleen Gilbert
Attention Pastors: Please Speak Out!
 Fr. Frank Pavone Speaking Out on Abortion Priests For Life – Why don’t more pastors speak out against abortion? Some of them actually do not know how to connect the issue with the Scripture readings. They know that the readings are supposed to be the basis of their homilies, but they do not find many references to the unborn child or to the killing of such children.
But the themes of pro-life are on every page of Scripture. Homilies are not simply Scripture lessons. Rather they apply the great Biblical themes to the day to day challenges that believers face as they live their lives.
So, for instance, the Bible is clear that only God has dominion over human life – he made it, he cares for it, he owns it. That is why no human being can own or kill or devalue.
–Fr. Frank
Americans Should Learn the Difference Between Freedom and License!
I have fond memories of the 4th of July going back to when I was probably only four or five years old. We remember the parades, the picnics or barbecues, and the happy gathering of families. During the American Revolution, the legal separation of the American colonies from Great Britain actually took place on July 2, 1776, when the Second Continental Congress voted to approve the resolution of independence previously put forth by Richard Henry Lee of Virginia. After debate and revision Congress approved the Declaration of Independence on July 4th.
Of note is the letter John Adams, one of only two Founding Fathers who went on to become president, wrote to his wife Abigail:
…This day ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of the continent to the other, from this time forward forever more. (Adams Family Papers: An Electronic Archive. Massachusetts Historical Society)
Like so many of the Founding Fathers, Adams recognized that the day of deliverance came from the providential hand of almighty God. I am not sure about large numbers of duplicitous politicians and other so-called public servants today, whether elected or appointed.
Freedom is a great thing, and we do well to celebrate it on the 4th of July. That being said, it’s something rooted in truth, and apart from the truth there can be no authentic freedom.
If you continue in my word [truth] you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free. (John 8:31-32)
An individual, a country, or a world that does not remain rooted in objective truth cannot ultimately live in freedom. If you are serious about your faith, my dear friends, I strongly recommend that you read #1730-1748 as we approach the wonderful celebration of Independence Day, or the 4th of July.
Some highlights of this reality:
1731: Freedom is the power, rooted in reason and will, to act or not to act, to do this or that, and so to perform deliberate actions on one’s own responsibility. By free will one shapes one’s own life. Human freedom is a force for growth and maturity in truth and goodness; it attains its perfection when directed toward God, our beatitude [true happiness].
1733: The more one does what is good, the freer one becomes…
One of the most common errors of all time is to confuse freedom and license. Today, frequently under the specious pretext freedom, mankind acts in a manner that is really license. We are not morally free to do whatever we choose to do. Only when rooted in truth and acting in objective truth can we hope to be free. No one has the moral right to do evil. No one has the moral right to choose to take an innocent life or to engage in actions that are out of accord with right reason or any objective standards of morality we have ever known.
The inevitable consequence of abusing freedom is losing freedom. Soon, if we do not alter our present course, the United States will no longer be the home of the brave and the land of the free. Loss of personal freedoms, one at a time, is already well underway. One day we shall awake from our moral slumber and find that we have become slaves.
We must live in truth and act in truth if we are to remain free. Abuse it and I assure you we shall lose it! Wake up America! God is not a disinterested spectator. Let’s thank God for our freedom, but let’s not sit by idly while the forces of darkness divorce freedom from truth. For, as Jesus says, “The man who sins is the slave of sin.” (John 8:34)
I’ll leave you with the motto of the United States Army Special Forces on this 4th of July:
De oppresso liber! (To free the oppressed)
Indeed, Jesus came to set the captives free. Let’s do our part for our country and our world that we might all remain free in the glorious freedom of the children of God.
God bless you,
Fr. John Corapi
Fr. Pavone Answers Why Pastors Do Not
Preach About Abortion
Priest for Life – Many ask why pastors do not preach more about abortion. One reason that some give is that they do not want to hurt the people in the congregation who have had abortions.
Now it is certainly true that there are people in the congregation who have had abortions, and it is also true that they have pain.
But if they are in pain from their abortion, and the pastor is silent about the topic, what are they to think? They could conclude that the pastor doesn’t know about their pain, or doesn’t care about it, or that though he knows and cares, there is no hope.
But none of these is true. He does know, he does care, and there is hope – and that is precisely why he needs to speak up.
–Fr. Frank
My Dear People,
The real work of the Holy Apostles began when Jesus ascended into Heaven. Before the Crucifixion, Jesus trained His Apostles to preach and teach in the Name. Anxious to begin the journey, the Apostles ask Our Lord if He would destroy by fire, those who rejected the Message. Jesus quietly rebukes them. He continued to journey from village to village bringing good news to the poor.
 The focus had to be on the Gospel. This is why Jesus tells them that the one who sets a hand to the plow and looks at what is behind, is unfit for the Kingdom of God.
So they went forth, and continued to announce the coming of the Kingdom. We are called to the same radical lifestyle longing for Our Lord while living in the world. Pray for the grace to keep one eye on the Lord and the other on this world.
Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark Bozada
May we turn to God for His guidance and direction as we strive to serve one another and the Church with the gifts God has entrusted to our care.
“Pulmonary Hypertension Is Not A Condition Where Abortion Would Be Curative.”
“Successful Inventions Performed In the Past Have Enabled Mother and Child To Survive.”
LifeSiteNews-The Doctrinal Committee of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) published a document this week to clarify misunderstandings about the case of an abortion that took place in a Catholic hospital in Phoenix.
A media frenzy erupted in May after Phoenix Bishop Thomas Olmsted announced the automatic excommunication of a nun who contributed to the decision to go ahead with the procedure. The nun in question, Sister Margaret McBride, had claimed that the abortion was necessary to save the life of the mother, who was suffering from pulmonary hypertension.
However, while various media gave the impression that pulmonary hypertension is a condition where abortion would be curative, Catholic medical experts pointed out that this is not the case.
In fact, neonatologist Dr. Paul Byrne explained to LifeSiteNews that with pulmonary hypertension, an abortion, although it may relieve some of the stress on the heart, may also make the situation worse due to the stress of the abortion procedure. Dr. Byrne also explained that the literature on the condition indicates that there have been successful interventions for pregnant women with pulmonary hypertension that have enabled both mother and child to survive.
In its statement, the USCCB Committee presents two scenarios that distinguish “between medical procedures that cause direct abortions,” which it says are “never morally permissible,” and those “that may indirectly result in the death of an unborn child,” which in certain extreme situations can be permissible.
The first scenario – that involving an illicit direct abortion – approximates the situation at the Phoenix Catholic hospital.
“In the first scenario, a pregnant woman is experiencing problems with one or more of her organs, apparently as a result of the added burden of pregnancy. The doctor recommends an abortion to protect the health of the woman.” The abortion, according to the example, “is likely to improve the functioning of the organ or organs, but only in an indirect way, i.e., by lessening the overall demands placed upon the organ or organs, since the burden posed by the pregnancy will be removed.”
Although the bishops admit that in the scenario “the abortion is the means by which a reduced strain upon the organ or organs is achieved,” they nevertheless explain that this amounts to “direct abortion” and is “never permissible because a good end cannot justify an evil means.”
“The surgery directly targets the life of the unborn child. It is the surgical instrument in the hands of the doctor that causes the child’s death. The surgery does not directly address the health problem of the woman, for example, by repairing the organ that is malfunctioning,” they explain.
In the second scenario they present a case where a surgery to save the life of the mother can be legitimate even if it causes the death of an unborn child.
“In the second scenario, a pregnant woman develops cancer in her uterus. The doctor recommends surgery to remove the cancerous uterus as the only way to prevent the spread of the cancer. Removing the uterus will also lead to the death of the unborn child, who cannot survive at this point outside the uterus,” explains the document.
“The second scenario describes a situation in which an urgently-needed medical procedure indirectly and unintentionally (although foreseeably) results in the death of an unborn child. In this case the surgery directly addresses the health problem of the woman, i.e., the organ that is malfunctioning (the cancerous uterus). The woman’s health benefits directly from the surgery, because of the removal of the cancerous organ. The surgery does not directly target the life of the unborn child.”
While the Bishops Committee document does not discuss excommunication, the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches: “Formal cooperation in an abortion constitutes a grave offense. The Church attaches the canonical penalty of excommunication to this crime against human life.”
That Christ Gave to His Catholic Church.
Father Thomas Euteneuer- One of the three commands that Jesus gave to the disciples was to “drive out demons” (Mk 16:17) in His Name. “Heal the sick” and “preach the good news” (Lk 10:9) are regular ministries of the Church, but the ministry of exorcising demons has received less attention. It is my view that the next decade will force the Church-and priests in particular-to embrace this ministry of casting out demons with professionalism and zeal as we will have to deal with the nuclear fallout of the pervasive and increasing occultism in our society. In order to do that, however, the Church needs to give people a proper understanding of spiritual warfare against the devil and his minions.
Unfortunately, many false and illusory images of fighting the Evil One define people’s thinking about exorcism and demonic possession. The only correct view of the power of evil comes from faith, not the culture. Popular movies like The Exorcist (1973) and The Exorcism of Emily Rose (2005), while containing some truthful elements, create the picture that even when the Church “wins” an exorcism battle, the Church is somehow damaged and the devil gets his hour of glory. Hollywood would have us believe that Christ’s Church cowers before the power of the devil-nothing could be further from the truth!
I am also concerned about real abuses that happen in spiritual warfare when people are trying to deal with evil without the protection of the Church. They may have a legitimate desire to be free from demonic forces but they can unwittingly get caught up in the very evil they are trying to quell. Some recent reports of “exorcisms” or allegations of possession are listed below but only for the purposes of indicating what happens when exorcisms are attempted without the shield of the spiritual authority that Christ gave to His Church. These have all occurred within the past couple of years and are not exorcisms-they are abuses-but it is easy to see how the devil might use these distortions to further his purpose of leading people away from authentic faith:
- In 2007 there was a disturbed man in Phoenix, Arizona trying to violently “exorcise” his three-year-old granddaughter while the girl’s unclad mother participated in the bizarre and bloody ritual. The girl was injured and traumatized and the perpetrators went to jail;
- A 58-year-old central Iowa man set his couch on fire and burned down his house, according to him, as a way to get rid of demons in the home.
- In New Zealand, a 22-year-old woman was killed by drowning in a native Maori “makutu-lifting” ritual after having her eyes gouged out because, it was said, that the devil could be seen in her eyes. Forty family members watched the killing and then attempted to do the same to her 14-year old niece.
- A 70-year-old Tunisian grandmother was killed in a mental hospital in France by her daughter and a friend who suffocated her with a plastic bag trying to “trap the devil” inside of her.
- A 44-year-old Haitian man in Florida thought his girlfriend was possessed and hit her in the head with an iron in order to “release the demons that were inside her.” When his mother tried to fend off the attack, he bit off her fingertip and started to actually pull out his own teeth. As he fought with police he was chanting “Jesus, Jesus, Jesus,” and praying in Creole.
- A 33-year-old Washington DC woman killed her four teenage and pre-adolescent daughters with blunt force trauma, strangulation and stabbing claiming that all four of them were possessed. She stored their bodies for four months in her house until they were discovered by police in a badly decomposed state.
- The videos of “exorcisms” that are available on the Internet are utterly dehumanizing and abominable, but the “entertainment” value of such postings, in the modern mind, is immense for a faithless age.
Due to the mysterious nature of evil, possession and exorcism will never be entirely removed from popular distortions, but the Church has an obligation to give a correct understanding of what is a legitimate pastoral ministry and a Gospel imperative of the Church. A correct understanding of exorcism can also divest many of an unholy and dangerous fascination with the occult. No sane person who truly understood the nature of demons would be fascinated with them!
Bishop Robert Morlino Invites Conservative
Spanish Order to His Diocese;
Angry Parishioners Express Concern
DOUG ERICKSON, Wisconsin State Journal- The effort by Madison Bishop Robert Morlino to staff several Catholic churches in the diocese with priests from a conservative Spanish society has met resistance in another community.
About 200 members of St. Mary’s Parish in Platteville met with Morlino at the church Monday night to question his decision to bring in three priests from the Society of Jesus Christ the Priest to lead the church.
A diocesan official and parishioners who attended the 90-minute meeting described it as largely civil but occasionally heated, with Morlino apologizing toward the end for having raised his voice earlier in the meeting.
 Madison Bishop Robert Morlino with his Seminarians “It was a tough evening for everyone,” said diocesan spokesman Brent King.
The society, based in Murcia, Spain, is known for a staunch, traditional approach to Catholic practice. There are now eight society priests at seven parishes in the diocese.
At other churches where they serve, the priests have prohibited girls from being altar servers, dispensed with the common Catholic practice of using trained lay people to assist with Communion and added Masses celebrated only in Latin.
Morlino invited members of the society to begin serving in the diocese in 2006, primarily in the Sauk City area. Some parishioners praise the priests for deepening their faith and bringing discipline to wayward Catholics; others have left the church, saying the priests’ approach is regressive and too rigid.
“To me, it seems like a step backward,” said Fay Stone, a St. Mary’s member. The priests’ approach is “quite different than we have become accustomed to,” she said.
The parish has about 700 families.
Monsignor James Bartylla, the diocese’s second in command, said in an interview Monday the priests are a good fit for Platteville because their gifts align with aspects of the parish.
Priests from the society are known as good school administrators, Bartylla said, and St. Mary’s has a K-8 parochial school. The society has a special mission to encourage young men to enter the seminary, and the priests will lead St. Augustine University Parish, the campus ministry at UW-Platteville, in addition to St. Mary’s.
“It’s a great blessing in this time of a priest shortage to have these priests here,” Bartylla said.
The priests are replacing Monsignor Charles Schluter, who has served St. Mary’s and St. Augustine for 11 years. In July, Schluter will become the priest at St. Peter’s Catholic Church on Madison’s North Side.
Schluter is “greatly beloved (in Platteville) and has been very effective there, so I know it’s very hard for people to see him move on, and I know that’s part of it,” Bartylla said.
Some parishioners say the timing is bad. The congregation is in the midst of a capital campaign to buy the building it currently rents for its parochial school. The school also is in the process of hiring a new principal.
“With the more conservative priests arriving and a change in the principal, there’s just some unease with the amount of change at one time,” member Lee Eggers said.
Some parishioners also are miffed that the new principal may end up being the father of a society priest. A parish search committee wasn’t aware of that possibility and had verbally offered the position to someone else.
“The entire situation has been handled very poorly,” said member Julie Klein.
King, the diocesan spokesman, said that due to a mix-up, the position had been verbally offered to two people, one of them the father of a society priest. The situation has not been resolved but will be decided by the Rev. Lope Pascual, one of the three society priests who will serve as the primary pastor for the two Platteville parishes.
Diocesan officials apologized Monday for the mix-up.
Member Barb LeGrand said she went into the meeting very worried that trained lay people such as herself would no longer be allowed to offer Communion to the homebound, a ministry the church has offered for 20 years.
After the meeting, LeGrand said she was feeling slightly upbeat because Pascual had agreed to meet with her and others about the ministry’s future. “He seems like a very nice man,” she said of Pascual, whom she met for the first time Monday.
King said he does not anticipate the bishop will change his mind on the new priest appointments. The message from the bishop to parishioners was to get to know the priests and give them a chance to explain why they make the decisions they do, King said.
“It’s our hope that, given the opportunity, the parishioners will grow to love the priests and the priests will love the congregation,” King said.
|
|
