First Communion

Dear Parishioners,

This weekend, we have the joy of having several of our children receive their First Holy Communion!  The Catechism describes the Eucharist as a “sacrament of love, a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a Paschal banquet ‘in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us.’”  It is bread and wine transformed into Body and Blood. It is the greatest of intimacies and the most profound of mysteries. It exceeds the notion of a “Thin Place” where the distance between God and man is diminished and grows ever closer. Instead, it is a moment of deep union between the broken and the Healer. It is “the source and summit of the Christian life.” And further, “The other sacraments, and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself.”

I honestly don’t remember my First Holy Communion, but it was the gateway that set me up for some of the most profound experiences where I was invited to intimately rest in Christ.  I got to invite Jesus into my heart, and He responded with tenderness and joy.  It was in time spent with Jesus hidden in the Eucharist that I received my vocation to the priesthood.  The Eucharist is a bottomless well from which we are nourished and strengthened each day.  We therefore exult with praise as our children receive the greatest gift of our Lord to his disciples, “This is my Body given up for you!”  May God bless each of them in their vocations to holiness and seek His Will in all things!

Update on the parishes:

1. A special thank you to everyone who participated in both parish clean-up days this April. Your efforts continue to make our parish a beautiful, sacred space where we can encounter our Blessed Lord.

2. At St. Joseph

   1. We will be looking to organize a committee to begin discussing the future of our parish hall.  Recently, there have been increased conversations voicing a desire to update the parish hall to accommodate the current and future needs of St. Joseph.  If you are interested in joining this committee, please email Fr. Fleck at fr.luke-fleck@cdolinc.net.

   2. Starting a social committee, which would meet quarterly to plan out events at the parish.  We already have several events planned regularly.  I would greatly desire to have more events at the parish for our parishioners to continue fostering our community. If you are interested in joining this committee, please email Fr. Fleck at fr.luke-fleck@cdolinc.net

3. At St. Mary’s, the parish will begin to update our registered parishioners’ contact information: email, phone, address, etc. This will provide more accurate information for the parish priest in the case of an emergency, for diocesan assessment, and for determining any future growth of the parish.  This will take place on Sunday masses during May.

In Christ,

Fr. Luke Fleck