From the Pastor’s Desk

Dear St. Mary’s Parishioners:

           Thank you to the members of the Parish Council and to others who helped to make the reception for Fr. Joseph last Saturday evening such a pleasant event.  The setting was beautiful, under the trees in front of the church and the weather cooperated as it was not too hot.  Thank you to everyone who attended the event.  As always, it is nice to go from “the altar to the table”.  As Catholics, our souls are nourished by the Eucharist, but our bodies need refreshment and our friendships need to be renewed and strengthened.  Speaking of nourishment from the sacraments, please continue to pray for our First Communicants who are preparing to receive Our Lord in the Eucharist on Sunday, June 5th and please also pray for our youth who will be confirmed on Thursday, June 9th.   We are also cranking up for the wedding season.  Please keep our engaged couples in your prayers.

            On another note, we are in the process of renewing the “cry room”.  I express my gratitude to Manuel Belo who donated the materials for a new floor as well as his time and labor and the labor of his assistant to installing the floor.  Esteban Vargas and David Hernandez, our maintenance crew, gave the walls and the ceiling a new coat of paint.  We will be furnishing the room in the coming weeks.   I am always grateful when there are many children at Mass.  Jesus loved children and told his disciples to let the children come to him.  So, I feel that children should always feel welcome to worship in the main part of the church.  However, I know that some times children cry and their parents like to have an option to take them somewhere where they can still follow the Mass, but where the cries of the children would be confined to a room.  As one our Parish Council members noted at a recent meeting, that’s why it is called a “cry room”.  The cry room is an option for crying children, who under the supervision of their parents, need a place to chill for a time. 

            Finally, as we know this Monday is Memorial Day when we honor and mourn the members of the U.S. military who have died while serving our country. Memorial Day gives us the chance to be more intentional in our prayer of thanksgiving for our fallen heroes, to pray for the repose of their souls and to pray that someday soon all war will be extinct.  May you have a blessed week!  

In Jesus through Mary,

Father Berg