Search
Pastor Weekly Message For October 10, 2021
-
October 13, 2021Jesus is Lord!
Dear: Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Last week I had the joy of baptizing two babies, Mackenzie and Jamison (they are cousins) of parents that I had the blessing of witnessing their weddings. With October being the month of Respect Life, it was beautiful to see these young families open to the gift of life. Congratulations to Nick & Kelly Mazza and Ryan and Holly Martin and their families.
During the Rite of Baptism, the priest addresses the parents and godparents with these words: By water and the Holy Spirit he (she) is to receive the gift of new life from God, who is love. On your part, you must make it your constant care to bring him (her) up in the practice of the faith. See that the divine life which God gives him (her) is kept safe from the poison of sin, to grow always stronger in his (her) heart. If your faith makes you ready to accept this responsibility, renew now the vows of your own Baptism. Reject sin; profess your faith in Christ Jesus. This is the faith of the Church. This is the faith in which this child is about to be baptized.
Parents promise to God that they will make it their constant care to bring the child up in the practice of the faith and keep them from sin. This is a lifetime commitment. In our post-Christian culture, this is a heavy challenge for parents and will require the supernatural Grace of the Holy Spirit, commitment to prayer, and being proactive in protecting children from the temptation of sin to fulfill the promise they made to God on behalf of their child. I want to assure all parents, that Saint Mary Parish is here to assist you in whatever way possible in raising your family in the faith. We know that family life faces many challenges. I want to encourage you. Stay close to Jesus, His Blessed Mother, and His Church.
We are blessed to have many ministries at Saint Mary’s to support families: MOPS (Mothers of Pre-Schoolers), Pre-School, Pre-K, and Saint Mary School along with our Radiant Joy and Religious Education programs to name a few.
As I mentioned in these pastor's notes in previous weeks, I am very concerned for our teens. On our parish registrations, there are close to 2,000 teens from the ages of 13 to 18. Their worlds right now are upside down. The world, the flesh, and the devil are coming at them like a locomotive. We all need to do more to keep our teens in the faith and away from the poison of sin. Our teens need to know our love and support.
Saint Mary’s offers two amazing communities for our teens. Life Teen is an international movement within the Catholic Church, where teens encounter Christ and develop life-long friends in a community where teens can gather to worship the Lord, have fun and enter a carefree zone. Parents, in our world today, your teens need you to encourage them to attend Life Teen. They might not seem like they want to attend, but they do! They just need your encouragement. Life Teen meets every Sunday at 5:00 pm.
EDGE is the Life Teen middle school community that will kick off on Wednesday from 7:00 pm to 8:30 pm. This is a new season and a new night for EDGE. Again, encourage, encourage, encourage, your middle school teens to attend EDGE.
Finally, on Friday, our parish will celebrate the Sacrament of Confirmation for 178 ninth graders. Please join me in praying for them. Come, Holy Spirit!
In Jesus and Mary,
Father Jeff Kegley
Pastor