Happy Lent!

During this time of prayer, fasting and almsgiving here at St. Joan of Arc, we have several opportunities to journey deeper in the faith with daily Mass, Eucharistic adoration, Stations of the Cross and our lenten practices.

I want to invite you all to our parish mission presented by Brother Mauricio Torres. Offering a parish mission unites us as a parish to take time and listen to an exhortation during our busy time. It is an intentional occasion of grace to make our blessed Lord a priority in our lives and in our homes. You all are invited to come and experience the mercy of our Blessed Lord through the intercession of the saints. The relics of Saint Padre Pio and Saint Faustina Kowalska will be venerated during the sessions.

When I feel down, I sometimes watch the famous “Double Rainbow” video on YouTube to feel better. It’s hilarious. A young man camping in Yosemite Park sees two rainbows stretching across the sky. He bursts into a kind of ecstasy. “Double rainbow, all the way! Oh my God!” he announces. Then he starts to weep. He cries out, “What does it mean?” Beneath the humor of his glorious overreaction is the deep intuition we all have, I think, when we see the colorful bow in the sky. This Sunday, God sends a rainbow to Noah, and to us. What does it mean?

Happy Sunday!

This week we begin our season of Lent with a reminder to repent and remember our mortality. Catholics all over the world partake in this Lenten journey to sacrifice things of this world and turn towards God who has the ability to satisfy our spiritual hunger. This particular journey unites us in prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

Happy Sunday!

The time has come for me to be the Keynote Speaker at the Opening Mass for the 40 Days for Life and March for Life Campaign. Although honored and humbled to be able to speak at the start of this campaign, I would appreciate your prayers this week as I address those in attendance.

Happy Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time!

This Friday, February 2nd is the 40th day since we celebrated the Nativity of the Lord. On this feast, our Blessed Lord Jesus was presented in the Temple by Mary and Joseph. You may have noticed the retention of the Christmas trees. This gave a subtle impression of the Christmas season’s continuation and culmination of this day. Our Mass will be solemn and dark as you enter this morning. All are invited to bring candles of your own to be blessed and then we will walk into the church with different lighted candles.

Happy Sunday!

After praying, fasting and defending the legal protection of the unborn for nearly 50 years, it has been almost two years since the aftermath of the overturning Roe v. Wade. Since then, the defense of human life has gotten more difficult as states are now enacting laws to protect or continue destroying innocent human life.

As a priest, I’m amazed how happily married couples remember the tiniest details of their earliest encounters. They effortlessly report things like: “he wore a blue shirt,” “we ordered brussels sprouts,” “her hair was up in a bun,” and “he spilled shrimp cocktail sauce at my family’s open front door when it was ten degrees below zero,” (that one’s courtesy of my mom). We delight in remembering and speaking of when our new life of love began. The little details are glorious reminders that it’s all real.

Happy Epiphany!

As our Christmas season continues into the Epiphany, we thank God for the beautiful celebrations thus far. I am so grateful for the many volunteers and staff that have been hospitable during our very busy time. A tradition I am encouraging you all to partake in this New Year 2024 is the Chalking of the Doors. On January 6th, our water will be Epiphany Water in our baptismal font. Take some home and bless your homes and families. The fathers of the house preside over the home and bless in the presence of the children and other family members. Here is a modified version.

Happy Feast of the Holy Family and a Happy New Year!

Many music playlists show favorite songs at the end of the year which can be broken down to how many times and hours a particular song was played. In case you were wondering, my top song played in 2023 was Ave Maria by Franz Biebl performed by Chanticleer.

Merry Christmas!

Truly this is the most wonderful time of the year. Our weather is beautiful, our hearts are prepared in various ways to meet the Lord and many of us gather to celebrate the Nativity of Our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ. I am blessed to have my mom and a few family members join me for Christmas here at St. Joan of Arc. As a priest and now parochial administrator, the commute to the rural towns is tough after many liturgical celebrations during the Christmas season. Turns out, I get tired once in a while.

Happy Gaudete Sunday!

“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near.” Our antiphons for this month use Philippians 4:4-5 to express the closeness of the Lord, Guadete or REJOICE!

Happy Second Sunday in Advent!

This is my favorite season and Christmas is only two weeks away! That means tamales are getting ready and on other occasions enjoying some eggnog. Many friends and family arrive from all over. Here at St. Joan of Arc we are very blessed to have so many ways to encounter our Blessed Lord with Holy Mass, adoration and fellowship.

Happy Advent!

As the people of Israel waited for generations for the promised Messiah, we too enter into a season of waiting and longing for our Savior Jesus Christ by celebrating His birth. This season, we are called to deepen and renew the desire in our hearts to be in union with Him.