4th Sunday in Ordinary Time

01-31-2021Gospel Reflection© LPi

Most of us are quiet people who desire to live a good and holy life, promote the values and mission of the Gospel as best we can and desire to one day inherit the surprise of life eternal God promises to us. We are not trail blazers. We are simple people who want to do the simple things of life well. But there are others who left a more profound impact along the way of the paths they walked. Folks like Dorothy Day, Martin Luther King, Thomas Merton, Gandhi, St. Teresa of Calcutta, and many others left lasting impacts and legacies. Like Moses, they show us by word and deed who God is and what integrity and a purpose driven life look like. They show us how to be holy. We need Moses people like these to give us inspiration, hope and an example of holy living.

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What Fr. Connealy Has Been Reading

01-31-2021Pastor's LetterFr. Dan Connealy

Happy Sunday!

Every now and then people ask me about books I’ve mentioned or what I’m reading. There’s so much good literature out there I thought I’d make a list of a few different works that have been in my book pile or rattling around my brain. Without further ado…

From Christendom to Apostolic Mission by University of Mary: This is easily one of the most important books I’ve been reading recently. It’s a 90 page essay assessing our current time and discussing strategies to engage a culture that has become disengaged with Christianity.

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3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time

01-24-2021Gospel Reflection© LPi

It was a normal day by all accounts, but John just wasn’t feeling himself. He was a little lightheaded and out of sorts. Later in the afternoon, he experienced a sharp pain in his chest and arm. Quick thinking and action brought John to the emergency department with a diagnosis of a significant heart attack. Surviving this ordeal, he found himself face to face with his cardiologist, having an honest conversation about things that needed to change. “I came close to death,” John found himself thinking. Then came the remorse. He was a young man with a loving wife and children who were very close to facing life without him. John found himself with intense sorrow for living an unchecked and self-indulgent life that almost brought him to his demise. He wanted to change.

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Pray for an End to Abortion

01-17-2021Pastor's LetterFr. Dan Connealy

Happy Sunday!

I pray everyone’s year is off to a good start. Tomorrow, January 18, the parish office will be closed in observance of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. We will have the regularly scheduled morning confessions and Mass. There will NOT be evening confessions and Mass. I hope everyone is able to enjoy the national holiday.

This Friday, January 22, is the anniversary of the Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade legalizing abortion throughout the country. Please join me in praying for an end to abortion throughout our nation and world. There are many things we can say about the gift of human life and the atrocity of ending a human life in its initial stages. Especially now though, with Christmas fresh in our minds, we remember that God came, not as an adult, but in the womb.

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2nd Sunday of Ordinary Time

01-17-2021Gospel Reflection

Our faith is not just about ideas. It’s really about having an encounter with God and, in particular, the Risen Christ! Once we give ourselves over to the notion of God’s presence, we have to train ourselves to listen for God’s voice and be attentive to God’s call. Having companions on our faith journeys is so incredibly important as they can help us fine-tune our listening skills and discern God’s voice from others we may be hearing. Faith is all about having these profound encounters not only with God but with our brothers and sisters, and creation itself. Anyone or anything that is alive with God’s presence becomes an occasion for God to speak and call us to deeper graces and experiences. “Come, and you will see.”

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Introducing Fr. Vietor

01-10-2021Pastor's LetterFr. Oliver Vietor

Hello everyone at St. Joan of Arc!

It is a pleasure to be here with you in this parish. Thank you for welcoming me and my family. Some background may be helpful.

I was an Episcopal minister and moved here to Phoenix in 2005 in order to serve an Episcopal Church. At that time I was married and had four children and no one in my or my wife's family had ever been Catholic. In early 2007 I resigned from the Episcopal Church and with my family began the process toward becoming Catholic.

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Happy New Year!

01-03-2021Pastor's Letter

Fr. Dan Connealy, Fr. Oliver Vietor, Deacon Andy Lambros, Deacon Mark Salvato and the Staff at SJA wish all parishioners a very happy, holy & peaceful New Year 2021.

Fr. Dan Connealy, Fr. Oliver Vietor, Diácono Andy Lambros, Diácona Mark Salvato y el personal de SJA deseo todo feligreses muy feliz, santo y pacífico Año Nuevo 2021.