Happy Thanksgiving!

11-24-2013Pastor's LetterFr. Don Kline

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I really enjoy this time of the year in Phoenix and in our parish. The weather is beautiful; our programs are in full swing; and, people just seem to be more pleasant. It is a great time to stop, rest, and focus on our gratitude! Thanksgiving Day is all about giving thanks to God for His countless blessings in our life.

I have so many reasons to be thankful to God for the wonderful people of St. Joan of Arc. In recent months, our parish has made significant strides in our understanding of stewardship. Many more people are registering as parishioners and becoming more active members of our parish. More and more parishioners are realizing that we are all stewards of God's many gifts. Many parishioners have come together to give the fixings for Thanksgiving dinner to hundreds of families through our St. Vincent de Paul pantry. It is so inspiring to see. Your generosity and thoughtfulness will make a beautiful difference to so many families this Thursday.

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Electronic Giving

11-17-2013Pastor's LetterFr. Don Kline

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

During difficult economic times we are ever more conscious of how we use our money.  No matter how much we have (or don’t have) in the piggy bank, we are still called to be responsible stewards with whatever God has given to us.  We are called by God to practice good stewardship.

Many of us give of our time, talents, and treasures in different ways and I want to thank all of you who have given so freely of your resources. Your gifts enable us to maintain our buildings and grounds; provide youth and adult education programs; and, support many charitable endeavors. Your offerings allow us to have a beautiful church for Mass, classrooms for teaching, religious education and fellowship. Usually when I speak with you about Stewardship, it’s about generosity. Today I would like to speak about the way in which we give.

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Putting God First

11-10-2013Pastor's LetterFr. Don Kline

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
What happens when we put God first? Today Our Lord reminds us that great blessings happen when we put God first in our life, in our family, and in our finances. In the first reading for this Sunday we hear about a woman arrested with her seven sons. The king wanted them to deny their Jewish religion by eating pork. The courageous mother encouraged her sons to endure torture rather than betray God. It is difficult for most of us to imagine the pain they inflicted on her children, but they put God first. They knew that this life is short and - no matter what we do - none of us can avoid suffering, so put your trust in God.

Our Lord calls each of us to do something similar when He calls us to be good stewards. Like the mother of those seven sons, we are asked to put God first. You may not see immediate results. It may require some suffering. But if you put God first, things will eventually work out for the best.

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Hope in Christ

11-03-2013Pastor's LetterFr. Don Kline

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

What does it mean to have hope in Christ? Pope Francis recently said, "The Church offers all the possibility to walk along the path of holiness, which is the path of the Christian: it makes us meet Jesus in the Sacraments, especially in Confession, in the Eucharist, it communicates to us the Word of God, it makes us live in charity, in the love of God to all."

Pope Francis went on to say that we are not to be afraid of holiness, of letting oneself be loved by God. To be holy, he said, does not require one to do extraordinary things, but in letting God act.

"Let us not lose hope in holiness, let us all walk along this path. Do we want to be saints? All of us? The Lord awaits us with open arms. Let us live our faith with joy and let ourselves be loved by the Lord."

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