Memo from Msgr. Raun- Monday June 1st, 2020
My dear family, Greetings in the Lord Jesus! WAYS TO HOLD ON TO JOY IN TROUBLED TIMES Choose to Praise God in All Things Notice this does not say to praise God for all things. Everything that happens to us isn’t good. Bad things do happen to good people. Someone else’s poor decisions can result in undesirable consequences that splash over on us. Our own less-than-perfect choices lead to uncomfortable circumstances. And there are times when God needs to allow difficulties into our lives to get our attention or teach us something. In some cases, it’s not about us or our family at all, but the entire country or the world. The key is to praise God for who He is—all the time, and in all situations. By praising His qualities and goodness, we get our eyes off of ourselves and onto Jesus. Then we gain perspective and joy floods our souls. “I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and he saved me from my enemies." Psalm 18:3 TIDINGS OF GREAT JOY : This weekend we were so blessed with the ordination and First Mass of our son of the parish, Father Joseph Baltz. The ordination and first Mass we "different", inasmuch as everything had to be done with "social distancing" and all the other restrictions that the quarantine has put upon us, but it was no less joyful. Our young Fr. Baltz took it all in stride. I am very proud of him, and I am sure you are also. He joins the ranks of the many priests our parish has produced, but he hold the distinction of being the first graduate of our school to be ordained a priest. Special blessings upon his parents, Dave and Roxanne Baltz. Once we are past this corona-virus stuff, we will have a proper First Mass with all the pomp and circumstance it deserves, and a public reception. In the meantime, God bless you, Fr. Baltz. oh - Fr. Baltz's first assignment will be assistant at the Cathedral in Santa Fe. GOING TO MASS: Yes, I know, "making a reservation" for Sunday Mass seems strange and is a bother. I'm not hot about it, either. And I feel really bad about our older parishioners who don't have Internet access and don't even know that they can go to Mass. Of course the problem is that, per the Governor's order, we can only seat 25% of our church seating capacity - which is 250 people. If we don't have the reservation system, I'm worried that people will come to Mass and we will have to turn them away because we already have 250 people in church. (It would motivate people to get to Mass early :-) But so far we have not had many over 150 people make a reservation for any Mass. Most of the Masses are around 100. I know many people are high-risk and should not be out yet. Many people are still very afraid. And of course the Sunday Mass obligation is still suspended by the Archbishop. In short, we will stay with the system we are using right now for next weekend, and the parish leadership is evaluating it. Stay tuned for future developments. ARE YOU MISSING PROFESSOR STEVE WOODBURY? We are! Even as I type this, he is undergoing surgery to remove three lymph nodes from his neck. We pray this all goes well. But he will be out of commission for at least a few weeks. We have different organists filling in, but some of the weekend Masses may be without music. Thank you for your understanding. Talking about music, we have been told to remove the hymn books and Order of Mass from the pews, because they can be contaminated with the virus. Also, we have been told not to have congregational singing, because singing spreads the virus much father than just speaking. That's why right now we have no hymns, and why we are saying, rather than singing, the Mass. Yes, I know, what a bore. But it is still the Mass!!!!!!! HOW TO GO TO MASS: 1. Weekday Mass - just show up. Saturday evening and Sunday Mass - make a reservation by calling the parish office (892-1511) or go to stanm.org or use the parish app. 2. Wear a mask. 3. Be prepared to receive Communion in the hand. CONFESSIONS: Monday through Friday - 5 pm, Saturday - 2:30 pm You need to be in the church at those times if you wish to confess. When the last penitent in line has confessed, the priest will not wait around: he will go home! PLEASE SHARE ALL THIS INFORMATION WITH THOSE WHO DO NOT HAVE ACCESS TO THE INTERNET! ABOUT MY MEMOS..... because we seem to be past the worst of the crises, I'm going to send out my memos three times a week: Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. Of course if any important development comes up, I will send you a memo right away. HOLINESS TIP for Making Prayers of Petition More Effective...Pray for others Stop being selfish, intercede for others, and ask others to intercede for you. When it comes to praying, the more the merrier! (Matt. 18:19-20, Jas. 4:3, 5:16) PRAY FOR OUR NATION! PRAY, PRAY, PRAY! LAUGHTER IS THE BEST MEDICINE: Real quotes from church bulletins...... The outreach committee has enlisted 25 visitors to make calls on people who are not afflicted with any church. Remember in prayer the many who are sick of our church and community. Attend and you will hear an excellent speaker and heave a healthy lunch. OUR PRAYER FOR THE DAY: a prayer for our society...... O Jesus, come back into our society, our family life, our souls and reign there as our peaceful sovereign. Enlighten with the splendor of faith and the charity of your tender heart the souls of those who work for the good of the people, for your poor. Impart in them your own spirit, a spirit of discipline, order and gentleness, preserving the flame of enthusiasm ever alight in their hearts. May that day come very soon, when we shall see you restored to the center of civic life, borne on the shoulders of your joyful people. Amen. I send you my fatherly blessing, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen !Msgr. Doug Raun | | |
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Posted in Daily Memo from Msgr. Raun
1 Comment
Thank you so much, Monsignor, for your uplifting messages to us throughout the past months. We are truly blessed and thankful to have you sheparding your St Thomas Aquinas flock.