From Father George's Desk 11/2/2025

It is with very mixed emotions that I announce that Father John has informed Bishop   Kulick of his plans to retire from active ministry.  His last day with us will be November 30.  While I am happy for Father John that he will be able to fully enjoy his retirement, I will sorely miss working with him.  He will be greatly missed by you as well.  To give both   parishes a chance to wish Father John well, this month’s continental breakfast at Holy Family on November 16, and Donut Sunday at St. John on November 23 will be farewell receptions for Father John.  As I write this column we are still working on what adjustments will need to be made in the parishes.  The weekend and holyday Mass schedule will not be affected but there will have to be some changes to the weekday schedule.  I’ll have more on that later this month.

This weekend, we turn our clocks back and turn our calendars forward to November.  Each year we begin this month by celebrating the twin observances of All Saints and All Souls.  The celebration of All Saints Day can be traced back to the fourth century and its celebration by the entire Roman Church was established by Pope Gregory IV in 835.  Rooted in ancient tradition, St. Odilo of Cluny established a memorial of all the faithful departed (All Souls) in 988; it was accepted in Rome in the 13th century.  These days are a kind of “Catholic Memorial Days”.  We distinguish between our loved ones in heaven, “all saints,” who pray for us, and our loved ones who have died, for whom we are moved to pray, the poor souls who still may be undergoing the purging process of death-to-self that follows repentance.  In this month of harvest and dying, the Church memorializes the dead and recognizes Jesus as Lord of the living and the dead. (Catholic Sourcebook, 1990)  Our parishes’ Books of Remembrance will remain prominently displayed throughout the month of November as we pray for those who have gone before us in faith.

The All Souls’ Masses of Remembrance will be celebrated this week: at Holy Family on Monday at 6:30PM and at St. John on Wednesday at 6:30PM; at these Masses we will remember in a special way each person buried from the parish since last All Souls’ Day.  Everyone invited and encouraged to attend this annual commemoration.

Our next quarterly Anointing Mass will celebrated next Saturday at 10:00AM at Holy Family.  These Masses not only provide more chances to celebrate the Sacrament of Anointing of Sick but also present a wonderful opportunity raise the awareness and understanding of the sacrament.  All too often we think this sacrament is only for those at the point of death, however, “This sacrament gives the grace of the Holy Spirit to those who are sick: by this grace the whole person is helped and saved, sustained by trust in God, and strengthened against the temptations of the Evil One and against anxiety over death.  Thus the sick person is able not only to bear suffering bravely, but also to fight against it. [Pastoral Care of the Sick #6]

Next weekend will present us with another “diversion” from our normal march through the Sundays of Ordinary Time as we celebrate the Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome.  The dedication of the original building was on November 9, 324, just eleven years after the Emperor Constantine legalized Christianity in the Roman Empire.  Built on Lateran Hill and dedicated to the Holy Savior, St. John the Baptist, and St. John the Evangelist, it is one of the four major basilicas in Rome and, even though it has undergone near continuous renovation, it still has the same basic floor plan for the church and baptistry.  It is the cathedral church for the Diocese of Rome, which makes it the cathedral for the Pope himself, since he is the Bishop of Rome.  The Latin inscription across the front of this great church reads: Sacrosancta Lateranensis ecclesia omnium urbis et orbis ecclesiarum mater et caput, meaning Most Holy Lateran Church, of all the churches in the city and the world, the mother and head.  The celebration of this cathedral’s dedication is, therefore, a celebration of the communion of every parish and diocese with the Universal Church founded by Christ and on the apostles Peter and Paul, with the Pope as the head of the Church and the College of Bishops. [2010 Sourcebook for Sundays, Seasons, and Weekdays, LTP, p. 283]