May 30, 2004
Going and Coming and Going
Catholic
Ministries Appeal Update
Many thanks to all who are participating in the Catholic Ministries
appeal. Our pledges are already $63,551 toward the $91,000 goal. Our
parish is receiving 20% of the paid pledges as a rebate. So when people
participate in this appeal, they arenot only supporting Catholic Charities
& educational and pastoral programs throughout Long Island, they
are also helping us right here at St. Brigid’s. If you have not
yet made a pledge to this year’s appeal, you can do so online
here or by filling in a
pledge form and returning to to the Ministries Appeal Office. (Forms
are available at the entrance to church.)
Easter
Milestone
We received more Easter fund contributions during the past few weeks
which brings the total donations to over $100,000 this year! Alleluia!
and thanks!
At
College?
At St. Brigid’s we like to stay in touch through
e-mail “letters from home.”
Once a person has an e-mail address at school (or if he/she uses a personal
address), please let us know what it is so we can include them when
we write.
Here's a handy college link so you
can send this info online.
e-mail Father Ralph:
Past Columns:
May 23: P.O.P.S.
May 16:Celebrating Our Parish
May 9: Facing the Future
May2: Resurrection Sequel
April 25: Chapel Design
April 18: Oh what a week!
April 11: Easter Life!
April 4: Palms & Passion
March 28: Plenty Good Room
March 21: More Passion
March 14: Reconciliation
March 7: A sequel from Mel?
Feb 29: Come to
Life!
Feb 22:
An Adventure to Life
Feb15: A rose
by another name?
Feb 8: If at first...
Feb 1: Our Patron Saint
Jan 25:A View From Inside
Jan 18: Our School
Jan 11: Baptism with Fire
Colums from 2003
Columns from 2002
As
Father Leonard prepares to leave St. Brigid’s for his home country
of Nigeria, we want to celebrate his ministry among us for these past
years. He is one of the guests of honor at our Annual Volunteers Picnic
(along with Father George and Deacons Jim Morriss and Phil Mattheis) this
coming Saturday June 5th. (Did you RSVP that you’re attending?)
And we’ll celebrate the Eucharist with him on Sunday, June 6th at
11:30am, followed by hospitality on St. Brigid’s green after mass.
Father Leonard also will celebrate
the 6pm Rock Mass on June 6th for the last time, so folks could choose
to wish him well at that mass too.
Today, the Feast of Pentecost, we celebrate the newest member of the priesthood
-- Padre Jesus Guadarrama, who was ordained for the Vincentians last weekend
in North Carolina. Padre Jesus served the Spanish Community of St. Brigid’s
for the past year as a deacon. Today he celebrates the Spanish Mass here
for the first time as a priest. (Weather permitting, the mass will be
outdoors at 11:45 at the school.) There will be a reception following
the mass. All are invited to stop in to celebrate Padre Jesus. We were
hoping that he would be assigned here as a priest, but his order has assigned
him to do retreat work with youth in Brooklyn. We take comfort in knowing
that he is not far from us-- and he is certainly not far from our minds
and hearts.
Please pray for these two good
priests. Each of them is about to step into a new adventure -- not unlike
the apostles on Pentecost. Though they were filled with the Holy Spirit,
the apostles knew there would be many ups and downs. Through it all the
persevered. We pray that Father Leonard and Padre Jesus will take the
blessings of St. Brigid’s parish with them as they go. And whether
facing ups or downs in the journey ahead, they can always count on our
prayers.
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