February
26 , 2006
Coming
Home
Ash
Wednesday
It might sound strange but I love Ash Wednesday -- no I’m not
crazy about fasting or other forms of penance. What I love is that everybody
comes. It’s not a holy day of obligation, yet everyone comes.
I’m still not sure what the allure is in the smudge of ash that
people fervently seek out, but people who are not religious the rest
of the year feel an inner calling to change all that on this special
day. And countless folks return to Jesus -- not only in their hearts,
but in their prayer lives. Even if they didn’t go to church when
they were younger, they take new steps on Ash Wednesday and decide to
make church a part of their lives as they seek balance, direction and
peace. I’m so glad that St. Brigid’s is the place they’ve
decided to call their spiritual home. If I can be of any help in these
forty days ahead, don’t hesitate to call.
Census
Continues
Of the approximate 6,000 families we usually send mail to, we’ve
received completed Census booklets from over 2,000. So we’ve got
a ways to go.
Is your booklet in?
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e-mail Father Ralph:
Read Father
Ralph's Christmas Homily for 2005
Past Columns:
Feb19: Visiting Heros
Feb 12: Passing Pastor
Feb 4: Annual Appeal
Jan 22: Abandoned Nets
Jan 15: Everlasting Life
Jan 8: I'm not going to
jail..
Jan 1: Happy New Year
Dec 25: Christ
Will Come Again
Dec 18: Angel
Approaching
More
Columns from 2005
Columns
from 2004
Columns from
2003
Columns from 2002
St
Anthony’s Hall will soon be “coming home.” For those
who are new to the parish, you might not know that the building across
from the church Post Ave was originally St. Brigid’s second church
building and then its first school building. It originally resided on
the east side of Post Ave (slightly to the north of the current church)
and it was picked up and moved across to the street to its current location
in the early 1900’s.
In the early 1970’s the St.
Anthony Society purchased the building for $25,000 and since then they
have used it for their meeting hall. They made improvements over the years,
adding air conditioning, a sound system, and have been taking care of
the building which is in excellent shape after all these years. St. Brigid’s
has benefitted over the years since we rent the building for Senior Connections
and the St. Anthony Society generously lets the parish use the hall for
feast days (St. Brigid’s, St Patrick’s, St Joseph, etc.),
Holy Week and for occasional gatherings after Sunday Mass.
The leadership of the St. Anthony Society recently
approached me with an offer to give the hall back to the parish. We’re
in the process of working with the Diocese and the Society’s lawyer
to transfer the title back to the parish. The St. Anthony Society will
continue to use the building for its regular meetings and functions but
the parish will be able to use the hall more regularly for parish meetings
and after-mass gatherings on weekends. I am so grateful to the members
of the St. Anthony’s Society who have taken such good care of our
former church and school and put so much of their time and labors into
the building. We pray that the St. Anthony Society will continue to grow
and flourish through the years ahead.
