Holy Trinity
God is a mover, always in motion through and in our lives. The first great movement of God was into life. God moved into all life by creative, eternal love. God was the first mover, instigating all life, and that first movement is often called FATHER.
The second great movement of God was, and continues to be, into human life. The great creative primary movement took flesh in Jesus Christ and that second movement is often called SON.
The third great movement of God is across time. This is the active, ongoing, eternal energy that we often call HOLY SPIRIT.
This weekend we join the universal Church throughout every country in this great big beautiful world of ours to celebrate that our ONE God is manifest in three persons, and we begin and conclude so often by naming the movement of our prayer:
In the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
Congratulations Holy Family Catholic Academy Grads
This past Friday evening our largest class in the history of HFCA received their diplomas. Forty-four students graduated with a beautiful Mass during which several sang and many more prayerfully carried out other liturgical roles. As is the custom, the class also gave a gift to the school.
I want to commend and thank our Principal Kate O’Brien, Assistant Principal Laura Clark, our faculty, staff and parents for creating an innovative learning environment at Holy Family Catholic Academy, which includes a curriculum with International Baccalaureate, STEM, Inquiry-Based Learning and sound Catholic values.
Congratulations graduates, and continue your adventures in learning during high school.
A Very Special Moment
I experienced one of the most special moments during my time here at Holy Family on Friday, May 17. The students who graduated from Holy Family in 2020 returned for a reunion. This class was not able to receive a normal graduation because of Covid. They gathered in cars and came forward to receive their diplomas in the parking lot. No graduation lunch, no speeches, Mass or other special rituals.
They returned to us on May 17 each wearing their high school caps and gowns and a tee shirt underneath with the college or university that they will be attending in the fall. It was remarkable to see how these young people have grown and the excitement they have for life that lies ahead. I was also touched by their appreciation for the solid educational experience that they received here.
I am so proud of the innovative, Catholic education that we provide here at Holy Family Catholic Academy.
A Movement of Growth (Growth Plan)
We are embarking on the most important endeavor since I have been here at Holy Family. We are at a pivotal moment in our parish’s history. Our demographics are changing, we are welcoming newer and younger families, and we are continuing the very vibrant atmosphere that has spiritually fed many in a more contemporary way since 1985. We are also aware of an increasing movement in the larger American Catholic Church for more traditional and conservative theological and liturgical practices.
I have assembled a steering committee and we will have a kickoff meeting on June 11. I am calling this endeavor a MOVEMENT, not a plan, because it is following a similar process that Pope Francis is using for the worldwide Church. It will involve discussion and conversation that will engage every demographic, ministry, organization and constituency in the parish.
Our simple hope is to:
Take stock of where we are as a parish, and build and grow into a strong future.
Many details will follow in the upcoming weeks and months.