Parish Transition Plans
I want to take this opportunity to clarify plans for the transition of Holy Family to your next pastor. The Priest Placement Board, in consultation with the Cardinal, works very hard to match the pastoral needs of the many parishes in the Archdiocese and the priests who respond to serve.
Ultimately, the Priest Placement Board makes recommendations to the Cardinal who appoints both Associate Pastors and Pastors to serve in parishes, and that process will surface your next pastor.
I am honored to serve as your Pastor from now until I take a six-month sabbatical from July 1, 2027 until I return to celebrate Christmas with you. Cardinal Cupich will appoint an Administrator for the parish during my sabbatical. I will then resume my ministry as your Pastor until July 1, 2028, when I will retire. In retirement my hope is to move to another parish in the Archdiocese and serve as a retired priest in much the same fashion as the group of retired priests who serve us here at Holy Family does. That will most likely include returning to Holy Family as I am able and as requested for various sacramental needs.
The Priest Placement Board values your feedback in this process, and that is why we are asking for it, particularly over the next two weekends. Using a version of the Synodal Process that facilitates discussion, sharing, and perhaps most importantly, LISTENING, we are asking as many of you as possible to take a few minutes after Mass, gather around the Tall Tables that are placed in the chapel and other nearby locations to address ONE Question:
What do you most value about Holy Family and why?
This is a very simple process involving small groups of 2-3 that will take only a few minutes, but your voice and feedback are very much appreciated. As we collect and review YOUR responses, we will share them with the Priest Placement Board and the Cardinal, giving them valuable feedback for the selection of your next Pastor.
Please take the time to participate in this simple version of the Synodal Process and trust that the Holy Spirit will work through it and help in the process of crafting our future here at Holy Family, not only in crafting a profile for priests to consider but a larger Parish Profile of who we are as a community of faith. Let us trust that the Holy Spirit will indeed work through this process and guide Holy Family into a bright future.
I want to emphasize that this is more than a survey. We have actually done several surveys in my time with you here, and they have all been beneficial in surfacing issues and charting various courses of concern and growth for us. These will be conversations; although brief, they will be focused on ONE question but also encourage you to actively listen to one or two others and hear their response. The Synodal Process is based on this simple yet significant act of listening so that your opinion is not the only one to be expressed and you may hear reactions to your answer.
I want to thank the members of our Transition Team, some of whom have shared their professional expertise in corporate transitions, as well as staff members who have been deeply invested in our transition to a new Pastor:
Parishioners: Roshny Archer, Ann Kohut, Tom Kennedy, Dave Bennett
Staff: Dawn Mayer, Ro Geisler, Bernie Schaeffer, Deacon Dennis Brown (and me)
I also ask you to view my video that will be shown at all Masses this weekend that gives additional details for our transition to a new Pastor. This video will also be available on our website.
The Kingdom of God is Like Welcoming the Groom at a Wedding Feast
We hear another image for the Kingdom of God from Matthew’s Gospel this weekend. The Kingdom is like ten unmarried bridesmaids preparing to usher in the groom at a wedding feast. Jesus is the groom and needs the light of lamps to enter the feast. Five bridesmaids are prepared with extra oil for their lamps; five don’t have enough oil. First-century weddings in that area of the world lasted for days and the bride and groom had timetables of their own. Wise bridesmaids bring extra oil for the lighting of their lamps that gives light for the groom’s entrance. Five are not so prepared. When the groom (symbolizing Jesus) finally arrives, five are prepared to welcome him, and five are not. The unprepared are shut out of the feast. The last line challenges us to “Stay awake, for you don’t know the day or the hour.”
The wedding symbolizes the union of the Divine and Human. Are you prepared to light the way for Jesus Christ, who is the ultimate union of the Human and Divine?