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Dear Parishioners,
It is wonderful to go away on vacation…it is also wonderful to come home. I was thrilled to see your welcoming smiles at mass last weekend, and I realized that in the last two years, I settled beautifully into my new parish and my new home. Getting to know you my beloved parishioners has been a real joy and I look forward in the coming year to getting to know more families. During August, I hope all of us will be able to make some time to either travel, simply relax or unwind before the busyness of September demands our time and energy.
Our Antioch teams are busy working and preparing for the Antioch weekend which will take place on September 24th-26th. Our co-leaders, Matt and Alyssia are already planning their team and busily working on binders so that when the new team gets together in the coming weeks, they can immediately begin working on their talks and figuring out which team is best for which activity.
Maureen and I are making final decisions on catechists, class sizes, etc. We look forward to a wonderful new academic year and through the grace of God, hope to be able to have some parent educational sessions where our students and parents can have some opportunities to learn together. Nina has been busily working with a group of volunteers and in the coming weeks, we will announce some middle school group activities that will engage 7th and 8th graders. I will give more information in the coming weeks.
As I settle back into the life of the parish, I take some time to reflect on the beauty I have encountered in Washington State and Alaska:
¨ I will never forget our Mass of Thanksgiving in which Fr. Alex and I, having driven to the top of Mount Rainier and then climbed the last piece, concelebrated mass on top of the mountain. As we offered mass together, we reflected on the meeting of Heaven and Earth on this high mountaintop where the Earth was spread below us in various hues reminding us of God’s handiwork in creating our beautiful world.
¨ Washington State is indeed filled with beauty and majesty from the souring mountains to the wine district nestled in the desert valley to the bustling city of Seattle, with the North Pacific rolling in majesty from the beautiful northwest to engulf far off Alaska, Hawaii , Asia and yes indeed, Australia. How vast is that ocean? How many countries does it touch? How beautiful are the many lands that God has created?
Magnificent Alaska...I will always remember
¨ the wild beauty of the countryside, the immense glaciers, and the joy of standing under them and seeing God’s beautiful creation.
¨ the parishioners of Holy Name Church and the members of the other Catholic communities I was privileged to meet. How their lives parallel ours in some ways and are very different in others.
Let us pray that as human beings we can learn to respect Mother Nature and the beautiful gifts that God has bestowed on us. We might look different from each other, speak different languages but we are made uniquely by God in his sacred image. Let us reflect on how each of us and especially as Catholics, we open our hearts and mind to the wonder and beauty that is in within us and learn from each other in mutual respect.
I will remember and will never take for granted, the privilege of being a priest and of being the mediator between God and humankind, serving God and serving humankind in wonder and in awe.
Fr. Owen