Some of C.S. Lewis - Mere Christianity

Slowly, slowly

Slowly… Slowly the pieces are coming together.  It is wonderful to have Fr. Antony here with us.  Every time I feel lost, I think of Antony leaving everything to minister here with us.  I agree with him that the hospitality of the people makes the difference.  I have enjoyed that hospitality when forming a transitional Pastoral Council for the cluster and when I met with the Finance Committee of each parish.  These two committees will be essential to give direction to our cluster while providing transparency and trust.
     As we begin, everyone wants to know about two things... mass times and money.  First, weekend mass times will not be changing for the time being because we have two priests.  In August we may add some more weekday masses.  I understand that consistency is important so we will strive to create a schedule where masses will not need to be cancelled if one of us is away.
     In regards to money; each parish will continue to responsible for their own assets.  Whether that is the buildings you have built or the finances you give.  Yet, this will be balanced with the shared pastoral work.  We have a wonderful staff who will share the work of the entire cluster while our Pastoral Council will be responsible for creating a unified pastoral plan for the cluster.  This will help the staff and all of us to minister together in St. Michael's and Sacred Heart.
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Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

First Weekend in Sarnia

Fr. Antony mass went well at St. Michael's. He was impressed at how well people participated, especially in organizing things.
For me at Sacred Heart the people and music were wonderful. I am beginning to realize all the things Fr. Lenn and Stella did. I did have the commentators sheet in the right place and I was confused by the many vessels for communion.

With the first mass jitters out of the way, Sunday should be great. I miss St. Boniface and St. Peter's but I know God (and the Bishop) have their reasons for sending Fr. Antony and me here. I trust that the Holy Spirit is working because I see the many fruits of the kingdom here.

Sent wirelessly from my BlackBerry device on the Bell network.
Envoyé sans fil par mon terminal mobile BlackBerry sur le réseau de Bell.

From your Pastor:

I feel like a baby starting over again. This is my first day and everything is new. Yet; even as Fr. Antony and I begin here at St. Michael’s and Sacred Heart, I realize we have a lot to be thankful for. The ministry of Fr. Joe Snyder, Fr. Len Desjardins, Stella Burns and most recently Fr. Peter Poel have been a continued blessing to this community. As we approach the anniversary of Fr. Joe death, it is important to remember all the contributions of those who have ministered in our communities and pledge ourselves to continue to bear the fruits of the kingdom.
Since it was announced that I was being transferred to St. Michael’s and Sacred Heart, I have met informally with the ministry and administrative staffs of both parishes. I am assured of their insight and support as we begin ministry together. A transitional Pastoral Council has been formed to give input into the practical pieces of the clustering and to craft a new permanent Pastoral Council in January which will be responsible for long term pastoral planning

As the Pastoral Council, finance committees, pastoral team and administrative team begin to work together, it will be important to keep you informed. We have two wonderful dynamic parishes which I pray will benefit from ministering together.

Transition Time

As you can see my blog is slowly changing... as we are all. I hope to use this blog to communicate how the transition is going. I hope to have your continued prayer support.

From Your Pastor

Boxes, boxes, boxes. My life is in boxes! Moving on is a
physically hard thing to do, yet can be spiritually taxing also. Just
as I was feeling sorry for myself; I met up with the priest from India
that I will be working with. Fr Antony has left everything familiar to
minister here is Canada. Everything is strange for him yet he seems so
at peace.

As we talked, I realized that the God who encouraged him to travel all
the way around the world is the same God who cares and supports you and
I. We pretend that the stuff we keep for security makes our home. This
is an illusion. In fact, every box gets in the way of us following
freely in the adventure of life. I am most inspired by the residents in
our nursing homes. They have left much yet still find their home care
and support of others.

As I pack, I pack memories, tears and smiles. I will need to unpack the
smiles often and hopefully keep the tears for later. I thank you for
making me a better priest and I know you will continue to grow in the
grace of God.

From Your Pastor

Distributing communion is a humbling ministry for me. It is
definitely an act of the Body of Christ. Communion is never self serve.
It must be received in an act of service. In receiving communion, a
member of the Body of Christ holds the Body of Christ before another
member of the Body of Christ and seeks acknowledgement, "The Body of
Christ". The "Amen" in reply is part of the reception of Christ.

As my time here comes to an end I realize the importance of community of
communion. You have made me be a better priest in service to the Body
of Christ. Thank You.