Tuesday, November 13, 2018

Fr. Chuck's Column, November 4, 2018


It is ALREADY November! Yipes! Time is flying by. Things have been very active at St. Austin Parish and School. A week ago we hosted a wonderful - indeed spectacular - Mission on Hope and Healing conducted by Fr. Steven Bell, CSP. The turnout was great, the preaching and message both timely and engaging, the refreshments and social time following was wonderful. A special thanks to the ladies of Christ Renews His Parish (CRHP), especially Josie Barrett and Ann Richburg, and all who helped for the wonderful job of organizing and promoting the Mission, putting together the refreshments and Q&A, and getting everything clean-up each night. It was a great event.
This past week our parish school had a wonderful Halloween Hoot on the blacktop. I would judge it to be the best one that I have seen yet. Thanks to the Knights of Columbus for again helping. And of course, we celebrated the Feasts of All Saints and then of All Souls, along with baptisms, weddings, confessions and Masses. It was all good.
This coming weekend, Nov. 10 and 11, we remember our veterans who struggled and sacrificed to protect our freedoms and our national culture of inclusion. While it is a holiday, it has great meaning that we should not overlook, but rather take time to reflect on and to honor.
Also next weekend there will be a new presentation from the Development Committee. This will simply be an update on progress in the decision about the development of our property. There have been many meetings and some progress, decisions, and accomplishments (e.g., hiring a lawyer). Mr. Christopher Kennedy, who miraculously is able to stay on top of all the details of this process, will give a presentation on where we are now and our next steps. This presentation will be given following every Mass next weekend. Please plan to take 15 minutes following Mass next weekend to get updated on the progress of a game-changing possibility for our parish and school.
Then the following week, Nov. 17 and 18, we will again have our interactive commemoration of Kristallnacht. That was the “night of the broken glass” when the Nazis in Germany began their systematic persecution of the Jews. UNFORTUNATELY, with the shooting of the 18 people in the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh, PA, just last week, this commemoration is very timely. It is good that we host this program of remembrance and education, lest we forget. We still have a long way to go to ensure that the horror of genocide never happens again. Please join us in learning, remembering and honoring.
And watch the bulletin for news of other events and happenings here. God bless!


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