Dear Friends,

Some of you may have heard that the Satanic Temple will be holding its first convention in downtown Scottsdale next month. A few parishioners have asked me what I thought should be done about it. My immediate response was to say that they should not be given any attention by Christians, because our reaction is exactly what they are looking for.

It is one thing to fall into sin and, as a result, to find yourself distant from God and your spiritual center. All of us know that feeling. But it is quite another to commit yourself to rebelling against God by aligning yourself with His (and our) archenemy, Satan. Besides being an act of pure rebellion, it is also an act fueled by a darkening of the intellect. It is Satan who disguises himself as an angel of light to deceive us into following him into rebellion against Our Father who loves us and wants only what is good for us.

Dear Friends,

A few reflections on my first Christmas as your shepherd: It was a joy to see so many people coming to worship the new-born King. At all of the Christmas Masses there was a sense of joy and gratitude that we could once again gather and celebrate. Because Christmas fell on a Saturday, it meant two weekends in succession of back-to-back Masses. That can be a challenge for the priests, but also for you and your guests. Thank you to all of you who were so faithful to the Lord’s invitation.

Dear Friends,

With this letter I wish you a blessed new year and a joyful Feast of the Epiphany. To say that these last two weekends have been eventful is an understatement. I hope that your family gatherings were joyful and full of gratitude for your many blessings.

Dear Friends,

Inviting all single Catholic men and women between the ages of 19 and 27 to consider participating in our upcoming formation programs. The men’s is entitled Viri Virtutes (Men of Virtue) and the women’s is Feminae Fide (Women of Faith).

Dear Friends,

This letter will be more of a potpourri of thoughts and invitations.

I know this coming week is a busy week in a very busy season. But I want to urge all of you to take advantage of our Advent Mission that will begin on Monday night. Many of you are familiar with the Friars and their charisms. They understand how important healing is to our merciful God.

Dear Friends, It has been almost 49 years since the U.S. Supreme Court distorted the Constitution, by-passed the authority of Congress and usurped the rights of the people by its decision in which it miraculously found a constitutional right for a woman to abort her child. This tragic decision has divided our nation, destroyed the lives of over 60 million unborn babies and has caused untold damage to the mothers and fathers (and doctors and nurses) who have collaborated with this terrible lie.

Dear Friends,

I apologize to all who did not get the notice that the healing service, scheduled for Nov 9th was canceled because I wasn’t feeling well. I just had a two-day bug, but I wasn’t feeling up to leading the event. The decision to cancel was made that Tuesday morning, so despite using all the communication methods we have, I’m sure some of you arrived at the church only to see the sign on the doors. I am sorry for the inconvenience, and I hope to reschedule the event after the holidays.

Dear Friends,

There are two important spiritual milestones this week. The first is Friday November 5th, the day we begin our 33-day preparation to either make or renew our consecration to Mary (on December 8th). If you have already made the consecration, I encourage you to go through the “retreat” again and renew your consecration. I have been doing so for the past 15 years and I can attest that each year I discover something new or experience the presence and love of Our Blessed Mother in a new way. The book we will be using is 33 Days to Morning Glory, by Fr Michael Gaitley. As of this writing, we still have some free copies of the book available in the parish office. You can also purchase the book from your favorite bookstore or even watch Fr Gaitley’s videos that are available on Formed.org. I am hoping to see a large group of you making the consecration at the close of Mass on December 8th.

To Our Married Couples:

If you are a married couple of child-bearing years, I want to share with you the best-kept secret in the Church—Natural Family Planning. This method of spacing your children is 100% natural and up to 99% effective as a family planning method. Many couples misunderstand the nature of NFP, equating it with the legendary “rhythm method.” Others have doubts about its effectiveness or even just how difficult it is to learn. We will discuss all of these concerns and more, including some of the many ways in which NFP benefits a couple’s relationship--such as the nearly non-existent divorce rate among NFP-practicing couples. A private benefactor has even agreed to underwrite most of the cost of tuition, thus removing even the financial deterrent.

Dear Friends,

On Wednesday, October 6th over 60 people gathered for our Community Forum. The purpose was to elicit from a broad spectrum of parishioners their views on what they liked about OLMC and what they thought our parish needs in order to strengthen our mission.

Everyone who spoke expressed their love and commitment to OLMC, which was very moving and affirming for all present. As for what our parish needs, some of the items mentioned, in no particular order, include:

Dear Friends,

This is the second Sunday of Pro-life Month in which we will be dedicating our homilies to some of the pressing issues facing us today. Last week we spoke about abortion and this week will be focused on racism. In the next three weeks we will talk about contraception, euthanasia and end-of-life issues and finally, the dangers facing families today.

These are controversial topics and not easily preached to an assembly that includes many under-aged children. All of us priests are aware of that and will do our best to be attentive to these challenges, but we all agree it is important for Catholics to hear Church teaching clearly proclaimed by their shepherds.

Dear Friends,

This is the first Sunday of October, the month where we especially recognize the God-given dignity of each human person and the blessing of the gift of life. All priests (and deacons) are encouraged to focus their homilies on topics related to life. We plan to use the 5 Sundays of October to preach about abortion, racism, the attack on the family, Euthanasia and end-of-life issues and contraception/IVF. These are not cheery topics, but the Church, in her role as Prophet, cannot shy away from the “hard sayings” if Catholics are to remain credible witnesses and signs of contradiction to the popular culture. Please pray for us that we can speak the truth in charity.