Newsletter of 10/29/06

Somos el Cuerpo de Cristo
Thoughts from Some Fellow Parishioners of Holy Spirit—October 29, 2006

Other Christs
“As a child, I was taught correctly that a priest is ‘another Christ.’ There's just one problem with the statement: My teachers failed to inform me that he's another Christ not because he's a priest, but because he's a Christian.

“I, a priest, am another Christ, not because of what happened to me in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome in December 1964, but because of what happened to me in St. Mary's parish church in Belleville, Illinois, in February 1940. Followers of Jesus become "other Christs" at Baptism, not at ordination.

“At times, our quest to honor our Church's clergy comes at the price of dishonoring everyone else. One person's dignity should never diminish anyone else's dignity….

“If only the priests in the community are other Christs, then, following Paul and Luke's theology, only the priests will ever rise from the dead or find blessings in imitating Jesus. Fortunately, we now realize that Jesus' image is to be found in all His followers—the other Christs to whom we priests are called to minister.

“If we don't recognize Jesus in them, it might be very difficult for them to recognize Him in us.” from Father Roger Kardan, scripture scholar and a priest of the Belleville (IL) diocese

A Candle, a Flag, and a Vote
Just a couple of thoughts: One of the things I appreciate about my church is the liturgy, the richness of the rituals and the depth of meaning. So, it bothered me this Sunday that the Easter Candle was nowhere in sight and in its place were two flags and a sign placed by our Knights of Columbus. The Easter Candle is lit at our Easter Vigil and should remain visible throughout the year in our church. Among many things, the candle reminds us that Christ is our light, that we celebrate resurrection every mass and that we have all been baptized into new life. If our Easter Candle has been replaced by an American flag and a KC sign, what does that say about what we are celebrating as the center of our lives?

Second thought: We are in an election season. Your own voice and the voice of your faith cannot be heard if you do not place your vote. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has information on their website regarding faithful citizenship. Our church supports all pro-life issues, including a campaign to end the death penalty, and has firmly stated that Iraq is an unjust war. We will hear this coming weekend about the greatest commandments—“love God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.” Part of loving our neighbor is making sure we do what we can to put people in office, and policies in place that treat our neighbor with justice. Be informed and place your vote.
from fellow parishioner, Michelle Peña

Desaparecidos
In a coup on March 24, 1976, a military junta seized power in Argentina and went on a campaign to wipe out left-wing terrorism with terror far worse than the one they were combating. Between 1976 and 1983—under military rule—thousands of people, most of them dissidents and innocent civilians unconnected with terrorism, were arrested and then vanished without a trace. These are the desaparecidos, the disappeared.

Father Genaro Henriquez, still listed in our bulletin as Pastoral Vicar, seems to be un desaparecido—gone with the wind, vanished in the night, wiped from our sight like images in those doctored photos of Party notables in the old Soviet Union. Father Genaro? Who? Was he ever here?

There aren’t a lot of facts available, but we do know that the Monsignor requested that the Bishop reassign Father Genaro. Reasons? Details of events that might have prompted this? All speculation at this point.

What is not speculation is that Father Genaro provided, in his homilies, a thoughtful counterbalance to the endlessly repeated pious prattle that has been standard fare in our Parish the last few years.

What is not speculation is that the Monsignor has chosen to completely ignore Father Genaro’s departure. No announcement of it, no public acknowledgement and thanks to him for his service to the Parish. How callous and how petty.

Solidarity
In Solidarity with Our Priests.
A poster displayed at Holy Spirit Parish on 9/29/06
On the contrary, shouldn’t priests be in solidarity with those to whom they are called to minister? A Parish precedes its pastor, both in time and in logic—the pastor serves the community, not the other way around. So, the question is not whether parishioners stand with the pastor, but whether the pastor stands with the parishioners.

Education
At the two general meetings about religious education, the Monsignor told everyone present that those who would choose to “home school” their children would be provided materials, guidance, and support from the Parish. This is not happening. In fact, at Sunday Mass, from the sanctuary of the church, the Monsignor belittled and attacked a group of people who have formed their own support group so that they can help each other carry out the religious education of their children. F.I.R.E. meets monthly, both children and parents—see the Blog for the details of this support group.

Priestly People
But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. 1 Peter 2:9

The priesthood in our Church is not a cultic priesthood, like that of the Jewish temple or that of ancient pagan religions. By contrast, the readings from Hebrews that are being featured in these current weeks make it very clear that Christ is our High Priest and His the only sacrifice, and that that sacrifice is once and done, to be carried out no longer. The Eucharistic celebration unites us to Christ’s sacrifice, it is not a new sacrifice offered by the priest in our name. This is our celebration—the priest leads us, but it is not his celebration.

The gradual accretion of cultic priesthood characteristics to the Church’s office of priest has done a lot of damage to the workings of Eucharistic Communities and even to the understanding of the meaning of the Eucharist itself.

$$$$$ Update
This begins the second year of reporting on the state of parish finances. We have yet to receive a financial report for the fiscal year ending 6/30/06, so budgeted amounts are speculative, but assuming the same budget as previously ($14,500 per week), here are some numbers for the last two weeks. Total below budget: $6,434.46. Total shortfall (including expenditures over budget): $10,318.98. Projected yearly shortfall: $268,293.48.


Prepared by RGV Parishioners for Progress and edited by Jerry Brazier. Copy this, and pass it on to fellow parishioners, either by e-mail or paper. If you want an opportunity for prayerful discussion of these and other issues about the parish or have any other comments, please contact us at mailto:gbrazier@rgv.rr.com



Posting a Comment: You may now submit a comment simply by clicking the "POST A COMMENT" link under the "COMMENTS" button below. Approval of comments are done only to prevent unsuitable or advertising type posts. You may also wish to add your e-mail address to our database to automatically receive biweekly newsletters. Simply e-mail us at: Kanickers@aol.com with a notation to add your name to our list.

Letter to Monsignor Brum.

Letter to Monsignor Brum

Dear Msgr. Brum:
How dare you suggest that ANYONE not come to mass (re: your comments at the announcements today, Sunday October 22, 2006). How dare you!

How can you know what is in the hearts of parishioners and why they come to mass? Regardless of the reason they may come to mass, to show off new clothes or new spouse, socialize, a sense of Catholic duty, sell bar-be-que tickets, or whatever, let them ALL come says Jesus, and He will change their hearts THROUGH the shared celebration of the Eucharist.

I come to mass for several reasons. Even though you are the celebrant, and a very poor one, I STILL get something out of it. I come for the Eucharist, I come for the fellowship with other parishioners, I come to show you that I am STILL here demanding inclusion and that YOU as MY PASTOR serve my needs and the needs of all NOT only those who you happen to like.

I am a Catholic and always will be no matter how bad the clergy is; I just learned that lesson from a missionary priest in Honduras that I visited his month; being World Mission Sunday, it is good to bring that up. The church has survived bad clergy before and will again.

You, of all people, Msgr. Brum, suggesting that some have invalid reasons to come to mass and should not attend. You who have refused to even LOOK at a large group of parishioners during the celebration of the Eucharist. You who threw out the peace and justice commission, one of the pillars of the Church in this world. You who made our staff’s lives miserable until they left. You who once REFUSED me communion and stood by smirking while your misguided sycophants attacked me in public for pointing out a grave error you made. You who got rid of our excellent choir. You who destroyed our renowned education system. You who restricted lectors and Eucharistic ministers to only those who please you. You who scolded Adam Moya AT MASS because of your insane paranoia. Who are YOU, poor excuse for a pastor that you are, to suggest that ANYONE NOT come to mass!

Bishop, I know you are reading this, do you know what your pastor at Holy Spirit Parish is doing? Of course you do; he is doing your bidding. May God have mercy on both of your souls.

In all humility (truly),
Guy Hallman, parishioner of Holy Spirit Parish


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Newsletter of 10/15/06

Somos el Cuerpo de Cristo
Thoughts from Some Fellow Parishioners of Holy Spirit—October 15, 2006

The Blues Brothers (and Sisters)
We’re on a mission from God. Elwood Blues

Several years ago a parishioner was quoted as saying, “I’m on a mission from God to rid this parish of Father Jerry and Ann Cass.” So, in that person’s mind and maybe the minds of many others: “Mission Accomplished!” Is a banner being created and an appropriate aircraft carrier-like setting being scouted out?

This mentality - seeing the events of the past 3+ years as a power struggle that has finally been won by the “righteous ones” against the “forces of evil” - is poisonous and fundamentally flawed. Bishop Peña used the phrase “power struggle” when he spoke to us during Lent this year - both he and the Blues Brothers of the Parish are wrong when they talk that way. The Church is not about power, but about the proper exercise of authority; it is not about command and obedience, but about servant-leadership.

In the Church we have no say in who will be our leaders; therefore, those who are our leaders must serve everyone, not just those they choose to serve. Every parishioner has an absolute right to be able to practice the fullness of their Catholic faith in their own parish community. A parish exists for the parishioners; it is not a vehicle through which a pastor creates a comfortable lifestyle for himself by refusing to deal with parishioners he doesn’t like.

The only mission any parish has is the creation of a vibrant Eucharist Community that lives and witnesses the Gospel 24/7 - let’s work on accomplishing that. Together. All of us.

$$$$$ Update
A year ago (10/16/05) the Parish received, in the Sunday Bulletin, something that was described as a financial report for the fiscal year ending 6/30/05. The report was both incomplete and inconsistent. Over these last 12 months, the report of the Sunday collections in the each Sunday Bulletin, the stated budget from the 10/16/05 report, and the pattern of parish expenditures reported for the fiscal year ending 6/30/05 have been combined to produce this update each two weeks.

For that 12 month period, the Sunday collections reported in the bulletin totaled $676,682.05, which is $77,317.95 less than the $754,000 yearly budget (in those 52 weeks only 10 collections met the weekly $14,500 budget amount). There is some very real doubt about the accuracy of the collection amounts, since second collections ceased being reported separately rather early on, even though the report from the year before did report standard and second collections separately. There is no way to know how expenditures have fared relative to the budgeted amount, but the year before, the Parish exceeded budget by $100,997.52. If the spending patterns continued, then the Parish fell short by $178,315.47 in the period between 10/16/05 and 10/8/06.

There has yet to be a financial report for the fiscal year ending 6/30/06. Who is accountable here?

Fundamentalism
There is an article in a recent Time Magazine called “ When Not Seeing is Believing” by Andrew Sullivan that put in clear language thoughts that have been swirling around in my head. Mr. Sullivan writes on the rise of fundamentalism in all the major world religions and the dangers that come with it. He makes the case that doubt, questioning and seeking are essential parts of faith. If there is no doubt, then God would be captured in human certainty – and that cannot be, because God is beyond our human categories. It is the great temptation of Adam and Eve again, to know all Truth. Only God has the pure and whole Truth. It is in the uncertainty, in the doubt where we can be initiated into the mystery. “True belief is not about blind submission. It is about open-eyed acceptance, and acceptance requires persistent distance from the truth, and that distance is doubt. Doubt, in other words, can feed faith, rather than destroy it. And it forces us, even while believing, to recognize our fundamental duty with respect to God’s truth: humility. We do not know. Which is why we believe.” (Andrew Sullivan)

Maybe for some the uncertainty is too uneasy. I find it comforting that God is bigger than my own understanding, that there is an existence of a higher truth.

I also appreciate when Mr. Sullivan points out that faith must be more than a set of precisely defined external principles or dogmas, and that in a “non-fundamentalist understanding of faith, practice is more important than theory, love is more important than law, and mystery is seen as an insight into truth rather than an obstacle.” That seems more Catholic to me than the road we seem to be traveling.
from fellow parishioner, Michelle Peña

Petty
Petty, adj., marked by narrowness or meanness (from the Fr. petit, small)

We used to have a group of folks that met every week to study the Second Vatican Council, its documents and its impact on the Church. All of a sudden, there is supposedly no room for this group to meet. Sure, it is generally a small group, but it has been meeting almost forever at the Parish - surely something could be found.

The whole process by which the request for space was handled was marked by delay and outright untruths. It is all so petty and so obvious: let’s run off some more folks—they aren’t the right kind of people, anyway.

Pro-Am
Some activities and ministries in the Parish are a little frayed at the edges these days. Religious education with its new modus operandi and under its new management is having a tough time getting the details under control: not enough materials, no support for those choosing home schooling, no Spanish program, etc. The English music ministry hasn’t quite got everything in synch yet, either. Adult education seems to have shriveled to near nothingness.

The generosity and enthusiasm of those involved cannot be denied, but eventually the Parish will expect more that that—it will expect ministries that are well carried out. We have a parish that is in the hands of amateurs and yet we still deserve the best outcomes for the youngsters in religious education, we still deserve outstanding liturgies, and we still deserve effective adult education. Amateurs can eventually learn to function reasonably well, but they can never supply the talent and expertise that professionals can. You get the best out of volunteers when their efforts are organized, directed, and nurtured by professionals whose (paid) responsibility it is to manage activities and ministries. All of those working hard need to be cut some slack, but let’s not forget that it wouldn’t have to be this way—we all have experienced a Parish that was managed quite differently.

Let’s hope that the motivation behind these changes in Parish ministries and the criteria for judging their effectiveness will be more than the fact that they are being done differently than they used to be.


Prepared by RGV Parishioners for Progress and edited by Jerry Brazier. Copy this, and pass it on to fellow parishioners, either by e-mail or paper. If you want an opportunity for prayerful discussion of these and other issues about the parish or have any other comments, please contact us at mailto:gbrazier@rgv.rr.com



Posting a Comment: You may now submit a comment simply by clicking the "POST A COMMENT" link under the "COMMENTS" button below. Approval of comments are done only to prevent unsuitable or advertising type posts. You may also wish to add your e-mail address to our database to automatically receive biweekly newsletters. Simply e-mail us at: Kanickers@aol.com with a notation to add your name to our list.

F.I.R.E.

F.I.R.E.

Families In Religious Education
Orientation Meeting
October 21, 2006
5:30pm




You are invited to join other Holy Spirit Parish families in creating a network of support and community sharing for home-schooling our children under the currently approved Catholic Religious Education Program.

Bring your current textbooks (if possible) and your whole family. There will be groups for ages pre k-1st, 2nd & 3rd grade, 4th-6th grade, 7th&8th grade, 9th-12th grade and adults, with coordinators leading each group.

You and your family are also invited to stay for the Holy Spirit Fellowship Potluck Dinner immediately following this orientation. We will be meeting in the activity center of First Christian Church. First Christian Church is located at the corner of 10th and Nyssa, 2 blocks south of Pecan St. Parking and the entrance door is in the rear.

(Our thanks to First Christian for the use of their facilities.)

The FIRE program is an exciting option that is available to your family for Religious Education. It will have caring volunteers that have years of experience in Religious Education. All are invited to join and help, if interested - you don't have to have children to participate.

Also, please remember the Upper Valley meeting to End the Death Penalty:

St Ann's Catholic Church Hall
Monday, October 16, 2006
710 E. Lucas
Pharr, TX
7:30 PM

You may never get another chance to meet and hear Rev. Carroll Pickett or Dave Atwood again. Don't miss this great opportunity!

Teaching by Example

An Editorial Comment

Teaching By Example
I read with interest the recent editorial from Bishop Raymundo Peña concerning the voucher programs for private or parochial schools. Naturally, since our bishop is now trying to build a new Catholic High School, he is all for anything that would help in making that a reality!

Although I don’t disagree with some form of voucher system for our schools, I think it is ironic that our bishop would cite the ‘separation of church and state’ as the cause of the removal of moral instruction and prayer from our public schools. He sure didn't hesitate using that same separation of church and state when arguing his case against his own employees and their right to employment justice. I guess it is ok to use it when it is of benefit and criticize it when it is not!

At any rate, in his commentary he asks, “What could be wrong with teaching our children honesty, fairness, tolerance, self-control and self-sacrifice, respect for others and their property, compassion, charity and promise-keeping?”, as though returning prayer to our public schools would solve all of the problems of our youth.

My question would be, What could be wrong with the leader of our Catholic Church setting the example for our youth, by his word, policy and examples, of honesty, fairness, tolerance, self-control and self-sacrifice, respect for others and their property, compassion, charity and promise-keeping?

If the leader of our Church would practice what he preaches, than maybe we would have a much easier time of setting an example for our children of the Christian way of life! It’s an extremely simple concept!
~Kanickers


Posting a Comment: You may now submit a comment simply by clicking the "POST A COMMENT" link under the "COMMENTS" button below. Approval of comments are done only to prevent unsuitable or advertising type posts. You may also wish to add your e-mail address to our database to automatically receive biweekly newsletters. Simply e-mail us at: Kanickers@aol.com with a notation to add your name to our list.

Death Penalty Campaign and Fellowship Dinner

The Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
and
The Catholic Campaign to End the Death Penalty
are pleased to present:

Rev. Carroll Pickett
A Presbyterian Minister who spent 15 years as the Death Row Chaplain. He gave comfort to 95 men before they were put to death by lethal injection. He is author of the book: Within these Walls: Memoirs of a Death house Chaplain.

He is now a very strong opponent of the death penalty and speaks about his observations about capital punishment and the prison society.


Dave Atwood
Founder of the Texas Coalition to abolish the Death Penalty in 1995. Dave works to promote an increased awareness of the injustices in the capital punishment system and to advocate true justice in our criminal justice system. Dave speaks against the death penalty in churches and schools and to civic associations world-wide. He shares his history of activism, working with legislators and the media, as well as his experiences working with death row inmates and their families.

In 2003, Dave addressed the 4th World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in Roam, Italy. In October, 2004, Dave did a 21 day fast against the death penalty. In November, 2004, he committed civil disobedience at the Walls Unit in Huntsville to protest execution of Anthony Fuentes.

Two Days Only:

St Ann's Catholic Church Hall
Monday, October 16, 2006
710 E. Lucas
Pharr, TX
7:30 PM

St. Joseph Church Hall
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
555 W. Francis
Brownsville, TX
7:00 PM

Also, Please join our vigials in front of the Hidalgo County Courthouse on the days of an execution.

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Posting a Comment: You may now submit a comment simply by clicking the "POST A COMMENT" link under the "COMMENTS" button below. Approval of comments are done only to prevent unsuitable or advertising type posts. You may also wish to add your e-mail address to our database to automatically receive biweekly newsletters. Simply e-mail us at: Kanickers@aol.com with a notation to add your name to our list.

Newsletter of 10/01/06

Somos el Cuerpo de Cristo
Thoughts from Some Fellow Parishioners of Holy Spirit—October 1, 2006

A Letter That Reveals
In July of 2002 (ancient history by now), Father Bob Maher, Vicar General of the Diocese of Brownsville, wrote a letter to all the Texas bishops “on behalf of Bishop Raymundo J. Peña.” This letter is posted currently on the Blog (http://kanickers.blogspot.com/) and even though the issue discussed (unionizing parish workers) is no longer the hot topic it was four years ago, the letter reveals quite a bit about the mindset of the Bishop (yes, the Bishop on whose behalf the letter was written) and the administration of this diocese.

First, in the upper right hand corner is the “CONFIDENTIAL” stamp, as if having this correspondence seen by others (like the laity of the diocese, whom these men supposedly serve) would be a bad thing. Was the Bishop concerned that this letter would put himself and the diocese in a bad light? Throughout the Holy Spirit labor dispute, the diocesan administration consistently spouted their support of unions, claiming the issue was one of procedure and proper authority—“we love unions, think they’re great, just go about things in the right way.” Father Maher’s letter puts a lie to that, so maybe the desire to keep it under wraps makes some kind of perverse sense.

Second, the letter links the unionizing effort to Valley Interfaith and the Industrial Areas Foundation. The public support of the Diocese for both of these organizations is a well-documented fact, yet Father Maher’s tone makes it clear that he views both of these as suspect groups.

Third, Father Maher bemoans the fact that pastors are “ill-prepared” for the responsibility of “negotiating the term and conditions of their employees’ work with a union representative.” Certainly having his treatment of employees subject to some accountability might make a pastor uncomfortable, but is that not the price of a fair employment situation? Surely the dimensions of a pastor’s comfort zone cannot define the parameters of a worker’s right to organize.

Fourth, Father Maher describes Valley Interfaith and IAF as attempting to “inseminate other dioceses with this unionizing project” [emphasis added]. Not infiltrate, not even infect, but instead a verb with earthy connotations that might raise some questions from the realm of psychology about how the administration of the diocese really views its faithful.

Views Open for Discussion
From the National Catholic Reporter, by Sr. Joan Chittister,OSB (September 7, 2006):

“The day Katie Couric became the first woman anchorperson of a prime time news broadcast, Princess Kiko of Japan gave birth to a baby boy. If you're a girl, we have a little good news, a little bad news for you. The good news is that you, too, can grow up to be Katie Couric. The bad news is that you cannot yet grow up to be empress of Japan.

Getting to be ruler of Japan, a once-divine position, means you have to have some established relation to God. And God, we are led to believe, does not express divinity in girls. There's just something about girls that seems to lack what it takes to be divine. It's not God's fault, of course. It's not anybody's fault really. Things just are what they are. It's just that it can't be done because girls are not as good as boys for some reason that no one can discover.

We have a bit of the same problem ourselves.

Jesus became ‘man’ we are now supposed to say - despite the fact that for centuries we said, "And the Word became ‘flesh’—as in human. They tell us that they mean ‘woman,’ too, when they say ‘man,’ of course. Except not always.

In the middle of the Rhine River, on the St. Lawrence Seaway, on a boat on a river in Pittsburgh, women who feel called by God to serve the people of God are being ordained beyond legitimate diocesan boundaries. Why? Because they have no other choice. There's nothing they can do about it. They have no authority to open the theological discussion of whether or not Jesus became ‘man’—meaning male—or Jesus became ‘flesh’—meaning human—and the implications of that answer for the life and structures of the church itself.”
From Good Catholic Girls by Angela Bonavoglia.

“Mandatory celibacy is built on the notion that women are inferior, and that marriage is a second-rate way of being Christian,” says Anthony Padavano. … in the Catholic Church today, there are already married priests. The Church’s Eastern rite priests (e.g., the Ukrainian Catholic Church) have been marrying for centuries, and there are married Roman Catholic priests who wed before they converted from various Protestant denominations, which the Church began to allow in 1980. Padavano adds, if a man leaves the priesthood to marry and his wife dies, he is welcomed back immediately; if he divorces and has no financial liability, Rome will consider readmission as well.”

$$$$$ Update
According to the Sunday bulletins, since 10/16/05 parishioners have donated $74,861.94 less than the $725,000 the parish budget has called for (this includes an estimate for the weekend of April 2, since no data was ever reported for that date). If the spending patterns of the last fiscal year have continued (13.4% over budget), then this gives a total of $171,974.94 of red ink (versus budget) for the period 10/16/05 to 9/24/06. Stretching that pattern for an entire year, the Parish would fall short by $178,853.94.

Religious Education and the Diocese
The Diocese is about to build a high school in the upper Valley (on donated land north of Edinburg). Well, not exactly build, the operation costs and the $13 million building cost must be raised entirely by interested lay people. The Diocese will own the school and the appointed board, while having all the financial responsibility, will have limited control. It will be the laity’s money, but the Bishop’s school.

There are five Catholic elementary schools in the upper Valley (one in Starr County and another which already has a high school associated with it). Exact enrollment figures are not easily available, but the national average is 150 students in grades 5-8. So, in Hidalgo County there would be approximately 450 students in Catholic schools in grades 5-8 who can be reasonably thought of as potential students in a four-year high school. The Diocese’s own survey of parents of Catholic elementary school students indicated that 58% would send their children to a Catholic high school—that’s 261 students. The Diocese is projecting 600 students.

The school’s tuition will be at least $6,000 per year, in addition to all the typically unstated costs (books, uniforms!!, transportation, etc.). It is clear that this will be a school for the financially well-off. At a town hall meeting at Our Lady of Sorrows less than twenty people attended (a star-tlingly small number for such an ambitious project) and the impression they left was that this school is seen as either a refuge from poor quality public schools or an attempt to provide a religious education for their children that their parishes aren’t providing.

Why can’t we get serious about religious education and youth programs in our parishes, put them in the hands of professionals, engage the parents in a meaningful way, etc.? Instead, scores of millions of dollars are being proposed to be spent on a very small number of young people. Hidalgo County has over 40,000 students in grades 9-12, the overwhelming number of them at least nominally Catholic. If the parishes had effective religious education for them, then the justification for a Catholic high school would be reduced to a desire to flee the public schools. Should the Diocese really be in the business of fostering that sort of elitism?

Prepared by RGV Parishioners for Progress and edited by Jerry Brazier. Copy this, and pass it on to fellow parishioners, either by e-mail or paper. If you want an oppor-tunity for prayerful discussion of these and other issues about the parish or have any other comments, please contact us at gbrazier@rgv.rr.com.



Posting a Comment: You may now submit a comment simply by clicking the "POST A COMMENT" link under the "COMMENTS" button below. Approval of comments are done only to prevent unsuitable or advertising type posts. You may also wish to add your e-mail address to our database to automatically receive biweekly newsletters. Simply e-mail us at: Kanickers@aol.com with a notation to add your name to our list.

Commentary on Homily

Received the following commentary on Father Louie's homily:
Our pastor spent his bellowing on the theme of “Respect for every life”. This is certainly what every Christian believes. We have an obligation to respect every person for whom they are. That is what Jesus did. Jesus listened to every person and gave them his Gospel. But he listened!

Now, did our pastor listen to the employees of the parish? Did he respect their lives? They are human beings. No, he chose to treat them as non-existent. When will he realize that he is not living what he preaches?

A priest should be willing to be a Christ like example to his flock. What we have is a wolf who is willing to kill rather than save his flock. What price glory?

Your message was great. Why can’t you live your message? He should know that the liturgical commission has regulated that no flowers should be on the altar. You apparently feel that you are above the Church. Wow, “What price glory”. May God grant you the guidance to understand what priesthood is all about.


Potluck Fellowship:
Wow... Fellowship, Music, Prayer and Good Food. Thanks to all who made it happen! Special thanks to First Christian Church for the use of their facilities!


Catholic Campaign To End the Death Penalty.
It is time for all Texas Catholics to come together to end the use of the death penalty in Texas.

Two Meetings: Special Guest Speakers

Rev Carroll Pickett: Presbyterian minister who spent 15 years as the death house Chaplain in Huntsville. Ministered to 95 men before they were put to death by lethal injection.

Dave Atwood: Founder of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Dealth Penalty.

St Ann's Catholic Church Hall
Monday, October 16, 2006
710 E. Lucas
Pharr, TX
7:30 PM

St. Joseph Church Hall
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
555 W. Francis
Brownsville, TX
7:00 PM

Mark your Calenders. More Information to follow!


Posting a Comment: You may now submit a comment simply by clicking the "POST A COMMENT" link under the "COMMENTS" button below. Approval of comments are done only to prevent unsuitable or advertising type posts. You may also wish to add your e-mail address to our database to automatically receive biweekly newsletters. Simply e-mail us at: Kanickers@aol.com with a notation to add your name to our list.