Feast of St. Junipero Serra

​     As you may imagine, I’ve spent some important time this past year making decisions about my own future. With my original assignment coming to an end on June 30th, I had the opportunity to head off to a new place, a new adventure, meet new people and make new friends. I like adventure.
       Then there is the wisdom of giving parishes new pastors, new priests, with new homilies without any repeats, with new visions for what the future might look like. I see the sense in that. And as you know, I have repeated elements of homilies. After 14 years, with a three-year cycle of readings, I’ve preached on the Luke cycle four times, and the Matthew and Mark cycles, five.
        I could also have returned to the seminary. My replacement there, Fr. Szkredka, is now our regional bishop, and the seminary had a hard time finding a replacement. They could have used me. It’s beautiful there, and I have good memories, and could have made new ones.
         So, as you see, there were good reasons to leave.
         But there were also many excellent reasons to stay.
         I have the most wonderful people to work with on the pastoral team. Teresa Runyon, the parish’s pastoral
associate is the companion pastors dream of, with rich experience, a terrific education, a deep knowledge of the parish, a mother’s wisdom and her own deep understanding of life, theology and faith. Dominic MacAller has been a terrific companion in life and liturgy, filling our days with beauty and music, humor and rich insight. Tere Delgado and her amazing team have been such a steady hand providing our children with rich opportunities to grow in faith and love of the Lord, with a bright optimism and substantial leadership skills, while also bringing the most beautiful elements of Mexican faith and traditions alive for us. Brett Becker’s steady hand, enticing the most spirited, faith-filled, young people into leadership and discipleship, is a large part of why I have so confidently worked to make our coming youth center a priority. Manuel Leon and Gaby Rivera round out the team with management and technical skills that have provided stability and oversight, fantastic design and electronic outreach.
       And then there are the people we all work to serve ... you. You are generous people. You are warm and caring. You have been so kindly attentive, so prayerful, so engaged. At your best, you are inspiringly good. I have been challenged to be the priest you deserve. Like Jack Nicholson’s character in As Good as It Gets, you make me want to be a better man.
        The truth is I don’t speak about Padre Serra too much to other priests, because it always sounds like bragging.So, I can’t help but be grateful to God that I am here, in this place, this beautiful place, with you. How blessed and grateful.
        Don’t get the wrong idea, here. We still have lots to do. As a parish, while you all have been so beautifully generous to the needy, we could do much more missionary outreach. There are so many who don’t know the love that God the Father has for them, nor do they know of the total self-giving of Jesus for their sakes. We can’t be content ... not yet.

St. Junipero Serra’s real feast day is July 1st. I am so glad that I will still be here with you when that day arrives, one day past my old assignment.


Love from your priest,
​

Fr. Patrick 

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