YOU ARE STILL CORDIALLY INVITED
TO A
PARISH APPRECIATION PARTY
Saturday, June 6, 2015
Beginning at 6:00pm
through 9:pm (and beyond?) in the Parish Center!
Everyone who does anything to support the parish – whether by direct service, or offering your prayers or contributions to the collection, or maintenance or cemetery grass cutting or… is welcome to gather as we celebrate what it means to be the community of faith called St. Ann Parish.
PLEASE RSVP to Pat Marstall at the rectory (314-385-5090) by Monday, June 1st.
Number of Adults coming: ____
Number of Kids ages 6-11: ____
(Kids 0-5 are no charge so we don’t need to know)
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ __
Priests are nervous from about mid-March through the early part of May. Why? What we know is that new assignments are usually effective the middle of June. Which means that, unless you have actively contacted the diocese and said: “I need to leave this pastoral assignment”, there can come an unsolicited phone call which begins a dialogue about ‘your next assignment’. The ‘transfer season’ ends the Monday before ordinations (traditionally the Saturday of the Memorial Day weekend) with an email to all the priests of the diocese listing the impending changes. (sans newly ordained, who are told AFTER their ordination where they are going.)
So, this past Monday, I officially breathed a sigh of relief when that email came out, and happily for me, my name was not on the list. So, for better or worse, (barring any-thing unforeseen) you have me for another year. For that I am grateful. I am so blessed here, by you and this community. I know the day will come when the Arch-bishop will say: “We have need of your skills and talents in XYZ parish.” And I will trust that day that the Holy Spirit is truly guiding him and the church, and I will say my continuing ‘yes’ to the call of my ordination to serve the church of St. Louis, however and wherever they need me. Which, for another year, looks like St. Ann parish and the Catholic Newman Center at UMSL… Deo Gratias