In a few days, Fr. Dias and I will feel a bit like empty nesters. Already our seminarians, Jeremy Barket (for St. Boniface and St. Ann Parishes) and Cody Yarnell (for St. Joseph the Worker Parish), are on their way back to school. We’ve noticed the house that was so full feels a trifle emptier. We’re missing the extra conversation at dinner. But we’re glad they’re continuing their journey towards diaconate and priesthood—both, God willing, happening in 2027. Please keep these young men in your prayers. This week, Fr Fidelis will return to...

Read More

Last weekend, during his goodbye talk at Masses, our seminarian Jeremy Barket remarked on how quickly summer seems to pass. Like it or not, our days grow shorter; we have evenings that feel a little like September, and we’re counting off the days or weeks until Little League and the St. Boniface Carnival and the beginning of school. We’ll soon be in those weeks when we live between the seasons, saying our farewell to summer and our welcome to fall. These next months and weeks bring an opportunity to men in our parish communities. The people who invited men...

Read More

Last Sunday afternoon, as I was leaving our first combined “Seasons of Saints” parish picnic, a number of you came up and shared how much you enjoyed the afternoon. We all appreciated the time and energy that so many people put into planning and preparing the event. I heard many of you make remarks like: “It’s good to see people from all three parishes” and “We should do more things together.” To me it sounded like an echo from the Psalms: “How good and pleasant it is when brothers (and sisters!) dwell in unity!” Yes,...

Read More

If you’re at Mass in any of our churches this weekend, you know we’ve begun the annual novena to St. Ann. A relatively short prayer near the end of Mass. A hymn— with a familiar melody—addressed to Mary’s mother, Christ’s grandmother. I’m sure this small addition to our prayer raises a few questions. First, why St. Ann? Her name and her story aren’t contained in the New Testament. However, quite early in Christian history—mid-100s AD—she and St. Joachim are named as the parents of the Blessed Virgin. They’...

Read More

Let me talk about money today. But before you stop reading, it’s not going to be an ask for more money. Instead, I want to share about money we’ve received. Recently, we learned that the Diocese has responded positively to St Ann and St Boniface Parishes’ requests for grants from the diocesan Social Justice and Faith Formation programs. This isn’t our first time around. We’ve received these monies in the past. But sometimes we take the grants for granted! We should be aware of the commitment that our Diocese makes to our programming in ou...

Read More

250 years. Sometimes that seems like a long time. Much the way our significant birthdays or anniversaries—the ones ending in a zero or a five—seem hard to believe. We ask ourselves: Has it really been that long? Where have the years gone? Weren’t we just celebrating a Bicentennial? But let’s take another perspective. 250 years isn’t even 10% of Christian history, of Anno Domini. Other cultures, other governance structures (including the papacy) have already outlived us. As Catholics, who have just consecrated our nation to the Sacred H...

Read More

I noticed that we’re using the phrase “Season of Saints” to describe our parishes’ summer picnic. I can’t take credit for that phrase, but I like it a lot! We do seem to be in a “season of saints.” Earlier this month, we remembered St. Boniface, that great evangelist who left the comfort of his English monastery to bring the gospel to the Germanic peoples. In a few weeks, we’ll gear up for the traditional novena to St Ann, “mother of her who is our life, our sweetness and our hope.” And in August, we celebrate t...

Read More

How are we doing with our linkage and consolidation? That’s a question I hear often. People want to know: Is it working? These relationships between St. Lawrence, St. Boniface, and St. Ann Churches? What’s it like living through these significant transitions? My answer: People are coming to Mass. People are coming to Mass on Sundays. They’re coming to Mass on weekdays. Masses that used to be half-empty are filling up. And we’re running into people from parishes beyond our three churches. We’ve had transitions all around us. People are mak...

Read More

Each year, around my ordination anniversary, I share some thoughts about the priesthood, about vocation. Now, that anniversary falls when the Church celebrates the birth of St. John the Baptist, June 24th. That’s still a little way off. But today’s readings prompt me to talk about vocations a bit early. In the gospel, Jesus calls disciples and sends apostles. He tells his followers to pray for workers to bring in the harvest, the harvest of souls. It seems an apt moment for us all to reflect on God’s call. Some men knew all their lives they were called ...

Read More

This year, Catholics across our nation are being invited to participate in a historic act of faith: the Consecration of the United States to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. The bishops of the United States have called upon all Catholics to entrust our nation, our communities, our families, and ourselves to the loving Heart of Christ. This consecration takes on special significance as our nation commemorates the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. As Americans reflect with gratitude on the blessings of liberty and the sacrifices of those who he...

Read More