+JMJ
Dear Parishioners,
We are blessed to have Bishop Daniel Thomas visit us this weekend to confirm our eighth graders at the 11am Sunday Mass. Bishop Thomas has not ceased to work tirelessly for our Diocese, even from the very day of his installation back in October of 2014. It is an honor to have him with us!
Congratulations to our youth who are being confirmed by Bishop Daniel Thomas this weekend at the Sunday, 11:00 AM Mass! May all of our newly confirmed truly strive to allow the Holy Spirit to inspire them in all of their decisions! You remember the four intellectual gifts connected to Confirmation, right? Understanding, counsel, wisdom, knowledge. Without getting too specific about each gift, I'll simply say that these gifts allow the Christian to consider speculatively the things of heaven and the things of earth, and then apply that thought practically to concrete life situations. The Holy Spirit truly makes a difference in our lives! Then the other three gifts associated with Confirmation are piety, fortitude and fear of the Lord. Piety has to do with our devotion to the Lord, but traditionally it also was understood to support our loyalty to family. Fortitude allows us to “choose the good”, especially when faced with some opposition. Finally, fear of the Lord helps us to reverence the Lord appropriately and avoid sins that displease Him.
On another topic, we had another brainstorming session with a large group of people interested in the future of St Wendelin's festival. One of the first questions raised was, “What now will be the mission of the festival, since we don't have schools to support?” Well, now it seems the mission is primarily to build community among ourselves, and then to reach out to the local community. If we make a little bit of money as well, that would be a fine thing. In fact, after the meeting, somebody suggested that any money raised above and beyond the costs of sponsoring the event could go to our parish support of the Catholic schools our children now attend. I really liked that idea.
After discussing the various options that had been suggested since this past fall, it seemed everybody was most supportive of having St Wendelin's Parish add a brats-beer-band component to the Farmer's Market and Heritage Day that is planned in Fostoria for Saturday, August 21st, from 11:00 AM until perhaps 10:00 PM or 11:00 PM that night. Our part would be set up downtown where the Latino festival used to happen. The brats would be cooked back behind the parish rectory, however. Perhaps parents and schoolchildren from Tiffin Calvert and Fremont Bishop Hoffman could also each add something, such as selling drinks and desserts? In our pastoral team meeting this past week, we discussed planning an evangelistic speaker the weekend after the mini-fest; and at the mini-fest we could hand out fliers for that evangelistic event. We could also hand out bulletins, along with a social media summary page that tells people how to stay in touch with us. (I also came up with the idea of tucking a wallet-sized confession pamphlet under the bun with each brat we sell :) That would enhance the mission aspect of the event. Perhaps this small event will evolve into something a bit larger that is even centered on our own campus? That, very briefly, is what we are now exploring as a possibility. With our staff now significantly reduced from what it used to be, we cannot run this even out of the parish office. The most important thing that now has to happen is for volunteers to step forward to run the event. Is there a couple that would chair the whole event? (Remember it is only for one day. It is greatly reduced from the huge festivals of the past.)
In addition to the overall chairpersons, we would need the following chairs: Set-up Crew; Sound System; ID Booth; Ticket Booth; Clean-up Crew; Mission Shaping Crew (touches that help us reach out through this event with the Faith). We already have people who have volunteered to chair: Electrical Crew; Beer Tent; Brat Cooking Team; Brat Serving. In order to make a decision about the feasibility of this event, we do need people to step forward ASAP. In casual conversations, and out of this meeting, it seems we have enough people to volunteer for the day itself; but we need a handful of people to volunteer for these chairs. IS THE LORD CALLING YOU??!! Please contact Tami Honse at the office to say “YES!”
Have a blessed week!
In cordibus Iesu, Mariae et Iosephus,
Father Poggemeyer