Pastor's Weekly Message

April 12, 2020--Easter Sunday
Happy Easter:
     Mừng Chúa Phục Sinh:
              Felices Pascuas:

     We celebrate the central tenet of the Christian faith, the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ from the dead. The early disciples did not understand immediately when they saw the empty tomb. They came to believe over time in the words that Jesus foretold them that He would have to suffer, die and rise. We also do not understand at times, even with the benefit of the Church’s reflection of over 2,000 years.  But God is ever patient with us, continuing to offer His graces to assist us to come to believe and love Him more fully over time.

     What a different Lent and Holy Week it has been with our churches closed, our world filled with anxiety about this Coronavirus, people who are sick and/or who have died, disappointed and stressed out engaged couples who are postponing their weddings, families who cannot have public funeral services for their deceased loved ones, families stressed out with both adults and children at home, both parents and children learning how to do school online, people who are worried about paying bills, wondering if they will have a job or have lost their job, how businesses will survive, etc. People of faith are yearning to gather as a faith community at church! Catholics are yearning for Holy Communion and Confession!  All the catechumens (non-baptized adults) and baptized Christians from other faith traditions wanting to become Catholic, as well as baptized Catholics who lack Confirmation & First Holy Communion who were yearning to join the Church at Holy Saturday’s Easter Vigil and will have to wait until the churches re-open. Infant baptisms, unless it is an emergency, have been postponed until the churches re-open.  Parishes wonder how they will meet their expenses, especially with staff salaries. And the list goes on!

     Yet with all these stresses and crosses, we still celebrate our faith in the resurrected Christ of Easter.  I know you are so grateful for your families & friends in good times and bad, grateful for other blessings & graces, for the efforts of the Church to reach out to you, to keep you connected through livestreaming, and other social media forums, how you, our registered parishioners, appreciate that our staff members are calling you to see how you are and receiving your prayer intentions.  Our staff members are finding such blessings by communicating with you. 

     Many parishioners are acknowledging how they are so fortunate as compared to others who have it so much worse than them. So many are asking for prayers for all our health care professionals and first responders like the police, fire fighters, EMS personnel, etc.  So many good things can come out of hardships or restrictions in our lives. 

     One parishioner emailed me, stating “This experience has driven home what my parents must have experienced during the Great Depression and the World Wars.”  So true! So often we complain about our crosses, but when compared to some historical events, they are pale in comparison.  Some past health pandemics, the Great Death (known also as the Great Bubonic Plague in the 1300’s) or the 1918 Flu Pandemic,  killed millions of people. 

     Let us pray for another in this anxiety prone and stressful time. Let us pray for all who are impacted so negatively, including financially.  Let us pray for everyone’s continual good health, for those who are sick and all health care professionals and all public servants like police, fire fighters, EMS personnel, etc.

     Thank you for all your concern for us as priests and our well being.  We are praying for you. We also are trying to learn new means of social media communications.

     All the flowers for Easter were donated by:  Prestige Events, Blooming Gallery and Joseph’s Nursery (Pearland). Thank you for such generosity!

     Hopefully, you have noticed on our webpage (www.sacredhearthouston.org) and our various social media posts the beautiful image of the cross with the current & previous churches in the background.  This 12 foot cross was designed and built by one of our talented Vietnamese parishioners who attends an English Mass.  I am most grateful for his time, talent and donation of all the costs to construct this cross.  I asked him that it be made hollow on the inside of the cross so that it would be lighter in weight.  Actually, I can lift this cross myself, though it is awkward with its size. 

     The original purpose of this new cross was for it to be used for veneration of the cross on Good Friday since the Roman Ritual calls for only one cross to be venerated. The cross would have been processed in with 4 people carrying it above their heads down the main aisle.  Then the cross would have been placed upon 3 feet pedestals, upfront on the main floor, with the hope that several people could venerate it at any one time. 

     Well, it will be used next year for Good Friday. But in the meantime, I came up with the idea of placing it on the outdoor patio on the 4th floor of the Cathedral Centre with the current church in the background.   What a surprise to me when both the current and previous church were visible in the background! What a beautiful image of the cross, as well as of the rich history of our previous and current places of worship. 
 
     In this financially challenging times, please remember to support the Co-Cathedral.  Our collections were down significantly before this pandemic, and now we are down even more.  Please go to our stewardship page for ways to donate.

     Please contact the parish office or email us to give us correct contact info.  We are finding out that we have so many incorrect phone numbers and/or email addresses.  We want as many email addresses as possible since it is a quick and cost free way to contact you.

     Let us rejoice in the Resurrected Christ and all His graces & blessings!