Parish Update – Friday, Jan. 28

Happy Friday, brothers and sisters. I pray this last Friday of the month finds you well. Someone yesterday wished me a “Happy New Year,” and it caught me off guard. Are we still saying that during the last week of the month? Hard to believe, but with February right around the corner the “new” year is already a month old. Tempus fugit!

We’ve got a double-header for you this weekend as we celebrate the 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time – it’s the beginning of Catholic Schools Week and also our annual call to Stewardship with our parish Ministry Fair. In addition, there is Coffee and Donuts in the Parish Hall after the Sunday morning masses this week, sponsored by our Genesis Early Childhood Program, which will also offer tours of its program from 10:30 a.m. – 2 p.m. And don’t forget the Winter Blood Drive in the Community Center is happening on Sunday, too. In short, there’s a lot going on at CtR these days and that’s a good thing. Praise be to God!

First, as you see the many CtR School children at Mass this weekend, I ask you to please pray for our school. It’s a wonderful apostolate of our parish, and it’s ready to welcome you and your family to join us for next school year. Registration is now open and applications are welcome. See www.ctrschool.com for all the details. Don’t forget the Open House for prospective families happening on Wednesday, Feb. 2.

Next, I ask you to stop and visit our many ministries that are open to you at CtR in our Ministry Fair. You’ll see them prominently displayed in the narthex as you enter and leave Mass. This is not a “hard sell” to get you to join a ministry, but rather a “come and see” what is out there so that you can respond from the heart. Stewardship is not just a nice idea – it’s meant to be a way of life for one who follows Christ. Commit your time and talent to serve the parish and others by putting your faith into action this year. There’s a place here for you, I guarantee it.

Here’s some of the news and notes of what is happening at CtR this week:

• We invite you to please join us for Mass this weekend, either in person or via our livestream on Sunday at 9 a.m. on both our Facebook and YouTube pages. You can find the link to the livestream at www.ctrcc.com/live-stream, and in addition, you’ll find there both a worship aid and a link to the Scripture readings to follow along with Mass. And you can make your weekly offertory contribution online at www.ctrcc.com/donate. ... If you’d like to join us in person for Mass, we welcome you on Saturday at 5 p.m., or Sunday at 7, 9, and 11 a.m. and 5 p.m.

• I want to give you a “heads-up” on the forthcoming 2022 Diocesan Services Fund (DSF) which begins next weekend in every parish throughout the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, including us here at CtR. I’ll have additional information on it next week, but I wanted to alert you that it is on the horizon. … You will recall that the DSF is the annual collection to fund those ministries and services offered in the name of the archdiocese that no one single parish could ever possibly fund on its own. The DSF theme this year is “All For the Glory of God,” from St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:31, “So whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God.” It is a fitting reminder that by virtue of our baptism we are to join together in our service and outreach to all our brothers and sisters in Christ. Your individual gift to the DSF enables us to reach people in need through more than 60 important programs and ministries.

Beginning this coming week, all registered parishioners will receive a letter from Cardinal DiNardo along with a personalized pledge card inviting them to participate in this year’s DSF drive. Please complete the pledge card and bring it with you to Mass next weekend of February 5-6 or return it in the mail in the envelope provided. If you prefer, you may make your pledge online at www.archgh.org/dsf. That’s what I do and I find it quick, safe and secure. We’ll also have pledge envelopes available in the pews as well.

Every parish has a goal, set by the Cardinal, to meet as part of DSF. Our goal this year at CtR is $320,500, which is an increase of about $15,000 from the previous three years, when the goal was frozen in light of, first, the Ignite Capital Campaign, and then subsequently, the pandemic. We have a long history of just cresting above our goal each year (this past year we were over by about, ironically enough, $15,000) and we definitely want to keep our streak alive. As an incentive to reach and surpass we receive a rebate of 50 percent of any overage of our goal, with the other half going to support low-income parishes. … I’m often asked how much a family should give to DSF. That’s ultimately up to you to decide, and I would ask you to please don’t forget to make a pledge to our own Ignite Capital Campaign that is ongoing, but I might suggest that you consider giving $1 a day (a $365 yearly pledge) to support DSF. That’s about $91 every three months. Remember that you don’t have to pay it all at once. You can spread it out through the year, and there are options for credit card payments or bank drafts. Regardless of the amount, please do make a pledge. If every family would give just a dollar a day we would make our goal easily.

I know these are tight economic times for all of us, but generosity has always been a hallmark of the people of this parish. Let us prayerfully discern God’s call so that we too might join with the faithful throughout Galveston-Houston to follow the Lord in this great work. I thank you in advance for your continued support of this wonderful initiative. It is truly one of the real blessings of our great archdiocese to be able to help so many people in so many ways.

• As we move into February I remind you of two wonderful opportunities for spiritual renewal. First, our Married Couples Retreat is scheduled for next Saturday, Feb. 5, from 9 a.m. – 8 p.m. I highly encourage couples to give the gift of the day to one another and spend it on the beautiful grounds of Camp Allen, not too far from the parish. There will be reflections on the spirituality of marriage, but also plenty of time to simply relax and let the Lord touch your hearts. For more information and to register, visit www.ctrcc.com/events/married-couples-retreat … Later in the month we are hosting our 3^rd annual Women’s Retreat on Feb. 25-26 here on our parish campus. As you might surmise, it’s open to all women in the parish and will be a chance to come away with one another to “cultivate hearts of praise and gratitude,” as this year’s theme states. It starts on Friday evening, Feb. 25, and then continues all day on Sat., Feb. 26 and concludes with the 5 p.m. Vigil Mass. All meals are included. We’ve had great responses to our previous two women’s retreats and I am sure this one, too, will be a gift to all who seek to deepen and refresh their spiritual life. For more information and to register, visit www.ctrcc.com/womensretreat

• We have two full-time positions coming open in the area of Information Technology (IT) at both the parish and school, one for the Director of Technology and the other for an IT Support Technician. As you might imagine in a parish of our size, these are important roles for our community. Though we are always first and foremost about the work of the Holy Spirit, computers and technology play a large part in the work we do. … Please help us by forwarding the information to qualified applicants you might know who would be interested. It's a great opportunity to build upon a strong foundation we have in IT to help us further our mission in the digital age at both CtR Catholic Church and CtR Catholic School. Job descriptions and information can be found at www.ctrcc.com/workwithus.

• Next Wednesday, Feb. 2, you are invited to bring any candles you use in your home for a blessing as we celebrate Candlemas, the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. It always takes place 40 days after Christmas and calls to mind that Jesus is the “light of the world.” It has been a long-standing tradition to bless candles on that day to carry forth that one and same light into our homes. We’ll do so at the end of both the 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. Mass that day. … The following day, Thursday, Feb. 3, is the feast day of St. Blaise and we’ll offer the traditional blessing of throats at the conclusion of the 9 a.m. Mass. 

• Please join me in praying for Fr. Alfonso Coronado, who is being ordained to the priesthood this evening, Friday, Jan. 28, for the Diocese of El Paso. You may recall that Alfonso was assigned to us from St. Mary’s Seminary for a two-year mentorship that was unfortunately cut short by the pandemic. We didn’t get near enough time with him, but we rejoice that he is now a priest. May God grant him many happy years in service to the people of God. I’ve invited him to celebrate Mass for us at CtR should he return to Houston for a visit, but for now he’ll be quite busy in El Paso. ¡Felicidades, Padre Alfonso!

St. Thomas Aquinas, the great 13^th century Dominican friar and Angelic Doctor of the Church, whose feast day is today, pray for us! His philosophical teaching is the undergirding of nearly all theological thought in the Church to this very day.

Peace, Fr. Sean