Deacon John’s Stewardship Blog

Today, 1/17/2021, we celebrate the Rite of Enrollment for our 8th grade students who look forward to celebrating the Sacrament of Confirmation on Thursday, April 29, 2021 at 7:00 PM at St. Patrick Church. In this rite today, the Confirmation Candidates will make known their desire and promise to study and to be good stewards serving God’s holy Church as they work to complete their sacraments of initiation. Their parents will answer to their preparation and willingness to help them. Their sponsors will acknowledge their support as well, being good role models of practicing the Catholic faith. Our congregation will promise to support them in their prayers and witness of their faith. This is what a community of faith that embraces the spirituality of stewardship is called to do. We walk with our young people, helping them to grow in their faith and by the power of the Holy Spirit, embrace their Catholic identity and understand what it means to live life as a faithful disciple, be a grateful steward and an active evangelist. May we continue to be an inspiration by demonstrating responsible stewardship. Thank you for taking the time to help our young people.
God bless you,
Karen Bartos, CRE

When deciding to begin a family with my husband, it was never a question as to whether there would be a baptism prepared for our children. It was finally our turn to introduce our own little one into the life of the church. We took a lot of pride in the preparation of our daughter’s baptism. We feel that the most important part of baptism is to have her accepted into the Catholic community and as one of God’s own creations.

It was a priority for her to receive her first sacrament. While preparing we took time to learn what each part of the Sacrament of Baptism represented. The anointing of the holy oil was one of our most meaningful parts to our family. We often think of baptism as just the water christening that signifies the cleansing of original sin. The oil is what brings the whole baptism together by uniting the Holy Spirit and this innocent little human together. This part of the Baptismal Rite, as well as her being presented as a newly baptized member of our Christian community, really brought tears to our eyes. We consider our daughter a blessing every day, and we plan to continue to guide her in her Catholic faith. She will have a strong relationship with God and be comfortable in the church.

Thank you!

Tyler and Emily Duez 

When I was first asked to write an article for Deacon John’s Stewardship column. I started thinking up a million excuses of why I couldn’t. I have three kids and we are dealing with remote learning; my husband and I both work full time; our dog just died. As I was listing the excuses I was going to give her in my head my thoughts shifted thinking of the homily’s I listen to Father Mike give every week.  I heard in my head now Father saying “prioritize God over everything”; “use your God given talents”. I heard him saying “make time for God and not just inside the church on Sunday”.  I thought of this week’s lesson on Mary saying yes to God. So I pushed aside my own fear and doubt and when Karen asked me if I would do it I gave her the most excited YES I could muster.

For those of you who don’t know us I am sure you have probably at least heard our kids in mass.  My name is Loni McNany, my husband is Matt McNany and our children our Emily (8), Addison (5), and Connor (2). We were asked to write for the column because this year we are going through the process of RCIA or The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. As part of RCIA my husband and I have the privilege of meeting almost every Thursday with Deacon Bob and 4 other amazing individuals going through RCIA with us. Our goal is at the Easter Vigil we will be confirmed into the Catholic faith and become full members of St. Patrick’s Church in Hubbard. All of us in RCIA have different stories and different faith backgrounds but we are all united by RCIA. My husband and I call our weekly RCIA classes our date night and I have to say we both genuinely enjoy it. Even on the days we don’t really feel like going we say “yes” and we show up and we leave feeling happy that we went. Deacon Bob has taken us through the “why” and the “how” of the sacraments, the order of mass and why we stand and kneel. We have learned about the incense and the oils; some of the different prayers and what they mean. We have learned about the Church and its history and have even gotten to tour it with him.  He has answered every single one of our questions and if you ask Deacon Bob he will tell you Matt has lots and lots of questions.

For us RCIA has been more than just the why and the how of going to church but the changes we see in ourselves in our daily lives. We are different then who we used to be when we made the decision as a family to take this journey and join the Catholic Faith. As afraid as we were to complete the sacrament of Reconciliation we left feeling a peace we have never known. After completing the sacrament we both made changes to our behaviors and continue to work to become better. When Matt, Emily, and I got to experience the Holy Eucharist it was just as Deacon Bob said it would be as we experienced and felt the mystery of faith.

In conclusion, the most important thing I want you all to know is how welcomed and accepted we have felt since we made the decision to go through this process. We were afraid to join and intimidated by the process and commitment. We were comfortable where we were and this was a big step as a family that required a lot from us and was not made lightly. From our very first mass we have been welcomed and helped by everyone. From the smiling faces and nice comments about our family and kids to the Cheney’s walking us over and introducing us to Karen and the PSR team. Our children are so happy in PSR and more importantly they are learning so much from their amazing teachers Miss Lisa and Miss Teresa. So thank you to Father Mike and the Deacons and to the entire parish for helping to make our journey a successful one. You have all helped us in ways we didn’t even know we needed.

Blessings,

The McNany Family

   For 24 years our family was previously members of Grace Lutheran Church in Hubbard.  All five of our children were baptized and celebrated their First Communion there.  Our oldest three children also celebrated their Confirmation there as well. The last couple of years were filled with uncertainty about our children’s faith formation. Although we were comfortable with our church friendships, we continued to attend, but not frequently.

     When Chelsea, our oldest daughter, found out that she was unable to be married in our church due to the COVID-19 restrictions, we all decided that this was the right time to pursue a new path of religion for our family.
Our soon to be son-in-law was already of the Catholic faith. He reached out to his church, but unfortunately their date was taken. It was suggested for him to contact St. Patrick’s in Hubbard.

        Father Mike and Deacon Bob were very accepting of Chelsey and Donnie being married at St. Patrick’s Church. We would be unable to take part in communion with them on their wedding day which, was and is something that is very important to us.  It was at this time I felt God was sending us a message that it was time for us to move forward in our Christian lives. With the help of our dear friends, Mike and April Cheney, we decided to move forward and join the Catholic faith and become members of St. Patrick’s Church.

        This was not an easy decision. We talked about it as a family and decided that it was the best thing for our family. Our two younger children are now attending religion classes and truly enjoy them. I love the fact that when I look at my two younger children during Mass that they are listening to the readings and asking questions after Mass about things they did not understand. I remember our second Sunday Mass at St. Patrick’s. My nine-year old looked at me when it was time for communion and said, “Mom, is it over already?”  I realized then that she truly enjoyed once again being in church.

         Deacon Bob was wonderful in working around our crazy schedules to make sure we completed our RCIA classes. Everyone we have met here at Saint Patrick’s  Church so far has truly made us feel welcome. It is said that everything happens for a reason and we truly believe this was one of God’s blessings!

Thank you to everyone here who has made us feel like we have always been a part of the St. Patrick’s family!

Thank you all for the warm welcome,
Neal, Michele, William, Hunter and Isabella Shaffer and
Donald & Chelsey Lucarell