On Tuesday, January 7th, Fr. Mike hosted our parish appreciation dinner. It was an absolutely, fabulous evening with well over 300 of our parishioners attending. The food, entertainment, along with the games and Christmas carols made the evening memorable. As I watched our parishioners from the very youngest to the very oldest join as one family in Christ, I was drawn into the Acts of the Apostles and the early church. In the Book of Acts, St. Paul tells us how the people of the early church ate together, worshiped together and shared each other’s joys and sorrows. In so many ways we mirror that image in our St. Patrick Parish.
We are a parish that has embraced a stewardship spirituality. In all of our ministries, we serve our brothers and sisters with grateful hearts as we return to God the gifts that he has given to us in the form of our time, talents and treasure. Joshua 25:15 beautifully conveys the true spirituality of stewardship, “In this house we will serve the Lord.”
May we continue to serve the Lord with all our hearts and souls.
God bless,
Deacon John
Many of us have optimistically made resolutions at the beginning of the New Year. Unfortunately, many resolutions tend to be self-oriented. What if our resolutions for 2020 were other-oriented? How would other-oriented resolutions lead us to a stewardship way of life? Jesus had a plan. It was a plan that was undeniably other-oriented. Jesus approached those on the fringes. He embraced the abandoned. He served the poor. He confronted the sorrowful. He listened, prayed and consoled those in need. He was intentional. What would such a plan look like for us? Who around us is in need of assistance or forgiveness? Maybe they need someone to listen and pray with them. These are just a few examples of intentional discipleship.
Stewardship is the way a person displays love and compassion to others. We use our gifts from God to be inspirational, encouraging and helpful to our fellow brothers and sisters. Hello, my name is Giovanni Mileto. I’m a Junior at Hubbard High School. I’m an active member in my parish of St. Patrick’s Church here in Hubbard. I volunteer at the Fish Fries during Lent, the Community Thanksgiving dinners and the Festival. I’m also involved with Teen Ministry and volunteer my time, talent, and treasure, when needed in the community and in the parish. The last few years I’ve been attending Catholic Heartwork Camp with some teens and young adults from our parish and I have loved it. I have met new friends, used teamwork skills at my group’s different sites to help the poor, disabled, and unfortunate people around Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and Mishawaka, Indiana. When I was helping these people in other communities, I really felt joy knowing that I was making someone’s day and being God’s servant. Faith to me, means to express yourself as the hands and feet of our Lord Jesus Christ and to be a servant to others. We all face difficult times at some point in our life that may be challenging spiritually, mentally or physically. But, we must not forget, that God and the Holy Spirit have our back to help us jump through the hoops and dodge the darts of temptation that are thrown at us in our lives. So, having faith means the world to me through school and tests that may challenge my faith through everyday life. “For nothing will be impossible with God.” —Luke 1:37.
Hello, my name is Nick Matisi. Stewardship to me is using what God has given me to help others. I grew up with God in my life. I used to go to school at St. Pat’s and now I go to church every Sunday. It is very important to help people. The things that I used to do at my previous parish was to volunteer for the spaghetti dinner. I really enjoyed doing it because it gave me a good feeling helping out. Another thing I used to do at my old church was help out at the Easter egg hunt. I just want to be a kind person and help people.