Pastor's Corner

From the Pastor

Pastor's Corner

May 3, 2026

This weekend, as you can see from the front of the bulletin, is First Communion weekend in our parishes. What a wonderful time in the life of these young children and in the life of the parish!

These young children are now filled with the presence of Christ – the real presence of Christ! Christ will in turn be that much more present to the people that these children encounter.

It is not only a blessing for each of these children, but it is a blessing for every one of us. The body of Christ continues to grow.

Try to remember your First Holy Communion. How did you feel? What did you think?

How do you feel today? Is it still a special moment for you to approach the table of the Lord and to be offered the Body and Blood of Christ?

I hope so! The Eucharist can never be taken for granted. It can never become simply one more thing that we do.

Looking at these children, or even remembering your own First Communion, we can see how special a moment it is. Everyone dresses for the occasion. Girls are in their Communion dresses, boys are in their sport coats and ties, and moms and dads are dressed up as well. It is a special day, special enough for people to wear their Sunday best.

So what happens after First Communion? Why don’t we dress up every Sunday? Why isn’t there excitement every weekend about receiving the Body and Blood of our Lord and Savior?

As they say, familiarity breeds contempt. We get used to everything. And so, if something becomes ordinary, regular, or expected, it no longer remains special.

Before Vatican II, people rarely received communion, and it truly remained a monumental moment when they did. However, Pope Pius and the Council encouraged us to become frequent receptors of the Body and Blood of Christ because to do so fills us with grace and strength to be better disciples.

Therefore, it becomes very important for us to do some preparation before we attend Mass on the weekend. We need to think about and pray about what we are doing. We need to ready ourselves for the reception of this great Sacrament.

These children went through two years of preparation, and this weekend is the culmination of those years of learning and practice.

We all went through those years, but somehow, we forget how special communion really is.

While we do not have to prepare for two years before we receive communion each time, we do need to remind ourselves of what a great privilege it is to be receiving this sacrament. Each and every Sunday, as we get ready to participate in the Mass, let us all remind ourselves that we will encounter the Lord and that He will be with and in us!

May these children experience the joy of the Lord in their lives today and every day, and may they grow in their love of the Eucharist throughout their lives.

Please pray for these children and for all of our children, that they can grow as disciples of the Lord and as active members of the Church.

Also pray in gratitude for the wonderful job that our religious education staff does throughout the year. We are blessed to have committed people who teach and assist and work in the office and who give of their time and talents to ensure that our children grow in the faith and learn about the Lord’s love for them.

Many thanks to all of the staff of our religious education program. God bless them always!

Faith Like a Child

If you Google Search recommendations on how to raise generous children, almost every list of ideas begins with — or at least contains — the directive for adults to be good models of generosity themselves. Our children learn from our actions much more than from our words. Of course, when I think back over the years while my children were growing up, I think I may have learned as much from them as they learned from me. There is a time between early childhood and middle school where a child seems to be freer to give and share than at any other time in life. It is around the age of First Communion when the cries of “mine” turn to laughter and smiles, and the urge to be a part of something bigger than oneself leads to sharing. Before you know it, the child hits the pre-teen years, and once again, he or she becomes the center of the universe. I believe that the previous paragraph is all true, however, the stages described seem to repeat themselves throughout adulthood. Don’t you agree? Sometimes we fall into seeing ourselves as the center of the universe, or we become consumed by our state in life or with what we have acquired. Also, we at times are generous and loving people. It is sin that draws us back into ourselves and away from any meaningful life of stewardship and generosity. In order to be freed for love, we need role models to help us see what really matters. We need to reflect on the example of many of our brothers and sisters in Christ. And, yes, we need to look to children who may be at the point in their lives where sharing is fun, and love is something in abundance.

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