Happy Sunday!

This past Friday we had the Back to School BBQ. Thank you to everyone who helped organize this event and to everyone who attended. It’s great having the school back in full swing! This week our middle school students will be on their annual retreat. Please keep them in your prayers during these days.

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the re-registration as we transition to a new database. It is incredibly helpful to us and we are grateful for your participation in this endeavor. If you have not already done so, please go to the parish website or grab a form in the office or narthex to complete the re-registration.

Dear Friends in Christ,

As we prepare for the foundation of the Militia of the Immaculata Village at our parish on August 27th, traditionally the Franciscan Feast of the Seven Joys of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we give thanks for all the many ways in which God and Mary have blessed our community. This is the first MI Village to be established in the Diocese of Phoenix. It is our hope that MI Villages will begin to form in other parishes of the Diocese as well. Promoting total consecration to Mary within a framework of missionary discipleship can only bring many blessings to our parish and to the Diocese as a whole.

Happy Sunday!

This week on Thursday we celebrate the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary into Heaven. We will have four Masses for this Holy Day of Obligation. There will be a 5:30pm Vigil Mass at Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Chapel on Wednesday night, the 14th. On the 15th there will be a 6:30am Mass at Our Lady of Gudalupe, 8:15am and 12:15pm Mass at SFdA.

Happy Sunday!

This Tuesday, August 6, we begin the parish wide consecration to Jesus through Mary. I have received some logistical questions about how this takes place. As you know I recommended a couple of different books to help you along the way. You may have found other consecration books that are suitable and that could also be a great option. The daily prayers for the consecration can be done in private, with friends, or with family. In this way the 33 day consecration is rather informal.

Happy Sunday!

These last days of July have come upon us quickly! Teachers start back this Wednesday and soon our school will be filled once more with our wonderful students! I hope everyone is able to enjoy their last days of summer break. These last days of July are also beautiful days in the Church. On the 22nd we celebrated the feast of St. Mary Magdalene, on the 25th St. James the Apostle, the 26th was Sts. Joachim and Anna, the 29th Sts. Martha, Mary, and Lazarus, and on the 31st St. Ignatius of Loyola. On four of these feasts we celebrate saints who would have lived close to Our Lord. The last one, St. Ignatius, was the founder of the Society of Jesus, or the Jesuits.

Beloved friends in Christ,

I want to thank you for the warm welcome I have received from you and your families. I am very grateful for your support and for the ways in which you have already helped make me feel at home at San Francisco de Asís Parish. I am looking forward to getting to know you better and spending time with you. I have been a priest 8 years and served the Church as a Franciscan friar for 18 years before I entered the Diocese of Phoenix.

Happy Sunday!

We’re midway through July already and I can’t believe it. There continues to be quite a bit of activity in the parish. It’s a gift for me to see so many of you giving so generously of yourselves. There’s of course the regular events involving our funeral volunteers, rosary volunteers for funerals, cleaning the church and the chapels, as well as groups like the Knights of Columbus and our Senior Luncheon volunteers. Thank you so much to everyone who make our parish such a wonderful place to be.

Happy Sunday!

I hope everyone had a safe and restful Fourth of July. June was a whirlwind. We hosted a Mass with Fr. Joseph Nguyen, a Women's retreat, Vacation Bible School, and Camp Invention. For that reason, we shut down the office last week for a little repose. This week, we are open again and beginning to gear up for the coming year. Next weekend, our teens will be at the Steubenville West retreat in Tucson. Please keep them in your prayers as they take this time away to be with other teens and encounter the Lord more deeply.

Happy Sunday!

I can’t believe it’s been one year since I’ve arrived back in Flagstaff. It has been an incredible gift to be here, and I hope to be here for many more years. Thank you for welcoming me back so warmly and making this such an incredible year. I am so grateful to be here and to know each of you. This week we welcome our new parochial vicar, Fr. Michael Gilbert. While the office will be closed this week, you’ll be able to catch him at a daily Mass or two, and then on the weekend.

Happy Sunday!

We had a great week this past week with all the children present for Vacation Bible School. Thank you so much to all of our volunteers who helped to make this such a great week. As I mentioned last week in my letter, I would like to invite everyone to participate in the Total Consecration to Jesus through Mary beginning on August 6. The consecration is 33 days and involves various prayers each day. It will finish on September 8th, the feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Happy Sunday!

Happy Father’s Day to all of the fathers in our parish. I hope it is a day of prayer, joy, and rest. It is always a gift to see you coming to Mass with your children and grandchildren. We know that all fatherhood is learned from God the Father who loves us first. This Sunday we hear about the parable of the mustard seed, that tiny seed that becomes the largest of all bushes. The many sacrifices of parents are their own mustard seed. We are grateful today for the sacrifices of the fathers in this community who desire to bear fruit in their families.

Happy Sunday!

This weekend we welcomed back Fr. Joseph Nguyen to celebrate Mass here as a priest! His ordination on June 1 was a beautiful experience. We give thanks to God for such a wonderful priest for our diocese. I want to thank everyone for being so kind, generous, and welcoming to Fr. Joseph this past year. He was a gift to our parish and I know he loves each of you very much. Thank you for your part in forming him for the priesthood.

Happy Sunday!

This weekend, on Saturday, was the ordination of Dcn. Joseph Nguyen to the priesthood. We are very excited to welcome him back next weekend, now Fr. Joseph, to celebrate the 4:30pm Mass. There will be a reception afterwards for everyone to greet him and receive a blessing.