Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity presents us with a central mystery of our Catholic faith, namely, that the one God is a Trinity of Divine Persons. The Catechism of the Catholic Church reminds us that, “the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them. It is the most fundamental and essential teaching in the ‘hierarchy of the truths of faith.’ The whole history of salvation is identical with the history of the way and the means by which the one true God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, reveals himself to men and ‘reconciles and unites with himself those who turn away from sin.’” (CCC 234). The different ways in which the revelation of God is manifested at various moments in history (think for example of the Incarnation or the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost) is called the Divine Economy. “Being a work at once common and personal, the whole divine economy makes known what is proper to the divine persons, and their one divine nature.” (CCC 259). While our human language may need to make distinctions between the persons, or we may find it helpful to think of God the Father doing one thing, while the Spirit fulfills another function, we do well to remember that the Three Divine Persons are inseparable in what they do.
While it is an imperfect analogy, the idea of the divine economy and what is proper to each Person of the Trinity got me thinking about the way our parish functions. In a variety of ministry, outreach, community, and formation, we are blessed with generous individuals who offer their services, time, and talent for the building up of the parish community. Without our volunteers, the good work done here at St. Pius would be impossible. Without our talented and committed staff, the day-to-day operations of the parish would grind to a halt. While God is perfectly sufficient in Himself, none of us in the parish is – we need each other.
In this bulletin, you will find some words of thanks extended to all who make this parish what it is. To these expressions of gratitude, I would like to add my own thank you. A few weeks ago I celebrated my 15th anniversary of priestly ordination. I was moved and humbled by the many congratulatory messages I received. For all the expressions of thanks that I received, I felt more than anything that I needed to be the one saying thank you. For 10 of my 15 years, St. Pius X has been my home, and you, the people of this parish community, have made my priesthood what it is. The priesthood is the single greatest gift I have ever received, but it is each of you that has made this gift so special. Words will never suffice to thank you, but I thank you from the bottom of my heart. In a special way, I need to echo the sentiments of gratitude expressed in this bulletin to our volunteers. When trying to name everyone, inevitably a name is forgotten (or misspelled) – if somehow we missed a person or ministry that needs to be thanked, please accept this as a sincere thank you for your fidelity to our parish and for all you do to build up this community of faith. Thank you!
Peace,
Fr Sam
