Dear Parishioners,

This weekend, we honor our mothers. To all the mothers of our community, I offer you our thanks. In our world we need women who are willing to bring life into the world. It is a great sacrifice which you mothers offer, and it requires a true giving of yourselves. We know that it doesn’t stop there, but in a sense, it is just the beginning. The call of parents continues even after children are grown and independent. The work of creating a home as a space where a child grows up and is nourished, protected and taught requires many years of dedicated service. As you know, there is no handbook for how to do this perfectly. There are many different approaches, and each child is unique and calls for a particular attention of parents. So, to all mothers who are carrying out this critical vocation of raising a family, thank you.

I know there are also many women who want to raise a family and aren’t currently able to. It may because they haven’t found a spouse, or it may be that they are unable to have children. These can be very difficult hardships to bear. It can seem unfair that some people who are married and have children seem to throw these gifts away so readily. And we may find ourselves asking why God allows this while keeping others from fulfilling their desires. I pray that those who are suffering in these ways may find a way to meet the Lord in the midst of their desires, and that the Lord may transform their experience into something for the good.

Parishioners who are registered should be receiving in the mail our quarterly newsletter soon near the end of the month of May. If you don’t receive it, please let us know. It would only go to those who are officially registered, so that might be the problem, or perhaps we don’t have the right mailing address. Please contact the office if you don’t receive one.

This coming Wednesday (May 13th) is the feast of Our Lady of Fatima. That is elevated to a solemnity at the parish ‘Our Lady of Fatima’. So we will try to make that Mass a special one for this special day.



Last Sunday, we had a fundraiser for the priest care fund. Fr. Tony Wroblewski shared with us at the fundraiser that the money raised will go to help priests who need a little help with things like counselling, assistance with mental health or other personal issues that may arise in the course of ministry. The priest care fund would also be utilized to assist with sabbaticals. Our effort to bridge the gap in this area is a current need which the Diocese of Duluth is trying to meet. One of our parishioners came forward and is offering to match up to $25,000 for this cause. So, this is an open invitation to parishioners who want to support the Priest Care Fund. We will have green envelopes available in the pews during the month of May. If you would like to make your money go further, this would be a great way to do so.

In Christ,

Fr. Eli