Pastor's Note

TIME IN THE MISSIONS
August 26th, 2007

I recall many years ago, when I was in grade school, Fr. Wilson used to come to our parish from the Diocesan Missions office and show us movies about the missionary work. I was fascinated with the foreign culture, the images of strange lands, and the way other people lived.
Later when I was in the seminary, I struggled with the question of whether to become a parish priest or a missionary. Drawn to both, I chose the direction of parish priest, which has been very good. Nonetheless, I continue to be interested in missionary work.
As a priest I have had the privilege of visiting missionaries in Mexico, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Zimbabwe, and Papua New Guinea. In each case, I have come a little closer to the missionary spirit of the church.
Two years ago, when Blessed John XXIII Parish was established, I discovered that my two loves; parish work and missionary zeal have come together. It is not a foreign mission that we are in; but what we are doing is the same work that missionaries do.
The very nature of the church is to be mission-oriented. That means we have to be aware of all people without faith or who are searching. It also means that the church has to grow outwards and not just look in at itself.
My on-going prayer is that we at Blessed John never just concentrate on ourselves and what we have or what we need. Instead, may we always be ready to reach out and extend ours