Last Saturday, we finished the last of the three First Communion Masses. We had a total of 150 children this year who received their First Communion, not including those who were received during the Easter Vigil. I am very proud of our children who diligently prepared themselves to receive the most important treasure there is in our faith, the Eucharist. It’s also exciting that with their first communion, they can now participate fully in the Eucharistic celebration. I would like to thank and congratulate their parents for their commitment to the faith formation of their children and for actively doing their part in the program process. As what I have always emphasized, the parish cannot substitute the very crucial role of the parents in the formation of their children in the faith. That’s why we call the family as the “domestic church.” What we do in the parish is only to reinforce what the children have learned already at home. Faith formation is a partnership between the parish and the family. Special thanks to our RE Coordinators Amy Maris-Volf, Deacon Bill Richardson, and Letty Rodriguez, and to all our catechists who paved the way for our children to be holistically prepared in receiving Jesus in Holy Communion.

This Tuesday, May 5 ^th, at 7pm, our teens in the confirmation program will finally be confirmed by Archbishop Vlazny. There are around 50 teens who will be confirmed. Let us continue to pray for them so that they may remain steadfast in their faith and, through the gifts of the Holy Spirit bestowed by the sacrament of confirmation , they would be warriors of Christ, diffusing far and wide the goodness and love of God. Thanks to Mary Kiefer, our Youth Ministry Coordinator, and to our youth ministry volunteers for their great leadership.

This weekend is the last weekend of our faith formation programs for this fiscal year. It’s amazing how time flew by. It’s been a very full year for our parish ministries. Without exaggeration, there were no dull moments at all. As we wind down our faith formation programs, we begin the “wedding season.” We practically have a wedding scheduled every Saturday beginning in May until September. The only two Saturdays that we will not have a wedding are in May because “quinceñeara” celebrations are scheduled.

We are now in the process of finalizing our calendars for the next fiscal year; by the time we realize it, July will already be here and we’ll be off to a new fiscal year. It’s been a great year thus far, and I am excited for the prospects that the new fiscal year will bring. May the good Lord, who has begun the work in us, bring it to completion. God bless. – Fr. Cary