May 11, 2025

Jesus Christ is Risen – Alleluia!

Pope Francis’ passing and the coming conclave have reminded all of us of the universal nature of the Catholic Church. In fact, the word catholic is a Greek word that means universal! If you are a Catholic, then you are a universal Christian, belonging to the one Church established by Jesus Christ with His twelve Apostles two thousand years ago. You are in communion with the Church stretching back to those twelve Apostles, as well as being in communion now with the Church throughout the world, and into the future until the end of time. That’s a lot of universal and communion. We’re definitely not an island.

Closer to home, there is another communion that we have because of our universal nature, that of belonging to the local Church, the Archdiocese of Seattle. Recently you received a letter from Archbishop Etienne introducing you to this year’s Annual Catholic Appeal (ACA). Each year at this time we pause and consider all the good that is accomplished because of your support of the ACA: the homeless are sheltered, retired priests and nuns are cared for, our seminarians are prepared to serve as our future priests, and so much more. If you haven’t already done so, I pray you will join me in affirming your universal communion with Christ’s Church in supporting the Catholic Church in Western Washington by donating to the 2025 Annual Catholic Appeal. It's your generosity that will make the ministry of the Archdiocese and our parish family projects possible.

The financial goals and the projects of our three communities this year are as follows:

· Holy Redeemer’s financial goal this year is $250,000. Of that amount, $213,041 will go toward the Church in Western Washington, and $36,959 will go towards expanding the north parking lot to allow for non-compact spaces. Currently the north parking lot is very tight and only has compact spaces. This creates frequent issues with traffic jams and even fender benders. Every dollar received over $213,041 will come back to Holy Redeemer for our project. Last year’s rebate is paying for a new storage building on which we hope to break ground this summer. Meeting our goals down through the years has enabled us to do amazing things with Holy Redeemer’s campus.

· St. Thomas Aquinas’s financial goal this year is $94,019. Of that amount, $84,019 will go toward the Church in Western Washington, and $10,000 will go towards the continued development of Columbia River Catholic’s Preschool and Kindergarten, hosted on St. Thomas’ campus. Every dollar received over $84,019 will come back to St. Thomas Aquinas to support the school.

· Our Lady Star of the Sea’s financial goal this year is $15,436. Of that amount, $10,436 will go toward the Church in Western Washington, and $5,000 will go towards new siding on our church. The siding project will cost much more than $5,000, but every bit helps. Every dollar received over $10,436 will come back to Our Lady Star of the Sea for the project.

With all of this said, the most important goal is participation, and we have set that goal at 100%. I invite you to join your fellow parishioners, along with thousands of other Catholics across Western Washington, to make a difference by making a pledge today.

I am asking every household in the parish to commit 1% of your annual household income, or $1.50 a day ($550) over the course of the next year (whichever is more). Some of us can commit to more than that, and we depend on you to do that if you can, yet every gift will make a difference, so please commit to something. If you haven’t already contributed to the 2025 ACA please do so today by scanning the QR code to the right, or going to https://archseattle.org/giveaca, or filling out the form you received from the Archbishop in the mail. For any questions call the Holy Redeemer parish office at 360-885-7780 or the Archdiocese at 800-809-4921. For those of you who have already made a commitment—thank you for your generosity!

Of note for this year: I know that some people who have given in past years are reluctant to donate to the Archdiocese for any number of personal reasons. If that is the case, then that donor is only hurting their parish. If a particular community doesn’t meet the goal the Archdiocese set for them, goals that we can all make, then the Archdiocese will dip into that community’s income to meet their goal. We all belong to one Catholic Church, and the Church extends well beyond us. We have our needs and the Church in Western Washington, which is our Church, has its needs too.

Importantly, next week you will receive a letter from me in an envelope marked Columbia River Catholic. As a parish family, we are centralizing the administrative work behind the ACA. However, your pledge will go to support Holy Redeemer, St. Thomas Aquinas, or Our Lady Star of the Sea respectively in meeting the ACA goals and projects specific to the community where you are registered.

Finally this: please remember your Parish in your will. Bequests are so helpful in funding large projects. If you haven’t yet put your parish in your will, please do so. It is a gift that keeps on giving long after we’ve parted this world, a gift for which generations of parishioners will be eternally grateful.