Last month, at the graduation ceremony for Benedictine College in Atchison, Kansas, a 28-year-old man gave the commencement speech, and it was the best commencement speech of all time. Harrison Butker is the Kicker for the Kansas City Chiefs NFL football team. … What Harrison did was call his fellow Catholics to faith in Jesus Christ and His Catholic Church, not shying away from truths that our world has rejected to its detriment. Harrison modeled courage.

Recently I came across the article on the other side of this page about decluttering. I thought it was good enough, and simple enough, to make a pastor’s column about it. More specifically about the importance of order…We see order in all of God’s work, the macro to the micro. From the universe and its billion plus galaxies, to the billion stars within each of those galaxies (average), to all the planets circling those stars (solar systems), to the moons attached to those planets, to all the creatures on earth (too numerous to count), to the order within our bodies, organs, billion cells within each human being, the immense order of our DNA, to the order of our relationships. Order is essential for families, government, workplaces, and the Church.

Our readings this Sunday feature two of hell’s most powerful demons, Satan and Beelzebul. So, I thought I’d use this column to bring up one way the fallen angels gain access to us, a way most of you are not aware of.

Jesus Christ left us an inestimable gift before he parted from this world, that gift is His Very Self in the form of the Eucharist. As most of us know, the bread and wine consecrated at Mass becomes the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ (who is God). This isn’t just what Catholics believe, as if others who believe differently might be right too, nor is this true because we want it to be; the bread and wine consecrated at Mass truly become the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ whether we accept this fact or not.

All Glory be to the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Today we celebrate or acknowledge, the One Triune God. A communion of Divine Persons: Father, Son, and Spirit. God exits in a family, and He created us to exist in them too. We need to honor that.

May the Holy Spirit be worshiped and praised ~

While Jesus Christ, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity takes center stage every Sunday, on this one Sunday, Pentecost, we specifically honor the Holy Spirit. Today I recycle a pastor’s column from five years ago about the fruits and gifts of the Holy Spirit.

This Sunday we celebrate the Ascension of Our Lord Jesus Christ into heaven. I found this good summary of the Ascension, abridged for space, written by Fr. Rick Poblocki at www.thestationofthecross.com/catholic-qa-the-ascension-of-the-lord/. I hope you enjoy it.

Within the past couple of weeks, you received a letter from Archbishop Etienne and me 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.

What is the last thing a priest does at the end of Mass? He gives a blessing and a farewell: “May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The Mass is ended, go in peace.” That should sound really familiar because the presiding priest does that at the end of every Mass. So why do people come forward during the Communion rite to receive a blessing when they are going to receive one at the end of Mass? Great question.

Once in a while someone will ask me why we don’t give out “the wine” at Mass. By the wine they mean the Precious Blood of Jesus. I’ll try here to answer that question but first a few basics.

At every Mass we enter into the one, never ending sacrifice of Jesus Christ on Calvary. A sacrifice He made for the Glory of God and the redemption of the human race. By redemption I mean that Our Lord’s passion, death, and Resurrection made salvation possible, but not guaranteed. The sacrifice that Jesus made for us made these things possible because Jesus is God, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. Since God is eternal, Jesus’ sacrifice is not bound by the laws of time and space that govern us. Hence, at every Mass we enter into that one sacrifice, made once for all, that began at the Last Supper on Holy Thursday and ended on Good Friday with the death of Jesus on Calvary.

Throughout Western Washington this weekend, parishes and missions will be finding out who their priests will be on July 1st. That’s when all 163 parishes and missions of the Archdiocese of Seattle will fall under 60 pastors. This is part of the restructuring of the Archdiocese of Seattle called Partners in the Gospel, something the Archdiocese and I have been sharing copious amounts of information about with you for over a year now. On July 1st, Holy Redeemer Parish, St. Thomas Parish in Camas, and Our Lady, Star of Sea Mission in Stevenson, will all share one pastor – me.

Because of the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, the human race has hope for the future, and redemption in the sufferings of the present. If we didn’t know anything about the hope of heaven, and a life of perfect everlasting happiness within it, we’d despair of the present. With the suffering, death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ (the Paschal Mystery), heaven has been opened to those who will be His faithful disciples. That means for a Catholic Christian, life doesn’t have to be lived in vain, but with incredible purpose, and with an interior peace that comes with accompanying Christ—a peace the world cannot give.

The Bible doesn’t tell us what Jesus looked like, how do we know? Answer: The Shroud of Turin.

Today is Passion or Palm Sunday, where at Mass we solemnly read through Our Lord’s Passion and death. Yet the Scriptures aren’t the only place that testify to what happened to Our Lord Jesus Christ at His death. There is one relic par excellent that irrefutably testifies to the truth of the Scriptures. That relic is the Shroud of Turin – the burial cloth of Jesus Christ.

God has blessed Holy Redeemer with (now) nine religious vocations in the past 15 years, six in the last four years! One of them, Townsen Poissant, is set to leave for Mt. Angel Abbey this Monday (you’ll hear from him below). We are hopeful that many more will follow him in the religious life.

Please pray daily for those from Holy Redeemer who have not yet reached final vows or ordination: Sr. Catherine, Sr. Katlyn, Evan, Br. Gabriel, Sr. Maris, and now Br. Townsen. Almost all those in religious formation will undergo a vocational crisis or more while in formation; almost all have undergone a vocational crisis before they even entered formation. Saying yes to God in this way is the bravest thing a human being can do because it is so un-natural.

For all of Christian history, people have had apparitions of those in heaven: the Blessed Virgin Mary, various angels and saints, and even Jesus Christ Himself. Almost none of them ever rise to the awareness of the Church’s authorities, let alone formal approval of the apparition and veneration of it. You and I can have an apparition of someone from heaven and treasure that visit for the rest of our lives; but we’re not going to go to our bishop and tell him all about it, wanting him to verify that it happened, and that people should venerate the site where it happened. That almost never happens. Because of this, and the profound reluctance of the bishops to verify things of this nature, there are only ten apparitions that the Church has formally approved of for authenticity and veneration. Today I introduce perhaps the least known of them all, Our Lady’s visits to the young shepherdess Benoite Rencurel in southeastern France from 1664 to 1718.

Every year on the first Sunday of Lent, we hear about Jesus in the wilderness praying and doing penance for 40 days, then Satan appears to tempt Him. In Our Lord’s case, Satan fails, in our case, he frequently succeeds. Why do Satan and the fallen angels (demons) tempt us to sin? Answer: to make our lives miserable and ultimately, to join them in hell for all eternity.

Some people don’t want to believe in hell, or at least that anyone is there. That’s understandable. On a superficial level, if hell didn’t exist then we wouldn’t have to worry about ourselves or anyone else burning there. That desire, as noble as it may at first seem, plays right into Satan’s hands.

Lent is a great time of the year to go to Confession. In fact, one of the precepts of the Church is that we have to go to Confession at least once a year. Historically, this is known as the “Easter Obligation” and is it normally done during the season of Lent or Easter, both six weeks long. Failure to go to Confession at least once a year, if aware of a mortal sin, is itself a mortal sin. To that end, we host a penance service here every Lent. This year’s penance service will be on Tuesday, March 26 (Holy Week) at 6pm. There will be seven priests here to hear confessions.

Lent is a special penitential season when Catholic Christians try to become better Catholic Christians. Specifically, we try to make some sort of special sacrifice for God’s glory, the salvation of souls, and atone for our sins and the sins of the whole world. Some people do big things and some people just one small thing, but we should all do something for Jesus who did everything for us.

Lent will begin this Wednesday with ashes, so now is the time to start making a resolution. Great things, even little things, don’t happen without a commitment and a plan: marriage, parenting, career, good health, etc., all take great commitments and a plan. So does our faith. Martyrs have died for the Lord, and saints have given their whole lives for Him. This Lent please join me in making a plan, with God’s grace, to better yourself in Christ.

The best I can do this week for a pastor’s column is to submit this great testimony below on the Holy Mass. Feel free to share with others, especially family members who are indifferent toward the Mass and hence God. Enjoy.

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In 1993, Catalina Rivas, a housewife and grandmother from Cochabamba, Bolivia began receiving messages from Jesus and Mary. Catalina bears the stigmata, the suffering wounds of Christ’s crucifixion. Amazingly, Catalina, who did not finish high school, has written eight books containing the messages of Jesus and Mary – all without a single theological mistake, and all given an imprimatur by the Archbishop of Cochabamba.

Beginning on Sunday, January 28, the Church observes Catholic Schools Week. I’m writing this Pastor’s Column on Catholic schooling now because next weekend, January 27/28, we’ll start having representatives in the narthex after Mass to answer any questions you may have and I want to give you a heads up now about that.

All Catholic parents are responsible for their children’s religious upbringing, to that end, the Church tries her best to help parents bring up their children in the practice of the faith through both schools and parish-based programs. As you know, school is super important for kids and adults too.