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This weekend we renew our commitment to life! As we mark the sad anniversary of the 1973 Supreme Court Roe v. Wade decision that paved the way for the legalization of abortion in the United States, we stand together in prayer for our nation. Between 100,000 and 300,000 people from around the country gather each year in Washington D.C. on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade to protest the Supreme Court's decision and to pray for the legal recognition of the rights of a child in the mother's womb. This gathering is called the Pilgrimage for Life.

The youth of our parishes participate in the Pilgrimage for Life every other year. On the 'off years' they help organize events in our Richmond Catholic Community to raise our awareness of the evil of abortion and to pray for a renewed respect for all human life.

This year the youth of our parishes, under the direction of our Youth Minister, Mike Waters, and the co-chairs of our Parish Pro-Life Committee, Debbie Coleman and Cathy Funkhouser, have planned a series of events that will enable us to stand for life.

A candlelight procession from St. Mary Church following the 5:00 p.m. Mass to St. Andrew Church and adoration of the Blessed Sacrament at St. Andrew from 7:00 - 10:00 p.m.

A prayer service and candlelight procession led by the youth from St. Andrew Church to Holy Family Church at 10:00 p.m. where the Blessed Sacrament will remain exposed through the night as we pray for the protection of life.

Pro-Life activities for high school and junior high students through the night at the Youth Center

Collection at all of the Masses of diapers and baby formula for our local Birthright.

Blessing of the infants and children at all of the weekend Masses as we thank God for the precious gift of life.

Our Spred Group (Special Religious Education Group) will help in the various ministries at the 11:00 a.m. Mass at St. Mary and have brunch together in the rectory.

A talk at 3:00 p.m. at Holy Family Church by Bernadette Roy of Project Rachel in which she will share her experience of suffering an abortion and the healing she found.

Monday, January 23, parishioners are invited and encouraged to participate in the Archdiocesan events that begin with a Mass at Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral at 12:00p.m. The Mass will be followed by a procession and a Rally for Life.

We will have many opportunities to witness to the Gospel of Life this weekend. But let us remember that we are called to make this witness each and every day!

The Christmas Season has come and gone! I want to thank everyone who helped make our Christmas celebrations so joyful and so beautiful. I heard so many comments about the beauty of all three churches. Thank you to our parish sacristans Gen Phenis at Holy Family, Marilyn Martus at St. Mary and Beth Van Der Burgt at St. Andrew for coordinating the decorating and the million and one details that go into preparing for the Christmas liturgies. Our sacristans are quietly, faithfully and joyfully at work all through the year and we owe them a great debt of gratitude. They would be the first to tell us that they depend on many parish volunteers who offer the gift of their time and talent to assist them and to them all we are grateful.

It would be hard to imagine our Christmas liturgies - or any of our liturgies - without music. We are so blessed with parish musicians and cantors who share their gifts with the parishes to help us offer our sacrifice of praise to God. The music during the Christmas season was beautiful and we thank all who helped us make a joyful sound to the Lord.

You may have noticed that several high school students have joined the ranks of our lectors, cantors and Eucharistic Ministers at Sunday Mass. It is a joy to see our young Catholics present and active in our assembly. Our Youth Minister, Mike Waters, has wisely suggested that rather than a weekly Youth Mass, our youth should be involved in our regular parish Masses. The presence of our youth is very welcome always and everywhere!

As we enter these weeks of Ordinary Time let us be conscious of the gift of the Sabbath - a day to be renewed in our relationship with God and with one another. Pope Benedict has called the Church to a re-evangelization of the once Christian cultures of Western Europe and North America. That re-evangelization begins rediscovering the importance and gift of the Sabbath. As we faithfully gather for the Eucharist may we be renewed around the table of the Lord and then renewed around our family tables. Both tables have been forgotten by many people and our relationship with God and with one another has suffered.

And so as we enter this New Year let us greet one another and encourage one another with the words: "See you at Mass!"

Thank you to everyone for your wonderful spirit as we adapt to the new Roman Missal. I think the transition has been smooth – much smoother than I had imagined. I have the sense that we are ‘hearing’ the words of the Mass and appreciating them in a new way. Above all, we pray that our celebration of the Mass is pleasing to God! The Church hopes that every Christian will contribute to the beauty and sacredness of the liturgy. May that hope be fulfilled among us as we gather faithfully for the Eucharist in this New Year.

Here are some reminders on how we are called to enhance the sacredness of our worship.

Sacred Space: As Catholics we have always referenced our churches as ‘sacred spaces.’ We call the church the ‘House of God.” We come here to meet God in prayer and the celebration of the sacraments. We recognize the abiding presence of Jesus among us in the tabernacle. The church truly is a sacred space set apart for the worship of God. We respect this sacred space by recognizing that it is different from any other place where we gather. We respect the sacredness of the church by acting differently than we act in other places. It is here where, in a privileged way, we come to meet God. This does not mean that we ignore one another, but our individual and collective focus is on God. Let us do everything we can to create a spirit of recollection and peace in our churches so that the presence of God among us can be experienced and celebrated.

Sacred Food: The Mass is both a sacrifice and a banquet. It is here where the one, perfect sacrifice of Jesus on Calvary is made present in time and space through the power of the Holy Spirit. Jesus, who offered Himself completely on the cross, gives Himself to us completely in Holy Communion. We receive sacred food in our churches. Recognizing the sacredness of this food, we fast from all other food for at least one hour before Mass. We also refrain from bringing other food into church. Soft drinks, coffee, snacks and chewing gum have no place in a Catholic Church. This is true while Mass is being celebrated and at all other times. The Church offers us the Bread of Life in the Eucharist. To bring other food into church would diminish this most excellent food. Newer Catholic churches are appropriately built with gathering spaces where the assembly comes together outside of the sanctuary to celebrate the bonds of faith that are shared. When our parishes offer coffee and donuts after Mass, that food should remain in the designated ‘gathering space’ and not be brought into the church proper.

Sacred Dress: In the years following the Second Vatican Council we have seen dramatic changes in our culture and those changes affect us as Catholics. One of the changes we have seen is in the attitude we have toward dress. We dress more casually than a generation ago. Some of us can remember Sunday clothes that really were just for Sunday! What is appropriate dress for Mass will vary from person to person, but our dress at Mass should be modest and respectful. Dress does say something about the importance of what we do. Just ask any high school student preparing for the prom! And some of the old rules still apply – baseball caps should be taken off when entering church! Why? For the same reason as always – God loves all teams equally!

With the introduction of the new Roman Missal, the Church invites us to reclaim the sacredness of our worship at Mass. As we wait in joyful hope for Jesus’ return, may our liturgies express both our joy and our respect for God and all things of God.

Dear friends,

Happy New Year! The Year of Our Lord, 2012, begins. We enter the year grateful for God’s blessings during the past year and confident in His care in the coming year.

Transitions are a part of life from the moment we leave our mother’s womb until we transition from this world to the world to come.

With Fr. Gerald’s return to Nigeria, we now prepare for one of life’s transitions in our Richmond Catholic Community. In 2002 the Archdiocese made a ten year plan for the assignment of priests in the deaneries. For our Connersville Deanery, that plan called for one priest to serve the three Richmond parishes beginning in July of 2012. It also called for the assignment of at least one permanent deacon to Richmond. The Archdiocese now asks us to anticipate the implementation of that plan by six months.

The main role of a priest is to care for the sacramental life of the parish. The celebration of the Eucharist is paramount in a priest’s care and service to a parish. Moving to one priest will affect the number of Masses celebrated in Richmond. The maximum number of weekend Masses one priest can celebrate is four. And so in February we will transition from our current five and six weekend Masses to four. As we look at the number of Catholics who faithfully participate in the weekend Eucharist, four Masses should accommodate the needs of our community.

The weekday Mass schedule will also be affected by this transition. Monday mornings a Communion Service will be offered and on the other days of the week one Mass will be available each day.

It will also be important to allow as much time as possible for the celebration of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Many parishioners have developed the good habit of regular confession and we want to make sure that opportunity will remain.

We will continue the schedule we currently use through the month of January and transition to a new schedule in February. I know that the Church can count on the good will and understanding of the people of the Richmond Catholic community. What we are experiencing in Richmond is being experienced throughout the Archdiocese and the country. With the abundance of priests available in the years following World War II many Catholics had become accustomed to ‘Masses of convenience.’ With fewer priests, the number of Masses will necessarily be fewer. We are grateful that there will still be four opportunities each weekend for Mass in Richmond. Catholics in many parts of the world do not have that luxury.

If you’re looking for a New Year’s Resolution, this might be a very good year to begin participating in our First Friday Prayer for Vocations! This is being held this Friday, January 6 beginning with exposure of the Blessed Sacrament.

See you at Mass!

Fr. Todd

Plans are under way for the publication of our new pictorial directory! We will be partnering with Lifetouch for our new 2011 edition.

We ask that you please take the opportunity to be a part of this important connection tool & historical document for our parishes.

Lifetouch encourages you to be creative with your portraits. You may bring props if you like (musical instrument, family bible, well behaved pet) and you will have an opportunity to have multi-generational portraits taken. If you plan to have generational portraits taken, please schedule your families at consecutive times. Friends and family of members are welcome to participate in the portrait program, they will not appear in the directory. Thank you in advance for being part of this important ministry to our parish!

Thank you to everyone who helped make the 14th Annual Tri-Parish Mass and Picnic such a great occasion. We extend very special thanks to the members of St. Andrew Parish Council for coordinating this year's Mass and picnic in the park. A host of parishioners were involved from the planning many weeks ago to the clean-up at the end of the day. To one and all thank you! At the Mass and then the picnic and as I enjoyed all the activities for the kids, I felt a deep gratitude to God for being a part of this amazing community. This annual gathering of parishioners really is a celebration of the bonds of faith and friendship we share as the Richmond Catholic Community.

I also want to thank everyone who helped prepare for the visit of the archdiocesan seminarians on August 17. Last week's edition of The Criterion included an article about the visit. The seminarians visited our three parishes and our schools. We explained to them that each of them had been 'adopted' by parishioners who will pray for them throughout the school year. We also told them about our monthly Eucharistic Adoration and prayer for vocations. Each of them is prayed for by name at the opening and closing of this monthly prayer. Thanks to the generosity of several groups in the parish, we were able to treat the seminarians to lunch at the Old Richmond Inn. As they left Richmond we sent them with 'care packages' carefully and lovingly prepared by parishioners The packages contained homemade cookies and souvenirs of Richmond.

Several of the seminarians sent notes thanking our parishes for the warm hospitality. The homemade cookies and the prayers were mentioned in every thank you note! For most of the seminarians this was their first time to come to Richmond. They, too, understand that we have a very special community here. Thank you to everyone who helped with the visit.

Thank you also to Catholic Women United, Marci Valentini and Christina Neuman for helping the parishes host the 'welcome home' reception for Sister Maria Kolbe (Laura Elstro). Sister was grateful to all those who came to wish her well and who promised prayers for her discernment. Sister has returned to Mishawaka and has begun the second year of her novitiate. God willing, she will take her first vows in June of next year.

June will be a very special month because St. Mary parishioner, Jim Miller, and St Andrew parishioner, Frank Roberts, will be ordained to the permanent diaconate on Saturday, June 23, 2012.

We have so much for which to be grateful! See you at Sunday Mass where we will give thanks for God's many blessings!