Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

“He must increase; I must decrease.” – St. John 3:30

Before continuing with our Ordinary – or numbered – Time, we pause to celebrate the Solemnity of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. Generally, the Church only celebrates the birth into heaven of Saints, i.e., their day of death. But in fact, there are three earthly birthdays – or nativities – that we celebrate: Jesus at Christmas (of course), the Blessed Virgin Mary (Sept. 8), and today (June 24), St. John the Baptist.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

It has been fifteen years since the implementation of the "Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People" in the United States. Our diocesan newspaper, The Catholic Miscellany, reported the results of the most recent audit conducted between July 1, 2016, and June 30, 2017, by the independent auditor StoneBridge Business Partners. I thought it an opportune time to comment on our efforts here in the Diocese of Charleston and St. Mary's parish in particular to ensure the safest environment possible for our young people and vulnerable adults.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

This past Wednesday was our final school Mass for the academic year and also the final school Mass for our retiring principal, Mrs. Marguerite "Peggy" Wertz. We have been extremely blessed to have the leadership of Mrs. Wertz these many years. Saint Mary's School has flourished under her capable guidance. I am personally grateful to Mrs. Wertz not only for her expert hand in forming our children in faith and knowledge, but also for staying a whole year past the time she planned to retire in order for us to find the best successor. So, let's all give a collective, "Thank you, Mrs. Wertz!"

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Welcome to our summer seminarian, Rafael Ghattas! Rafa is entering 2nd year theology at St. Mary's Seminary in Houston, Texas. Rafa's home parish is St. Andrew's in Myrtle Beach. Be sure to give him a warm St. Mary's welcome when you see him!

"This is my Body… This is my Blood of the covenant" (Mark 14:22, 24). "My Flesh is true food, and my Blood is true drink." (John 6:54-55).

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

First, please note the change in the daily Mass time for Memorial Day, Monday, May 28 at 9:00am. There will be no confessions or 5:30pm Mass this day.

This summer, St. Mary's warmly welcomes Rafael Ghattas, a seminarian for our diocese entering 2nd Year Theology at St. Mary's Seminary in Houston, Texas. Although originally from Egypt, Rafa's home parish is St. Andrew's in Myrtle Beach. Welcome, Rafa!

Don't forget that we will have a special Mass for our retiring school principal, Mrs. Peggy Wertz, Wednesday, June 6, at 8:30am in the church. After Mass, drop into St. Angela Hall to express your appreciation to Mrs. Wertz for her remarkable years of dedicated service to our school and parish communities.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Congratulations to Jimmy Touzeau and Francisco Vargas, who were ordained as transitional deacons Friday, May 18. (Transitional deacons are seminarians who are ordained on the way to priesthood, as compared to our permanent deacons.) Many of you will remember Deacon Touzeau when he was assigned as a seminarian here the summer of 2015. Please continue to pray for him and his classmate as they complete their last year of seminary and prepare for ordination to the priesthood during the summer of 2019. Congratulations, Deacons!

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Deacon Robert Waters, who has served our parish and the Diocese of Charleston for decades, the last twenty-seven years of which in Holy Orders as a Deacon, entered into eternal rest at his home in Aiken on Monday, May 7, surrounded by his loving family, including his wife of fifty-six years, Donna. (Since the bulletin must go to print on Tuesday morning, full arrangements have not been made as I write this.) Deacon Bob's greatest love was our Lord. He was able to love everyone in the deepest, most beautiful way because he loved them through the love of Christ his Lord. He was likely the person most prepared for death that I've seen. In the words of one of his daughters: "My father looked at death as a very beautiful thing. He said he always waited for the special moment that he would be with our Lord. ... His wish to his family was to always love the Lord because He was good to him and helped him at the lowest moments of his life. Let us go and rejoice in the Lord because my father made it to the place he worked his whole life to get to." Well done, good and faithful Deacon. May you rest in peace. Amen.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Welcome one and all to our annual Parish Picnic! Every first Sunday of May, we gather as one parish after Holy Mass for food, fun and fellowship. One of the difficulties of a large parish is that, if we are not careful, it can become like five smaller parishes who use one campus. Since we are by nature creatures of habit (and that can be just fine in general), we usually like "our" Mass time and rarely go to other Masses. One unfortunate result is that those at one Mass time may never get to meet anyone else of the over 1,800 families, or roughly over 4,500 registered souls, who are also part of the broader St. Mary's family. So hopefully, for this hour, we have broken out of our comfort zones and are attending the events today. Try to introduce yourself to parishioners you haven't met. You can always start with, "Hello! What Mass do you usually go to?"

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The recent completion of the south wing of the church courtyard brings an end to our project. The wing includes a hall (nearly exactly the same size as upper Smith Hall), a conference room, and what will soon be a small gift shop. In deciding what to call the wing, we went back to you, the parishioners, and what you voted for when naming the bells. The bells were named in order of most votes. The fifth most popular name was St. Michael. I hope you will enjoy your St. Michael Hall and Conference Room.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

A great many of you asked about the book I referenced last Sunday in my homily. (Now, don't let the title mislead you – this is no self-help book in the way of our culture!) The title is Humility Rules: Saint Benedict's 12-Step Guide to Genuine Self Esteem by J. Augustine Wetta, O.S.B. Father Augustine is a Benedictine monk who teaches and coaches rugby at St. Louis Priory School in Missouri. He applies parts of the Rule of St. Benedict to everyday life. The "self esteem" he mentions is one deeply rooted in God's will for each of us. He uses extensive humor to make his point in a series of very short chapters that can be read each day. At the end of each, he gives a little "homework" from, "Make sure the last thing you read tonight before going to bed is Scripture," to, "Spare the life of a bug. Bonus points if it's a mosquito."

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Christ is risen! Truly, He is risen!

April and May can be some of the busiest months in a parish! The celebration of the glorious Resurrection of Christ leads to a flurry of holy activity. One of the greatest upcoming celebrations for our parish is the conferral of the Holy Sacrament of Confirmation. This Wednesday, April 18 at 7:00pm, we onceagain welcome our Bishop, the Most Rev. Robert E. Guglielmone, for Confirmation as almost fifty of our young men and women will be sealed with the Gift of the Holy Spirit. During Confirmation, God the Holy Spirit comes upon us, just as at Pentecost when He descended upon Mary and the Apostles fifty days after Easter (see Acts 2:1–4). Please pray for each of our youth who will receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Christ is risen! Truly, He is risen! For eight days we have been celebrating Easter Day, and today we come to the Octave (eighth) Day. In the Jubilee Year 2000, Pope St. John Paul II named this Second Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy Sunday.

As we continue to celebrate this joy-filled Easter Season, join us this afternoon, Sunday, April 8, at 2:30pm in the church for a special violin concert. Maestro Matteo Fedeli returns to St. Mary's to fill our church with the sweet sounds of a 1709 Pietro G. Guarneri violin, graciously on loan from a private collection. Maestro Fedeli will be accompanied on piano by Ms. Carol Cook of Aiken. This concert is free and open to the public, so bring your friends! This year, we have arranged to have the piano up front so that you will have the best possible view.