Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

First, a reminder that this Wednesday is All Saints Day, a Holy Day of Obligation. On All Saints Day we ask the prayers and help of the great multitude of all the Saints who are not officially canonized, but are nevertheless reigning with Jesus Christ gloriously in heaven. Vigil Masses on 31 Oct. at 5:30pm (church) and 7pm (Spanish – Old St. Mary's); and on 1 Nov. at 7:00am (Old St. Mary's), and 8:30am, 12:00pm, and 5:30pm (church).

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I am happy to give you a couple of updates to some projects. First, the South Wing building – the "left arm" of the church courtyard: Contractor mobilization will begin any day now. We are blessed to have such caring participants and support from our diocese to bring this final phase of construction to completion with a projected date of completion of June 2018. As a reminder, this building – all handicapped-accessible – will house a gathering space about the size of upstairs Smith Hall, a conference room, and a small gift shop.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Last week I explained the reason we will be invited to offer, for a time, the Prayer to St. Michael after Sunday Masses (after the dismissal and before the final hymn). May each of us "put on the full armor of God" in this spiritual battle, which is "not against flesh and blood, but … against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." (Eph. 6:11, 12).

Pope St. John Paul II requested the faithful to take up again the praying of the Prayer to St. Michael: "May prayer strengthen us for the spiritual battle we are told about in the Letter to the Ephesians, 'Draw strength from the Lord and from His mighty power' (Eph. 6:10). The Book of Revelation refers to this same battle, recalling before our eyes the image of St. Michael the Archangel (Rev. 12:7). Pope Leo XIII certainly had a very vivid recollection of this scene when, at the end of the [19th] century, he introduced a special prayer to St. Michael throughout the Church. … I ask everyone not to forget it, and to recite it to obtain help in the battle against the forces of darkness and against the spirit of this world." [Pope St. John Paul II, Regina Caeli, 24 April 1994] Amen!

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

On the morning that I am writing this, along with all of you I awoke to the tragic news of yet another mass shooting, this time at a concert venue in Las Vegas. I am certain that all of us, as disciples of Jesus Christ, are terribly disturbed by the lack of respect for life that seems so common in our day. Of course, as His disciples, our only response is to do good. We must increase our love of God and of our neighbor. Only love will conquer – not hate. The website for our U.S. Bishops had these words: "No matter what the darkness, it will never overcome the light. May the Lord of all gentleness surround all those who are suffering from this evil; and for those who have been killed we pray, eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them." May their souls and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Almost daily I am renewed in joy because of the generosity and selfless love of the people of this parish. The Bishop asked you to help the victims of hurricane Harvey, and you responded with almost $30,000 in aid. God bless each of you for your generous heart. With the most recent natural disasters – hurricanes Irma and Maria, the earthquakes in Mexico – we may be called upon to help again. In particular, the destruction caused by hurricane Maria to Puerto Rico and the impact of the recent earthquakes have touched the lives of many of our parishioners in a very personal way. Let us be generous in helping as we always have been.