Never Ending Goodness

As we begin a new Mass schedule this weekend, Masses will probably be very crowded. There won’t be as much room for everyone now that we are at St. John and St. Lawrence. Also, there will be less room for St. Joseph and Immaculate Conception parishioners since there won’t be extra Masses. We will all be affected by this.

The first thing to remember is that this is a good problem! We have many people who want to come to Mass. It is a sign of faith that we have more people who want to come to Mass than can fit in our churches. Praise God for this!

Also it means that we will have to figure out what to do if there are more people than we can fit. We may have to come up with some creative solutions. Luckily for the past year we have been coming up with solutions to whatever has been presented. The Lord has seen us through difficult times and opened doors that we didn’t know existed. There have been livestreams, virtual Q and As, rooftop Holy Hours, parking lot consecrations to Mary, and more. We will continue to work to figure out solutions. The Lord continues to guide our parishes and we are simply trying to keep up with His work.

When new issues and problems arise, please be patient and know that we are working diligently and faithfully to come up with the best solutions.

As the Lord continues to shower us with His blessings, I have another exciting announcement. You may have heard that Pope Francis declared December 8, 2020 through December 8, 2021 as a Year of St. Joseph. We were already planning on a Year of the Eucharist, so we didn’t want to push the Year of the Eucharist back. It is wonderful to have 2021 dedicated to both the Eucharist and St. Joseph.

At the encouragement of multiple pastors, Archbishop Schnurr has decided to dedicate three parish Churches as temporary Diocesan Shrines to St. Joseph. Catholics throughout the Archdiocese will be encouraged to visit these shrines during the Year of St. Joseph, and they will be granted a plenary indulgence for visiting the shrines. The three parishes cover the three geographic regions of the Archdiocese: St. Joseph in North Bend (on the westside of Cincinnati), St. Joseph in downtown Dayton, and St. Joseph in Wapakoneta.

We are humbled and grateful to the Archbishop for this recognition. It encourages us to turn to St. Joseph as the Universal Protector of the Church. The foster father of Jesus gives us an example of fidelity and perseverance. He is an incredible model of masculinity.

We are excited to welcome Catholics from our area to visit our shrine to St. Joseph. It is providential that this Year of St. Joseph happened in the midst of the altar project. The Lord’s goodness continues to be poured upon us. Please join me in thanking Our Most High God for His abundant mercy.

Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Sean Wilson