Christ is Risen! The past three weeks' bulletins were all sent off to the publisher several weeks ago because of some vacation time among our office staff. In the days immediately after Holy Week, I just didn’t have it in me to write three columns in a couple of days, so that is why I have not written to you in a couple of weeks. I’m happy to be back in the saddle again and to share a few thoughts with all of you. Fr. Bill Schmidt, the emeritus pastor of St. Patrick Parish, is celebrating Mass here in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of his ordination to the Priesthood. He could rightfully be remembered for overseeing the enormous construction project that built the Parish Center and Hall, and enlarged and renovated the Church. Infinitely more important, however, are all of the baptisms, confessions, marriages, anointings, funerals, and Masses he celebrated over these past fifty years. Today, we give thanks for the gift of the priesthood bestowed upon him fifty years ago and for all the ways the Lord has used Fr. Schmidt’s ministry to sanctify, teach, and shepherd the flock entrusted to him. Ad multos annos! Joining Fr. Bill today at the 1:30pm Mass is Deacon Bob Turner who also served St. Patrick Parish for many years and who is celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of his ordination to the Diaconate. As a parish family, we give thanks for the many years of service that Deacon Bob gave to this parish. His legacy of generous service is still remembered with tremendous gratitude by the people of St. Patrick Parish. Ad multos annos! I extend a word of welcome to the many new faces that I have seen at Masses in recent weeks. One of the drawbacks of being (quite happily) a large parish with many Masses is that sometimes a new face can get lost in the crowd. Even if I have not met you yet in person, I just want to tell you how happy I am that you are here. If you are only recently returning to Sunday Mass or are here because you are thinking about becoming Catholic, welcome! Your presence here–especially at this time of year–is a sign to the rest of us of the power of Christ’s Resurrection at work among us. Many people have asked me either, “How was your trip to the Holy Land” or “Did your trip get cancelled?” The trip is not until next April! I hold out hope that things will all work out. I hope that you will consider joining us for that pilgrimage. I have gone once before and it is an amazing experience! On May 8th, the Church commemorates the one year anniversary of the election of Leo XIV. Perhaps we could all put a reminder in our calendar for that day to offer extra prayers for the Holy Father on that day. Maybe take some time that day to pray the Rosary for him, attend Mass and pray for him, or offer some other prayers for him. Let us also pray for all of the children of our parish who receive their First Holy Communion this week. Let’s pray that they always stay close to Jesus. Although most of us see each other at Mass each Sunday, some of our parishioners–due to illness, age, or other reasons–are unable to be here with us. Let us also remember them in our prayers. They are just as much a part of our parish family as are those who sit in the pews next to us. Some of those parishioners receive the bulletin in the mail each week. If you are homebound and are reading this, please know that we all love you and are praying for you! I am grateful for the many ways that the Lord is blessing us and doing something beautiful among us. Your Brother in Christ, Fr. David Barnes

Christ is Risen! I am writing this to you on Easter Monday and am completely wiped out! It is an absolutely joyful exhaustion, however. What a glorious Holy Week and Sacred Triduum we shared together! I am still in awe about those beautiful days. At the Easter Vigil, I had the privilege to baptize six adults, receive four adults into the Catholic Church, and confirm all of them. In addition, I confirmed one other parishioner who needed to complete his own Christian initiation. What an amazingly joyful outpouring of sacramental graces! The Risen Lord and his victory over sin and death is happening still today, here at St. Patrick Parish. Those newly baptized became new creations in Christ, were set free from all of their sins, and were made temples of the Holy Spirit. Speaking of Christ’s victory over sin and death, my best guess is that the priests at St. Patrick’s heard somewhere in the neighborhood of 1500 confessions since Ash Wednesday! On Good Friday alone, the three of us heard non-stop confessions for 2 ½ hours. Each good confession is another instance of Christ’s victory at work here and now. Another thing that really has struck me during these days is the attendance both at daily Masses during Lent and during the Sacred Triduum. The presence of so many parishioners devoutly participating in these sacred liturgies was a sight to behold. During the Easter Season we often read from the Acts of the Apostles. This book shows us how the explosion of Christ’s resurrection continued through the life of the infant Church. The victory of Christ is extended through time and place through His Mystical Body, the Church. The first disciples of the Lord go and announce the Gospel to the whole world. As we read through Acts, we are struck by how God was doing amazing things through the life of the Church. After witnessing so many beautiful things happening in the life of our parish and parishioners during these days, I have the sense that God is doing something great in our midst. Something is happening here. The power of Christ’s victory is being unleashed in powerful ways in our midst. Some of you have mentioned to me that you have had the same sense. When these things happen, it is a pure gift from the Lord. It’s not like we are the ones doing it. We just happen to be the recipients of the Lord’s gift. What it demands of us in return is that we obey these movements of the Spirit. It demands that we follow where the Lord is leading and that we are faithful to the path that he is marking out for us. It’s not like we need to create something on our own. Instead, we have to remain faithful to the path that he is showing us. I have a sense that the Lord is not only doing something among us as a parish community, but he is doing something great in a lot of individual hearts and lives. The greatness that we are experiencing is not about us being so great. That would be kind of boring. The greatness we are experiencing is the greatness of the Risen Christ. It is the experience of being caught up in His Victory. I find myself looking around and feeling convinced that Jesus is doing something new among us. That newness is the evidence of His Victory and it makes me (and I hope, you) more convinced and more ready to proclaim the Truth that never grows old: He is Risen. He is Risen, indeed. Your Brother in Christ, Fr. David Barnes