Thank You

Volunteers tied nearly 40 fleece blankets for the children served by My Very Own Bed in September. Read their thank-you note below:

Dear Friends,

Thank you for hosting your first annual Dream Kit Donation Drive for My Very Own Bed. In addition to the beautiful blankets you already donated, you collected and donated another 14 sets of sheets, 8 pillows, 4 stuffed animals, 4 mattress pads, and 31 books.

As we shared with you last month, we are excited to have celebrated ten years since Michael Allen formed this 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and began renting a UHaul truck and delivering beds to kids, 11 in that first year. Ten years later, we have reached over 8,500 children. It’s people like you and communities like Holy Spirit that helped us reach these milestones.

Ask a Priest

If you had a chance to sit down with a priest and ask any faith-related question you'd ever wondered about, what question would you ask? Get thinking now and join Fr. Nathan and two priest colleagues at our first 'Ask a Priest' panel on Saturday, Oct. 26 in Howley Hall after the 4:30 p.m. Mass. Why do we collect and display bones, blood, and hair of dead saints? How does Holy Water work? What's the craziest miracle you've ever personally witnessed? The more out-there, the better! Drinks and heavy appetizers will be served.

The Eucharist is the Sacrifice of Jesus

We recently received a donation to get a new altar crucifix and candles. I wanted to take the opportunity to explain why the Church prescribes that the altar should have a crucifix on it. There is a very practical reason.

The altar crucifix is a visual reminder for the priest of what is taking place during the Eucharistic Prayer. As the congregation is uniting itself in prayer with the priest as he prays the Eucharistic Prayer, they are able to see him do the same actions Jesus did at the Last Supper. The people see the priest take the bread, bless it, break it, and give it. At the same time, they are able to look past the priest to the crucifix which stands predominantly in the sanctuary. They are able to see the powerful connection between the event that took place the night of the Last Supper and the event that took place the next day of Good Friday. This connection is essential because we believe that the Eucharist is the re-presentation, the making present again, of the crucifixion. As we say the prayers of the Mass, the sacrifice of Jesus in which we are saved is made present to us. It is prescribed that a crucifix be on the altar so that the priest may see an image of the reality taking place in his hands, just as the people are able to see the large crucifix as the Eucharistic Prayer is prayed.

If you are interested in learning more about the connection between the Eucharist and Crucifixion, I would strongly recommend watching Fr. Mike Schmitz’s talk from the National Eucharist Congress.

Is This Your Call?

Bring Communion to the Homebound—

Holy Spirit is expanding and formalizing our ministry to homebound parishioners. This is a vital part of our mission to ensure that all the faithful have access to the Eucharist, especially those who are unable to join us at Mass.

If you feel called, let us know your interest by completing a brief interest form. After we've assessed the interest level of parishioners, we'll invite you to a brief training session later this fall.

Questions? Contact Deacon John.

Annual Mission Appeal

On July 27–28, we will have our annual mission appeal. This year we will be hosting Mother Maria Compassionis, a missionary sister, who is currently serving in the Philippines. Read more about her religious order below.

The Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matará (servidoras.org or ssvmmissions.org), a missionary Institute of religious sisters, are happy to be given the opportunity to speak at Holy Spirit for the mission appeal. From our beginnings in San Rafael, Argentina in 1988, we have grown to about 1,700 sisters in 45 countries. We strive to go where the presence of religious sisters is most needed. Although we are an international community, we have been blessed with over 100 vocations from the United States. This appeal allows us to inform the members of your parish about our mission work in the Philippines. As you may imagine, our missions in places like the Philippines are in great need of support. The sisters work with children and families in human and religious development, specifically providing medical care, educating in hygiene, managing a large feeding program, and teaching catechism. As you may know, the Philippines is not economically stable. For this reason, missionaries do not receive much help from the local people who very often themselves lack basic necessities. Thank you, Fr. Nathan, for giving us this opportunity to speak at Holy Spirit and share with you about our mission in the Philippines. As we strive daily to help those in need, we are most grateful to all of you for your prayers, contributions, and generosity, truly a grace from God and a consolation for our missionary sisters. Please be assured of our prayers for all of you as well!