Our journey to become one parish continues


The coronavirus epidemic has pushed so many things to the back burner as we focus on life and death, and trying to do all we can to protect the health and safety of everyone around us.  Our prayers continue to go out to the victims of the virus and their families – those who have died and those struggling with the illness.  We continue to heed all the restrictions put in place by our government authorities, health care professionals and the Church leadership.  We know these are only for a time and we pray that through God’s grace we can overcome this pandemic and return to our lives as we desire to live them. 

We are on track to complete the merger of our four parishes in July.  There may be some issues that have to be resolved after that date but all the parish groupings in this third phase are on track to complete the merger as planned.  We have submitted all of our documents to the bishop and are anticipating a final announcement in late May.  We already know the name for our newly established parish, Saint Paul Cathedral.  This is truly a blessing as there are so there are many things that we can already work on and complete in these weeks. This includes finalizing new offertory envelopes, designing a new bulletin cover, opening our new bank accounts, and other important issues. We have already consolidated our parish office and have re-organized most of our staff to serve the new parish.   This is going well.  We have made great strides to be ready to go on July 1 with much in place. That is good news for all of us.

Perhaps after the isolation and restrictions of this epidemic, we will all come out of these months with a renewed sense of faith and hope in God’s saving love, and a deeper appreciation for our faith and the important realities that we so often take for granted:  the celebration of the Mass, the reception of sacraments, the friendship and communion we share with so many people, and the love we have for the Church – not really our buildings but our love for the people who make up the Body of Christ and who share in the joy of being part of the Church.   We will need everyone to support us on the next phase of this important journey – as we seek to truly become one family of faith, bringing our neighborhoods of Greenfield, Hazelwood and North and South Oakland together.  We have so many wonderful traditions, such strong faith, so many good and faithful people who make up our new parish community.  Now we must pull together and work together for the good of our new parish community that we hope will be able serve the people of God in Greenfield-Hazelwood and Oakland for many, many more years to come.  Please continue to pray for the transformation of human hearts and for God’s grace to make us one in love, in faith, in hope and in service to God and each other.

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