On the afternoon of June 14, a rather spirited, fascinating, and unexpected debate broke out on the floor of the USCCB spring meeting in Ft. Lauderdale. At issue was the possibility of reconsidering “Faithful Citizenship,” the 2007 statement of the US Bishops on the formation of conscience regarding matters political. A group of bishops, including myself, had proposed that instead of producing another lengthy document to succeed “Faithful Citizenship,” the bishops ought to write a brief and pointed letter on the political challenges of the present moment and then to create a video or a series of videos bringing forth the salient points of Catholic social teaching.

I have been truly blessed to have served 10 of my 27 years as a priest in the parish of St. Thomas Aquinas: Parochial Vicar (1996-1998); Pastor (2010-2018). I’m fairly certain that 10 years is the longest time any priest has ministered here since “the merger” in 1987. In fact, all three of my cats have spent time with me at St. Albert the Great Rectory.

The ongoing practice of separating children from their parents has already, as of May, left nearly 2,000 children separated from their parents. As Bishop Vásquez, Chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Committee on Migration, and Sister Donna Markham OP PhD, President and CEO of Catholic Charities, remind us - as a nation and people of faith, we can and must do better.

St. Thomas Aquinas Parish operates on a program year which begins on July 1 and ends on June 30. Our annual budget also runs from July to June. We are so very grateful to all who sup- ported the work of our Parish over the past 12 months. Each year, however, the expenses involved in all our parish operations and programs increase, and as always, we depend on our parishioners to help meet these expenses.

Chuck has been serving our parish for the past 15 years as Business and Operations Manager. He will be taking up a new assignment at St. Christopher Parish in San Jose on July 2.

Registration for next year’s classes (including preparation for reception of the sacraments) begins now. Registration forms are available in the vestibule at all churches and on-line. And please consider helping us out as a catechist for these classes. There is always a need for people willing to share their faith with our children. Questions? Contact Susan in the Pastoral Center (650-494-2496, ext. 25).

Our readings this weekend are focused on trees, and plants, and all living, growing things. God makes them grow; God makes all things grow. We can help, a bit, but mostly, we can just marvel at what God is doing all around us. It is God who makes it grow, who makes us grow.

Meet Daniel in Babylon! A summer camp for children ages 5 through13 will be offered July 30 - August 3 and August 6 - August 10 from 9:00 a.m. to Noon in the Hall at Our Lady of the Rosary.

Attention: All Parish groups who use our facilities. We need your calendar request forms for 2017-2018. If you have any questions, contact Nora Lundin (nlundin@dsj.org). Requests are granted on a first-come, first-served basis.

Throughout June our churches are displaying banners with the above wording. Our parish is participating in the National Religious Campaign Against Torture, sponsored by Pax Christi U.S.A. June is "Torture Awareness Month". Such a public display is rare for our parish. It is not to say that torture is the major issue of Catholic moral teaching - you can think of many others - but it is one of them.