My name is Sara Billman and in May I graduated from UC Berkeley! I want to tell you some good news about what is going on in the Church but before I do so, I want to convey this message; in parishes around the country, I look around and I feel sad. I feel sad because my generation isn’t practicing their faith. In fact, 80% of those who leave the Catholic Church do so by the time they graduate from college. This is a generation in crisis — of identity, of purpose and of belief. Faced with so many distractions, empty pleasures and a loss of faith in God, they are losing hope. For the sake of so many souls, the joyful message of Jesus Christ’s life and salvation needs to be shared, now more than ever.
Multifaith Voices for Peace and Justice (MVPJ) is a faith-based organization, with members from diverse faith communities and traditions, which works to advocate for peace and justice in our local communities and beyond. Our mission includes the defense of civil liberties and our core values of justice, tolerance, diversity, equality, liberty and human dignity.
Congratulations to our newly elected officers of the Knights of Columbus – Palo Alto Council 2677 for Columbian Year 2017-2018. We are very grateful for the outstanding service of all the Knights who share their time, talent, and treasure at many of our parish activities throughout the year.
Altar servers are greatly needed for both the 5:00 p.m. Saturday and 9:00 a.m. Sunday Masses at St. Albert the Great Church. Please call Nora Lundin at 650-494-2496 ext. 14 or [email protected] org to find out how you can be a part of this enjoyable ministry.
Averages for June 2017: Sat 5:00pm (SAG): $1,023; Sun 9:00am (SAG): $1,330; Sun 9:00am (OLR): $1,065; Sun 10:30am (OLR): $1,887; Sun 7:30am (STA): $1,208 Sun 8:45am (STA): $608; Sun 10:30am (STA): $671; Sun 12:00pm (STA): $388 Mail: $1,458; Online Giving: $2,472 - Total: $12,110 (Goal: $12,000) Total June 2nd Collections: $8,181 - Total Weekly June Offerings: $14,155 Thank you for sharing God's gifts.
The eBulletin is an initiative of our parish Communications Board, whose ministry it is to improve communications in our parish. It is sent to over 430 parish families each Friday. It includes reminders and more articles and notices than can fit in our Sunday bulletin. If you are interested in receiving the weekly eBulletin, send an email request to [email protected] You will be added to "[email protected]" which is used to send out the eBulletin each Friday morning.
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 supported 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.
The Institute for Leadership in Ministry is a 3-year course of study for lay persons. The ILM provides training and faith formation for lay leaders in the Church. The theological base for this program is found in the documents of the Second Vatican Council. Responding to their baptismal call, graduates return to their parish to serve in various leadership roles in Liturgy, Catechetics, Social Justice, Pastoral Care, as well as many others. We plan to continue sending lay persons to the ILM. If you feel called to explore this possibility, we are looking for a few qualified candidates for the new ILM academic year which begins in the fall. Please contact Fr. Matt ([email protected]) for more information.
Four parishioners at St. Albert the Great take turns every three months to launder and press the linens we use for Mass. They are looking for another person to help out. Please call Nora at 650-494-2496, ext. 14 if you can assist this dedicated team.
Should you, or someone you know, be planning to stay in a hotel or motel, kindly consider bringing back unused small bottles of shampoo, lotion and soap for those without. Place in the receptacle in your church vestibule along with needed non-perishable foods. Remember we need these items year around. Thank you for your generosity.
On behalf of us all, I would like to publicly express my appreciation to three council members who have completed two 3-year terms of office on our Finance Advisory Council: Ted Baer, Bill Morrison, and Carol Brown. They have served worthily and well over the last 6 years and have participated in over 60 hours of meetings. I would also like to thank our two newest members: Becky Rea and Jerry Buday for accepting my invitation to serve a 3-year term commencing on July 1. We are very grateful to all of you for sharing your time and talent to help us fulfill our parish mission.
“Faith is born of an encounter with the living God, who calls us and reveals his love, a love which precedes us and upon which we can lean for security and for building our lives.” Lumen Fidei 4 These words of Pope Francis are a reminder of the importance of the gift of faith in guiding our lives on a path of love and fulfillment as the people God created each of us to be. We do so much to help our children develop their gifts and talents so that they will be successful in life. Do we invest the same time and energy in their faith? And what of our own faith? Have we stopped learning and growing in our relationship with God just because the sacraments are behind us?
This year four of our parish staff celebrates special anniversaries of serving the parish community ofSt. Thomas Aquinas: Dr. William Mahrt (Music & Liturgy) 30 years; Godofredo Alfaro (Maintenance) 25 years; Irene Holowchak (Administration) 15 years; Nora Lundin (Liturgy) 10 years. We now have 247 years of total service if you add up all of the years each member of our parish staff has worked. Thank you all for your ministry to our parish!