Today’s celebration of the Ascension of the Lord can get lost. It comes between two other significant moments in the life of the early Church. Several weeks ago, we celebrated the greatest day of the Church year, The Resurrection of the Lord. Next week, we will celebrate another important moment for the fledgling church, the Descent of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. The apostles have journeyed for three years with Jesus. They have witnessed the miracles and the parables. They have also witnessed the resentments and the ridicule. They have just witnessed the tortuous death and his glorious resurrection. It has been a rollercoaster ride of giant proportions, to say the least! Our own lives of discipleship pass through ups and downs as well. Hopefully not exactly like the apostles but, nonetheless, we have to face such moments of joy and sorrow as well. It is here that we all need to trust in the Lord’s promise to be with us always and not to ever leave us orphaned.

I have some good news! Our goal for the renovation of St. Francis Hall was $710,000 and we have reached, beyond the goal! This is good because we are now required to renovate the men’s restroom to bring it up to ADA standards for physically challenged people. The cost of this project is about $50,000! We also would like to install a commercial dishwasher in the kitchen and enhance the hall with beautiful artwork including a commissioned icon of St. Francis in honor of our beautiful new gathering space. And so, if you have not made a contribution to the renovation project, I invite you to consider doing so. Any gift is appreciated. Once again, I send a heartfelt thank you to all who have contributed to “St. Francis Hall: A Space Renewed.” God willing, we will begin work on the remodel this coming September! Don’t forget to get your tickets to “Rock Around the Clock,” an evening of fun, food, music, and dancing! All proceeds to benefit our parish needs. This is the last weekend to purchase tickets after Mass. See today’s bulletin for more details.

In closing, I want to thank so many parishioners who have come forward in sincere concern for Fr. Francisco. As you heard in the letter from Fr. David Gaa, our Provincial, which we read at all the Masses, Fr. Francisco admitted to “professional misconduct with an adult.” Therefore, after prayer, it was discerned that he should be removed from our parish as associate pastor. This was a tough decision but one that had to be made. Please note that there was no misconduct with a minor! If you hear anything like this, please clarify it at once. In the meantime, please keep him and those involved in this process in your prayers. Thank you!

Love, Fr. Vince