Pastors Corner

From the Pastor's Corner - Parish Bulletin
 - May 29, 2011

IS FR. TRONCALE LEAVING HOLY SPIRIT PARISH?

Dear Holy Spirit parishioner,

The peace of Jesus, Our Risen Lord, be with you and your family. Yes, I am leaving Holy Spirit parish, but not until OCTOBER 15TH. On that day I will become pastor of St. Vincent de Paul parish in Tallassee in Elmore county.

How and why did this come about? The Vincentian Fathers have staffed that parish since its founding in 1955. The present pastor, Fr. Francis Lynch, C.M. (Congregation of the Missions), will retire to the Vincentian HQ in Philadelphia in October. This remarkable man will be 90 in June! Not only are we sorry to see him leave the area, but his religious superior has no one to replace him in Tallassee. So, in October a priest of this archdiocese must become pastor. 

After speaking with Archbishop Rodi I agreed to become pastor there on October 15th. As I told the archbishop this parish is on the growing end of Montgomery and will soon go over 1,000 families. We will soon have educational facilities here for parish Religious Education programs for all ages, and Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School will open a K-4 through 6th grade campus here. In the past our archdiocese had a policy of “limited tenure” which means that a pastor has a term of no more than 12 years in a parish. This Labor Day will be my 12th year. In August I will be 72 years old. So, I told the archbishop that I believe this is a providential time for him to appoint a younger pastor here who can put his energy and pastoral skills to work in completing the Master Site Plan for the year 2020, and in ministering to the youth of elementary and high school age.

Please be assured that there is nothing negative about you or dissatisfaction with you in this decision. On the contrary I am eternally grateful to you and am privileged to be pastor of Holy Spirit parish. In the meantime we have another five months together to get our building program started and to prepare for a smooth transition for our new pastor. Pray for me, Fr. Lynch, the new pastor, and all of our priests as we seek to do God’s will in our lives for the glory of God and the service of His people!

Gratefully in Christ,
Fr. Charles Troncale, Pastor

(Since Fr. Troncale wrote this article, Fr. Patrick Driscoll, currently pastor of St. Peter Parish in downtown Montgomery, has been appointed pastor of Church of the Holy Spirit effective October 15, 2011).
 

PARISH LEADERS SAY: “BUILD” ! From the Pastor's Corner - Parish Bulletin  - May 22, 2011   Dear Holy Spirit parishioner,        The peace of Jesus, Our Risen Lord, be with you.         I have great news to share with you.  After much prayer, study, and discussion, the major Councils and Committees of our parish recommend that we build the first part of our Master Site Plan! Parishioners who have the responsibility for advising me about our building project have given me the following    recommendations that we will implement as soon as possible:     1) Implement the parish Master Site Plan for the year 2020;   2)  Build the two-story classroom building that will give us 21 rooms that will meet our parish needs for Religious Education/Formation for all ages, and will also allow  Montgomery Catholic Preparatory School to open their "Holy Spirit campus" for grades K4 through the 6th grade;   3)  Complete the infrastructure plan for roads and parking as per the Master Site Plan;   4) Finance this building project in the most financially    responsible way, by applying the $3 million we have in hand, and then borrowing only what our parish        operating budget will safely allow, so that the monthly payment on the loan will be manageable and will not jeopardize our annual parish operating budget.   5) One major concern voiced by Finance Council       members is the number of parishioners who neither contribute to our Sunday collection nor have pledged to our “Building in the Spirit” campaign.  A concerted  effort is necessary to bring these parishioners on board, if we assume a $2.3 million building loan.        I will bring this request to Archbishop Rodi and his advisors. The process involves approval of a contract with a general    contractor, and approval for a loan from a bank of our choice.         I want to express my personal thanks to the many people who have worked over the years to bring us to this point. May God bless you for your generosity that has made this building project possible!   Gratefully in Christ,    Rev. F. Charles Troncale, Pastor _______________________________________________________________________________   BUILDING OF PHASE ONE PUT ON “HOLD”   From the Pastor's Corner - Parish Bulletin and a letter sent to all parishioners  - April 17, 2011   Dear Holy Spirit parishioner,        The peace of Christ be with you.        On March 24th four general contractors submitted bids to build Phase One of our Master Site Plan.  They were studied by the members of our Building Committee and the architect.  My sincere thanks to Mr. Brant Hill, chair of our Building Committee, for his many hours he has spent on this project.        The disappointing news we received is that the “low” bid was $7.1 million and did NOT include the gymnasium/cafeteria.  The good news is that due to the generosity of those who have given to both our “Building in the Spirit”  campaign and to our Sunday collections, we have $3 million dollars in hand.  The bad news is that to accept the “low” bid we would have to borrow $4 million dollars, which the members of our Finance Council advise us we cannot afford to do at this time.        We have all been anxious “to see some dirt moved”.  But, it is irresponsible to sign a contract that we cannot afford. Three years ago, when our Finance Council advised us that we could afford to borrow $4 million dollars, there were a number of economic indicators that were positive: (1) the parish income was increasing every year; (2) the number of households in the parish was growing every year; (3) east Montgomery was growing, and there were reasons to project growth in every area.  However, the economic recession hit and our numbers began to level off.  But, we continued to refine the plans for the design of Phase One with hope and optimism.  We were told that one good effect of the recession was that the cost of construction was down and that it was a good time to build.  But, in a recession it is more difficult to increase donations.        Where do we go from here?  I will soon form a committee of eight parishioners, two each from the Pastoral Council, the Finance Council, the Building Committee and the Building in the Spirit Committee.  This “Options Committee” will brainstorm our options, and then present them to the parish.  Our Finance Council assures us that with the $3 million dollars we have in hand we can afford to borrow a minimum of $1 million dollars and construct a $4 million project.  We have a Master Site Plan for the year 2020 for our 19.6 acres.  How can we best utilize our resources to implement that Plan?        It is providential that today is the beginning of Holy Week when Jesus, Our Lord, lived out His paschal mystery of dying and rising.  We were baptized into that mystery, and so we experience dying and rising in our lives as individuals and in our life as a parish.  May Our Lord continue to bless us as we live this mystery, and may the Holy Spirit guide in seeking and doing God’s will.   Gratefully in Christ,   Fr. Charles Troncale, Pastor

 

Preparation For Mass

 

Prayerful recollection

We should prayerfully recollect ourselves prior to coming to Mass.  We should strive to arrive on time, allowing ourselves to prepare our minds and hearts for the liturgy.  Upon entering the church, we should maintain reverent silence so that we and those around us are able to pray before Mass begins.  This will ensure that we are at peace within ourselves and with others.  Such recollection helps to eliminate distractions and allows us to focus more easily on the great mystery of the Eucharist celebration in which we are about to participate.  A prayerful and reflective reading of the Scripture selections for the Mass of the day will help make our hearts and minds ready to receive God’s Word more deeply.

 

The Eucharistic fast

We are required to keep the Eucharistic fast, that is, refraining from food and drink (except for water and medicines) for at least one hour prior to receiving Holy Communion.  This fast demonstrates reverence and respect for the Body and Blood of Christ that we are going to receive.  It also teaches us to hunger for Jesus in Holy Communion.

 

Appropriate attire

We should also come to the sacred liturgy appropriately dressed.  As Christians we should dress in a modest manner, wearing clothes that reflect our reverence for God and that manifest our respect for the dignity of the liturgy and for one another.

 

By: U.S. Catholic Bishops, November 14, 2006

 

MARY

Mother of God

 

Some Christians are surprised that Catholics honor Mary as the Mother of God.  They may ask if we worship Mary in the same way that we worship God.  The answer is simple: No.  We love and honor her because Jesus asked us to.  In His last moments on the cross, Jesus told St. John and us, “Behold your Mother.”  The Blessed Virgin has an exalted place as the Mother of Jesus, and she is also our Mother.

 

We believe that our Blessed Mother remains close to  Jesus so that she can act as our intercessor.  She adds her voice to our prayers and carries our petitions to her Son.  Mary indeed listens lovingly to our prayers, but it is her Son Jesus who is Our Savior.

 

The central mystery of our Catholic faith is the Blessed Trinity.  Jesus, the Son of Mary, is the Word made flesh.  He is the second person of the Blessed Trinity.  The Word of God existed from all eternity, but Mary bore Jesus the God man in her womb.  She gave birth to Him in real, physical time as decreed in God’s loving plan.  Mary is the Mother of Jesus.  She is the first and most perfect  disciple of her Son, who is Savior of the world. 

 

We honor Mary as Jesus’ first disciple.  Often called a Christbearer, she points the way to God for all people, even those who do not know their Savior.  Mary teaches us how to follow her Son Jesus and urges us to know and live His teachings:  “Do whatever He tells you.”

 

From the day that the Angel Gabriel came to her, Mary gave her life over to God’s plan.  Gabriel said, “Blessed are you among women … the Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the Holy One born of you will be the Son of God.”  Mary lived every aspect of her life in support of her Son, even to Calvary and beyond His death on the cross.  She indeed has a unique role in God’s plan of   salvation.

 

If people ask, “Is Mary the Mother of man or the Mother of God?” we reply that she is both.  She is the Mother of the God man, our Savior.  She is our Mother, and she is Mother of the Church.  Through her everlasting love for her Son and His mission, she is always ready to hear our prayers.  She will always help us.