On the Anniversary...

And in a moment, everything changed…

a phrase in a small picture frame that used to hang in Fr. Krizner’s rectory.  It was the front of an Easter card he got some years ago and I remember him showing it to me, in awe of the message.  I thought it kind of silly at first that he’d frame a greeting card picture.  But of course it all makes sense now.   

Change comes to all of us.  And while often change is planned and exciting, more often it’s unexpected.  As human beings, we’re not so good at the unexpected.  But the truth is, that’s where God loves to surprise us! 

God’s plan of salvation was made known since man’s beginning and through Jesus so many times.  Yet how “unexpected” it came to his closest friends.  Mary Magdalene, Peter, John and the other Apostles probably loved their life and ministry with Jesus and never wanted it to change.  But it did.  And the change was hard initially, but brought about the greatest of rewards they and all of us could ever hope for: the assurance that every discomfort prunes us for greater things, every pain and suffering leads to insurmountable joy, every loss of physical proximity with a close friend brings indescribable spiritual closeness… oneness… in the ultimate triumph of Life Eternal with the One who changed everything.   

Much has happened one year later… and for our parish family of St. Colette – MANY good things, including Fr. Tim!  We are so blessed!  Like the first crocus that bloomed beneath the winter snow, our mourning, suffering, and gloom has been resurrected to newness of life and hope for the future.  And that’s what’s supposed to happen.  Could you imagine if the women who anointed Jesus remained in despair?  Or if the Apostles had not “gone out” and proclaimed what they were taught?  Jesus’s life, death, and resurrection was always meant to be shared… through us!  Not kept in the tomb of our grief.  And the same goes for our loved ones, including Fr. Krizner...shared through us.  And in turn, we’ll be reminded of their presence (believe me, Fr. Krizner’s been busier than ever up there!  I’m sure a good many of you would say the same:)). 

That greeting card now it hangs in my office.  I pass it every day and smile, reminded of the assurance of Easter: that Father, who believed in the Resurrection with all his heart walks with the ONE who changed everything. 

God love you!  Happy Easter! ~Sara 

Join us Monday Evening April 1st at the 6:15PM Mass as it is offered for Fr. Krizner on the one-year anniversary of his resurrection to eternal life.  

 May his soul and all the souls of the faithfully departed through the mercy of God, rest in peace.

Do this. Remember Me.

Do this.  Remember Me.

Announce your joy, your excitement, and like a loud ‘hosana’ shout in every corner of your life the moments you’ve known My goodness.  Let those moments mark your heart… for how easily they forget the goodness when the shouts of joy fade… when the warmth of a Sunday dims to the cold darkness of the looming days ahead. 

Do this. Remember Me.

Rest in my presence.  As you bustle about in preparation for the celebrations, the traditions, the meals, the easter baskets, take the moment… make a moment for Me… You know where to find Me… I’m in the holy sanctuary waiting for you… and I’m in the sanctuary of your ‘inner room”, the heart that only you know, and I know more deeply.  Come and rest. 

Do this.  Remember Me.

In the moments you feel alone, forgotten, or betrayed, know that I know just how you feel.  I’ve experienced my closest friends and confidants leave me one by one, as flames extinguished into darkness, and I alone stood still… the only candle lit in a stone-cold church.  I know what it’s like to face the hardest days alone.  Don’t be afraid of the darkness.  For I AM the one light burning brightly beside you.   

Do this.  Remember Me.

I AM all you need.  I will fill your deepest desires.  I chose not only to come into this world and to save it, but also to stay behind so that you may be strengthened each day.  Renew your heart in the immense love I have for you, for I’ve become your servant.  Know My goodness.  Know you are loved.  Come receive Me in Holy Eucharist. 

Do this.  Remember Me.

I thirst for you.  I’ve known you for all time.  And from all time, I knew that I could never be parted from you.  I’ve become all things to save you.  Embrace My arms outstretched in mercy… in incomprehensible love.

Do this.  Remember Me.

Remember what I’ve taught you… especially when you feel hopeless or uncertain. For I Am in the ‘in-between’.  The sealed tomb, guarded by the fiercest regime couldn’t contain My plan… and neither will it for My dreams for you.  This week of weeks you will remember forever.  And it is good that you do.  For these events you recall and live are a gift to you, that through My suffering and death you may experience, in every sense My glory.  And I promise you—you will see My glory!... For by coming back from death’s domain, I shed my peaceful light on humanity, and live and reign forever and ever.*

Do this.  Remember Me.

Let this week be in you what it was always meant to be.  Praise the Beautiful Lamb! 

~ Sara

*(taken from the Easter Proclamation)

Live in the shadow... of the CROSS!

To live in the shadow… of the Cross..

Today’s Gospel has the verse probably most popular and memorized of all the verses in Scripture by Catholics, Christians, and even non-believers, John 3:16.  For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but have eternal life.  We know it, we love it, but do we believe it really?   

John goes on to encourage us to live in the light—to let not only our goodness, but also our nastiness be upfront and honest in the light of truth, the light of Jesus.  For he didn’t come to condemn us of our sins, but to save us. For he so LOVES the world!!!  We don’t always want to believe it.  We’re afraid of “showing ourselves” to Christ in the light for fear of failure, unworthiness, disbelief, or the blatant contentment with our own sinfulness.  Because honestly, sometimes it’s just easier to live in the shadows…

 In a way, Jesus says that’s alright… so long as it’s HIS shadow… You see, it is Christ, the true light, who walks before us, shielding the darkness from our path and saving us from ourselves.  He’s been doing it since day one and gives us an example from about 1500 years earlier than this Gospel, during the time of Moses.  As they did for many of their 40-year wanderings, the Israelites turned against God’s goodness.  Consequently, they are infested and bitten by poisonous seraph snakes.  Ironically, but not surprisingly, they ask Moses to pray to God to drive the snakes away and heal them from their sickness.  God has Moses build them a bronze serpent mounted on a pole for all to see.  Anyone who looked at it recovered.  Jesus, being the “New Moses” compared his saving grace to this incident: “Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up. So that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”  

The only shadow we are to live in is his own, the one he casts on us from his holy cross, the one that illumines our goodness and shortcomings alike.  The one that if we gaze upon it and believe we too will be saved from the sinfulness that infects our being.  Through it we have nothing to fear… not even the darkness. For if we believe the line we all know and have memorized, then we must believe that God really loves us that much.  Know that love always ~ Sara

Farewell, Alleluia

Isn’t Lent the most beautiful time of the year?  It’s cold, muddy, brown, dreary, barren… you can’t eat meat on Fridays, the tone is “sad” in church…. Or is it?   I LOVE Lent.  I love it.  The sacrifice, the barrenness, the dryness, the symbolism… oh the symbolism….  Followed by the stark contrast of Easter day.  There’s nothing else in the world like it.  And I’m so grateful for the Church’s traditions and rituals so that I may experience fully the death of my sins to a taste of the fulfillment of my greatest of hopes: to be in that constant state of joy, peace, and love… to be with God in heaven one day.

It’s been a long-standing tradition of the Church, and for our church as well to “bury” the Alleluia on the Sunday before Ash Wednesday.  The purpose as with all visuals of our faith is to draw us deeper into the reality taking place.  Sometimes the absence of something beautiful, so beautiful as an Alleluia (or a piece of cake….), is meant to intensify the desire in our hearts for it or redirect our unclean heart to its true purpose.  Our Gospel today gives beautiful imagery of this.  The “unclean” leper, void of relationships, health, and normalcy makes his reproach of faith to Jesus.  He lays it all out there, “If you wish, you can make me clean.”  Mark goes on to say that Jesus was moved with pity… “I do will it.  Be made clean,” He says.  During Lent, we’re given that same opportunity to die to the things that make our hearts not as they should be… whatever that means for us… and to rest assured that any act of faith on our part, surly moves the heart of Jesus in his mercy and goodness…. So much so that he died for it, and redeemed in through resurrection. 

So welcome the dryness, emptiness and perhaps ugliness of the Lenten season…. Relish in it… LOVE IT!  Take part in all the traditions and symbolism, including burying this bulletin cover.  Know that at the end of the day, the discomfort is only temporary, but the new life from it is one step closer to eternity in paradise… now isn’t that something beautiful, indeed.  Happy Lent! ~Sara

God Bless You, Fr. Montavon, faithful servant of God!

In the Gospel this Sunday Jesus asks the disciples, “What are you looking for?”  Mesmerized by the Lamb of God, as he was named by John the Baptist, Andrew and the other disciple realized their heart’s greatest desire in Jesus.  The first thing Andrew did was tell his brother, Simon, bringing him to Jesus who then named him Peter… and the rest is history.

In light of this Gospel, I can’t help but think about Fr. Monatvon and what the early days of St. Colette were like for him.  I didn’t know him personally so this is all my imagination based on what I’ve learned over the years.  But, I’d imagine Fr. Montavon’s desire to start St. Colette was a similar encounter with Jesus when asked by him what HE was looking for… Fr. Montavon had the heart of a Shepherd, the heart to serve the Lamb of God.  And at whatever moment in his life “John the Baptist” said to him, “Behold the Lamb”, he never looked back, but only forward to how he could fulfill God’s will in His plan for the Church.  And over time, patiently, prudently, vigilantly, loving, he built the church of St. Colette from the ground up (literally).  And what a truly AMAZING parish he built.  Bishop Woost said in his remarks once that “great priests are formed by great communities.”  And the community of St. Colette is indeed a great community.  The elements of family and hospitality, joy, humility and generosity are all Fruits of the Spirit that you possess.  God needed a “St. Colette” and he knew that Fr. Montavan was the priest, His priest, that could pave the way, plant the seeds for it to grow.  How blessed we are to have a founding pastor like him, a successor in Fr. Krizner who saw your beauty and goodness and made it flourish, and our current pastor, Fr. Tim who possesses these same great virtues and spiritual resolve.  St. Colette is certainly a  blessed, holy place.  Thank you, Fr. Montavan for your astonishment at the Lamb of God, for “looking for him”, and for serving him so beautifully.  We are forever grateful. 

Please consider submitting a “Lampstand” about Fr. Montavon and the early days of St. Colette.  We’ll continue to publish them over the next few weeks.  And enjoy the pictures of our earliest days!!  They’re who we are and where we come from… thank you, Lord.  Our future we leave to His providence, thank you, Lord!…. And our present is certainly a gift we cherish right now.  For all of it, we love you and praise you, beautiful Lamb of God! 

God bless you, parish family! ~Sara

We Keep on the Legacy!

Our Hearts Keep the Memories and We Keep on the legacy...a little saying that’s been in my heart over the past nine months.  By the time you read this it will be two weeks since our parish hosted Santa and Mrs. Claus at the Little Christmas Village.  And what a joyful day indeed!  Corbie Hall bustled with children and families anticipating Santa’s arrival, creating lasting memories in those childlike, precious moments.  Jesus tells us in the Gospels so many times to be “childlike” in faith.  And I know I'm not the only adult who felt the childlike wonderment of Christmas Village.  Christmas is indeed the perfect time of year to be childlike. 

To be honest, however, the week leading up to the event and the “day” itself was a little difficult for me.  It was a “first.”  I’m sure many of you understand the “firsts” with your loved ones in heaven… perhaps this Christmas is your “first” too.  And while I in no way will turn this beautiful Christmas article into a sad story… the wonderful memories that flooded my heart over that Village weekend made me think of the holiday in a beautiful, new way.  So I will share it with you.   

You see, while memories of Christmas past flooded my heart and will undeniably continue to do so over the next few holy days, so did the unbelievable desire to carry on the traditions that have formed me. And it got me thinking of that first Christmas 2,000 years ago… For how amazing it must have been to be a relative of Jesus and know him personally as a child, a friend, a teacher.  How amazing all the things Mary treasured in her heart, and lived through her life.  Of all the ways the Apostles and first disciples of the faith passed the stories down, generation after generation through the Gospels and word of mouth, despite hardships, persecutions, and death.  What ALL of their hearts must have held… BUT what their lives continued to live to this very day. 

 Keeping the “legacy” of Jesus is the reason we celebrate Christmas today… the very reason we have a faith today.  And we’re the ones who reap the benefit.  Those who knew Jesus personally didn’t keep him to themselves.  Rather, they realized the tremendous gift of him… and gifts are meant to be shared, paid forward.  So on this Christmas weekend, like Mary, treasure all of the things, all of the loved ones, all of the memories in your heart, those of the present and those of the past.  They’re what formed you!… but don’t let them stay there.  Continue all you’ve learned in all the ways that you can.  Continue to let your life reflect your gratitude.  Live each day like it were Christmas Day, for Jesus Christ is our greatest gift… and it’s our turn to share him.  How amazing the privilege to continue His legacy. 

Merry Christmas!~  Sara

Our Lord, Jesus Christ, King of the Universe... King of My Heart

It’s easy to get lost in the poetic feel of today’s Gospel… when I was hungry you fed me, sick, you cared for me, in prison, you visited me and so forth… Come, inherit the kingdom.  Or, “you didn’t do those things… eternal punishment for you.”  Grasping this concept refreshes the events of Holy Week— the Good Friday to Easter Sunday… and brings it all full-circle…  how much are we willing to sacrifice for the sake of the kingdom?  What are we willing to give, to do, to be that takes us out of ourselves, our own comfort, to extend that hand, go that mile, carry that cross.  The movie The Passion of the Christ beautifully depicts the imagery of Jesus kissing his cross as he’s handed it by his torturers to carry to his death… he kisses it,  He loves the hurt because It means salvation, loves the discomfort because it will bring others peace, loves the long dusty road to Calvary because it leads to Easter Sunday morning.  The Feast of Christ the King is a call to love the suffering as Jesus did.  Whatever it is in our lives: the inconveniences, the care for loved ones, the pain of loss and loneliness,, or rejection.. That Christ be the King of our hearts and fill all of those “holes’ in our lives with his purpose, his love, his companionship— the faithful lover who will never leave us.  When we see Christ in all we do, and all we meet, we die to the things that pass away, and live for the one who died to love us.  And that my friend, is not just good poetry… it’s everything.  May Christ reign King of our hearts each and every day.  Happy end of the church year!  And here’s to resurrection and new life in the church year ahead!

~Sara

Happy Priesthood Sunday!

It’s Priesthood Sunday!  And it’s the weekend before All Saints and All Souls Day so there’s a lot of connections happening in this article.  Priests are not gods…. they’re fully human, flawed men, yet they’ve sacrificed their lives in love for God, and his church.  As Christ laid his life down on the cross, they do the same for us in many ways, but most profoundly through the sacraments.  Sacraments are encounters with God.  And while each brings about that encounter in a specific, necessary, and important way, it’s through the Mass—The Eucharist, where literally, “heaven and earth kiss.”  Priests act “in persona Christi”, in the person of Christ, and make the invisible a reality for the Church to be sustained and inspired.  Priest’s great sacrifice transcend time and space, yet they remain humble through their service.  We’ve certainly gotten to know several priests over the course of this year.  And none of them raise a banner for themselves in any regard.  They do what they do for the purpose and calling as priests.  For as Scripture suggests, “You are a priest forever in the line of Melchizedek” (Psalm 110:4), their calling is not only charitable, but eternal.  And I think the perfect example of that is the eternal priesthood of our former pastor, Fr. Krizner. 

This day first and foremost makes me think of him… I cant’ help it!  For sixteen years he was “my priest”—and I often called him that… my priest… not because I think he only belonged to me, or that my relationship was anything special compared to others.  His relationship with all of us was unique and beautiful.  But truthfully no one has been more inspirational in my life.  He made everything come alive from Church feast days to every day little things, like a donut in a car ride to nowhere.  He made me laugh and brought me joy… and I miss him every day.  Every single day.  But the thing is, even though I miss him, I feel like I know him more profoundly now than I ever did… and that all the things he taught me are now just a part of me.  Like he lives through all the goodness I share… and I all I want to do is share it.  That there is the beauty of All Saints and All Souls Day.  Our faith teaches us that we’re not “done” here when we die.  Rather, the fullness of our potential is realized as we’re not bound to our imperfections any longer. 

The Gospel today gives us the greatest commandment: to love God with our whole being and to love our neighbor with that Godly love. And God bless us for trying…. We try!!!  But our own limitations make it impossible for us to do that perfectly.  When we get to heaven, however, we can!!  For we “know fully as we are fully known” as St. Paul says, and we love anyway… all that remains is love (1 Corinthians 13)!  So maybe why I feel Fr. so fully and differently in my life is that all that’s left of him is the love of God through him.  And from what I’ve heard from your experiences in the last seven months, you feel that love too.  And I hope you channel that for all the loved ones in your life now with Jesus!  This week we celebrate them!   

Fr. Krizner is still my priest, now more than ever.  He’s a priest forever, and he’ll continue to be a part of my life every day.  And every day I remain grateful to him for his ministry… and to every priest for who they are and what they do.  So on this priesthood Sunday we remember and pray for all priests in heaven where they continue to pray for us, and on earth where they continue to work for us.  And while they would never ask for this… it goes without saying that they deserve a shout-out: Abbot Gary—for his big-heart and joyful smile that just beams the love God; Fr. Caesar and his passion for the faith through stories of heroic saints and the tender mercy of God; Fr. Marc’s witty insights to the Gospel message and love for his mother (it’s always fun to have a personal connection); Fr. Dan’s laugh, and practical, logical, easy- to- grasp approach to the Gospel and faith in Christ; Fr. Andrew’s profound wisdom, down-to-earth-ness, and the unrivaled joy of Jesus he brings to each and every Mass; and to Fr. Bob… for his constant selflessness and self-sacrifice…if there was ever a priest who truly cared about every sheep in his flock and who would go to any length to make sure each sheep was cared for beautifully, it would be Fr. Bob.  And these past months for our parish are so indicative of that.  I hope you see that too and feel every bit of gratitude as I do.  And to our future, Fr. Tim: may the Lord bless him, keep him, and continue to shine every beautiful blessing upon his priesthood.  Thank you, priests of God!  ~Sara

Where I go, you know the Way

This week I decided to take a break from my computer and walk the church grounds… pretty soon it’ll be too cold to enjoy that pleasure!  I found myself meandering to the newly finished “Good Shepherd Garden”.  Fr. Bob’s been extremely influential and instrumental in making sure our parish has a “place” to memorialize Fr. Krizner.  And it makes sense why it’s “this” place… the Resurrection was everything to him.  As I walked through the grass to get to the statue, a conversation I had with a friend about the garden came back to me… regarding why the path leads from the Mary statue to the garden, and not directly from the parking lot.  And then the whole of the inspiration behind this article was born: because both metaphorically and literally “the path to Mary always leads to Jesus.”

 A little over a year ago Fr. Krizner, a few members of the parish staff, and I were sitting in a “meeting”… it was lunchtime 😊. We were discussing new name ideas for our outdoor shrine and ultimately decided on the name “Gate of Heaven Shrine”.  One of the many appropriate titles of Mary is the “Gate of Heaven”, for she always leads the way to her Son.  So it seemed fitting that this title would be given to a place that’s become not only a place to honor Mary, but a peaceful afternoon retreat of a walk through the outdoor Stations of the Cross, concluding with the beautiful Resurrection statue.  How Fr. loved that statue, so much so he obtained two others for our church (one is behind the sanctuary and the other used during our Easter procession). Besides the pictures of Lily, Gracie and Annie, I don’t think he took more pictures of anyone or anything else more than that statue—in different times of day, with different lighting, in the different seasons… He’d use them in the bulletin from time to time, but I think the pictures, the statue, meant much more to him than good imagery. 

Like a picture of a loved one we hold as a reminder, or show off proudly to others, statues serve similarly.  Fr. loved, lived, and shared the image of the Resurrection.  And to him, having the statue of the Resurrection on our grounds, and pictures of it with him served not as only a reminder of what he believed, but as a reminder of someone he was proud to have in his life… someone who was his friend…a friend that he wanted to share…a friend that he loved with all his heart. 

With all of that said, however, if you count the number of Mary statues on our property, comparatively the number is at least triple to that of his beloved Resurrection!  So what does that mean?  It’s an answer as simple as Fr. Krizner’s faith: a solid friendship with Jesus is easier to have through the loving intercession of Mary.  So after sixteen years in the making, here it is the lasting legacy of Fr. Krizner left in concrete on the grounds of St. Colette: the path to Mary always leads to Jesus. The initial walk of faith to Mary’s heart offers us the peace and comfort of a mother on life’s winding road.  Sometimes this road is filled with the beautiful colors and sounds of nature, and other times it’s laden with the sufferings of a heavy cross.  In the end, her tender love is the “Gate of Heaven” to the Good Shepherd, and the friendship with him we’re called to nurture on our journey. ~Sara

Do not look up at the sky

I am with you now and always.

Where I go you know the way.

I have taught you all I know

And I ask you now to go.

Your Good Shepherd leads the way.

Do not look up at the sky.

(Taken from Do Not Look Up At the Sky, 2023.  Written in loving memory of Fr. Krizner)

Our Lady, Queen of Victory, Pray for Us!

Of the many devotions, the rosary is certainly a favorite amongst Catholics, and for good reasons.  Mary promises good things (fifteen of them to be exact) to those who recite and propagate the rosary: things like eternal life in heaven, triumph over sufferings, deliverance from purgatory, and more.  In its early form as a meditation on the psalms, to its present reciting that’s won battles sustaining Western Civilization (see full history), the popular piety and the meditative peace that come from the prayer are just a few of the many reasons these beloved beads are loved so much. 

The rosary is not a complicated prayer, but a prayer that takes time, takes mindfulness—a familiar term used today by various industries.  To be “mindful” means to focus on one’s state of being in relationship to the world around them.  This state, in turn, should increase positivity and reduce anxiety amidst difficult circumstances.  Society offers various ways of how to participate in mindfulness… so does our faith.  Today’s Second Reading from Philippians tells us to have no anxiety at all, but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving to make our requests known to God.  Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Phil.4:6-7).  Because Mary is always trying to lead us to Jesus, the rosary certainly does these things: it’s a prayer lifted to God, petitions our needs through Mary’s love, and gives the glory back to God with a grateful heart.  The reason why the rosary isn’t just a fad of chants, “good vibes” or a relaxed state is because it roots itself in the true, the pure, the lovely, the gracious, and all the things of God that are worthy of praise (Phil. 4:8).  It calls upon the heart of a Mother, given to us by her Son to comfort us, and lead us to Jesus, the Peace that surpasses all tranquility. 

It’s no coincidence the rosary has remained as popular as it is.  Perhaps it’s something that you pray often, or an heirloom given to you by grandma just waiting to be unleashed into insurmountable blessings it can be your life.  Either way, it’s a beautiful tool that’s inspired believers, answered prayers, won battles, and brought about peace.  Take advantage of Mary’s gift to you!  Our Lady, Queen of Victory, Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us! ~Sara

A bit of history: the rosary has evolved over time to draw Mary’s heart closer to ours, and our hearts closer to her Son’s.  A meditation on the life of Christ through the eyes of Mary, the rosary takes its roots in scripture. In the early church, it was a popular devotion for Christians to pray all 150 psalms.  Because not all could read, the faithful instead prayed a “Hail Mary” 150 times, eventually keeping track of them on a knotted rope.  In 1214, Mary appeared to St. Dominic, giving him the form of the rosary that we know today with the three sets of five-decade mysteries: Joyful, Sorrowful, and Glorious Mysteries.  St. Pope John Paul II later added another set of mysteries, the Luminous Mysteries, for a modern prayer that includes four sets in all.

The Month of the Rosary and its feast day, October 7th, gets is patronage in the 16th century when the Ottoman Empire ran rampant, endangering the Roman Catholic Church of its time.  Severely outnumbered against Muslim forces, on October 7, 1591, Christians prayed the rosary for the soldiers in battle.  When they rose victoriously Pope St. Pius V named the day, The Feast of Our Lady Queen of Victory, later changed by Pope Gregory XIII to Our Lady of the Rosary. 

O Jesus, I Surrender Myself to You!

O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!  Such a seemingly simple sentence of childlike faith: O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!  Yet it’s one of the most profound acts of faith.  We often think that to surrender means to give up, or give in.  But to surrender in a spiritual sense means to give up the things we can’t control and allow God to take the wheel.  O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything.  For all of us, our week has been defined by the calendars in our phone or on our fridge, the morning alarm, the relationship with a family member, friend, or coworker, the pressure of a deadline, the media, the results from a medical test, the anxiety regarding the upcoming…. whatever it is.  And because we’re human beings we’re so good at figuring it all out, at making sure every detail of our lives and relationships are perfect… at being in control!... aren’t we?  O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!  We’re not good at it.  We’re not.  We forget to check the calendar, set the alarm, we often say hurtful things to loved ones or people we work with, we take advantage of situations, we let the media and current events affect our behavior and thoughts, we’re crushed by news of illness… and the loss of loved ones… and the idea of change.  For me personally, and for our parish family, we were “crushed” on April 1st of this year when our beloved pastor was called home.  I can’t tell you the exact time that the Surrender Novena was introduced to me, but I know that the phrase from it, “O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything” has been on my lips many, many times since that day.  I’ve been praying the whole novena here and there as well but took some “time off” from it to focus on other prayers throughout the summer.  This past Tuesday, however, I decided to start it up again.  I thought it appropriate since it was the day the parish staff was meeting Fr. Tim Gareau for the first time.  I was—we were—very excited!  It's time for this… we’re ready for this… But it’s a new experience, and out of our control… and that’s always scary.  O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!  I’ve heard only wonderful things about Fr. Tim’s spirituality, humility, gentleness, and pastoral leadership… and even that “Fr. Krizner hand-picked him”…. Fr. Krizner was good at handpicking people.  When he noticed that “Jesus part of YOU” the parish needed—that the world needed, he brought it out it the best ways for ministry, parish life, and worship.  We all know, we ALL know how much Fr. Krizner loves us—all of us.  He was a good shepherd to our parish and gave all he had for us until his last day.  So at that “first meeting” on Tuesday, when Fr. Tim met us with a friendly greeting, warm gathering, and a gift for each of us—a copy of the “Surrender Novena” which he’d been praying these last few months on his journey to come here, I knew with all my heart that Fr. Krizner hand-picked him too (he also brought a big box of the most beautiful donuts… just sayin!).  O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!  There’s more to the story for another day.  Today, we surrender to Jesus! And we take comfort in his care for us as a parish family and in every part of our lives!  In the Gospel today, he tells us that “if two of you agree on earth about anything for which they are to pray, it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.  For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”  Perhaps, like me, you’ve been praying the Surrender Novena throughout the past five months, or perhaps not.  But I know you’ve been praying that God would send us a good pastor, and that Fr. Krizner would intercede.  And how beautiful that God has heard our prayers united and gave us Fr. Tim Gareau!  How grateful we are, and we just can’t wait for you to meet him!  O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!   As Fr. Bob so beautifully stated last weekend, we continue forward as a team in God’s good time.  On behalf of him, Deacon Scott, Lisa, Noah, Jeanette, Ed, and the rest of the gang it truly is our honor to serve the amazing people of St. Colette. O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!   Fr. Tim invited the parish staff to pray the Surrender Novena with him perpetually through November 20th.  By the time you read this, we’ll already be on Day 5 or 6, BUT we invite you to join us!  It doesn’t matter when you start, just that you do!  Continue to pray for Fr. Tim as he says goodbye to his people at St. Rapheal, and as he prepares for his ministry with us.  Continue to pray for each other and our extraordinary parish family… Continue to surrender yourself to the God who only wants what’s good for you… and see how he gives us what is good!  O Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything!... today and always.  God love you this week!~ Sara

Franciscan Sisters TOR Host Benefit

The Franciscan Sisters TOR (based just outside of Steubenville, Ohio) invite you to attend their annual Benefit on Saturday, September 30, 2023. The event begins with Mass at 4pm at their motherhouse followed by dinner at a local banquet hall. The event is free to attend, but guests must register. To find out more, please go to https://www.franciscansisterstor.org/events/share-his-mercy-benefit-2023 or contact Sr. Miriam at (740) 544 6254.

Live in the Light!

Creation has a beautiful way of illustrating God’s Word. I love to sit by my front window and watch the sunrise while saying my morning prayers, taking a breather before the day befalls me. In fact, it’s what I’m doing as I write this. The sun peeks through a small opening of trees illuminating the day; sometimes it’s an exquisite scene and other times a dim, cloudy morning... but the sun awakes the earth all the same. In the Gospel this weekend, Jesus tells us to “fear no one. Nothing is concealed that will not be known. What I say to you in the darkness, speak in the light.” Many times, I’m afraid to live in the light. It’s easier to keep to myself.

Then there’s the sparrow in today’s Gospel. And I promise, I’m not making this up, but the sparrows like to flutter by my front window while I watch the sunrise (boy this scene worked out for today’s article, didn’t it?). I always think of this Gospel when I see them. “You are worth more than many sparrows,” Jesus says. In ancient Jewish times, the sparrow was literally the cheapest bird one could buy to offer sacrifices to God... “two small coins” is all it took, and we can assume that it was the poorest of the poor who bought them. Sacrifice in the temple was mandatory for Jewish ceremony/life. How small one must have felt sacrificing their sparrow after the person in front of them offered their calf, goat, dove, etc... Yet Jesus says to us, “I see you, I got you, I love your efforts... don’t be afraid of what other people think or say about you... what they might to do diminish your light. Live in MY light! For if every hair on your head I can count, or every ‘worthless’ sparrow is known to me, my goodness, how much MORE do I love you! You are worth more than many sparrows.”

So literally or metaphorically, however you want to read this: whether it’s a perfect sunny day, or we have to look for the sun through the clouds the LIGHT is there all the same... and the light of truth is more powerful than anyone or anything we fear. Thank YOU for sharing your light in the world... especially in our beautiful world of St. Colette. Keep it going! ~Sara

Lord, I Believe, I Adore, I Hope, and I Love You!

Doubt, fear, uncertainly, boredom, anxiousness, anger, confusion, grief, pain… as human beings it’s natural and often seasonal in our lives so-to-speak to experience negative emotions. There’s a LOT going on the world today that doesn’t help either… well, it offers solutions to negativity… or does it? In the Gospel this Sunday, taken from John (Bread of Life Discourse to be exact), Jesus is basically telling us that life is going to be hard… and the world is going to try and offer us ways, oh so many ways, to “feel better” whether it be through the good things like vacations, relationships, food, shopping, entertainment (I love all those things!) or other not so great things. But “guess what,” he says, “that stuff will never satisfy. The only thing… the ONLY THING that will is ME— my flesh, my blood, for you.” I went to confession last week and for my penance, Fr. Andrew told me to sit in front of the Tabernacle for 10 minutes and “see what happens… see if there isn’t something Jesus needs to bring to light.” I did… and because I was expecting something to happen, I thought “shoot, now I’m going to get nothing.” And just like that, a memory that I didn’t realize I was carrying with me came to light like a beacon. And then so many things going on in my life today made sense… it was a total God moment… and I’m grateful to have given God “a moment” of my time both in the sacrament of confession and prayer. So where is this going? Sunday is the Feast of Corpus Christi— the Most Holy Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, a day solely focused on Christ’s real and true presence in the Eucharist. Because Holy Thursday, the institution of the Eucharist, has so much going on— washing of the feet, Last Supper, Triduum, agony in the garden, etc., the emphasis on “Christ’s Body and Blood” loses it’s place of prominence…so the church created another feast for our focus and appreciation. Sunday is all about the Eucharist. Since the 1200s, Catholics have processed the Eucharist throughout the neighborhoods as a sign of faith, a beacon of light for those under the weight of all that makes life hard… for us. That piece of bread, that sip of wine isn’t just a symbol, but our God who doesn’t want to be a memory or only Words in a book, but an actual part of us, the “Source and Summit” as the church calls it for our everyday existence in a world that’s often cruel, in a life that’s often hard. I’m grateful for the “revelation” I had in prayer before Jesus that day. Not every prayer is like that for me, and while I take the faith very seriously, there's always going to be things I need to learn and ways to grow in holiness… to be the person He made me to be. But I’m grateful, SO GRATEFUL for the sacrament of Eucharist and for a God who knows me so well and loves me anyway. I hope as the Eucharist is processed this weekend at Mass it’s a beacon of light for you too!

On days like this one to come I can’t help but recall much of my learning from Fr. Krizner. And I’m grateful we’re able to honor him this weekend as a parish family on a day that meant to so much to him… because he understood how much it means to US in the scheme of our relationship with Jesus. I hope you’ll join us this Sunday June 11th for our Eucharistic Procession after 11:45 Mass and the Hot Dog Sunday Fr. Celebration to follow! Have a great week!~Sara

The month of HIS Heart... the month of LIFE--- Celebrate JUNE!

THIS MONTH is the month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.  With the anniversary of the overturning of Roe vs. Wade, we’re reminded that the love and mercy of Jesus always conquers fear and destruction.  We’re a people of life from conception until natural death.  What happens in between is for us to put our hope, trust, faith in God— encouraging one another, building each other up for the Kingdom… also realizing that no matter where we fall in the spectrum of belief in Church teachings, in God’s teachings, that Jesus meets us where we are and brings us to where He needs us to be through his Divine Heart.  This month, I hope you’ll join us in praying the ‘Thirty Days Prayer to St. Joseph” for one another— for our parish family, your own family/friends, the church, our country, the world…. There’s always  much to keep in prayer!  Have a joyful week! ~ Sara  

PS— a year ago June 24th, Fr. Krizner and I celebrated the Sanctity of Life with homemade hot fudge Sundays in the rectory and the Church bells rang all day :)  Every joy in life-LIFE- is worth celebrating and remembering… especially with ice cream!

Don't Look Up at the Sky

Wednesday I was putting together the weekend music books. As I reached for the Alleluia— The “Alleluia for Ascension”, a setting that Fr. Krizner wrote (he was a songwriter too…. who knew!)— I pulled this out of the folder instead. Fr. would often write notes during Mass and pass them along to me about things to add/change to the music “in the moment”— I loved those Holy Spirit moments. They were among the many things that made his priesthood and ministry so endearing. I’m often “off the cuff” as well which is one of the reasons why we worked so well together… I’m getting off topic… anyways, I reached for this. It was something he wrote for Ascension some years ago. He added a bit of Santucci’s words as well— but it was his creative spin on it. He had me read it at Mass, probably after his homily or the reflection song. I always saved these writings/notes in my music folders thinking that it would be fun for me to find them again in the future. I’m grateful for that, especially since it was exactly what I needed to read that very day. Can’t keep this God-moment to myself so I must share it with you. I hope your Ascension weekend is filled with hope and peace.— Sara

Be sure to check out our Fr. Krizner page for events in his honor.

"I am the gate... come find pasture."

I've said it before, but it's the truth!  These Sunday Readings were made for our time as a parish family, and praise Jesus for his comfort through them.  Our Gospel from John this week says, "The sheep hear his voice, as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out."  Fr. Krizner used to fondly talk about his time as a new Benedictine Monk in Boston before coming to St. Andrew's in Cleveland.  Part of his duties were to tend the sheep and (no surprise), it was the joy of his life!  One of the amazing things that he shared was that the sheep had many human onlookers, but only responded to the call of their shepherd.  Anyone else who tried the same call signs and sounds had no success.  This story strikes a tender chord in my heart for a number of reasons, among them being that no matter the noise and distractions of whatever may be going on in our lives on a personal or parish level, when the Shepherd calls, we'll know His voice.... we'll just know.  When we "fix our eyes on Jesus" and go wherever he leads, we enter through his Gate of security and peace until, like Fr., we're led home. 

In my imagination I like to think of Fr.'s first glimpse of heaven as a parallel to his monk/sheep story: that he's RUNNING with a body no longer broken or in pain, through a field of the most lush, green grass, playing with the lambs... and as he runs to the gate, the shepherd turns to greet him, and it's Jesus.  God love you this week! ~Sara