A Letter From Our Pastor PF-4 Nights — Joining Our Parish Families in Hospitality, Prayer, Formation

My Dear Friends in Christ,

As we begin a new year in Faith Formation, we have the opportunity to live stewardship. There are four pillars to the stewardship way of life — hospitality, prayer, formation, and service. These correspond well to our Catholic faith that we profess in our Nicene and Apostle’s Creed as “One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic..."

This year, we are leading PF-4 nights. The four “Fs” involve “faith, family, fellowship, and formation.” It continues what we did with PF-3 nights that involved beginning the night with dinner and fellowship, formation, which includes breaking into two groups with adults and children and ending with Eucharistic Adoration led by our musicians and the priest. The formation part includes adults taking in a teaching on the subject of the month. For October, it will be on Heaven, Hell, and Purgatory. We will have a family from our parish community that will give a witness talk to their experience of their loved one passing on to the Lord. This will be followed by a teaching from the Catechism about what the Church teaches on these topics. We also introduce the following week’s lesson so parents may teach this to their children at home. During this time, the children will be with catechists to learn the lesson of the week having also to do with these topics. On PF-4 nights, childcare is provided. All PF-4 nights begin at 5:45 p.m. with dinner and fellowship, 6:30 p.m. with Formation, 7:25 p.m. with Eucharistic Adoration which concludes promptly at 7:45 p.m. We also invite families for a second night each month. For this second night, we simplify the same components of the PF-4 night, but we will begin with a teaching Mass for adults while their children learn their lesson from catechists, and we provide a light snack for both adults and children for the fellowship component.

PF-4 nights is an application of the Ham Lake Family Faith Formation model, which seeks to invite and empower parents to take an active role in talking and teaching faith to their children in their families. Time and time again, statistics confirm our Church’s teaching that parents are the first educators of their children in the ways of faith and how crucial their witness is to their children’s continued practice of their faith. Many parents, understandably at times, may feel inadequate about this role, but their witness and role are irreplaceable and they are offered grace by God to live this role. We are here to support and empower them! We actively invite parents twice a month to teach the lesson of the week to their children at home with the help of packets that make it very manageable, meaningful, and substantial. The PF-4 night and the second night of the month that we bring families to the parish is to foster this growth and provide them an experience of the parish family.

We want to invite ALL parishioners to come and join our PF-4 nights! PF-4 nights this month are scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 27 at Our Lady of Lourdes (for both St. Mary’s and Our Lady of Lourdes) and Wednesday, Nov. 3 at Holy Family Church. The second and simpler nights involving the teaching Mass are scheduled for Oct. 13 at Our Lady of Lourdes and Oct. 27 at Holy Family. We have a chance to live our stewardship way of life as we join our families in the parish for hospitality, prayer and formation, and service!

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Fr. Ben Kociemba, Pastor

Fr. Ben Kociemba, Pastor