A Letter From Our Pastor: Encountering Jesus Growing in Faith, and Going to Make Disciples

Dear Parishioners,

One of my favorite stories about our bishop is a homily he gave while the pastor at Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. On a hot summer Sunday he was having Mass and the air conditioning went out. He got up for his homily and said, “It’s hot in here. Hell is hotter. So shape up.” And he sat down. I love that story.

It is indeed hot outside, but that is not stopping the Encounter-Grow-Go efforts of our parish to help every person in Payne County encounter the Lord Jesus, grow in relationship with Him, and then go and make disciples. The three stories highlighted in this newsletter are definitely initiatives that help our parish be the kind of place people want to come to in order to pray and go deeper in their faith.

Under the leadership of Claudia Ogrin, the St. Francis Xavier Early Childhood Development Center (ECDC) is a wonderful place. Designed for children ages 1-4, the ECDC teaches them the faith and cares for their needs through the day. What I love most about our ECDC is that it has a strong partnership with the parents. Parents are the primary educators of their children and ECDC wants to support that important dynamic. This summer, our ECDC has 71 children in the program. That’s a strong endorsement of the good work being done by Claudia and her staff.

In the life of a parish, there’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes that most people never see. Especially in a church like ours, there are a number of details that have to get done each week. It’s the sacristans, under the leadership of Julie Lauvetz, who make it happen. From cleaning and pressing the linens for Mass, cleaning the sanctuary, changing out holy water and candles, and so much more, the sacristans make beautiful prayer possible in our parish.

By now you’ve seen them around, but our summer seminarians Robert Williams and Joey Griggs have been a huge addition to our parish. Both bring strong faith and great energy as they shadow the priests to learn about parish life. I’ve known both Robert and Joey for many years and it’s beautiful to see them mature and grow in holiness. God willing, both will make excellent priests in the future and maybe one of them will be your pastor someday! Pray for them!

In Christ,

Very Rev. Brian O’Brien Pastor, St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church

Very Rev. Brian O’Brien Pastor, St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church