Christ is Risen! The past three weeks' bulletins were all sent off to the publisher several weeks ago because of some vacation time among our office staff. In the days immediately after Holy Week, I just didn’t have it in me to write three columns in a couple of days, so that is why I have not written to you in a couple of weeks. I’m happy to be back in the saddle again and to share a few thoughts with all of you. Fr. Bill Schmidt, the emeritus pastor of St. Patrick Parish, is celebrating Mass here in commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of his ordination to the Priesthood. He could rightfully be remembered for overseeing the enormous construction project that built the Parish Center and Hall, and enlarged and renovated the Church. Infinitely more important, however, are all of the baptisms, confessions, marriages, anointings, funerals, and Masses he celebrated over these past fifty years. Today, we give thanks for the gift of the priesthood bestowed upon him fifty years ago and for all the ways the Lord has used Fr. Schmidt’s ministry to sanctify, teach, and shepherd the flock entrusted to him. Ad multos annos! Joining Fr. Bill today at the 1:30pm Mass is Deacon Bob Turner who also served St. Patrick Parish for many years and who is celebrating the fiftieth anniversary of his ordination to the Diaconate. As a parish family, we give thanks for the many years of service that Deacon Bob gave to this parish. His legacy of generous service is still remembered with tremendous gratitude by the people of St. Patrick Parish. Ad multos annos! I extend a word of welcome to the many new faces that I have seen at Masses in recent weeks. One of the drawbacks of being (quite happily) a large parish with many Masses is that sometimes a new face can get lost in the crowd. Even if I have not met you yet in person, I just want to tell you how happy I am that you are here. If you are only recently returning to Sunday Mass or are here because you are thinking about becoming Catholic, welcome! Your presence here–especially at this time of year–is a sign to the rest of us of the power of Christ’s Resurrection at work among us. Many people have asked me either, “How was your trip to the Holy Land” or “Did your trip get cancelled?” The trip is not until next April! I hold out hope that things will all work out. I hope that you will consider joining us for that pilgrimage. I have gone once before and it is an amazing experience! On May 8th, the Church commemorates the one year anniversary of the election of Leo XIV. Perhaps we could all put a reminder in our calendar for that day to offer extra prayers for the Holy Father on that day. Maybe take some time that day to pray the Rosary for him, attend Mass and pray for him, or offer some other prayers for him. Let us also pray for all of the children of our parish who receive their First Holy Communion this week. Let’s pray that they always stay close to Jesus. Although most of us see each other at Mass each Sunday, some of our parishioners–due to illness, age, or other reasons–are unable to be here with us. Let us also remember them in our prayers. They are just as much a part of our parish family as are those who sit in the pews next to us. Some of those parishioners receive the bulletin in the mail each week. If you are homebound and are reading this, please know that we all love you and are praying for you! I am grateful for the many ways that the Lord is blessing us and doing something beautiful among us. Your Brother in Christ, Fr. David Barnes