A couple of weeks ago someone showed me a photo taken of
their daughter with me at her first communion when I came here in 1988.
What surprised me was not only how small she was 20 years ago but how
brown my hair was back then. Don’t laugh. I remember when many of you
had dark hair. In fact, I remember when some of you had hair. But time
passes and so must people.
And I can't think of a better time to say my formal
farewell than on the feast of the Holy Family. Today we remember and
celebrate the family of Nazareth that was bound together and made holy by
the presence of God. And there's probably no better definition of a
parish than that - a group of people who are united by the faith they hold
and the presence of God they share. This parish will always be important
to me. As I said last September, I've been here over half my priesthood
and nearly a third of my life. You’ve blessed me by allowing me to preach
to you and pray with you and to be present with many of you at some very
important times. Some of them happy; some of them not.
I’ve been privileged to baptize your babies and to preside
at the weddings of your children. I’ve been able to bury your loved ones
and to spend time talking to some of you when you were going through a
difficult moment in your life. I’ve been able to see young kids grow into
enthusiastic teenagers and then mature into grown adults and settle down
with children of their own. I’ve been blessed to see men and women go
through the RCIA and enter the Church with a love and appreciation of
Catholicism. I’ve seen great acts of service and sacrifice by many of you
who have shown me and taught me the meaning of the Gospel by the kinds of
lives that you lead. I can honestly say that in my time here I have
received more than I have given. I’ve been able to call you, not just my
friends, but my brothers and sisters, because for 20 years you have been
my family. And for that I will always be grateful.
I've joked with people in the past that the nice thing
about being pastor here is that a lot of people do all the work and I get
all the credit. We have a wonderful parish and I know that my position as
spiritual leader has contributed to it. But if it wasn't for the
dedication, commitment and love for their church by many hundreds and
hundreds of people, St. Mary of the Falls would not be the parish that it
is today. As I look back at all that we've accomplished over the years,
it must be credited to a lot more people than me. We could not have built
and maintained all that we have today if it wasn't for the generosity and
continual support of you folks. We could not have the reputation as a
friendly and welcoming parish if it wasn't for the warm spirit you bring
with you to church every week. We could not have the various ministries
and outreach we've developed if it wasn't for the faith and love of God
that all of our volunteers have in their heart and show by the time they
give in what they do. And for all of that I will always be grateful.
And I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the
tremendous contribution made by the members of our parish staff. Some of
them you see and hear regularly. Others occasionally. Some are invisible
because they work behind the scenes. But I must express my indebtedness
to each of them. They have made me look good. I want to thank Deacons
Rich Mueller, Tom Daw and Bob Martin who have been such a support and help
to me over the years. To Sr. Jane who puts in more hours than you will
ever know, not only in coordinating a huge PSR program but in the 101
other things she does. To Terry Holdyk the principal of our day school
who has helped develop an outstanding institution of elementary education.
To Judy Stasenko for the creativity and dedication she has exhibited in
the many ministries in which she has been involved over the years. To Fr.
George Kusy who will always be an inspiration to me for the journey he
made from his homeland of Poland to this new land of America which he now
calls home and where he wants to minister and serve God's people. Also,
to Joyce Zivich, our parish secretary, who has helped me in so many ways
at the parish office. To my friends, John and Mary Lou Stark, who have
quietly served this parish and me in so many ways, as well. For all of
these people, I will always be grateful.
I want to acknowledge the contributions of the other
priests who have served here as associate pastors over the past 20 years.
Frs. Jim Schmitz, Ken Jakubowski, Ralph Thomas, Dan Fickes and Mark Ott
are my friends. They have served me well and they have served you well in
the years that they worked here. For them, I will always be grateful, as
I am sure, you are, too.
There’s one thing that I do want to say to all of our young
people with us at Mass today. As you try to discover what God wants you
to do with your life, I would hope that you’ll be open to the fact that
God may be calling you to be of service to the Church as a priest or as a
sister or as a brother. Or perhaps later in life as a deacon. It's a
very rewarding and important calling and we need more young people to
answer the call. We need you. God needs you. The Church needs you.
Please, don't close your ears or your heart to this calling.
I must confess that I'm a little nervous stepping from all
that is familiar into the great unknown of a new parish. Sacred Heart in
Oberlin is no where near the size of a parish that we are here. That may
be an understatement in that there's only one full time person on the
payroll and that will be me. So that will take some getting used to.
Because of the size of the parish, I will also be assigned as pastor of a
second parish, either to the north of Oberlin or to the south, depending
on how the clustering discussions go.
I do need to say that if I have offended anyone in my time
here at St. Mary’s I ask your forgiveness. I know that I'm far from
perfect and I do apologize to anyone whom I may have hurt.
Last October I gave a homily about being grateful for all
that God has done for us in life, most of which probably goes unnoticed
and is taken for granted. And I said we need to be open to whatever lies
ahead, knowing that God will be with us throughout, no matter what, no
matter where. I think that spirit was best encapsulated in a quote by the
former Secretary General of the UN, Dag Hammarskjöld, who wrote in his
book, Markings, “O God, for all that has been, Thanks. For all
that will be, Yes.” I know that I hold that sentiment as I look back at
my time with you and I hope you hold it as well as you get ready to
welcome Fr. Wally Hyclak next weekend. I know that he’s inheriting a
wonderful parish and I ask that you give him the support and cooperation
that you’ve given to me. He's one fortunate man. He just doesn't know it
yet.
And so as I leave you this week, I take with me many
memories, many friendships and many hopes that we shall see each other
again, if not here, then certainly in the comfort of God’s embrace.
Please keep me in your prayers for I shall always hold you in my heart.
