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Pastor’s Letter: May 31, 2026

Dear St. Philomena Parish Family,

We are joyful this weekend to celebrate with Fr. Blake Miller! As we said previously, Fr. Blake will be at all our weekend Masses and offer the special first blessings after each Mass. Being at ordinations and experiencing the joy of the first blessings takes me back to my own ordination. How fast those years have gone by!  =) As I reflect on the gift of the priesthood, I am always thankful and joyful. This life of service has taken me all over our Diocese of Peoria and all around the country—I have the joy of knowing there are great and faithful people everywhere! It has been a full and wonderful adventure…and I always say way more fun than I ever thought would be possible!

Continuing our Catechism review of the Sacrament of Holy Orders, “Holy Orders is the sacrament through which the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time:  thus it is the sacrament of apostolic ministry. It includes three degrees:  episcopate, presbyterate, and diaconate” (CCC, 1536).  We will talk more about these three degrees in a couple weeks, but for now we will say they are three special ways of sharing in the ministry of Christ.

Why is this Sacrament called “Orders?”  The Catechism tells us that from Roman times “order…designated an established civil body, especially a governing body.  Ordinatio means incorporation into an ordo…integration into one of these bodies in the Church was accomplished by a rite called ordinatio…today the word ‘ordination’ is reserved for the sacramental act which integrates a man into the order of bishops, presbyters [priests], or deacons, and goes beyond a simple election, designation, delegation, or institution by the community…”  (CCC, 1537-1538). In the Church, we have had groups called orders from ancient times—such as the order of bishops or the order of priests. Another some might be familiar..