Upcoming Events

Pastor’s Letter: October 25, 2026

Dear St. Philomena Parish Family,

May the Lord’s blessing be upon you all this day!  This is one of those columns that I’m working on ahead of time…I pray that as you read it my retreat has been fruitful and that you are enjoying a grace-filled weekend! I am excited to share with you something coming up in November as we remember those Souls who have gone before us in Faith…an “End-of-Life Series” that will hopefully help us prepare well for ourselves and those we love. We will have a couple of talks, both with 2 opportunities so that we can work around our busy schedules. On November 6 and 7 at 10am, I will give a talk on Last Sacraments, Catholic Funerals, and Burials…along with sharing a St. Philomena funeral planning resource that we have been working on. We are also planning to have present that day some folks who can help with specific kinds of questions, ranging from funeral home planning to financial planning. Then, on November 17 and 21 at 10am, we will host Msgr. Mark Merdian for a talk on End-of-Life Medical Ethics. Msgr. Merdian is our Diocesan medical ethics expert, who will share with us Church teaching and speak to recent legislation regarding end-of-life decision making. We will have more details to share in the weeks ahead! For this week, we’ll continue with Msgr. Gray’s book study:

Treasure in Clay: The Autobiography of Fulton J. Sheen…Chapter 15

For this chapter, Msgr. Gray asks, “Give some examples of the respect that Sheen had for the different Popes. How did this strengthen his faith in the Church? What did the Popes say to Sheen about being a “prophet of the times,” or about suffering? Although Sheen concluded that he “had done little” in his service of the Church, what did the Popes say about him? What did St. John Paul II say to Sheen on October 2,..