Pastor’s Letter: July 5, 2026

Pastor’s Letter: July 5, 2026

3 Jul 2026 | Posted by: chadmin

Dear St. Philomena Parish Family,

A blessed July to you all! As our country celebrates 250 years this weekend, I am thinking a lot about my grandpa on my dad’s side—a tremendous man of faith who was also one of the most patriotic people I’ve known. Some have heard me share about him before—he was a WWII Navy veteran who always had the flag flying in the yard. He had a strong Catholic faith that heavily influenced me growing up—daily Mass and daily Rosary prayed for our family, as well as serving as a lector, cantor, and trustee for our parish during my growing up years. He always was a living example for me of how Catholics can live in the world, both as faithful followers of Christ and good citizens who serve our community and our country. Let us all be joined in prayer this weekend for our country, and especially in thanksgiving for all those who have gone before us who have contributed the daily life we enjoy here.

As we continue looking through the Sacrament of Marriage, the Catechism actually goes into some depth about the challenges to marriage we encounter in our fallen world. Certainly, we understand that threats to marriage like “discord, a spirit of domination, infidelity, jealousy, and conflicts” are a result of sin. No doubt, “man and woman need the help of the grace that God in his infinite mercy never refuses them” (CCC, 1606-1608). We see through the Old Testament that the gift of marriage continues, although certainly in an imperfect way. Situations like polygamy are still present, although the gradual revelation of the marriage God will call His people to live begins to ask for the protection of the dignity of the spouses and the indissolubility of marriage. “The books of Ruth and Tobit bear moving witness to an elevated sense of marriage and to the fidelity and tenderness of spouses. Tradition as always seen in the Song of Solomon a unique expression of human love, insofar as it is a reflection of God’s love—a love ‘strong as death’ that ‘many waters cannot quench’.” (CCC 1610-1611).

With Old Testament marriage as a foundation, God’s people were ready for an even higher calling in living his love…and that will happen through the Sacrament of Marriage. As we know, the first miracle that Jesus works changing water into wine was at the wedding at Cana (John 2). “The Church attaches great importance to Jesus’ presence at the wedding at Cana. She sees in it the confirmation of the goodness of marriage and the proclamation that thenceforth marriage will be an efficacious sign of Christ’s presence” (CCC, 1613). For a little aside, that is a fancy way of saying Christ establishes Marriage as a Sacrament! When I am teaching about Sacraments, I actually really like the word, “efficacious,” which in this context means that each Sacrament actually makes true/makes present what it signifies. A good example of this is a stop sign that actually makes you stop. A regular stop sign is a commonly recognized traffic sign—we all know what it means and what we are supposed to do when we come upon one. However, it is also true that some people don’t follow those signs! An “efficacious” stop sign would be one that actually makes you stop—perhaps like a bar or gate with a stop sign on it that requires the vehicle to stop. That would be similar to how all the sacraments work—they signal to us something that is happening…and actually make present what is signaled. So, in marriage we have the vows and typically an exchange of rings which signify commitment, union, and the spouses’ mutual desire for each other’s good and the good of family…and then also along with those external words and signs Jesus Himself is at work in their hearts strengthening that bond with His love.

Our Catechism notes that Jesus “taught the original meaning of the union of man and woman as the Creator willed it from the beginning…The matrimonial union of man and woman is indissoluble…’what therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder’.” (Matthew 19:6, CCC, 1614). The Catechism notes that the teaching of indissolubility of marriage “may have left some perplexed and could seem to be a demand impossible to realize.” We will come back to some hard things that can happen in the future, along with how the Church helps guide us through those hard things…but for now we’ll focus on what is possible through the love of Jesus. Joyfully, Jesus will provide what is needed to make this commitment of husband and wife possible. “By coming to restore the original order of creation disturbed by sin, he himself gives the strength and grace to live marriage in the new dimension of the Reign of God. It is by following Christ, renouncing themselves, and taking up their crosses that spouses will be able to ‘receive’ the original meaning of marriage and live it with the help of Christ. This grace of Christian marriage is a fruit of Christ’s cross, the source of all Christian life” (CCC, 1615).

Indissolubility is one of what we call the four goods of marriage: indissolubility or permanence, fidelity of the spouses, the good of the spouses, and the good of children. This classic description of the goods of marriage highlights both the covenant of the spouses and how the fruit of their bond is shared out in the world. We will reflect a bit more on these next week, along with our marriage preparation process in the Diocese of Peoria—all geared toward helping couples be ready to live the beautiful gift of the Sacrament of Marriage! Know of my prayers and blessing, especially for all our couples currently preparing to be married this year!

In Christ,
Father Luke

P.S.  I also want to share with everyone a couple of staff updates from the parish office which we have previously communicated to our school families. With heartfelt thanks, I would like to announce that as of the beginning of July, Susan Clark has retired as our parish bookkeeper. Susan has served St. Philomena generously since July 2017 and we certainly ask God’s blessing upon her and her family. As a pastor, and along with our Finance Council, I truly enjoyed working with Susan to keep up with all the practical financial details and daily business of our church and school. Thanks so much, Susan, for everything you have done for us here at St. Philomena!

To ensure we continue good financial stewardship, we are excited to officially welcome to our staff Ida Nosalik, who has been working with Susan the past few months on what truly has been a great transition. Ida’s email and phone extension are listed along with the rest of our staff in the “Contact Us” box of the bulletin. Speaking on behalf of all our staff, please always reach out if we can serve you in any way. It truly is a great honor to work together as a staff to help our church and school continue to grow and thrive!