Blessings in 2013

Saying goodbye to the Baker City Cathedral

This is a time for reflection as well as celebration. As you look back on the past year and all that has taken place in your life, remember each experience for the good that has come of it and for the knowledge you have gained. Remember the efforts you have made and the goals you have reached. Remember the love you have shared and the happiness you have brought. Remember the laughter, the joy, the hard work, and the tears. And as you reflect on the past year, also be thinking of the new one to come. Because most importantly, this is a time of new beginnings and the celebration of life.

A new Pope brings new hope to the entire world

It is a time for me personally to thank God and my bishop for trusting me with the leadership of the parish of St Francis of Assisi in Bend. It is time for me and my family to thank God for the graduation as a doctor of my nephew Julian and his mother Maria as a BA in Art History. It is time to honor two living Popes, Benedict XVI and Francis, as we welcome a new Shepherd, the first from Latin America. It is time to look back through so many photos I took over this past year, and continue to appreciate nature and wildlife in all its spectacular beauty. It is time to remember the many friends I left at Baker City, and the many new families and friends I met here in Bend. There are many others whom I’ll meet in the future, presently unknown to me - they are not strangers, but only friends I’ve not yet met. Finally I thank God for the blessings of my priesthood, through which I can share my love of the church, my love of the faith and my love for the people entrusted to my care. Happy New Year!