Dear Parishioners

Our parish anniversary will flow over into the Great Jubilee inviting us this year and next to celebrate two great sets of memories. It is important to connect them for it is the Mission of Jesus that has given birth to the Mission of Holy Spirit Parish.

The first Christians slowly distinguished themselves from their religious neighbors not so much by the form of their public prayer but by the form of their public lives. They were more defined by who was at the table then by what was on the table.

Jesus' first disciples stood out because they insisted on continuing his absurd practices of making the stranger welcome and taking the outcast in. It was their practice of the abundant hospitality for which Jesus died that set them apart.

Holy Spirit Parish has been characterized by this same absurd set of practices since her birth at St. Benedict. Here many strangers have become friends and those who don't seem to fit the mould elsewhere have found a warm welcome.

As the demographics of our parish change our parish population is likely to plateau and may even begin to drop unless these absurd practices of Jesus shape our future. The growing Catechumenal communities that support the Rites of Christian Initiation are a strong indicator that the Spirit that led Jesus to leave the Father to go in search of the lost continues to guide the hearts of those who call our center home.

Holy Spirit parishioners have traditionally raised their gaze beyond the immediate horizon involving themselves in the political life of our city and the social challenges it faces.

The gift of the spirit moved the infant Church beyond the closed doors of that first Easter morning to spread around the world. I join with all of you in praying that the Holy Spirit we have received will keep the doors of our heart and our parish center open to all of God's people.

Yours in Christ,