Dear brothers and sisters,
During this month of July, we ask the Lord to keep you and your families healthy and safe from all sicknesses and illnesses. You are all in our prayers and thoughts at every Mass celebrated (and quite often broadcast on the Church’s Website and Facebook). We continue the broadcasting in an attempt to continue to serve the sick, the elderly and the distant. Please note that the live streaming at this point in time is done in order to allow the sick, elderly, out of town, or high risk people, to attend liturgy remotely. Parishioners who are healthy and able to attend Mass physically, are expected to do so on a weekly basis, following the Bible’s commandment to respect the day of the Lord.
We thank the wonderful Faith Formation director, Gary Schwery, who worked constantly with dedication and commitment, for so many years, to maintain and strengthen the faith of the children of the parish. The Church was so blessed to have such a dedicated and committed director of the Faith Formation program for over a decade, most of the time assisted with dedicated teachers. Regarding this coming year, we will be appointing a new director for the program. In the meanwhile, parents with children age 6 and up are encouraged and expected to enroll their children at Holy Family for Faith Formation Classes that will start in mid-September. This is especially important for those children starting second grade or are seven years old, as they must register for the First Communion Classes and ceremony. Children who are eleven years of age must complete their Confirmation Course and receive or renew their Confirmation Sacrament at Holy Family by June of next year. Please contact the Church office for registration information. This is a must and the responsibility of the parents to register their children. This is very important and necessary for the Maronite and Catholic children of today who face confusing threats against their faith and values in the media and society.
On Saturday, June 29, the Feast Day of Saints Peter and Paul, Fr. Anthony Salim, celebrated the 50th Anniversary of his Priesthood Ordination at Holy Family Church. The church ladies offered a reception in his honor. We wish Fr. Tony all the best in his service. It seems that we are keeping him busy.
The Men’s Club Annual Church picnic was held Sunday, June 30, after liturgy. The picnic was an opportunity for our community to enjoy time together in a family atmosphere and delicious food. Prior to the picnic, during liturgy, the Men’s Club president, Jim Abbott, distributed scholarships to five of our college age youth: Michael Tobias, Eddie Corey, Zane Johnson, Grace Thomas, and Ella George, all of whom are committed and dedicated to the church. They are now old enough to be included in our MYA group. Congratulations to all of them! They are fine, active young members of the church and we are very proud of them.
Our MYO youth group this year is replacing its annual national retreat participation with another in-state overnight outing. Good job, John Corey and team, for always motivating our MYO. The church MYO group (age 12 to 17) will be joined by our Faith Formation and altar serving children who will come of age this fall and winter. This is an indication that the church MYO and MYA groups will be growing, maybe slowly but in a steady and secure rhythm.
Please encourage your children to enroll in Faith Formation and MYO and altar serving. Encourage them also to participate in the Annual Youth Summer Camp at Church August 15 and 16 this year. It is a once a year event for 2 days. Don’t let your children miss it. It is an annual opportunity for your kids to live moments of joy and blessings together building legacy and community participation. The camp will include half a day in Lebanon Hills, with hiking, swimming and portaging, canoeing, and games, prayers, delicious food and heritage lessons.
We pray this month for the peace and security of the United States of America on its Independence Day, July 4. May this country be a country of peace, security and safety with the true Christian values of the Gospel. On this occasion, I would like to invite you to pray for our country of origin, Lebanon, the land visited by the Lord Jesus, which is still going through difficult moments of economic depression and crisis. We encourage each of you to support Caritas Lebanon, the major Catholic Charity of the country and the Middle East, or even directly for any beloved ones you know in the country. Thank you for your support. And thank you for your prayers.
The NAM Convention will be held this year in the Renaissance Center in Detroit with clergy conferences starting Monday July 1st and full scale Convention Thursday July 4th to July 7th. I will represent the Holy Family with a couple of our parishioners who thankfully offered to participate on behalf of the church.
On this occasion, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all parishioners and members of the councils and groups of the parish who assist the parish in all aspects of its mission. Your participation and commitment to your church and community is highly appreciated and noticed. Although the church does not presently have an annual dues policy for parish families and working members, parishioners are welcome to participate and fulfill their duties of participation in various ways between donating and volunteering. This is vital for the life and the mission of the church and its growth.
As you know, the church today is totally mortgage free, and this is a great success. We know it still needs support in order to keep building the fund for expansion to add basic needs such as two classrooms for our children, two additional bathrooms, one office and a more useful sacristy. In the meanwhile, the Church investment fund is increasing on a regular basis. The church went from $100k below zero in September 2014, to over $450k above zero presently ($550k total increase) on an average of $50k per year. Most of these funds came from a few very generous donors and contributors. The expansion will require the increase of the funds by another $200k to reach the required amount to go forward with the limited building expansion project. All this was made possible by your regular donations and generosity, without any capital campaign. In order to avoid a capital campaign, we will rely more on your constant and dedicated generosity to build the church of the future.
July is a summer break month. We wish all our families beautiful days of family life and relaxation time and don’t forget to thank God at weekend Liturgy for all of the gifts He has bestowed on you. Thank you again for your trust and for treating the church as being your own home in your generosity and care.
Yours in Christ Jesus,
Father Emmanuel Nakhlé-Ghorr, Pastor
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