Dear Parishioners of Saint Polycarp,
Greetings in the Lord Jesus! I write this letter to thank all of you for your generous support of Saint Polycarp, our spiritual home. When I first arrived to Saint Polycarp, many people told me that summer is a quiet time for our parish. However, the contrary seems to be the reality. The parish office, the Faith Formation Programs, and the various ministries have been so active. Uriel, our facility staff, has been super busy with fixing and renovating our facility. Our Holy Mass attendance has been full; confessional lines on Monday evening, Friday morning, and Saturday afternoon have been longer than last year.
The activeness of our parish reminds me of those Cal-Trans signs I see along the road: “Your tax dollar is at work”! This summer, we have programs and activities for our young people. On its first day, the English and basic computer classes had around 20 students; the sewing class 21 students. The Youth program on Saturday, July 10 had 50 young attendees. We also held two Covid-19 vaccination sessions for our community. Volunteers from the Spanish and Vietnamese supported with parking and security. Moreover, we have begun to plan for our parish Food Fest, which will take place on the weekend of 17-19 of September. Planning for RCIA Program has been underway. This weekend the English and Spanish RCIA teams will be available at all Masses to answer and provide information for the upcoming RCIA program, which will start at the end of August. It seems that we kick off our summer in a very active mode. This activeness of our parish reflects similarly the Cal-Trans sign: “Your parish donations are at work”!
Summer marks a time for vacation. Wherever your vacation destination may be, please be safe and remember to give thanks to God for the gift of vacationing or resting. The theme “Rest” is echoed by Jesus in this Sixteenth Sunday’s Gospel: “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mk 6:30-40).
The necessity to rest is important for us. Not only does it imply hard works, but it also points out the need to recharge. This is precisely what Jesus told His disciples in the Gospel—that is, after sending them out two by two to do ministry in His name, He asked them to rest. They worked hard in the name of Jesus. Thus, his asking them to rest reminds them to refocus or to be one in prayer with Him. To be who they are in/with Jesus precedes what they do in His name. This means that our Christian actions, activities or works must flow from the nature of who we are as God’s children.
May God bless and safeguard each of your steps and activities. Together with my brother priests, thank you very much for supporting our spiritual home, Saint Polycarp, namely the youth and the Faith Formation programs.
Father Viet Peter Ho
Pastor.
Greetings in the Lord Jesus! I write this letter to thank all of you for your generous support of Saint Polycarp, our spiritual home. When I first arrived to Saint Polycarp, many people told me that summer is a quiet time for our parish. However, the contrary seems to be the reality. The parish office, the Faith Formation Programs, and the various ministries have been so active. Uriel, our facility staff, has been super busy with fixing and renovating our facility. Our Holy Mass attendance has been full; confessional lines on Monday evening, Friday morning, and Saturday afternoon have been longer than last year.
The activeness of our parish reminds me of those Cal-Trans signs I see along the road: “Your tax dollar is at work”! This summer, we have programs and activities for our young people. On its first day, the English and basic computer classes had around 20 students; the sewing class 21 students. The Youth program on Saturday, July 10 had 50 young attendees. We also held two Covid-19 vaccination sessions for our community. Volunteers from the Spanish and Vietnamese supported with parking and security. Moreover, we have begun to plan for our parish Food Fest, which will take place on the weekend of 17-19 of September. Planning for RCIA Program has been underway. This weekend the English and Spanish RCIA teams will be available at all Masses to answer and provide information for the upcoming RCIA program, which will start at the end of August. It seems that we kick off our summer in a very active mode. This activeness of our parish reflects similarly the Cal-Trans sign: “Your parish donations are at work”!
Summer marks a time for vacation. Wherever your vacation destination may be, please be safe and remember to give thanks to God for the gift of vacationing or resting. The theme “Rest” is echoed by Jesus in this Sixteenth Sunday’s Gospel: “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while” (Mk 6:30-40).
The necessity to rest is important for us. Not only does it imply hard works, but it also points out the need to recharge. This is precisely what Jesus told His disciples in the Gospel—that is, after sending them out two by two to do ministry in His name, He asked them to rest. They worked hard in the name of Jesus. Thus, his asking them to rest reminds them to refocus or to be one in prayer with Him. To be who they are in/with Jesus precedes what they do in His name. This means that our Christian actions, activities or works must flow from the nature of who we are as God’s children.
May God bless and safeguard each of your steps and activities. Together with my brother priests, thank you very much for supporting our spiritual home, Saint Polycarp, namely the youth and the Faith Formation programs.
Father Viet Peter Ho
Pastor.