Dear Parishioners of Saint Polycarp,
Parish administration encompasses many aspects of parish life, ranging from sacramental to pastoral/spiritual care to finance. Such administrative responsibilities involve many people who help the parish priest or the pastor. As such, I am grateful for the support of Fathers Luis and Nicolaus, the deacons (Ramiro, Larry, Tri, and Juan), religious sisters (Anh Tram, Jessica, and MaryAnne), the Parish Pastoral Council, the Finance Council, Ministry Heads, the Parish Staff and most of all YOU, the people of God
Among the many administrative responsibilities, finance is important because your generous contributions and donations support the daily operations of the church. Therefore, enclosed in this Sunday’s bulletin you find the 2024-2025 financial report of our parish, which shows that we are in the positive area of finance.
I thank especially Marcia Vojtech, Chair of the Finance Council, and the members of the Council; and Tom Ma, Business Manager, for assisting me to be a faithful steward of God’s gifts. Their counsels and hard work are valuable to my ministry in this area of administration.
During this month of October, I invite you to join the Universal Church to pray for life—a precious and special gift of God’s love, as stated in the story of the creation of man in the Book of Genesis:
“Then God said, Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth. So God created humankind in his image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth” (Gn 1:26-28) … “Then the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being” (Gn 2:7).
When talking about “life” I am not referring only to the fact of being able to breathe, walk, and talk. I am referring to the sanctity of life with which each one of us is given according to the will and love of God– that is, to consider your life as a sacred gift; to make your life fruitful and meaningful; and to never be afraid to show God’s presence in you to others.
Together with my brother priests, Fathers Luis and Nicolaus, I invoke the divine blessings from Our Almighty God, through the intercession of Our Blessed Mother Mary, Saint Joseph, and Saint Polycarp upon you and your family.
Father Viet Peter Ho
Pastor
Recent Pastor Letters
-
October 19, 2025
Read more: October 19, 2025Dear Parishioners of Saint Polycarp, Parish administration encompasses many aspects of parish life, ranging from sacramental to pastoral/spiritual care to finance. Such administrative responsibilities involve many people who help the parish priest or the pastor. As such, I am grateful for the support of Fathers Luis and Nicolaus, the deacons (Ramiro, Larry, Tri, and Juan),…
-
September 14, 2025
Read more: September 14, 2025Dear Parishioners of Saint Polycarp, Greetings and peace in the Lord Jesus. This weekend of September 14 marks the solemn celebration of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. This celebration draws me to meditate on this beautiful prayer which the Church prays at Stations of the Cross during Lent: “We adore you, oh Christ, and…
-
August 31, 2025
Read more: August 31, 2025Dear Parishioners of Saint Polycarp, On this last day of August, which is the Twenty Second Sunday of Ordinary time, the scriptural message calls us to concentrate on the humility of Jesus, the Son of God. To expound on Jesus’ humility, Saint Paul in his Letter to the Phillipians wrote, “[Jesus], though he was in…
-
August 3, 2025
Read more: August 3, 2025Dear Parishioners of Saint Polycarp, Greetings in the Lord Jesus. It has been a while since my last pastoral letter in June. Time flies by quickly, and it is now August. We love to hold on to time, but time does not wait for us. This is the message that the First Reading of Ecclesiastes…