Dear Parishioners,

Merry Christmas Happy New Year, and Happy Epiphany too, (I won’t see you then ☹). A reminder that January 1st is a Holy Day of obligation. Our Mass schedule is a little different than normal for this holy day. We will have Mass on the vigil of Mary Mother of God 12-31-24 at 4 PM at SJ, and then on the 1st Masses will be at 9 AM OLF and Noon SJ. Fr. George and Fr. Dale Nau will be doing those Masses.

This week is a two-week bulletin. The next one will come out on 1-11/12-25.

Faith formation begins again starting Wednesday January 8th.

St. Joseph building update: We sent out our design to the construction companies and should be getting their proposals back in mid-January. The hope is to interview the companies and select one by the end of January. Please pray that the process goes well. I am working with a contractor selection team to help make our choice. Mostly this group consists of guys who work in the trades or deal with construction projects. We feel good about the companies. It is our hope that we can develop a good working relationship with whoever we hire and continue progressing with the project as we move closer to our proposed May ground breaking.

I will be back on the 10th of January and we will return to the usual Mass schedule the following week. Thanks to Fr. George and Fr. Dale for their willingness to cover Masses in my absence. Bishop Daniel has asked parishes to be ready to make a plan in the event that we are not able to find priests to cover Masses or should a priest who is scheduled have an emergency preventing him from coming to celebrate Mass. This would pertain primarily to Sunday Masses and holy day Masses since daily Mass is not obligatory. I am working with our deacons to put a plan in place. My hope is we won’t need to make use of this plan, but it is good to be ready.

A few of our priests have gone away to deal with some mental health issues. Fr. Paul Strommer who has been in Chisholm, and Fr. Tim Lang who is in Pequot, Nisswa, and Pine River are both away for some time of healing. Needless to say, this puts a strain on priest availability. Many of our retired priests are not able to cover Masses like they once could. I recently visited Fr. Ben Hadrich who has been severely affected by a number of strokes he has had. He requires constant care, and is no longer able to pray the Mass alone. Fr. Justin Fish who has been out of active ministry for over a year has sought and received laicization. This means he is no longer bound to live the life of a priest. He will not be coming back to serve as a priest. I know he served in this area, so his name may be familiar to you. It doesn’t affect the sacraments he celebrated as a priest (they are still valid), but he won’t be acting or serving as a priest moving forward. When this happens people often ask what happened. I think every priest who goes through something like that has a different set of issues. Just as in marriage, sometimes we run into unforeseen challenges.

It is hard to see my brothers struggling, but I am glad they are seeking help. We priests are as vulnerable to depression, health issues, addiction, or poor choices just as anyone else. The expectation to perform and always know what is needed can become a burden. Please pray for our priests. The diocese put out a little monthly calendar that has different priests and deacons on it as a way to help people pray for them. If we need to print more we can. We put out a few since people have asked for them.

I know many of you have also struggled with some of these same issues, maybe you feel like there isn’t the same opportunities to get help. I wish we could do more for people who are struggling. I think helping people to feel like they aren’t alone and they can ask for help is important. Let’s try to be present to one another.

I will be praying for you while I’m away, and hopefully using the time to pray about our future together. I am very grateful to be in these parishes and I love the work that I get to do. There is much I hope we accomplish. The Lord is our guide and I trust he will provide a path for us to continue this travel together.

In Christ,

Fr. Eli