Kaukauna Catholic Parishes

God’s blessings! This weekend is “Stewardship Sunday.”  With God’s grace, we share our love and compassion in many ways through the principles of Stewardship – prayer, service and sharing. We share ourselves at Eucharist, our source and summit, as we gather to praise God, ask for God’s mercy, break open the Word of God, express our prayers for the people of the world, share peace with each other, receive the true presence of Jesus in Holy Communion and, guided by the Holy Spirit, are “sent forth” into the world.

St. Paul writes to the Thessalonians, “May our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us everlasting encouragement and good hope through his grace, encourage your hearts and strengthen them in every good deed and word.” St. Paul reminds us, “The Lord is faithful,” and asks that the Lord may “direct your hearts to the love of God and to the endurance of Christ.”

Knowing how much God loves us, and what Jesus endured to bring salvation to everyone, we are called to respond to God in word and deed, to persevere in prayer and action. My wife Peggy and I recently were part of our annual CANA celebration at St. Katharine Drexel, for couples married 50 or more years. There were 109 couples in the parish. Think of all they persevered – the struggles, challenges, blessings, and the prayers, examples of being people of hope. Thank you to all of them. Marriage is a nice place to nurture stewardship.

From another perspective, I presided at the All Souls Memorial Service last weekend at St. Katharine Drexel (Holy Cross also had a service). We remembered our loved ones who had died this past year, people of all ages. Family members mourned the loss of someone and are now persevering as they continue their journey through life. As Catholics, we are people of hope, who believe in eternal life and that we can be reunited. In the Gospel from Luke, Jesus emphasizes that God “is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.” Even if you have some doubts, please stay connected to our loving and faithful God.

There are people struggling at this time with mental illness. A number of us from the parishes have gotten more involved with NAMI (National Alliance of Mental Illness), and several participated in their annual NAMI Walk last month to raise awareness and funds to support their efforts, a nice example of stewardship. We have an opportunity to learn more about wellness, as Victoria Gossens is speaking two more times in her three-part series on November 14 and 21.

Persistence is an important part of life. Peggy and I went to the movie, “Love & Mercy: Faustina” recently, a powerful movie about the Polish saint known for “Divine Mercy.” From what I understand, a lot of Kaukauna people attended the one-day showing. It is being offered again on Monday, December 2.

Volunteering and service are very present in our Kaukauna Catholic Parishes and our community. Stewardship is very much alive! Think of all the examples in areas of Discipleship/Faith Formation, Liturgy and Worship, Administration (including SCRIP sales, and developing our new offices), and Pastoral Care. It would take a whole booklet to describe everything. Well, we now have an updated Stewardship booklet. Our Stewardship Fair is this weekend, after ALL Masses, at ALL churches. Please check out some ministry possibilities.

I am blessed to work with many volunteers, whether at our funeral dinners, at Special Olympics events, our music people at church, our Sacristans, Eucharistic Ministers, Lectors, Servers, Ushers, Greeters, FOCCUS couples, folks who visit parish members in the hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living, or in their own homes, those who are part of Compassionate Friends, Elizabeth Ministry, or Knights of Columbus, those who participate in our prayer chains, those who clean our churches and tend to our outside spaces, those involved in healing ministry, and on and on. The Holy Spirit, as some of us are learning more about in our “Wild Goose” sessions, is very active!

Stewardship hinges on prayer and, along with service to others, also depends on our financial support to keep our parish ministries operating and thriving. If you have not yet responded to the request to consider increasing your giving, please prayerfully do so. Peace in Christ,

Deacon Steve