A Message from Bishop Carl Kemme: Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, in March of 2020, in collaboration with the bishops in Kansas, and in response to the emerging Covid 19 pandemic and the potential deadly effect it was likely to have, I decided to suspend public Masses in the Diocese of Wichita. At that time, a general dispensation from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass was given to the laity. On May 6, 2020, public Masses were resumed with restrictions that have been monitored and modified since then. For those who needed it, the general dispensation has remained throughout this time. Now, again in consultation with my brother bishops in Kansas, with my own leadership team and with our priests, I announce that the general dispensation for the laity of the Diocese of Wichita will be lifted on the weekend of June 5/6, 2021, the Feast of Corpus Christi, the Body and Blood of Christ. While I understand that this decision will be met with some resistance and criticism, I believe the current positive trends in the pandemic warrant this action given the decreasing positivity rates, the increasing availability of the vaccines, the opening of other public places, and my own observance of many people resuming most if not all normal activities. In short, if you have resumed otherwise normal activity, it is important to return to in person participation of Sunday Mass and Holy Days of Obligation, which is vital for our spiritual lives. Jesus said, "Unless you eat of the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you." John 6:53. Because of this teaching, the Church proclaims that the Eucharist is the "source and summit of the Christian life."
As Catholics, Sunday Mass is not only an obligation but a great privilege and should never be missed without good reason. The Church places such great emphasis on the Sunday celebration of the Mass as our spiritual nourishment that she obliges us to be present, unless we have a legitimate reason for being absent. We should all take to heart the Church's directives for us in this regard. The Code of Canon Law states it this way: "Sunday is the day on which the paschal mystery is celebrated in light of the apostolic tradition and is to be observed as the foremost holy day of obligation in the universal Church." "On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound to participate in the Mass." CIC 1246-1247. One of the priorities in the Pastoral Plan for the Diocese of Wichita, as you may recall, is to renew parish and family life by reclaiming Sunday as the Day of the Lord, a day of worship and rest. Participating in the Mass on Sunday by as many of the faithful as possible helps us to fulfill this critical priority of our Plan. Having said this, I do want to reassure you that those who are sick have no obligation to attend the Mass until they are well. Those who are not currently ill but who are at higher risk of infection and who are not yet able or ready to return to Mass may request an individual dispensation from their pastor, who has the authority to grant individual and temporary dispensations for just causes. Canon 1245 of the Code of Canon Law states, "with due regard for the right of diocesan bishops, which is mentioned in can. 87, for a just reason and in accord with the prescriptions of the diocesan bishop, the pastor in individual cases can dispense from the obligation to observe a feast day or a day of penance; or he can commute it to other pious works." I would ask our pastors to be generous in offering these dispensations for the good of the faithful and to consider the pastoral practice of commuting these obligations to pious works. I would also recommend that Masses continue to be livestreamed and that other options for Masses with more social distancing and requirement of masks, etc., be considered, so as to give the faithful as many options as possible. I leave all of this to the prudent judgment of our pastors. We are blessed that the doors of our churches are open, that Masses and other services are being offered and that normal Catholic life has resumed. The Pandemic, however is not behind us and though we must remain vigilant in helping everyone stay healthy and at peace, these past months have shown that attending the Mass under our current guidelines is safe. With this confidence then, I invite, encourage and request the faithful, who are able and well and who have not already done so, to make their way back to in person participation in the Sunday celebration of the Mass. Please know of my daily prayers and thoughts. God bless you, Bishop Carl Kemme My Dear Employees of All Saints,
Blessings from our risen Lord be with you and your family. May you always have each other now and forever in heaven. May we all see Mrs. Duke in heaven, too. We are missing her. Her labor to our God at All Saints was completed. May she enjoy the fruits of her labors with All Saints in heaven. Thank you for being an employee of our church’s family. As you know, the heart of who we are as a church family is to love and to worship God at our Holy Masses. We are Eucharistic people who live because God is within us. We all know that only God can give us the eternal life of heaven. For this reason, I always love to celebrate Holy Mass, especially with our children. As we pray and worship together, we are growing in holiness and love for God and for all of God’s children, regardless of their age, race, color, and language, etc.…. Our world would be much more beautiful if we all could see Jesus in one another, in the born and the unborn, the healthy and the sick, the rich and the poor, etc.… I believe Catholic education is forming our children to have the eye and heart of Jesus in them. Our second mission at All Saints is to provide Catholic education to all of God’s children so that they may grow in their Catholic faith, mature in wisdom and in love, and be educated intelligently. We want our children to grow in their faith in God, to love their parents and others, and to be smart people of the future, such as doctors, nurses, educators, public authorities, good parents, etc.… or God willing, be priests or religious sisters. Therefore, Catholic education is a treasure and priceless because it gives the best education and formation to them, intellectually and spiritually. As a stewardship parish, we do struggle financially because we are dependent on the generosity of others for us to pay all the bills. Unfortunately, we do have parishioners, including school parents, who have not given of their stewardship to the parish. Some people have failed to see that as a church family, we need everyone to support our mission with what they can, and giving nothing is much harder on us. As a pastor, I have committed to not turn an innocent child away from All Saints Catholic School for I know that it’s not his/her fault. Thank you for accepting them when I send them your way. Let us continue loving every child and providing to him/her an opportunity to grow in the faith and to prepare them academically for the future. Finally, on the behalf of our church’s family, THANK YOU for your ministry among us for the education and formation of our children. Please know that we are blessed because of you. You are making a big difference in our children today and for the rest of their lives. You are the gardener, and the seeds you sow will grow and bear many fruits because you have God on your side. You are here for our Lord and His children and not for money. May your reward be great in heaven for all the love, sacrifices and acts of teaching to our children. I love to serve our Lord with you. I can’t wait to celebrate Holy Masses for our first Holy Communion and Confirmation children in May. All Saints pray for us, Fr. Hien, pastor My Dear Parishioners of All Saints,
Blessings from our risen Lord be with you all. Thank you and thank you for being a member of our church’s family. As you know, the heart of who we are as a church family is to love and to worship God at our Holy Masses. We are Eucharistic people who live because God is within us. We all know that only God can give us the eternal life of heaven. So, please no matter how busy you are, take your family to church so that we all can pray together, and worship together, as well as to go home with Jesus in our hearts, minds, and souls. Jesus is waiting for you and your family at the Holy Eucharist/Mass. Please remember to pray to Jesus daily. Jesus loves you! Our second goal at All Saints is to provide Catholic education to all of God’s children so that they may grow in their Catholic faith, mature in wisdom and in love, and be educated intelligently. We want our children to grow in their faith in God, to love their parents and others, and to be smart people of the future, such as doctors, nurses, educators, public authorities, good parents, etc.…or God willing, be priests or religious sisters. Therefore, Catholic education is a treasure and priceless because it gives the best education and formation to them, intellectually and spiritually. Thank you to many of you who have been faithful with your stewardship of your time, talents, and treasure, especially with your time at Holy Mass and your tithe to our parish for the good of others, especially the children of God. Please help our church family with your love, prayer, and encouragement to some of our parishioners, including school parents who have not given of their stewardship to the parish. As a church family, we need everyone to support our mission with what they can. Please know that I don’t intend to turn an innocent child away from All Saints Catholic School for I know that it’s not his/her fault. Let us continue loving every child and providing to him/her an opportunity to grow in the faith and to prepare them academically for the future. Thankfully, we are blessed with many committed parishioners who have gone the extra mile to help/support our parish. Many people donated towards the projects that we have recently done such as the replacement of the roofs, the new LED lights in all the buildings, the costs of fixing the broken water lines in the school and gym buildings, and the costs and the trimming of the trees around our church and school, etc.… Thank you! Recently, I was so happy to hear from a parishioner who informed me that he just tithed 10% of his family’s stimulus check. I love what I have heard and seen from so many people, and I love you all because of your faith in our Lord. Best of all, I love to be with you in church. I can’t wait to celebrate Holy Masses for our first Holy Communion and Confirmation children in May. In Christ Jesus, our Risen Lord. Rev. Hien Nguyen, pastor Happy Easter Everyone,
Blessings from our risen Lord be with you all. I pray that you and all your loved ones are blessed by our risen Lord Jesus with His heavenly blessings of life, love, joy, peace and happiness today and forever. Yes, I do believe that everything Jesus does for us is all good on earth as it is in heaven; that’s now and forever. May we live to know how much our God really loves us all, born and not yet born, living and deceased, regardless of our age, color, and language. God has no partiality or limitations but perfectly loves us all the way He created us, even before we were born. Please don’t let any darkness/evil diminish your true self before God for you are an image and likeness of God. We are all His holy people created for eternal life; therefore, please love your life and never cease thanking God for His eternal love for us all. To celebrate Easter is to celebrate God’s promise of eternal life for all of us. God is so perfect that He will never reverse His promise to us. All we must do is love Him like Jesus taught us: love God with all your heart, mind and soul and love others as yourself. Anyone who lives to love becomes more saintly every day and will inherit the perfect life of heaven with all the holy angels and saints. I am looking forward to celebrating this special Easter with you and your loved ones. It was so sad that we did not get to celebrate Easter last year. Please bring your family to our Holy Masses as much as you can to become one with Jesus, so that we will receive all the blessings Jesus gave us on Calvary. Also, please continue being safe for your own good and the good of others. Wearing a mask, keeping at a distance, and washing your hands are good things to do. Thank you for your cooperation and trying to keep everyone safe. Your care for others is greatly appreciated. Thank you also for journeying with me during this Lent, especially at our Holy Masses. I could really hear your hearts full of love and faith for God in your prayer and worship. May we all hear from Jesus Himself when our earthly life is ended, “Today, you will be with me in paradise.” Then we will say,” Amen, yes Lord, Alleluia.” Resurrected Lord, we love you always, Fr. Hien |
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Parish Office: M-F 9am - 3pm
School Office: M-F 8am - 4pm |