October 28, 2018

My Dear Parishioners,
​
   It was so good to be with my brother priests & our bishop for our annual conference from Oct 15-18 at the Spiritual Life Center.  I think everyone from All Saints would say that I am a young priest but comparing myself with half the priests in our diocese, I am no longer qualified to be called young.  In the last two years alone, there were 20 young priests ordained & I am sure that most of them or all of them are under 30 years old.  I am 46-1/2 , I consider myself old, don’t you think?  Thank you for your Catholic faith & for always praying for our priests.  May God continue to bless our diocese with many vocations to the priesthood and religious life.  If you or someone you know has an interest in these vocations, please let me know.
   Wow, the month of November is coming so soon.  Please make plans to attend the Holy Mass of Obligation on All Saints’ Day.  Mass schedule is Thursday, November 1st at 8am, 12 noon & 6:30pm.  There will be a collection at each Mass.  On Friday, we will remember all the faithful departed among our families, friends, our church family & all souls.  Please remember them each day throughout this month of November, especially when you are at Holy Mass.  We are never to forget those who have done great things for us, especially our parents, grandparents, good friends & faithful parishioners of our church families who have passed to eternal life.  God bless them with the everlasting life of heaven.  In the gathering area of our church, there will be envelopes for you to write the names of those who have died so that we can pray for them.  Praying for them will be my top spiritual priority this month.
   Lights in church: They look so nice & have brightened our church, statues & Stations of the Cross.  Also, we are blessed with two new, hand-painted statues of adoring angels for our church.  I hope that these angels will help everyone entering our church with their prayers & love.  They are also to remind us to always give our hearts, minds & souls to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament & in the Holy Eucharist.  Please do not talk or visit in church at any time.  All conversation should be outside of our worship area.  Thank you to our All Saints Altar Society for the gift of these beautiful angel statues.
   House renovation: The floor for the garage was paved & the contractor should be working on building the garage.  Thanks to Jim Wiesen Roofing for donating the roof for the garage.  If you need work for your home or business, Jim can take care of you, of course for a cost.
    Celebrate All Saints Parish Feast Day:   Our church family will come together next Sat, Nov 3rd to celebrate our feast day at our 4pm Holy Mass, followed by our multi-cultural dinner in the Fischer Center West.  I can’t wait to see so many people and to enjoy the love and friendship from everyone.  Please come and join us whether you can bring food or not.  Your presence is most important to those who have planned this event and to me.  Let us be a happy church family by being with each other.
   Finally, I hope that every family has received a special letter in the mail & shared it with your family members.  We need your financial help to pay for the newly bought house/rectory, to pay for the lights in the church, the new parking lot for the new adoration chapel, etc...  I hope & pray that every family in our parish will trust in God & be willing to help our church’s family with your financial contribution.  No amount is too small.  Every penny counts!  Again, please forgive me if I asked too much of your family. 

God bless you all, Fr. Hien