Dear Parishioners,

I am writing to encourage all our parishioners to be a part of our annual Parish Mission scheduled for Monday, February 19th thru Wed, Feb 20  at 7:00pm. Each of these three evenings we will gather in the church for a Scripture service followed by a reflective presentation from the mission director. The overall theme of the Mission is expressed in its title, Let Us Dream The Path To A Better Future. Each of the evenings will have a specific focus that supports this general theme:

Evening I – Vision
Evening II – Integrity
Evening III – God’s Dream

In addition to the evening sessions, there will be gatherings each morning at 10:00am in the Parish Center Room #22 for those who are interested. These will not be the same presentations as in the evening but rather, less formal times for questions, answers and the sharing of experiences.

The “dreaming” referred to is in keeping with a recurring invitation by Pope Francis, i.e., that Christians  dare to dream of a world that is in harmony with God’s creative plan for the universe – God’s ultimate dream.

A Mission is a time of intense prayer and renewal for an entire parish community. This is the reason that, here at St. Joan of Arc Parish, our Missions are traditionally held during the season of Lent. (Last year was an exception when our Mission was conducted during the season of Advent.) Our Mission is not limited to any age group or life style which makes it fitting for entire households attend with the hope of renewing their family life.

Given that our parish is celebrating its centennial this year, our Mission offers us an ideal opportunity to reflect on the blessings we have enjoyed as a faith community these past 100 years. It can also be a critical time to look ahead and forge a vision and direction to which God may be calling us. 

This year our Mission Director is Fr. Jack Conley, C.P., a Passionist Priest from Chicago. Fr. Jack gave a Mission to our parish nearly ten years ago and was warmly received by our parishioners. I first met Fr. Jack when I was a college seminarian in the Diocese of Toledo. He happened to be giving a retreat to a community of Ursuline nuns who staffed a school that was associated with the parish at which I was working that summer. Along with the nuns at, I was edified, inspired and invigorated by the insights that Fr. Jack shared – insights that emerged from his profound love of our Catholic tradition as well as his prophetic critique of the culture and his courageous suggestions for how we might live the Gospel of Jesus Christ more credibly in a particular time and context.

The days of the Mission can be days of growth and renewal. Each of us owes it to ourselves and to one another to set aside this time to deepen our friendship with the Lord which we hope to do every year in the season of Lent. Then, when Easter comes, we will be empowered to celebrate the new life of Christ’s Resurrection with even greater joy, for the Resurrection is the greatest of all mysteries and the ultimate expression of God’s dream for the world.

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