EPIPHANY OF OUR LORD CATHOLIC CHURCH
  • Home
  • About
    • History >
      • Altar Relics
    • Meet the Staff
    • Map: Find us!
    • Calendar
    • Bulletins >
      • Article Submission
      • Pastor's bulletin article
    • New Parishioners
  • Liturgy
    • Latin Mass Schedule
    • Sacrament Prep
    • Altar Boy page
    • Music
    • Vocations
    • Extra Stuff >
      • Divine Office
      • Fraternity of the Sorrowful Passion of Christ Prayer Book
      • Help! I cannot find the right Mass in my missal! I don't know when to sit, stand or kneel!
      • Understand the Bible!
      • Formed.Org
      • Old talks you missed!
  • Community
    • Photos >
      • First Communion 2025
      • Confirmation 2025
      • Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre Mass 2024
      • Confirmation 2024
      • First Communion 2024
      • Archbishop Cordileone - March 2024
      • Bishop Schneider's visit
      • Cardinal Burke visit
      • First Holy Communion 2023
      • Confirmation 2023
      • Sr. Winny's Projects
    • Adults >
      • Adult Catechism Class audio
      • Council of Catholic Women
      • Knights of Columbus
      • Holy Face of Jesus Prayer Group
      • Fraternity of St. John the Apostle >
        • FSSJA - Martinmas 2023
      • Men's Club (Holy League)
    • Youth >
      • Anima Christi High School Youth Group >
        • Anima Christi Prom 2023
      • Sancti Amici Middle School Youth Group
      • American Heritage Girls
      • Catechesis of the Good Shepherd
      • Catholic Enrichment Week (CEW)
      • DOVES
      • Troops of St. George
    • Spiritual Motherhood
    • Parish Business Directory
  • Give
    • Online Giving
    • Things that need doing

He only shuts up when he is writing!

Thank You!

7/18/2021

 
From the Pastor:    Thank You!

       This past week has been a doozy. The Catholic Enrichment Week (sort of like a Vacation Bible School except Catholic and Educational instead of generic Christian pablum of singing cutsie songs with hand gestures) was our largest yet. The volunteers who worked hard at this are truly a few steps closer to Heaven. Thank you! Also, thank you parents for trusting us with the Catholic formation of your children. It is a long drive for most of you. It takes a long time through heavy traffic to bring your children here and pick them up later, and you only did it because you trusted that it would be worth it for them to learn about Jesus’ Apostles. I also especially appreciate those who went through the Diocesan-required Safe Environment Training and Fingerprint Background checks so that you could take an active supervisory role. We couldn’t do anything like this without you!
       The first afternoon of the CEW we had a strong storm that came through here. Lots of very close lightning, strong winds, and extremely heavy rain. Then 10 minutes later it had passed by. But not before destroying two out of the three tents we had set up for some shade for the daytime activities. We didn’t have anything like that even during the recent tropical storm. Fortunately, it blew through after the children had all gone home. Thank you, Lord, for such good timing! Of course, like all typical Florida thunderstorms, it was a very localized squall, and those who had to clean it all up couldn’t figure out why there was so much damage since none of them had any major storm at their houses. I just happened to have been home when the storm passed by so I could figure it out. But shortly after that, I was on my way out to a convent in Riverview where I was leading a retreat for the Sisters, so there may have even been multiple unseen short storms that came by. I certainly kept hitting them along the drive. Each lasted only about 1/2 to 1 mile and then abruptly ended. That’s the nice thing about these outbursts: if you can just keep moving, you will soon come to clear weather again!
       The retreat was focused on the three Evangelical Counsels, or the three Counsels of Perfection, namely Voluntary Poverty, Perpetual Continence (commonly named “chastity” or “celibacy”), and Obedience as explained not by me but by St. Thomas Aquinas in his Summa Theologica. Some of you who are new here may not realize that we currently have two of our young ladies in the early stages of formation with the Sisters and Sons of Jesus the High Priest whom you see at 7:30 am Mass on Sundays and 8:00 am Mass on weekdays when they are not teaching school. This retreat theme was chosen so that they could get a better understanding of what those three vows mean, why they are so important that they are virtually essential, and how those vows can teach them the perfections which are possible here on Earth in this life. It is humbling as a secular priest to be teaching this to those already in and those soon to take vows since St. Thomas makes it very clear that the Religious who take vows are in a State of Perfection (that takes a lot of explaining, as you can probably imagine) even before being perfected, whereas the secular priests—who take promises rather than vows—are not in that same state.
       Through the grace of God, the Liturgical Calendar gave me some great examples to use in explaining these three Counsels. St. John Gualbert, Abbot, began the week. Although he became an abbot, he was never in Holy Orders, not even the minor ones. He lived out his vows with heroic virtue nonetheless and, as his title of “Abbot” indicates, was elected the Superior of his monastery and even founded many others. Then came St. Bonaventure, a Franciscan and contemporary of St. Thomas Aquinas, a Dominican, which allowed me to explain some differences in how different “Orders” live their vows as they strive for perfection. Next up came St. Henry II, a King and Emperor, who died in the year 1024. Although a layman, he always wanted to be a priest and once, even though already Emperor, begged admission to a monastery with a promise to be a simple monk. He could point to his current life to prove that he could live the three vows. 1) He used all of his money for the glory of God and to help His people placed under his care. In fact, he spent so much money building up the Church and assisting people to get to Heaven that his own brother raised an army to depose him, feeling that the money rightly belonged to the royal family rather than the family of God. Henry won the battle, by the way. 2) He and his wife, St. Cunigunde, remained, by mutual consent, virgins even after marriage, so he had already proven himself capable of celibacy. 3) He was obedient to no secular power but was completely at the service of the Pope and Our Lord. The Abbot accepted his clearly demonstrated ability to live the Evangelical Counsels and immediately put him under obedience to return home and remain King and Emperor!
       Add to that daily Masses, confessions, Adoration, sick calls, urgent appointments, and whatnot, and you have some idea of my week. I wouldn’t trade this “job” for anything in the world! Thanks for letting me be your pastor! Now if only I can find time to do some laundry...

With prayers for your holiness,
Rev. Fr. Edwin Palka

​

Comments are closed.

    Author:
    ​Fr. Palka

    Archives

    May 2025
    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed

Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus
  • Home
  • About
    • History >
      • Altar Relics
    • Meet the Staff
    • Map: Find us!
    • Calendar
    • Bulletins >
      • Article Submission
      • Pastor's bulletin article
    • New Parishioners
  • Liturgy
    • Latin Mass Schedule
    • Sacrament Prep
    • Altar Boy page
    • Music
    • Vocations
    • Extra Stuff >
      • Divine Office
      • Fraternity of the Sorrowful Passion of Christ Prayer Book
      • Help! I cannot find the right Mass in my missal! I don't know when to sit, stand or kneel!
      • Understand the Bible!
      • Formed.Org
      • Old talks you missed!
  • Community
    • Photos >
      • First Communion 2025
      • Confirmation 2025
      • Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre Mass 2024
      • Confirmation 2024
      • First Communion 2024
      • Archbishop Cordileone - March 2024
      • Bishop Schneider's visit
      • Cardinal Burke visit
      • First Holy Communion 2023
      • Confirmation 2023
      • Sr. Winny's Projects
    • Adults >
      • Adult Catechism Class audio
      • Council of Catholic Women
      • Knights of Columbus
      • Holy Face of Jesus Prayer Group
      • Fraternity of St. John the Apostle >
        • FSSJA - Martinmas 2023
      • Men's Club (Holy League)
    • Youth >
      • Anima Christi High School Youth Group >
        • Anima Christi Prom 2023
      • Sancti Amici Middle School Youth Group
      • American Heritage Girls
      • Catechesis of the Good Shepherd
      • Catholic Enrichment Week (CEW)
      • DOVES
      • Troops of St. George
    • Spiritual Motherhood
    • Parish Business Directory
  • Give
    • Online Giving
    • Things that need doing