Pastor's Notes for July 22

Dear Parishioners,
Our sympathy to the family and friends of Susie Fischer at the time of her passing, and to Rita Price family on the passing of Rita's brother Jerome Schunk. May they, and all the souls of the faithful departed, rest in peace.
Congratulations to Kole David Knott, son of Ken and Shelley, and to Owen James Rohlik, son of Jessica and Clete Rohlik, who will be baptized this weekend and Wednesday respectively.
This Thursday is the Feast of St. Anne and St. Joachim - happy feast day to parishioners at St. Anne's! So little is certain of St. Anne and Joachim, and what is known seems mostly legendary. It is certain that they were a older couple, like Elizabeth and Zachariah after them, who longed for a child. God blessed them with the Blessed Mother, who was preserved from sin from the first moment of her conception by God's grace (the Immaculate Conception). There is a church that is built on the remains of a first century house north of the Temple which tradition holds was the Jerusalem home of St. Joachim and St. Anne, and the birthplace of Mary, though it is probable that the family moved to Nazareth after Joachim's service in the temple was completed. Joachim and Anne taught their daughter the Jewish faith and prayers, and enabled her to respond to God's call. Praise God for these two holy people who helped to prepare the world for the coming of Christ.
Unrelated, this week has been declared NFP Awareness week by the US Bishops. Natural Family Planning (not the rhythm method which only rarely works) teaches couples the signs of fertility. If they have just reasons to delay conception. when both are fertile, they can morally choose to abstain from sexual relations during that joint fertile time. It is relatively easy, cheap, and completely open to life (there is no law that says a couple most be active all the time). It encourages communication, and best of all, when husband and wife express their love sexually, there is nothing that is being held back. For more information, see my posts on this blog for NFP.
In Christ,
Fr. Todd