Dear Parishioners:
This weekend, we celebrate Father's Day and the great gift of Fatherhood. Sonora Smart Dodd, born in 1882, is recognized as the founder of Father's Day. She was raised by a twice-married, twice-widowed Civil War veteran with 14 children. She desired to honor the "loving service" of Fathers. After hearing a Mother's Day sermon, she was inspired to establish a day celebrating Fathers. She petitioned the Spokane Ministerial Alliance to recognize "the courage and devotion of all Fathers" like her Father. The local clergy liked the idea of a special Father's Day service and settled for the third Sunday in June. And so, Father's Day has become an annual day to honor Fathers that continues on in the twenty-first century.
Sadly, today, in our country, studies indicate there are approximately 18.3 million children who live without a father in the home, comprising about one in four U.S. children. Fathers are important for children and for our culture. Fathers help children develop emotionally and improve their overall well-being. Studies show that children with involved Fathers have higher self-esteem, better social skills, and more confidence and resilience. Pope Francis has said: "Every family needs a father."
Our Catholic Faith recognizes the central role of Fathers in family life. Like St. Joseph, Fathers are called to be protectors, humble, strong, and courageous. They are also responsible for nurturing their children's vocations, teaching them about the Faith, and setting an example for married life. As the American Author H. Jackson Browne said: "Life doesn't come with an instruction book — that's why we have Fathers."
Thus, good Catholic Fathers pray frequently for their family's protection and salvation and pray with their children. Such a Father is a role model of Faith and virtuous living. A Father offers a good example with simple things like offering grace before meals at home and in public, teaching prayers, offering good moral guidance, and faithfully attending Mass with their family. With such an example, a Father shows his children how to live and love the Christian life.
A Father also supports his wife and lives the Sacrament of Marriage with fidelity, sacrifice, and love. Offering their love, respect, and support for their spouse, especially during difficult times. Yet it isn't always easy to be a Father in our contemporary culture, with its rising secularism and growing critical skepticism of traditional roles. A high rate of divorce and absentee Fathers, along with the confusion and many distractions offered by our secular, materialistic, and consumerist culture, contribute to the diminishment of Fatherhood and the breakdown of family life.
These factors are a continuing challenge for any Catholic Family. Therefore, a Catholic Father must root himself and his family in Faith through a moral life supported by prayer and the Sacraments. St. John Paul II taught: "A Father's love for his wife as mother of their children and love for the children themselves are for the man the natural way of understanding and fulfilling his own Fatherhood. Efforts must be made to restore socially the conviction that the place and task of the father in and for the family is of unique and irreplaceable importance." So let us celebrate Father's Day this weekend and Fatherhood's unique and irreplaceable importance. Fr. Mahoney and I are offering our Masses on Father's Day for all Fathers, both the living and the dead. We wish Fathers a Happy Father's Day. May God bless them as they care for their families.
Schools are out, and summer vacation has begun! We wish teachers and students a happy and healthy summer! OLM School ended the year with another Catholic Athletic League State Championship! Our undefeated (9-0) Co-Ed Soccer Team defeated St. Pius V School on June 7! Congratulations to all our student-athletes for a fantastic year on the field and in the classroom!
Next weekend is to be Father Mahoney's final weekend at OLM. Be sure to say farewell and thank him for his priestly ministry with us. Please stop by the Farewell reception and wish him well in person!
Be well. Do good. God Bless. A very Happy Father's Day to all Fathers!