Letter from the Pastor

Dear Parents, Guardians and Parishioners: The children who attend our parish school and our parish religious education program are most precious not only to you but to all of us in the Annunciation-Our  Lady of Fatima community.  We strive to work together in order to better meet their needs and prepare them well for the future.  As a result, family and community involvement is a high priority for us. Our wonderful parish of Annunciation-Our Lady of Fatima continues to combine the efforts of all our  parishioners–clergy, professed and lay–to assist one another in proclaiming the teachings and value system of […]

What position should a Christian take toward the world in which he lives?  Should he reject it and withdraw?  Should he try to transform it into a Christian culture?  Should he embrace it?  This is a lasting issue for Christians because every Christian must relate his or her faith to his or her surroundings.  In one way or other, this question of Christianity and the world in which we live has been tackled by Christians in every generation.  Deciding how to apply the Lord’s teaching to be in the world and yet not of the world, is difficult.  But each […]

                 Temptation is often deceptively subtle.  There is a diabolical thing about evil.  It can seem so reasonable, so necessary, even so beautiful.  Some years ago a popular song had a line in it which said, “It can’t be wrong when it seems so right.”  Well, I hate to disappoint some people; but wrong always has a way of appearing right to those who want to do it.                 Evil does not present itself in the form of some grotesque creature with horns, hooves, and a pitchfork.  Temptation will come to us often […]

                 Most people seem to admire the type of person that we call a “go-getter”.  By that is meant a person who has a high energy level and is continually getting things done.  And that is indeed an admirable personality trait.  But any person who tries to manage life strictly on that basis will come to a time and a place where this method is utterly useless.                  When tragedy strikes, and our hearts are broken, we cannot handle that by getting things done.  When age increases, and strength diminishes, and the limitation […]

If you ever visited the Holy Land, you would discover it is a dusty land.  It has two seasons – a rainy season that begins in the late fall and ends in the early spring.  Then, the arid season begins.  The land becomes parched and dry.  At the same time the siroccos blow from the deserts of Transjordan and Arabia.  This dusty character of the land is reflected throughout the bible.  The custom of foot washing was a courteous and practical gesture for guests who arrived with tired and dirty feet. We too get some dust on us just by […]