Pastor's Corner

September 5

My Dear Friends,

Save Saturday, September 11th on your calendar for our St. Mary Parish Festival! This will be a fine time to relax, mingle, snack, and have a good time.

Also, you are invited to attend a special Mass on Sunday, September 12th at 5 p.m. at St. Mary Church. This is in honor of Maryknoll’s 100th Anniversary. Because this is the neighborhood of the co-founder of Maryknoll, Servant of God Thomas Frederick “Freddie” Price, it is most fitting that the Mass will be here. Fr. Price was Baptized, Confirmed, and Ordained as the first priest of North Carolina at St. Thomas Church on Dock Street. His historical marker is on Third Street in front of Thalian Hall. Following the Mass, there will be a reception at St. Thomas Preservation Hall on Dock Street.

Each year, every parish is required by the Diocese of Raleigh to prepare a “Status Animarum” for the fiscal year. This includes our parish census, numbers of sacraments, and the like. Here are a few items from our report that I thought you’d find interesting. The report is from July 1, 2009 through June 30, 2010.

Baptisms 139
Confirmations 28
First Communions 88
Weddings 50
Funerals 54
Masses 560+
Anointings 371+
Registered families 2,139
Reg. & Unreg. parishioners 5-6,000

Our parish is growing at a rate of 300 families per year, and new ministries are being formed all the time. Currently we have over 70 major ministries and several minor ones. We should thank God every day for showering us with so many blessings!

Have a safe and happy Labor Day. I hope you take time to thank God for the gift of work, a gift that gives our life much meaning, and pray for those who are looking for work.


Sincerely yours in Christ,
- Father Bob