Dear St. John Neumann families and friends, Christ is risen, Alleluia!

The Liturgies of Holy Week are not just powerful reminders of God’s love for us – they are a participation in God’s love for us! One of the aspects I love about Holy Week – indeed, about the sacramental economy the Lord has given to us – is that God makes everything that matters matter even more. God so loved the world that He came into the world and continues to participate in the world – God is renewing all things in Christ even as you read this letter… God is filling and hallowing creation in our sacred liturgies. At the Chrism Mass, Archbishop Shelton breathed upon the sacred chrism and consecrated it; on Holy Thursday, Christ stoops down to wash our feet; on Good Friday we adore the wood of the Cross; and at the Easter Vigil we bless fire and water and the paschal candle “drawn out by mother bees”, and those who have been born and come to faith in Christ are reborn in the waters of Baptism.

In a world where the old wounds of sin, war and terror still seem rampant, Christ is making all things new faster than Satan can tear it down. Thanks be to God for the saving gift of Christ’s passion, death and resurrection, and thanks be to God for all of you, my brothers and sisters. What a blessing to be a part of building the Kingdom of God with you in our patch of God’s good earth. May the Risen Lord be with you all and fill you and your families with joy!

God bless you all and Happy Easter! Your brother in Christ, Fr. Joe