Monday, April 30, 2012
Priest Reassignments
It's that time of year!
Fr. Duffner at Holy Family is being reassigned. Fr. Joseph Johnson will become the pastor at Holy Family. Currently he is the rector at the Cathedral of St. Paul; was the pastor at Church of St. Vincent dePaul (2004-2011); Assistant Chancellor at the Archdiocese (2004-2006); and Parochial Vicar at St. Olaf (1998-2001). This information can be verified on his Facebook page and also on his Linkedin page. His Facebook page has comments from some of his followers which might be helpful for those who may be interested in re-considering the local St. Louis Park church in their church search.
Fr. Duffner's assignment has not been announced yet pending notification of the current pastor and faith community at that church.
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Sunday Mass plans ?
Anyone have a plan on where they will be attending tomorrow? We are starting to visit the neighborhood churches and would love to run into a familiar face.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Summer Youth Programs
WHAT ARE YOUR KIDS DOING THIS SUMMER??
SUMMER STRETCH: This is a fellowship and service program for incoming 6-9th graders. Thousands of youth around Minnesota partner with other youth groups in their community to do service projects, have lunch and take part in fun outings together.
Last summer, Most Holy Trinity teamed up with Wooddale Lutheran and five other local churches for a non-denominational Summer Stretch program. I attended almost every event and activity and can speak very highly of this group's program, it's partner churches, its leaders and also the kids who participated. It was a fabulous program.
I did bring this to the attention of Our Lady of Grace at that time and with the hopes that they would consider a Summer Stretch program of their own for summer 2012. Fr. Bob had asked his youth ministers to attend the orientation program held last winter to investigate the parameters of "Summer Stretch" and how it works. There are about 75 participating churches in the Twin Cities Metro and many of them are Catholic. I have been following the OLG bulletins and haven't seen anything about summer programming except for VBS during the week of June 18-22 and a mission trip to Belize during the last week of June.
Jean Olson from Wooddale Lutheran has extended an invitation to participate in Summer Stretch again and has invited all past participants and friends. I will definitely be enrolling Owen. The group meets every Thursday during the summer. It's a half day of service work and a half-day of recreation. The dates for this summer's program have already been published and they are:
Thurs. June 28, 9am-5pm
Thurs. July 5 , 9am-5pm
Thurs. July 12, 9am-5pm
Thurs. July 19, 9am-5pm
Thurs. July 26, 9am-5pm
Thurs. Aug. 2, time TBA – Valleyfair Day
The main meeting location is Wooddale Lutheran. (Last year it was Shepherd of the Hills.) The cost for all events, lunches, transportation, etc. is $150. This is a good value even if your youth is unable to attend every Thursday. They assume that most kids won’t be able to attend every single event and factor that into the cost. A non-refundable $50 deposit is due April 29 to register and the balance will be due June 28 at our first event. Scholarships are available if needed.
The registration deadline is April 29th. More info and registration forms can be downloaded from the Wooddale website: http://wooddalelutheran.com/2012/04/07/summer-stretch-info/
SUMMER STRETCH: This is a fellowship and service program for incoming 6-9th graders. Thousands of youth around Minnesota partner with other youth groups in their community to do service projects, have lunch and take part in fun outings together.
Last summer, Most Holy Trinity teamed up with Wooddale Lutheran and five other local churches for a non-denominational Summer Stretch program. I attended almost every event and activity and can speak very highly of this group's program, it's partner churches, its leaders and also the kids who participated. It was a fabulous program.
I did bring this to the attention of Our Lady of Grace at that time and with the hopes that they would consider a Summer Stretch program of their own for summer 2012. Fr. Bob had asked his youth ministers to attend the orientation program held last winter to investigate the parameters of "Summer Stretch" and how it works. There are about 75 participating churches in the Twin Cities Metro and many of them are Catholic. I have been following the OLG bulletins and haven't seen anything about summer programming except for VBS during the week of June 18-22 and a mission trip to Belize during the last week of June.
Jean Olson from Wooddale Lutheran has extended an invitation to participate in Summer Stretch again and has invited all past participants and friends. I will definitely be enrolling Owen. The group meets every Thursday during the summer. It's a half day of service work and a half-day of recreation. The dates for this summer's program have already been published and they are:
Thurs. June 28, 9am-5pm
Thurs. July 5 , 9am-5pm
Thurs. July 12, 9am-5pm
Thurs. July 19, 9am-5pm
Thurs. July 26, 9am-5pm
Thurs. Aug. 2, time TBA – Valleyfair Day
The main meeting location is Wooddale Lutheran. (Last year it was Shepherd of the Hills.) The cost for all events, lunches, transportation, etc. is $150. This is a good value even if your youth is unable to attend every Thursday. They assume that most kids won’t be able to attend every single event and factor that into the cost. A non-refundable $50 deposit is due April 29 to register and the balance will be due June 28 at our first event. Scholarships are available if needed.
The registration deadline is April 29th. More info and registration forms can be downloaded from the Wooddale website: http://wooddalelutheran.com/2012/04/07/summer-stretch-info/
Your Easter Experience?
WHERE DID EVERYONE GO AND WHAT WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE?
ST. THOMAS THE APOSTLE: We went to the Easter Vigil. Former MHTer Terry Ruttger has been a parishioner at STA for several years and she invited us to go with her. Ellen Reicho was also along. We did cross paths with former MHTers Dick and Mary Enz.
The worship space at STA was very different from what we were used to. There were no pews and the sturdy wooden chairs were arranged in a 360 (like an oval or circle). I liked being able to see the faces of everyone present as opposed to only seeing the backs of heads as in a traditional church. I also like how the presider and altar servers were among the people. The logistics of the lectors, the choir and the altar seemed strange but I think this is something that takes a little time to get used to as will the layout, dynamics and culture of any church.
The music selection was traditional "Easter" music and the choir did a very nice performance. There was a drum and some percussion that gave the music a little bit of a contemporary sound. Mary Enz sings with the choir even though they are not registered parishioners at this time. She said she likes their sound and that they have a very good leader. It looked like there were about 20-25 members in the choir.
The liturgy was good. Very similar to MHT's Easter Vigil with the bonfire at the entrance, everyone lighting candles, moving from darkness to light and several readings. There were three baptisms and they have a large font that the candidates walk into. Fr Harry Tasto gave a good sermon and he personally greeted us after Mass. He seems like a very friendly, warm and welcoming pastor. There was a wine and cheese reception after Mass in the gathering space. Fr. Harry donned a sports jacket and mingled with the congregation. He seemed very comfortable around parishioners and looked as though he was having an enjoyable time. He was still standing around chatting when we left.
I liked the Gathering Space. It forced everyone to walk through the reception before leaving. Even though a few people introduced themselves to us and chatted for awhile, I still felt like an outsider. It takes time and involvement to feel like you belong, no matter which church is chosen.
ST. THOMAS THE APOSTLE: We went to the Easter Vigil. Former MHTer Terry Ruttger has been a parishioner at STA for several years and she invited us to go with her. Ellen Reicho was also along. We did cross paths with former MHTers Dick and Mary Enz.
The worship space at STA was very different from what we were used to. There were no pews and the sturdy wooden chairs were arranged in a 360 (like an oval or circle). I liked being able to see the faces of everyone present as opposed to only seeing the backs of heads as in a traditional church. I also like how the presider and altar servers were among the people. The logistics of the lectors, the choir and the altar seemed strange but I think this is something that takes a little time to get used to as will the layout, dynamics and culture of any church.
The music selection was traditional "Easter" music and the choir did a very nice performance. There was a drum and some percussion that gave the music a little bit of a contemporary sound. Mary Enz sings with the choir even though they are not registered parishioners at this time. She said she likes their sound and that they have a very good leader. It looked like there were about 20-25 members in the choir.
The liturgy was good. Very similar to MHT's Easter Vigil with the bonfire at the entrance, everyone lighting candles, moving from darkness to light and several readings. There were three baptisms and they have a large font that the candidates walk into. Fr Harry Tasto gave a good sermon and he personally greeted us after Mass. He seems like a very friendly, warm and welcoming pastor. There was a wine and cheese reception after Mass in the gathering space. Fr. Harry donned a sports jacket and mingled with the congregation. He seemed very comfortable around parishioners and looked as though he was having an enjoyable time. He was still standing around chatting when we left.
I liked the Gathering Space. It forced everyone to walk through the reception before leaving. Even though a few people introduced themselves to us and chatted for awhile, I still felt like an outsider. It takes time and involvement to feel like you belong, no matter which church is chosen.
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