Weekly pastor’s post (June 15 – 21)

Weekly pastor’s post (June 15 – 21)

With the conclusion of the Easter season, the school year, and our faith formation programs (this Sunday - the solemnity of Corpus Christi - will also be our celebration of First Holy Communions in the central region), we finally enter into the summer season. There are a few key events that I especially appreciate of this time, particularly the ordination of priests (typically the second Saturday in June) and the annual priest convocation ('Priest Days') that is held each year in Ocean Shores. All in all, it is a lovely combination of celebrating the fruits of the last year and enjoying some much-longed-for downtime with friends & family!Of course, this quieter time in the life of our parish family is also a key time to plan for when...

Celebrating my sixteenth anniversary of priesthood

Celebrating my sixteenth anniversary of priesthood

Today, on the memorial of Saint Anthony of Padua (June 13), I celebrate my ordination anniversary. Though I should be used to it by now, I continue to be surprised by the passage of time; it doesn't feel like sixteen years have passed since I stood before Archbishop Alexander Brunett at Saint James Cathedral for reception into the order of presbyterate! As I concelebrated at the ordination Mass of Father Joseph Tapia-Beeman last weekend, those memories were especially on my mind as I watched him make the promises each of us priests make before the laying on of hands by our archbishop, the auxiliary bishops, and then every priest present. Kneeling there at the foot of the altar in the presence of those whom we will serve and prayed over by...

Weekly pastor’s post (June 15 – 21)

Weekly pastor’s post (June 8 – 14)

It was with some sadness that I read the rubrics following the final prayer of Vespers this Sunday: "The Easter Season ends with the conclusion of Evening Prayer." While I am grateful - and not a little relieved! -  to enter into the normalcy of Ordinary Time, I found myself slightly deflated that we must now leave Easter season behind. Just the smallest taste of how the Apostles must have felt at Jesus' ascension, but it poked my heart nonetheless.Pentecost is not without its own fervor, of course. Though we have yet to explore its richness (next year, perchance?), the extended vigil of Pentecost is particularly powerful. I understand it as a kind of mini-Easter, with four readings from the Old Testament - each accompanied by a...

Our eighth parish family townhall gathering (March 28, 2025)

Our eighth parish family townhall gathering (March 28, 2025)

I am pleased to share with you the audio of our monthly parish family townhall gathering. As always, you may watch the video here – and I’ve included the timestamps below for reference & easy access – but the best way to navigate the video is to watch it on YouTube and use the timestamps there. Please accept my apology for the tardiness of actually posting this recording. I had intended to have this up & available before Easter but failed to accomplish that....and then forgot about it afterwards, especially with my vacation and the catch-up afterwards. I am sorry for the great delay - rest assured that this will not be the norm!The eighth of our monthly parish family townhall gatherings. Held on the fourth Friday of each month and...

Weekly pastor’s post (June 15 – 21)

Weekly pastor’s post (June 1 – 7)

Last week and this feature two of the three sacraments at which is used the Sacred Chrism - recently blessed by Archbishop Etienne at the Chrism Mass before Holy Week. Over a three-day period, Bishop Schuster visited Saint Anne parish in Forks, Saint Joseph parish in Sequim, and Saint Mary Star of the Sea parish in Port Townsend to confirm youth and adults across all five of our communities. During his homily, he mentioned that between our three bishops, there have been around 3000 (!) confirmations celebrated across our archdiocese! We are delighted to join in that celebration with those of our parish family who have received this final sacrament of initiation - may the Lord bless them abundantly with the gifts and fruits of the Holy...

Weekly pastor’s post (June 15 – 21)

Weekly pastor’s post (May 18 – 24)

A late pastor's post - quite literally, what with this near-midnight publication - before Sunday starts. The highlight of this week was the Mass on Friday celebrating the election and inauguration of Pope Leo XIV. By happy chance, the Vatican Media released his official portrait - I must admit to being quite taken with this shot of our pontiff, and of His Holiness himself as we continue to get to know him. May the Lord continue to bless him - and us to support him with our prayers!Over the last two weeks we have celebrated three special Masses for Pope Francis and Pope Leo. This coming week we will have three special Masses, but for more ordinary needs: the celebration of the sacrament of confirmation for youth and adults across our...

Weekly pastor’s post (June 15 – 21)

Weekly pastor’s post (May 11 – 17)

Habemus papam! After commending Pope Francis to the Lord, we have occasion now to celebrate the election of our new pontiff, Pope Leo XIV. And what a celebration it is, particularly for us who share his homeland of the United States! While we know that the pope is a man like any of us, the men occupying this office have always been not only physically but also culturally distant. Now we have a pope who is a White Sox fan, a Chicagoan, and - at least to see the Apple Watch on his wrist last week - quite possibly a bit of a technology geek to boot! Though it is has always been true, I find myself appreciating more fully the regular humanity of the pope.Image by Edgar Beltrán/The Pillar courtesy Wikimedia Commons (Creative Commons...

Archbishop Etienne on the seal of confession

Archbishop Etienne on the seal of confession

Yesterday (May 4, 2025), Archbishop Etienne released a statement on the recently passed law here in Washington state that threatens the seal of confession. His statement may be found at the website of the Archdiocese of Seattle, where it can be viewed or directly downloaded in PDF format. I am including the text in its entirety below. We are grateful for Archbishop Etienne's faithful and firm leadership - please keep him (and all Catholics of the state of Washington) in your prayers. (please note: I have copied the text, formatting, and links of the Archbishop's statement from the official PDF file into this post for ease of reading on any device. Any errors should be assumed to be mine and mine alone - if in doubt, please reference the...

Loving as God loves – including (especially) ourselves

Loving as God loves – including (especially) ourselves

Happy Easter and aloha from Hawaii! For the last two weeks (and one day more!), I am with my family on the island of Oahu for vacation. This has been a long-awaited trip – in part a year-delayed anniversary present from my parents to celebrate my 15th anniversary of ordination to the priesthood! That milestone took place last year (2024), but with the Archdiocese of Seattle’s Partners in the Gospel program shuffling all of us priests around, it was agreed that putting things off a year would be a more prudent (and needed!) time to get away.If you follow me on social media (Twitter/X or Facebook), you’ve likely seen my daily posts of photos out here. I’m no great photographer, but I love documenting my trips – in subsequent years they help...

Easter greeting, Easter prayers

Easter greeting, Easter prayers

Happy Easter from Hawaii! The day after Easter Sunday my family and I flew to the island of Oahu for a much-anticipated two weeks of vacation together. As we continue into this season celebrating the Lord’s resurrection and His triumph over sin & death, my prayer is that the graces He has won will transform our world and our lives.On that note, I’d like to ask for your prayers for two very special intentions. The first you undoubtedly know: prayers for the repose of our Holy Father Pope Francis. The tradition of novemdiales (nine days of mourning) is likely a familiar one, given that we have said goodbye to several popes over the last few decades, but it is an important reminder that we all must stand before the Lord to account for...

Translate/traduce

Posts (recent & archive)

Links you may like

Archdiocese of Seattle newletter (C2P)
Northwest Catholic
The Pillar Catholic

Blogs
Decentfilms (Deacon Steven Greydanus)
Simcha Fisher (Simcha Fisher)
Fr. Moore (Father Jeffrey Moore)
The World is Quiet Here (Thom Ryng)
The Anchoress (Elizabeth Scalia)
Truth in Love (Archbishop Etienne)

Podcasts
Restore the Glory
The Gloria Purvis Podcast