Twenty- Fourth Week in Ordinary Time

September 11, 2019

by Fr. Reginald Samuels

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

This Sunday’s reading is one of the most memorable of Jesus’ parables and it is only told in the Gospel of Luke. The parable of the prodigal Son is the story of mercy of the father. The Mercy of the father is echoed throughout the gospel and the lesson is simple: God gives mercy freely, and we are called to give it freely as well. Now we are called to take the mercy that God gives us and pass it on to the others in our lives.

This weekend marks the beginning of our participation in the Archdiocese of Galveston - Houston IGNITE Capital campaign. Every parish in the Archdiocese will be participating in the campaign at different times. Our time is now. The IGNITE campaign is composed of 6 distinct case elements. Five of the elements: Seminary renovations, Catholic Education Scholarships, Faith Formation Funding, Harvey Relief, and a Future Disaster Fund will touch every Catholic in out Diocese, today and for generations to come. We will also be keeping one third of all the monies raised in out parish. That’s the 6^th case element. Each parish will be able to make improvements as their needs dictate. As we know, our needs dictate the Guyot Hall updates. By working together, we will be able to replace the flooring and lighting, making Guyot Hall a more hospitable gathering place for us as a parish community.

Many of you may be asking yourselves, how does the IGNITE campaign fit in to our parish plans and our existing Capital Campaign to build a new church and grow our parish. I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your generosity in our Campaign here. While we have not yet raised the necessary funds to begin construction, know that the project is far from over. We will use this time of IGNITE to pause, do our part for our Archdiocese, focus on improving our Parish Hall, and reengage ourselves for our Church project when we are through. I am still and always fully committed to our continuing to improve our parish and know through your hard work and the intercession of the Holy Spirit we will succeed.

   As we begin our IGNITE kickoff here in the parish. We will be viewing a short video at each Mass that will give each of us an overview of the campaign. I encourage each of you to view the video with an open heart; and be mindful of the advantages and benefits to our Diocese and here at home.

  We have an exciting new parish bible study program that has started with a study on the Gospel of Matthew called : The King and His Kingdom. This Bible study program shows how Jesus fulfills God’s promises to Israel and establishes his kingdom on earth. Through references to the Old Testament promises of God to his people and the messages God sent them through the prophets, the Bible study of the Gospel of the Matthew provides the key to understanding the rest of the New Testament and Christ as the fulfillment of God’s plan. Classes are Tuesday mornings from 9-11 am and Tuesday evenings from 6:30-8:30 pm. All are welcome! Contact Faith Formation office at 281-479-8832 for more information or to sign up for this study.

FORMED is the revolutionary digital online platform that gives STHY unprecedented access to video-based study programs, feature films, audio presentations, and eBooks from the Church’s foremost presenters. With your access to FORMED, 24/7 on your television, smart phone, laptop, I-pad, or Kindle, you can: Prepare for Mass, study the scriptures, watch religious movies and programs as a family, Enrich your marriage with the award winning video programs, and help your children grow in faith and character with engaging children’s materials. Our parish Password to FORMED.org is 77GVZ3.

Finally, on September 28^th and 29^th we will have our annual Ministry Fair and Stewardship weekend in the parish with the theme “Tailgate Party 2019”. The ministry fair will give everyone here at STHY a way to engage and sign up for the various ministries of our parish and have fun in the process. Please come out and support the various ministries of our parish. Please check the website: www.sthyacinth.org to find the many ministries and activities.Moreover, you can go online and register for the various ministries that we have here at STHY.

God Bless,
Fr. Reginald Samuels