04/21/2025
My dear parishioners,
It is with great sadness that we learned of the passing of our Holy Father, Pope Francis. At the same time, it is with great hope in eternal life that we commend his soul to God. As Catholics, along with people of good will throughout the world, we mourn the loss of the vicar of Christ on earth, the successor of Saint Peter, and the visible head of the Church on earth (Jesus is the true head of the Church; the pope is the “visible” head who represents the Lord). We have lost the earthly father of our Catholic Church, and so we mourn his passing. We now join the whole Church as she prays for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis, that the Lord will grant him the reward of his labors.
I do not see a coincidence that he passed on Easter Monday; rather, I see the hand of God’s providence in this timing. We have just commemorated the Lord’s passion and death, and celebrated His glorious resurrection, through which Christ has saved and redeemed us. It is to this salvation in Christ that we now entrust the soul of our beloved Pope Francis who served the Lord and His Church so faithfully during his life. While we enter a period of mourning for the deceased Pontiff, our mourning is one marked by hope flowing from the salvation that Christ merited for all of us.
We give thanks to God for giving Pope Francis to the Church. We also pray for the College of Cardinals as they begin to discern whom the Lord is choosing to be the next Pope.
Everyone is invited to join me for a special Mass for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis this Wednesday, April 23rd at 6:00pm at St. Rose of Lima Church. The Mass will be preceded by the Holy Rosary prayed for the repose of his soul at 5:30pm.
With confidence in the Lord’s mercy, let us pray for the repose of the soul of Pope Francis, as we also give thanks to the Lord for gifting the Church with his ministry.
Sincerely in the risen Lord,
Fr. Ryan Amazeen
Pastor
