| St. Thomas More SocietyScranton, Pennsylvania |
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August 30, 2006 Dear Friends and Members of the St. Thomas More Society, Next Friday, September 8th, Jerry McGreevy and I will depart Scranton for our long-anticipated trip to Texas. Our first stop will be Our Lady of Walsingham in Houston, where we will link up with Ed and Lola Jordan, members of the Society who will be in the Houston area for their grandson's baptism. Thus, at the Vigil Mass on September 9th four members of the St. Thomas More Society will be present with the people of one of our sister Anglican Usage congregations. For the past two years in a row Our Lady of Walsingham has sent a delegation at least this large to the annual Anglican Use Conference in Scranton, so this circumstance allows us to bless them as they have blessed us. On Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of that week we will be with St. Anselm of Canterbury Catholic Mission in Corpus Christi. Though this group is the smallest of the Anglican Usage congregations, they are very eager to greet us and hear the good news we have to share about the progress of the Pastoral Provision in the United States. They have arranged for us to meet Bishop Rene Gracida, who erected the Corpus Christi mission, and Bishop Edmund Carmody, the Bishop of Corpus Christi. We will round out our trip in San Antonio with the people of Our Lady of the Atonement. There we will have the opportunity to assist at the daily Anglican Use Mass that is celebrated with the children of The Atonement Academy, the 500 student school founded by the parish in 1994. Our Lady of the Atonement is the largest Anglican Usage parish, and we will make several presentations to the parishioners at their weekend Masses, as well as enjoy their company at several social events they have planned for us.The trip's purpose is twofold. On the one hand we are going to make these Catholics aware of the fruit of their witness, how their existence has been an inspiration to us and the increasing number of men taking advantage of the Pastoral Provision of Pope John Paul II. Our presence with them will draw our congregations closer together, and it is my sincere hope that from this visit there will arise some formal mechanism by which our common ministry to the Church is better coordinated. Our second purpose is to learn from these congregations that have blazed the trail we are now on. That is, Bishop Dougherty has suggested that we glean as much information as we can about how these parishes were erected, in order that we might have models to examine as Bishop Martino prepares to erect our Society as a parish in the Diocese of Scranton. I ask your prayers as we undertake this short mission to Texas, that the Lord's will be done, and that the bonds of affection that have sustained us thus far will be strengthened. The first Sunday we are gone there will be a presentation at St. Clare about the Bishop's Annual Appeal. Msgr. Feldcamp has invited all the parishioners of St. Clare to meet in the Parish Hall at noon, between the 11AM and 1PM Masses, to learn about this important drive that last year raised millions of dollars for ministries in the Diocese of Scranton. I would be there myself were I to be in town, but nevertheless I encourage your participation. The trip to Texas is an outgrowth of our Society's national and international mission. Responding generously to the Diocesan Appeal is our obligation to our brother Catholics in northeastern Pennsylvania, who have been so very generous to us. Beginning on September 24th we will initiate an even more specifically local ministry to Birthright of Scranton. Birthright offers women in our area alternatives to abortion by offering them material, emotional, and financial assistance, so that they will choose life for their unborn baby. Counseling women considering an abortion may be a ministry to which we one day feel called, and Birthright can refer us to training in this regard if we do. In the meantime the Society will focus on other ways we can help. On September 24th we will take a second collection to benefit Birthright, and in the back of the church you will find a poster that lists items needed for the layettes this ministry gives away to pregnant women in crisis. Through this ministry we can aid people in our own back yard to the same degree we have been helpful to people from across the country. September 24th is also the date of the monthly potluck. After the 1PM Mass, while you share lunch, Jerry and I will make a presentation about what we accomplished and what we learned in Texas. Bring a dish and come be informed about how the Pastoral Provision mission is progressing. Finally, note that the Wednesday Rosary time has been changed to 5PM to accommodate the St. Clare youth choir. With a grateful heart and prayers for your physical and spiritual well-being, I am, Yours in Christ,
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