Thank you for the many pledges that were made and already fulfilled during our recent drive for our annual DSA (Diocesan Services Appeal). For those who have answered Bishop Barbarito with their gift pledged or given, may I add my thanks to his. For those who haven’t done so yet, may I take this opportunity to ask you once again - whether you are a regular parishioner or a seasonal one – to show your gratitude to God for His many blessings upon you, by sharing some of His blessings with those in our area in need! Pledge envelopes are still available in the church. Just see any of our ushers immediately after Mass, and they will be glad to assist you!

Let’s see if we can not only reach our $200,000 goal this year, but even exceed it, so that we can retain the overage to assist us in our own charitable work and parish upkeep. Know that God, who probes the depth of our hearts and knows our minds, will continue to bless you in greater ways than you can imagine because you have shared His gifts to you with others!

Our 44th Annual Parish Festival is only a few days away. The anticipation for the kids, the final details of the many preparations by our volunteers, and the support of so many of our parishioners should mean that we can envision a successful event for the benefit of our school. For those who are unfamiliar with the origins of this tradition, it began as a one-day event on St. Patrick’s Day to raise funds for our school. Now it has evolved into a weekend of rides, food and entertainment that pleases thousands of visitors to Delray’s biggest church festival of the year. It has taken on a very international flavor, with a potpourri of foods and music. If you have not bought a ticket for the $40,000 worth of prizes given away in the Grand Raffle, here’s your chance to be a winner!

We will also be entertaining a large group of our St. Vincent alumni, who are returning for our 55th anniversary of the establishment of our parish school. So we welcome all of you to support us as participants in our biggest event of the year, either by purchasing tickets, volunteering your time to help, or taking your chances on one of the many raffles. Pray that God blesses us once again with beautiful weather we need and the energy necessary for all the volunteers under the leadership of the Festival Chairman, Gerard Orlortegui, and his many gracious co-chairs and co-workers to bring about a successful event. We also thank our past Chairperson, Lisa Hargrove, for the tremendous work she did in carrying on this tradition for the past several years. Above all, I want to thank the many individuals who quietly work hard behind the scenes, setting up and taking down the many booths and items it takes to run it all, especially those who may not see their names written here, but whose work is seen by God!

About a week ago, Nobel Prize laureate and former Polish President Lech Walesa and his wife were in town for a visit, and were honored during their brief stay. I thank Joe Benoit for inviting me to be part of the welcoming group on that occasion, where I was able to renew an acquaintanceship that goes back many years. It seems that wherever he goes, President Walesa always proudly demonstrates his Catholicity and devotion to Mary by proudly wearing a lapel pin with the image of the Virgin of Czestochowa. How many of us don’t even wear Mary’s image or that of her Son around our necks, but substitute all kinds of amulets or kinky items that don’t give honor to Mary or Jesus, nor demonstrate our Catholic Faith.

The Holy Season of Lent begins in about 10 days. Here is an opportunity to step forward in our relationship with God and our neighbor by practicing various acts of sacrifice, self-denial and positively demonstrating our faith-inaction, especially by uniting ourselves to the merits of Jesus Christ. Our actions on behalf of those who don’t have the many blessings bestowed upon us, and our participating in programs that deepen our knowledge of Scripture and our prayer life are among those things which help us to demonstrate that Christ didn’t die for us in vain. His life was spent for us, and now we need to show Him that we appreciate His loving act for us by sharing in His work.

Each weekday Mass that I celebrate, I recall in the petitions of the Prayers of the Faithful the men and women serving in our armed forces, as well as the men and women who also put their lives on the line in domestic service to our community. It’s a pity that sometimes we don’t appreciate them until they are no longer with us. What a sad tragedy befell our own city in the sudden auto death of Sgt. Adam Rosenthal last week. He leaves behind his wife and four children, all mourning, along with many members of our police force. He was very well thought of among his peers and well-liked by so many members of our local community. Among his many contributions to the welfare of our people, he taught a self-defense course to help protect women, including a number of mothers and daughters of our parish. In his work, he touched the lives of many of our citizens, and his loss will be great to so many who benefitted from his loyal service to the Delray Beach area. I extend the sympathy of the St. Vincent Parish Family to his.

Very Rev. Canon Tom

I thank the many parishioners and guests who made their pledge last week to our Bishop’s annual Diocesan Services Appeal, and pray that all who made their pledge will honor it. This is our way of saying, “Thank You, God, for all the blessings bestowed upon us in our lifetime.” This is our way of saying we will share our goods with those who have less, even when (and especially when) it means we have to make some sacrifice in order to show that we are only stewards of the gifts and other blessings given us by God.

As I mentioned in previous bulletins and even from the pulpit, we fell short of our goal last year and had to make up the difference of $38,000, from the Operational Funds that come through our weekly Sunday Collection. Maybe this year’s appeal will be received in a way that will show we truly appreciate God’s

gifts. Our goal this year is $200,000, and if each family could set aside a sacrificial gift of just $1 a day (or even 50 cents per day), we will make that goal, and even exceed it!

What is sometimes the most difficult task for a priest is asking for money, especially when the economy is at a low. I am so grateful to our priests who took the time to work the appeal into their homily. I am especially grateful to our Seminary Scripture scholar and weekend assistant, Msgr. Bosso, who gave a brief but excellent homily last weekend that made a great segway into the need to live the Beatitudes.

Someone apparently wasn’t listening, because they passed an (anonymous) note about Vatican II and preaching on the Gospel message.They obviously didn’t get the message (nor did they properly read all about what the Documents on the Liturgy say about the homily). So, Msgr. Bosso did with that note what I would do in similar circumstances.

A special “thank you” to the initial donors of our Ferrer Fund, who are helping us to meet the rising costs of providing a solid Catholic education for our students in our parish school. So far, the fund has reached over $50,000 in gifts and pledges! God bless you! Now we’re entering the last stages of preparations for our 44th Annual Parish Festival.

It’s a superb way of enjoying a weekend of food, fun, and festivities, while earning money for the upkeep of our school. Your purchase of the raffle tickets (either for the large $25,000 raffle or the $1 raffle for a series of fine prizes), and your volunteering to serve during the festival hopefully will enable us to raise enough funds to keep our school tuition level for another year. Unfortunately, we don’t receive financial aid from the state, so we count on your support of fund-raising endeavors to make it!

St. Vincent de Paul Seminary in Boynton Beach will host its annual Friends of the Seminary Gala this coming Friday, February 25th, beginning with Vespers at 7:00 PM. A reception, silent auction and dinner will follow. This is the major fund-raiser for our seminary each year, and it helps to sustain the seminary in its programs preparing men for the priesthood and permanent diaconate, as well as other men and women to take their places of teaching and leadership in the Catholic Church. To make reservations for this enjoyable evening, call the Seminary @ 732-4424, or purchase tickets online @ www.svdp.edu.

Pope John Paul II High School is hosting its annual fund-raising event, this coming Saturday, February 26th. The theme is “An Evening in Tuscany,” and it features a dinner and auction. It begins at 6:30 PM, and will be held at the high school. You will enjoy a delightful evening while helping many young men and women in a Catholic setting to prepare for the future. For tickets and more information, call Jose Herrera (’01) @ 314-2133, or Jherra@pjpii.org.

We give a special “thank you” to our Parish Manager, John Krolikowski, and his team of helpers, who made the St. Valentine’s Day Reception for our Snowbirds last Sunday such a wonderful opportunity of getting to know one another. I’m glad that so many of our seasonal visitors decided to come and enjoy the occasion, and to learn a little bit more about our parish.

Just as Congress is beginning to consider several pieces of legislation that (taken together) would end taxpayer subsidization of abortion, there is yet another undercover video showing us the real face of Planned Parenthood. The first bombshell video that surfaced over a week ago showed a Planned Parenthood worker helping an alleged pimp and underage prostitute find out how to get access to taxpayer funded abortions and other services. In the latest video, a Planned Parenthood worker offers help on how to get Medicaid-covered insurance for underage prostitutes, and any abortions or other services, (whether or not they are US citizens).

For years, pro-life Americans have been forced to watch as their tax-dollars subsidize the barbaric practice of abortion. Whether at government healthcare facilities, in federal health programs, or even direct funding for the abortion industry, our values have been under attack. But conservative members of Congress are introducing new legislation to put an end to this tragedy and end ALL federal taxpayer funding of abortion - and they need your support!

The three new bills are the "No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act", the "Protect Life Act" and the "Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act." Watch for or download information on these upcoming acts of Congress.

Very Rev. Canon Tom