Dear Parishioners,

I mentioned in last week’s column that I would tell you just a little bit about the 3 people who were formerly “catechumens” or those preparing to receive the Easter Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist at our Easter Vigil this year. I’ve included a picture of them below along with their sponsors. On the left is Debra (Debbie) Bunosky, wife of Mark Bunosky. Next to her (in the pink) is her sponsor Eva Bunosky, an active parishioner and of course the mother of Mark and mother-in-law of Debbie. The lady on the other side of Eva is Leslie Bierschwal who is the sister of Debbie. Eva was also Leslie’s sponsor. Standing behind Leslie is Philip Rogers and his sponsor (to his left) is his father-in-law, Joseph Ratka. All three of the newly baptized are wearing a white baptismal garment which they put on during the rite of Baptism at the Easter Vigil. They were also confirmed & received their First Holy Communion.

During my homily at the Easter Vigil, I spoke of how each of them came to the decision to enter the Catholic Church because of the example of other Catholics in their families. Debbie & her sister Leslie had the example of their sponsor, Eva Bunosky, as well as the example of Debbie’s husband Mark, also a faithful Catholic of our parish. And Phil had the example of his father-in-law, Joe, whom Phil would drive to Mass each week. This is how our faith is spread. This is how powerful our example is. And I encouraged each of these 3 newly baptized to now be open to God using them as God used these others in their lives. We may not even be aware that God is using us to bring others to faith. Our example alone suffices. Our prayers are heard. So let us welcome these 3 new family members of St. Leo’s into the Church and into our parish and thank their sponsors for their living faith. Remember to pray for them all today.

Today is Divine Mercy Sunday, a commemoration instituted on this 2 nd Sunday of Easter by Pope St. John Paul II. I look forward to sharing with you a little story I heard that really helped me to understand how God’s mercy works

Fr. James P. Schmitz