FR. CHAMBERLIN – PASTOR’S MESSAGE We had a fairly busy weekend with the Sarah Hart concert along with the regular weekend services. Ms. Hart gave a morning of reflection for the women of the parish on Saturday from 9 am till 1pm. She had a concert after the Saturday evening Mass. On Sunday she had a concert with the youth of the parish, particularly those involved with middle school youth program and the high school TGIF (Teens Growing in Faith). All the gatherings were well attended. Sarah Hart is a composer and singer. Our choir regularly sings some off her music in the weekend liturgy. We are grateful to all who were involved in working on the various aspects of this successful event for the community. I will be out for part of the coming week. There will be a convocation of the priests of the diocese in Port Aransas Monday afternoon through Wednesday. Each year the priests gather for a series of talks and sharing on some particular aspect of ministry. There will be no scheduled Mass on Tuesday morning. I will offer Tuesday’s intention at the concelebrated Mass with the priests at the convocation. On Friday Bishop Mulvey will meet with the priests of several of the Corpus Christi deaneries at Saint Patrick’s. We are in the Corpus Christi Central Deanery along with Immaculate Conception in Gregory. The rest of the central deanery parishes are on the north side of Corpus Christi. The priests of the deanery meet to consider cooperative aspects of ministry and to communicate in smaller groups than the whole diocesan presbyterate... One thing I will not miss in retirement next year will be meetings. While retired priests are always welcome to attend, most of the retired men respectfully decline the opportunity. ORDINATION: We look forward to the ordination to the Permanent Diaconate of our fellow parishioner, Robert Rosales. He is scheduled to be ordained at the Cathedral by Bishop Mulvey on Saturday, November 5th. An ordained deacon is no longer a layman – he is a member of the clergy. In apostolic times deacons were called to assist the apostles, especially in the ministry charity. As with priesthood, ordination to the Diaconate is for life. Most permanent deacons are married men. Their first obligation is to their families and to the secular employment with which they support their families. Their obligation to ministry can take many forms. Deacons can baptize; they can officiate at weddings, they can conduct wake services and bury the dead. They read the Gospel at Mass, they can preach the homily at Mass and assist the priest at the altar. They can officiate at Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. A Deacon cannot offer Mass and cannot sacramentally forgive sin. Robert has undergone, with his classmates, more than five years of discernment, prayer, classes and practicums in preparation for this ministry. The candidates’ wives also participate in many of the classes and spiritual exercises along with their husbands. We look forward to Robert’s ordination. We encourage you to pray for him and his classmates as they approach their ordination day. I hope that he will be assigned to serve as parochial deacon here at OLMC. Fr. Mark Chamberlin The following are some short questions and short answers to common “FAQ” brought to my attention. For further explanation of any of them, please contact me personally. 1) Why does it cost so much to get married in the Church? It doesn’t cost anything to get married in the Church. The usual offering to the church for a wedding is $100. If that is a problem for any couple it can be waived. If you want a $1500 wedding dress, you have a $1500 wedding, but that has nothing to do with church. Limousines, expensive flowers and receptions can make for an expensive wedding but that has nothing to do with the church and is in no way a requirement. The requirements for a Catholic wedding are: Groom, Bride, two witnesses and a priest or deacon. That is ALL you have to have. 2) I have had a previous marriage and might need an annulment. I have heard that the process is extremely expensive and that an annulment would mean our children are illegitimate. The Tribunal that processes annulment cases is located in the Diocesan Chancery. They request a fee for a formal case of a total of $350. This fee also can be reduced or waived if necessary. The fee is intended to offset some of the cost of processing an annulment. A Church annulment has nothing to do with legitimacy of children. All children born of the marriage are legitimate. Because every case is as different as the people involved, contact me for information rather than taking the word of co-workers or family members. 3) What are the requirements for godparents (padrinos) for Baptism? Godparents must be at least 16 years of age, must be practicing Catholics (attend Mass regularly, receive the Sacraments, and have received all the Sacraments of Initiation – Baptism Confirmation and Holy Communion). If married, they must be married by the Church It is the role of a godparents to be an example of faith to the child being baptized and an example of faith to the parents. 4) I (we) are civilly married and would like to be married by the Church. What do we do? Talk to me or to Fr. Jerry. Call our office and ask for the priest to whom you wish to speak. If he is not in, leave a message with your phone number and we will call you back as soon as we can. Some of these things may take a bit of time. There are almost 4,000 of you and two of us, and we are old, but we are here to serve you to best of our ability.

Fr. Mark Chamberlin