St. John Vianney Catholic Church | Father Troy’s Weekly Letter

It’s About Jesus!

Dec 8, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: A few years ago for Advent, I gave one sentence homilies. People seemed shocked at first that the homily was so short. Actually, many were incredulous! Though very quickly it became quite evident that people seemed to truly enjoy them. In fact, there have been a number of parishioners who have suggested and requested in the years since that I repeat those homilies during Advent. While many enjoyed the brevity, I learned that most people could not remember what the four, short sentences were! Needless to say, that did not build up my confidence as a homilist...

The Holy Season of Advent

Dec 1, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: Watch! Prepare! Rejoice! Behold! These are the themes for the holy season of Advent. The question is: will it really be holy? The answer depends upon us. A lot of people bemoan the commercialization, stress and whatnot of the secularized holiday season. I advocate that we not do that. Instead of complaining or lamenting about the holidays do something about it – make them holy! Make Advent a true time of preparing for and welcoming Jesus anew in our lives. Like Lent, the season of Advent is both a period of preparation and penance. As things can get...

The Gift of Faith

Nov 17, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: Last week, Fr. Clark and I took two of the seminarians from our parish, Rick Arriola and Justin Cormie, out to dinner. It was a nice evening. Both of these young men, God willing, will be ordained to the priesthood this coming June 1. Please keep them in your prayers. During the course of the evening, it was interesting to listen to their hopes and fears as they approach this important day in their lives. I took interest not only in the comments of Deacon Rick and Deacon Justin but also in Fr. Clark’s impressions as a...

Fulfilling our Mission

Nov 10, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: Over the last several months I have been working with our Pastoral Council and our staff to develop some long term plans for our parish. As a parish we are now 52 years old and it is only prudent that we look to the future and begin assessing our current and future needs so to make plans to meet our parish’s needs in the years to come. This type of forecasting and planning is essential. As the old saying goes, ‘those who fail to plan, plan to fail!’ The many good things that we enjoy as a...

Planning for the Holy Days

Nov 3, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: It is now November and soon we will be in the midst of the holidays and Holy Days! Since the Christmas decorations are already going up in the stores, I encourage you to consider how you are going to make Advent and Christmas a holy season for you and your family. Here are a few suggestions: 1.) Come to confession prior to the last weeks of Advent 2.) Invite a friend or family member who normally doesn’t attend church to come with you to mass during Advent. Lots of folks come at Christmas, but the Feast of...

St. Paul VI

Oct 27, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: Two weeks ago, Pope Francis canonized seven new saints. Among the newly canonized were St. Oscar Romero (1917-1980) and St. Paul VI (1897-1978). St. Oscar Romero was Archbishop of San Salvador. He was murdered at the altar as he was offering Mass for preaching the Gospel and standing up against the brutal and authoritarian military regime of El Salvador. This regime oppressed the nation’s people, especially the poor. St. Paul VI (1897-1978), was pope from 1963-1978. He was responsible for bringing Vatican II (1962-65) to its conclusion and overseeing the start of its implementation. During his pontificate,...

Annual Report is Here!

Oct 20, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: Once again, we have our Annual Report on the state of the parish posted on our webpage. Here you can see the entire report with our yearly financial statement. A few things about the report and some things not in the report. First, all of our numbers are down. After years of our numbers going up in almost every category, last year was a challenging one in many ways. Most of the decline can be summed up in one word “Harvey”! Attendance declined, participation declined, finances declined, Youth Formation enrollment declined, number of staff declined, number of...

Bazaar is Here!

Oct 14, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: Well, it is here. Today is our annual parish bazaar! Believe it or not, it is already a huge success! That is because so many have already done such a wonderful job in preparing everything so that all of us can have a great day! Last year we had over 1300 volunteers! That was an incredible feat, especially given the fact that we had to postpone and move the date due to Hurricane Harvey and the floods. Our bazaar is the largest single event in our parish for it is the one time of the year that...

The Four Last Things

Oct 6, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: What do you want out of life? A big question, I know. But really, what is it that you want out of this life for yourself, your spouse, your children, and all those you love? Health? Happiness? Prosperity? Fame? All of the above? Do you really know? Do you ever think about it? If so, how often? Is your answer heaven? It should be. There is nothing else and nothing less than eternal life with God that gives our lives ultimate meaning and purpose. If you read this and think to yourself, “Well, of course, but there is so...

Did you know…

Sep 29, 2018 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

We have a nursery that provides care for little ones at the 9:30, a.m. 11:00 a.m. 12:30 p.m. and 2:00 p.m. Masses every Sunday? SJV has faith formation and bible study opportunities for adults on Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings and evenings? We have social, prayer and support groups for singles, marrieds, men and women, Young Adults, Seniors and In-Betweens? That if you come in late for Mass you should always use the side aisles? Confessions are heard on Saturdays at 10:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. in the Chapel (old church)? Our Young Children’s Program (YCP) teaches and cares for 150 little precious...

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