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

Catechesis on the Holy Eucharist

Oct 22, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ, In case you missed it, there is currently a heated debate going on in the Catholic Church concerning the reception of Holy Communion. The media (and others) have made this a standoff between President Joe Biden, Speaker Nancy Pelosi, other Catholic public figures versus various bishops and even Pope Francis. There is some truth to this controversy, but it is NOT the whole picture. The issue concerning the eucharist is much larger and has been around for some time. The scandal of public figures who profess to be Catholic and yet promote actions contrary to the Catholic...

Keep and Share the Faith

Oct 15, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ, Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!!Thank you to everyone who made our bazaar such a huge success. I have received wonderful feedback on how great the bazaar was. Obviously, it takes a lot of work and we are blessed with wonderful volunteers and a fantastic staff. In so many ways it felt like things were back to normal for the bazaar – it even rained for a few minutes! The biggest success of the bazaar of course is the fact that we all were able to come together. That is a blessing anytime, but especially after having...

Bazaar Sunday

Oct 8, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ, This is it! The bazaar is back after being cancelled last year due to COVID-19! The Lord knows that we can all use a day of not worrying about things! For several hours, thousands of parishioners, neighbors and friends will all enjoy a wonderful day of fun, fellowship and of course, food! I sincerely hope that you will be part of the festivities and enjoy a fantastic day. A word of warning: Watch out for the long lines at the funnel cake booth and the pupusas booth! They are two of the perennial favorites and worth the...

Alive with Action and Activity

Oct 1, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ: Last week was probably the busiest week here at the parish since March 2020. It was wonderful! On campus we had bible studies for adults, Youth Formation, Bazaar Meeting, Bridge Club, That Man Is You, RCIA, The State of the Parish presentation, Boy Scouts, Youth Ministry, Social Services, Choir Rehearsals, masses, funerals, weddings, confessions and much, much, more! The signs of life here at St. John Vianney are becoming more numerous every day. In truth however, even in the darkest days of the pandemic when all public activities were forbidden, the parish was still alive. Mass was...

Gentle Reminders

Sep 24, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ, I was recently at a friend’s house for dinner. Others were invited as well. My friend was most generous in the invitation and the meal was incredible! But there were some guests (actually more than one or two) who came late. Then there were some others who would not even smile or greet the others at the dinner. There was a couple who came to this beautiful dinner in gym clothes and paid no attention while someone else was speaking. Another couple, as soon as they finished eating, got up and walked out the door before the...

The Spiritual Works of Mercy

Sep 9, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Dear Friends in Christ, One of the hallmarks and themes in the pontificate of Pope Francis has been his emphasis on mercy. In fact, when he was elected Supreme Pontiff in 2013, he chose as his motto for his coat of arms “miserando atque eligendo” (by mercy and by choosing). He also designated 2016 as an extraordinary jubilee Holy Year dedicated to mercy. Pope Francis has repeatedly reminded us that “Mercy is the very foundation of the Christian life.” He has asked us to look anew at practicing and living the Works of Mercy. We are to perform the works of...

Stewardship and Discipleship

Sep 2, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

Recently, you received in the mail something very traditionally Catholic, raffle tickets! When I was a kid going to Catholic school there was always a raffle, or we were selling something to help support the school and the parish. It seemed every parish had a bingo night. In those days when parishes were smaller and Catholic families were poorer, fundraising was essential in keeping things running. Happily, the way we see the Church and money has developed over the years. There are still some parishes and schools that absolutely depend on fundraising, but if a parish must rely on a...

There is A Place for You!

Aug 26, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

This weekend we are having our Ministry Fair in the Activity Center following the morning masses. You will see tables, displays and representatives from many of our parish ministries, apostolates and organizations. There is a twofold purpose in the Ministry Fair. We hope that the Fair will be both informative and inspirational. The tables are set up so you can learn and become aware of the many ministries and opportunities for service, prayer, and community in the parish. You will be able to meet and talk with fellow parishioners involved in the various ministries of our parish. We also hope...

A Glimpse of our Annual Report

Aug 19, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

As is our normal practice, even in this far from normal time, we will publish our Annual Report on the pastoral and financial activities of the parish in the coming weeks. We are currently still in the process of tallying and analyzing the data and composing the report. Today however, I wanted to give you a glimpse of what the report is showing. It should be of little surprise that since the advent of the pandemic which has spanned two fiscal years, almost all of our numbers are down. This goes for our pastoral numbers (sacraments received, class enrollments, attendance,...

Sharing our Faith

Aug 13, 2021 In Father Troy's Weekly Letter

This weekend we welcome Fr. Joe Perez for our Annual Mission Appeal. Fr. Joe is a priest of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston but has served most of his priesthood serving in the missions of Guatemala. We welcome Fr. Joe “home” and most especially to St. John Vianney. This is also the time of year when we say goodbye to all our young people heading off to college. We wish them well and assure them of our prayers. Even though many will be away to attend college, we still want to keep in contact. I invite our college students and their...

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