Although the past ten days have been pretty intense, Temple is already feeling like home. One of the main reasons for that is our new parish here in Texas. The first thing Paul and I did the day after we arrived was to go to the church and get registered.
From the very first moment we stepped into St. Luke’s, we felt welcomed and loved. Many people have recognized us as newcomers and have introduced themselves and welcomed us to the community.
As far as getting involved in parish life, Paul and I just dove right in. I figured that was the best way to meet people and make new friends.
Last Wednesday, we joined a Bible study on the book of Acts. Today was our second class, and we are enjoying it so far. I must confess that I felt a little out of place last week, though, when I discovered that all four of the other women in the class are nurses or retired nurses (one of the consequences of living in a town where health care is the main industry). There are also several men in the class, including one who is about Paul’s age.
On Thursday night, there was a dinner for the women of the parish, and one of the women at daily Mass invited me to come. It was very nice, and I got to meet a lot more people. It was freezing in the parish hall where the dinner was held, and I had forgotten to bring a jacket, so the woman sitting next to me went out to her car and got a jacket for me. I felt blessed to be with so many thoughtful and loving women.
On Saturday morning I attended a meeting of the “Blessed Women,” a group of about ten women that meet once a month. This month they started a study of the book of Ruth. It was a great group, and the Bible study was very interesting.
On Sundays the parish has “Coffee and Donuts” (which now includes a hot breakfast as well) after the 8:00 morning Mass. Paul and I attended this past Sunday and met even more wonderful people. Two of the ladies had noticed us at daily Mass, and they befriended us. They even invited us to join their faith sharing group on Monday morning, which we did.
Paul is hoping to get involved with the young adult ministry (“YAMS”) here. They used to meet on Tuesday nights, so Paul went up to the church last night, but there was no one there. Apparently they have been inactive for a while, but are in the process of trying to get the group going again.
It’s amazing how much St. Luke’s reminds us of St. John’s. They pray the rosary, and sometimes the Divine Mercy chaplet, every day before Mass, and they even end the rosary with the prayer to St. Michael, just like at St. John’s.
St. Luke’s has an amazing lending library. They must have thousands of books, and the whole back wall is just DVD’s, all of which have been screened for suitability. They even have a copy of Fr. Robert Barron’s Catholicism series, as well as all kinds of mysteries and classics (including Alfred Hitchcock and most of the Agatha Christie movies). They also have music CD’s, audio books, and a whole section of children’s movies. I can hardly wait to make use of the library when I have time.
I feel so blessed that God has brought us to this parish, and I look forward to all that he wants to do in and through us here. Please pray that we continue to hear and respond to God’s call as we work with our new parish family in building up the Kingdom of God.
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