Dear Friends of Resurrection Catholic Missions,

Like every priest, I often have the privilege of being at the bedside of those who are dying. Going through the prayers of the Last Rites is never routine, because I am aware of a life ending and a soul preparing for its last journey. Of course there are times when I see hints of fear in the eyes looking back at me, but even at those moments there is always something else. That something else is a light, sometimes bright, sometimes clouded, but always there – hope.

Seeing that hope in their eyes makes me think of all who have gone before me – relatives, friends, other Resurrection priests and brothers, most especially our beloved Father Casimir Wilczynski, C.R. who served for nearly thirty years here at the Mission. Their time on earth ended, but their lives are intertwined with mine, their examples give my life direction. Their souls, I believe, are still moving ever deeper into the overwhelming love of God.

I once read that we must spend our lives giving of ourselves to others, loving with abandon, so that when we cross that threshold it is not with timid, stumbling steps. The writer said that God is waiting for us with arms opened wide, but we must throw ourselves toward Him without fear. It is only through long practice of loving our neighbors and hopeful trust in God that we can make that jump.

Hope is hard, being discouraged is easy, especially in this day and age. The word discouraged literally means to have lost heart. When the scriptures tell us to encourage one another, it means we have to restore heart, restore love in those around us.

When you open your hearts and give to us here at Resurrection Catholic Missions of the South, you are a source of hope for us, an instrument of God’s love for the handicapped, the poor, the children – the weakest and most vulnerable of Christ’s brothers and sisters. Your generosity spreads all across the Mission campus, making our work possible, inspiring us to do better every day. Won’t you help us once again?

And while you’re helping, please send the names of your loved ones for us to remember in our Masses and prayers on All Souls Day here at Resurrection Catholic Missions. We can never know here on earth who is in Heaven but we are obliged to pray for all our dearly departed.

In the meantime, it is our duty to remember those who have died. Let us join together so that our prayers and sacrifices will lift them up as they make their leap toward God.

Sincerely yours in the Resurrection,

Fr. Manuel Williams, C.R.
Mission Director