Synod on Synodality

     Pope Francis is calling for a “Synod on Synodality” in which the Catholic faithful throughout the world are called to  participate,beginning at the parish level very soon.

     The theme is one of “communion, participation, and mission,” and we are waiting to hear from our diocesan personnel regarding how to proceed with gathering information from anyone interested in sharing their experience with the Catholic Church.  

     The pope said this process that will take place from October 2021 to October 2023 “is an exercise of mutual listening, conducted at all levels of the Church and involving the entire People of God. … It is not about garnering opinions, not a survey, but a matter of listening to the Holy Spirit, as we read in the book of Revelation: ‘Whoever has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches” (2:7).’”

     This process is a movement of the Spirit that our pope believes needs to begin at the grassroots levels – that means all of us at the parish level of the Church.

     If you choose to participate, please do so through healthy dialogue, prayer, and discernment of spirit.

     In the meantime, if you would like to learn more about the synodal process, please visit the websites of the Diocese of Pittsburgh (diopitt.org), the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (usccb.org), or the Vatican (vatican.va/content/vatican/en.html).  I also heard an informative podcast by America Magazine titled “The Synod on Synodality will be an uphill battle — but it’s worth it.” (Click here for the podcast.)

Please Welcome ...

     At this weekend’s Masses, please welcome men who are studying at St. Paul Seminary in Pittsburgh to discern their vocations in life, possibly to the priesthood.  Led by seminary staff members Father Tom Sparacino, Butler native Father Steve Neff, and Father Ken Marlovits, these seminarians will be with us during the 8:30am, 10am, and 11am Masses on Sunday, October 24.

Financial Year-End Report

     Next weekend (October 30-31) we will have our annual financial year-end (June 30, 2021) report for All Saints Parish and Butler Catholic School.  Finance Council members will speak briefly after communion at the 5pm Saturday, and 8am, 8:30am, 10am, and 11:30am Masses.

     Stay healthy and safe!

     I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

Respect Life

     Now that we are solidly into the Respect for Life Month of October, it’s a good time to reflect upon, pray for, and offer thanksgiving to the people who gave us the gift of life. For the vast majority of us, our parents are/were loving and nurturing people who cooperated with God’s life-giving powers. Out of selfless love for one another, they were open to bearing children and raising them to the best of their ability.

     From recent conversations with folks and a spiritual reading that I came across, the following thought surfaced:

     We should do our very best to live out the faith-based values that we learned from our parents. If we don’t, then we have wasted the effort, energy, and sacrifices that our parents made for us!

     For many of us, the greatest and most-valued good that we learned and received from our parents is the gift of faith in Jesus Christ. Through Him, we learned of unconditional love and forgiveness, and to treat other people as we desire to be treated.

     Our responsibility is to offer these gifts to our children by word and example. That includes our regular worship of God through participating in the sacraments that the Church gives us, and praying that our children will do the same for their children.

     I pray for you daily.
 

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

Keep Praying

       A few weeks ago after Mass I asked you to pray for All Saints Parish staff members who were undergoing health concerns and challenges.  Some of these folks you may talk to during the week, some you see at liturgies on a regular basis, and some you may not be very familiar with as their responsibilities are more “behind the scenes.”

     If you haven’t seen Deacon Jim Shope for a while, it is because he underwent surgery and is still recovering at home.

     In addition, Drew Kuehn, longtime organist at St. Michael the Archangel Church, was recently injured and currently is unable to play organ for us during Masses.

     This week, Tom Snow, longtime organist for St. Paul Church (and anywhere else we need him) has encountered health concerns and probably will need time to recover before being able to play for us again.

     And in mid-October, Deacon Mitch is scheduled to undergo knee replacement surgery and will need time to rehab.  Deacon Mitch not only serves at Masses, but also in many areas of parish life such as the Tuesday evening community dinner, funeral blessing services, baptisms, money counting, and Holy Hours.

     Please keep all of the aforementioned, and all people who are ill or injured in your prayers this week.

     Health is wealth!

     I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

Good News

     If you take a moment to browse through our bulletin or website, you will notice there is “something for everyone” at All Saints Parish.

     We have multiple opportunities for continued spiritual formation and community involvement for people of all ages. You can join groups of Christian fellowship amongst men and women, youth and elders; groups that serve the needy, care for the sick, and comfort those who are grieving after the death of a loved one. There also are opportunities throughout the week and weekend to worship God and receive His love and mercy in the sacraments.

     Please spread the news of this good news!

     Along with meeting regularly with staff members, I meet with finance and pastoral council members – as I did last week – to discuss ways we can best serve the Catholic community of Butler and the Butler community at large.  

     We will continue to think of and bring new and fresh opportunities for you to experience the goodness of God’s presence in our lives, and build off the already numerous chances to do so that have been around for years.

     I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

Thank You & Great Joy

  Thank you to everyone who attended, watched, and helped organize Bishop Zubik’s visit to Butler to install me as pastor of All Saints Parish last Sunday.

  It gives me great joy to know that I will be in Butler for at least six years. With your help – and by the grace of God – we will till the soil and plant the seeds of the Good News of Jesus Christ to every person that God places in our lives!

Festa Italia

  Please stop by Festa Italia 2021 for “dine in” or takeout at St. Michael the Archangel Hall on next Sunday, September 26, from noon until 6pm. Although the Festa activities are scaled down this year, the food is not. Come by to enjoy a delicious spaghetti and meatball dinner along with tasty desserts!

Grow in Holiness

One of our prayers and goals of every day should be to stay healthy in mind, body, soul, and relationships, and to grow in holiness.

       I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

Thank You to All Who Helped with Butler Italian Festival Success

     A huge “thank you” to everyone who spent time and effort on our BCS and All Saints booths at last weekend’s Butler Italian Festival.

     As far as I could tell, we were the only religious presence/booth at the festival, which included Deacon Mitch and others leading the Eucharistic Procession on Sunday afternoon in hot and humid conditions!

     This was the first major fundraising/community opportunity that we have had since the parish merger. From my experience – and from what I heard from others – it was positive, encouraging, and uplifting!

     Enjoy your Labor Day weekend with time for rest, relaxation, and recreation.

     I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

Back to School!

     As another school year commences, we offer our prayers, support, and best wishes to all students, faculty, and staff members at any educational institution where you study, work, or volunteer.  

     While the pandemic remains and circumstances are still far from ideal, we are in a better spot than we were one year ago and have much for which to be grateful during our precious gift of life on earth!

All Saints and Butler Catholic School at Butler Italian Festival Downtown

     The Butler Italian Festival Downtown will resume this year on Main Street from August 27 through 29. All Saints Parish and Butler Catholic School will have booths at the festival. The parish booth will sell food -- meatballs, meatball sliders, haluski and pizzelles. The school booth will sell Steeler raffle tickets and BCS honey products!  Please stop by and visit. 

     If you would like to assist with the parish booth, please sign up online at tinyurl.com/AllSaintsBooth2021 or call Justine Brown at 724-287-8332. To help with the BCS booth, please contact the school at 724-285-4276.

     Also, there will be a short Eucharistic procession through a portion of the festival, beginning at noon at St. Paul Church.

The Next Thing

     When situations in life seem too intense or overwhelming, I am reminded of the wisdom of an old poem, and I paraphrase:  None of us can do everything; all we can do is the next thing.

     May we do the next thing according to God’s will, whatever that may be and however that may look in each of our lives.

     I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

Updates from Bishop Zubik

     As we announced at Masses last weekend, the latest update regarding mask wearing in parish life is for hospitality ushers/greeters and eucharistic ministers. The ushers/greeters will wear masks when welcoming and assisting people as they enter our church buildings and during the offertory collection. Additionally, priests, deacons, and Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion are to wear masks when distributing communion.

     Please continue to practice proper and safe health measures as has been recommended to us repeatedly since the pandemic was declared.

      For the latest information, check our website, AllSaintsButler.org; our bulletin; and Facebook.com/AllSaintsButler

All Saints and Butler Catholic School at Butler Downtown Italian Festival

     The Butler Downtown Italian Festival resumes this year on August 27, 28 and 29. Our parish and our school will have booths at the downtown festival on Main Street from Cunningham Street to Brady Street. Please stop by and visit them!

     The parish booth will sell food. If you would like to assist with this effort, please contact Justine Brown at 724-287-8332 or sign up at tinyurl.com/AllSaintsBooth2021. We especially need folks to bake pizzelles.

     The Butler Catholic School booth will sell Steeler raffle tickets and BCS honey products! If you can help with the school booth, please call the BCS office at 724-285-4276.     

     Also, there may be a short Eucharistic procession through a portion of the festival, most likely on Sunday afternoon.  Stay tuned for details.

     Enjoy the last few weeks of summer!

     I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

Air Conditioning at St. Conrad Church

The installation of a new air conditioning system at St. Conrad Church began this week and will last for a few weeks (due to the supply-chain difficulty in receiving parts for the system).  Please bear with us during this brief interval without air conditioning.  If it becomes oppressively hot, please attend any one of our other four churches at All Saints Parish for Mass.  At the time that I write this, the air conditioning is working properly at all four!

Pastor Installation

Another kind of installation is scheduled for Sunday, September 12, at the St. Paul 10am Mass, as Bishop David A. Zubik will be installing me as pastor of All Saints Parish.

I am very happy and honored to be the first pastor of this newly created, merged parish in Butler, PA, and I hope that this will be a joy-filled celebration of the Eucharist as Christ’s sisters and brothers. A light reception in Glenn Hall will follow.

Farm Show 

The Butler Farm Show has returned this year, and organizers anticipate large crowds, especially August 13 and 14! I gave them permission, if needed, to use the St. Conrad parking lot for overflow parking, beginning with the section of the parking lot nearest the farm show entrance off of Buttercup Road (away from the church building).

All Saints and Butler Catholic School at Butler Downtown Italian Festival

The Butler Downtown Italian Festival will resume this year. The festival is held on Main Street on August 27, 28, and 29, and both our parish and our school plan to have booths.  Food will be sold at the parish booth. The school booth will have Steeler raffle tickets, and maybe BCS honey products!  Please stop by and visit.

Enjoy the remainder of the summer!

I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio

A New Beginning

     Thank you to everyone who helped with and attended last weekend’s liturgies and celebrations that marked the beginning of our five parishes merging into one to form All Saints Parish. We began with Evening Prayer last Friday, and continued with our weekend Masses, including receptions after a number of those Masses. It was a nice way to remember our pasts, live in the present moment, and look forward to our future!

     Thank you also to everyone who sent me Happy Birthday and Happy Ordination Anniversary cards, notes, and gifts over the past few weeks. Your thoughts, prayers, and love are so much appreciated and never taken for granted.

Update

     As I announced at last weekend’s Masses, Bishop Zubik has informed us that we are no longer required to wear masks when we come together for any parish-related gathering, including Mass. You are certainly welcome to continue to wear a mask if you choose.

     We will continue to offer a friendly wave at the “sign of peace” during Mass to those people with whom we do not live or are not around regularly. This is probably one of the “new norms” that many people and communities will practice going forward.

     We will resume hearing confessions in the confessionals at St. Paul Church, and continue to hear confessions at St. Conrad Church in the confessional room. 

Summer Vacations

     I will be away with family on vacation once Father Dan returns from his pilgrimage, and my bulletin column will be filled with updates from other staff members, or with general information about the parish.  

     Safe travels to all of you enjoying time away this summer. Enjoy the necessary time to relax and rejuvenate!

      I pray for you daily.

Yours in Christ,

Rev. Kevin C. Fazio