Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

May the Peace of the Lord be with you.

In all the masses this weekend, the Diocesan Stewardship Appeal (DSA) video will be shown in every parish of the Rockford Diocese. The video features our three Bishops: the present bishop Malloy and the two retired Bishops Doran and O'Neill. The Bishops knock at the door of our hearts, asking us to support the many life-changing ministries and services of our Diocese through the DSA. The DSA is the life blood of the Diocese. Without the support of the local parish our Diocesan programs simply won't be done.

As St Mary's parishioners, you are always generous to the needs within our parish. However, our Catholic family encompasses more than the parish we live in. We open our hearts to those beyond our community serving so many more of the faithful than any single parish can do by giving our gifts to the DSA.

The DSA aimis to serve the Church at large. Catholic education, youth ministry, marriage preparation, and outreach to the poor - these are just some of the ministries at the Diocesan level that you are able to support through your participation in this Appeal. One major goal of the DSA  is to provide the funding of the priestly formation and the education of the seminarians. Our parish is blessed to have the highest number of seminarians in our Diocese, a fact that we can truly be proud of. We currently have three of them: Jack Bjork, Trevor Larson Frank, and John McNamara. Your DSA participation made the education of these generous young men possible. They and the other seminarians of our Diocese will become the future priests of the next generation. God has blessed us so much.

With our sacrificial giving, we show Him our gratitude by sharing our blessings. Our gifts to the Church are our way we demonstrate that we serve God. This spiritual focus on sacrificial giving is enshrined in this year's DSA theme: God Opens The Door Of Faith: Stewards Respond. Next weekend we will ask for your generosity in supporting the DSA, which supports many ministries that help every parish in the Diocese including our own St. Mary. We are committed to giving $115,060 as our share in this Appeal. The modern Catholic interpretation of Biblical tithing based on the giving back to God the ten percent of one's income is 5% for the support of your Parish, 4% for worthy causes of your choice, and 1% for the DSA. If it is not possible to introduce this way of giving immediately in one's life, the Church is encouraging everyone to try to adopt what is called Sacrificial Giving. Sacrificial giving is where we "take a step" closer each year to accomplishing the full tithe based on the Holy Scriptures. To adopt the Biblical ideal of giving immediately might be a step too big for some. "Taking a step" year by year with sacrificial giving will help us prayerfully mainstream tithing into our spiritual life.

At any rate, our DSA commitment is an amount that we can easily achieve provided most of us will give even just a little from the heart. Again, when we are unable to fully meet our goal, the parish budget needs to make up for the difference. But any amount we may be able to collect that is over our goal will be returned to us for our own special use. Our plan is to use this extra fund in the hiring of a music director and to improve our music ministry. Please prayerfully consider what you may give. Your sacrifice and your desire to be God's stewards will truly open the door of faith to those who need it the most. Thank you in advance for your generosity.

May God bless each one of us in this endeavor.

Sincerely Yours In Christ,

Fr. Burt Absalon,

Pastor