St. Boniface Catholic
by Sue Beams

On the Sixth Sunday of Easter, members of St. Boniface heard in the readings that the disciples showed their love for Jesus by keeping His commandments. Jesus showed His love by revealing Himself to them. The Father showed His love by sending us the Holy Spirit. This tells us we are not alone. At the Spanish Mass, Fr. Jesse spoke of the awe and dedication of the disciples. He told of the love God the Father has for us to send us a helper in the form of the Holy Spirit. With the Holy Spirit, we have the formula for a happy life in Christ!

Members of St. Boniface remembered in prayer the victims of child abuse. Blue Ribbons were worn by parishioners to acknowledge the plight of these young victims. Let us pray that black and blue will someday just be colors in their crayon box! Please visit www.blue sunday.org to see how you can help.

This past week has been a very busy one at St. Boniface as we prepared for the Confirmation of 12 of our young people. Bishop Alvaro Corrada came to Chandler on Wednesday, April 23rd for the special Mass. As last minute preparations were made, the Altar Servers (who did another outstanding job!) listened intently to their instructions. The church was aglow with gold and red at the Altar as we greeted the celebrants. In his homily, Bishop Corrada spoke of the work that began at our calling at Baptism being further rooted by the Holy Spirit through Confirmation.

Fr. Jesse, as our Pastor, with respect to Bishop Corrada, presented the candidates. Bishop Corrada asked that their readiness to be confirmed be verified to which Fr. Jesse enthusiastically responded that they indeed had met the requirements and were ready. The Bishop expressed his joy at their presence. He reminded us that although we come to Church to meet Jesus, Jesus has come into the church to meet you!

We are given as sons and daughters through our Baptism in Christ into the Spirit of Christ. The Holy Spirit will build upon the foundation of the Virtues of Baptism: Faith, Hope and Charity (Love). The Bishop went on to say that Faith is an attitude of life, while hope is for Eternal life in connection with all our other hopes. Love, the Bishop told us, is the freedom of fear. If you love, fear disappears. We have been given the power of love against all fear for eternity!

Following Mass there was a photo opportunity for the newly confirmed with their families.

The Altar Servers and their parents provided dinner and desserts. Thank you to everyone who helped to make this occasion so very special. A special word of thanks to the Catechists who worked so faithfully preparing the students for this day.

On May 4, 2008, three children will make their First Holy Communion. We pray that as they enter into this holy sacrament they will grow stronger in their love and faith.

It is time to begin making plans for the Feast of St. Boniface. On June 8th there will be the celebration of the Eucharist at 10:00 a.m. A parish picnic will be held following the Mass. Volunteers are needed to begin making plans for the event. There is a signup sheet in the community room (on the bulletin board).

Congratulations and best wishes to all who are celebrating birthdays and anniversaries. We pray for those who are sick and suffering. We pray, too, for the souls of the faithful departed. We continue to ask for God's protection for our brave men and women in the armed services as they serve to protect our freedoms.

Have a wonderful week!