February 16, 2014

Dear St. Francis Xavier and Nativity of Our Lady Parishioners,

In early March the liturgical cycle will have us move from Ordinary Time to Lent.  It seems we are often moving through that cycle from season to season.  It reminds me of the Christian journey of life: from birth to baptism, from death to resurrection.  At times we find ourselves at different places in the cycle, but we believe, in faith, the cycle always leads us to God.

I write to you this day with great sadness as we Franciscans face a difficult step in that cycle.  I write to announce that the Conventual Franciscans will have to withdraw from our presence and ministry at St. Francis Xavier and Nativity of Our Lady.

We have not come to this burdensome decision lightly.  Over the last few years our province has been guided by a Strategic Plan.  The process of creating and updating such a plan has had us look quite seriously at our decreasing numbers and aging membership.  Realizing we cannot possibly staff all the friaries and ministries we currently have, the plan had the friars themselves identify those friaries that are essential to sustain our future.  To reach this sustainability has required consolidation.  The only way we can do the consolidation needed is to withdraw from some of our friaries, which we have done and will continue to do.

Bishop Hartmayer and I have not yet set a formal date for our withdrawal, but it will be sometime this summer.  On Bishop Hartmayer’s part, he assures you that he is committed to having priestly ministry at both St. Francis Xavier and Nativity and is working to make sure you are well cared for.  You will hear more on that as it develops.

While the Friars will no longer be living or ministering in and around Brunswick, this does not sever our long history or the heritage we have shared all these years.  And this by no means lessens our affection or diminishes the wonderful gift you have been to us.

Please know that Fathers Chuck, Bob, Wilfrid and I will work together with Bishop Hartmayer to make this transition as seamless as possible.  I have written this letter with a heavy heart but am confident in the power of Jesus Christ and what His death and resurrection mean for our life of faith.  May God bless us all in this sad time.

In Christ the Lord,
Fr. James Kent OFM Conv.
Minister Provincial for OLC Province

cosigned -
Most Rev, Gregory Hartmayer OFM Conv.
Bishop of Savannah

Dear people,

Bishop Emeritus Raymond J. Boland died Thursday, February 27, 2014 in a hospice in Ireland surrounded by family members.

He had returned to Ireland from Kansas City, Missouri with his brother, Savannah Bishop Emeritus J. Kevin Boland, in order to fulfill his wish to be buried in his native country. To read biographical information, please go to www.diosav.org. Funeral arrangements will be posted at this site when they are complete.

Please keep the happy repose of the soul of Bishop Raymond, and the consolation of the Boland family in your prayers.

Katie Walker-Mai,
on behalf of Barbara D. King
Communications Office
Catholic Diocese of Savannah

St. Augustine's "shake'n bake theology" was a favorite theme of the Augustinian theologian Michael Scanlon OSA. It was his own, down home translation of the Latin phrase "mysterium fascinans et tremendum" - the fascinating but terrifying mystery of Holy God. St. Augustine takes up the theme several times. Here is one example:

By turns I trembled with fear of you
and warmed with hope of you
and rejoiced in your mercy, O Father.
And all these feelings showed forth in my eyes and voice
when your good Spirit turned to us and said,
"O sons of men, how long will you be slow of heart,
how long will you love vanity, and seek after falsehood?"
Augustinus, Confessions, Book 9, chapter 4, section 9

My own understanding of this Augustinian theme was influenced not only by Fr. Scanlon and Rudolf Otto, but as well by the classic essay

Mysterium tremendum et fascinans: liturgical perspectives on the approach to God
by Johan H. Cilliers of Stellenbosch University in South Africa.

Other uses of the theme:
Martin Albl. Reason, Faith and Tradition. Explorations in Catholic Theology.
Robert Barron. Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of the Faith.
James Martin S.J. Getting closer: Our desires for God come from God and lead us to the divine mystery.
Zegarra Medina & Raul Eduardo. My God, the humble Jesus (Augustine's Confessions 7.18.24) : a reading of De doctrina christiana in dialogue with Paul Ricoeur's hermeneutics.

The Bishop's Annual Appeal is an ordinary - and important - part of the financing of the Diocese of Savannah. Many of the basic ministries of the diocese depend on the Appeal, for example:

• Education and catechesis of our children - in Catholic schools, parish programs, etc.
• Family life programs such as marriage preparation, outreach to the divorced, Rachel's Vineyard and more.
• Support for rural missions and outreach initiatives to build up the Catholic Church in Georgia.
• Education for the 15 seminarians now studying for the diocese of Savannah.

About 55 parishioners attended the Nativity Town Hall Meeting on Saturday evening, February 15, 2014. There was a positive attitude in the hall as we worked through an ambitious agenda.

1. REPORTS - click here to read the full council and committee reports
2. BLESSING OF THE FLEET - weekend of April 11-13 (info) - there was general agreement that we will do food sales the morning of Saturday, Apr. 12, probably some kind of take-away. The Pastoral Council will appoint a planning committee to work out the details at its March 9th meeting.
3. FLOOR AND PEW RENOVATION - The Building & Maintenance Committee explained plans to renovate the church's interior. Starting the week of June 1, the pews will be removed and the floor sanded, stained and finished. (Projected cost: app. $12,000) At the same time, we hope to have the pews renewed in the same way. We have not yet received any bids for this, but presume it will be comparable to the floor project. All this means that we will not have access to our church building or between one and three Sundays. MASS OF PENTECOST, JUNE 9, WILL BE OUTDOORS AT THE RIVER! Additional Masses will be celebrated in the Hall. Nota bene: we need to start brainstorming about renovation and enlargement of the parish hall as well.
4. BISHOP'S ANNUAL APPEAL - after watching the Bishop's video announcing the appeal, we reviewed last year's very successful drive (145% of goal, 83% participation) and looked at this year's goal. BAA GOAL FOR 2014: $9587.
5. FRANCISCAN FRIARS LEAVING THE GOLDEN ISLES - Fr. Bob made the sad announcment that the Province of Our Lady of Consolation of the Conventual Franciscans (OFM Conv.), which has staffed Nativity for more than 20 years, will close its friary community in Brunswick this summer. Frs. Wilfrid, Chuck and Bob will all be leaving Georgia for other assignments. The Franciscans are working with the bishop to ensure a priest for Nativity.
6. A PROPOSAL FROM THE PASTORAL COUNCIL - The Council proposes that the people of Nativity set as a goal for themselves to be established as a full parish by the year 2020, which is Nativity's 75th Anniversary of existence. There are many reasons for this desire: we are growing in every way, already now we are bigger than many other parishes of the diocese, and we have potential for more growth. Alone in McIntosh County there are more than 400 Roman Catholics. We wish to shoulder our responsibilities as the People of the Church, doing our share to make Catholicism a reality. We want our community to grow in grace and holiness before the Lord! There was strong support for this proposal at the Town Hall Meeting. Please note - this discussion was only advisory, to sound out the feelings, hopes and ideas of the parishioners. We do not intend in any way to short circuit the authority of our bishop, rather, we wish to help him grow his diocese. We understand that being erected as a canonical parish is absolutely no guarantee that the bishop can find a pastor for the parish!
7. PASTORAL COUNCIL ELECTIONS - click here for a PowerPoint summary of the process - click here for a more complete presentation of the rules and procedures, taken from our by-laws

All committee reports for tomorrow's Annual Meeting were submitted as MS PowerPoint presentations. Here is the combined report, including reports submitted by

• The Pastoral Council
• The Finance Council
• The Liturgy Commission
• The Building & Maintenance Committee
• The Catechetical Group (religion teachers)

This shows what a vibrant parish community Nativity is!

Nativity's Liturgy Commission looked at our celebrations from Ash Wednesday to Pentecost. Here are some coming liturgies:

• Ash Wednesday is March 5th. Mass is at 7:00 p.m.
• Confessions during Lent will be Saturdays 4:00-4:45 as hitherto.
• Please note that, because of time constraints and scheduling conflicts, there will not be a separate Reconciliation Service in Lent, no open house and no organized stations. We will publish the schedules of reconciliation services and stations at St. William's and St. Francis Xavier's.
• Darien Blessing of the Fleet is on April 13 - Palm Sunday. The Pastoral Council will say more about this.
• Palm Sunday is April 13. The 5:00 Saturday Mass will begin with the so-called "Small palm procession" in the church. The 10:00 Sunday Mass will begin with the Solemn Palm Procession IN THE PARISH HALL.
• Holy Thursday - April 17 - Mass of the Lord's Supper at 7:00 p.m. Washing of the Feet: Fr. Bob will wash the feet of some of the newest members of our parish community.
• Good Friday - April 18 - Commemoration of the Lord's Crucifixion - 3:00 p.m.
• Holy Saturday - April 19
• The GREAT EASTER VIGIL begins at 8:00 p.m. with the Bonfire of Easter in front of the church. Candles will be provided. Remember to bring bells to ring during the Gloria! During the Great Vigil, several new Catholics will be baptized and/or confirmed and receive their first Holy Communion. The schedule of readings will be set out shortly.
• First Communion - May 11 at 10:00 a.m. - Mother's Day! The First Communion Class will perform the May Crowning of the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and will give flowers to all mothers present.
• Confirmation - May 29 - Ascension Thursday at 7:00 p.m.! Bishop Gregory Hartmayer will confirm two young members of our parish. We hope that the WHOLE parish will come to be part of this celebration.
• Pentecost - June 8 - Outdoor Mass at 10:00 a.m., followed by a Parish Picnic! Exact location to be announced.
• June 2014 - right after Ascension, the Building and Maintenance Committee will start the project of renewing the church's floor and pews. This will take several weeks. We may have to celebrate Mass in the Parish Hall for a few weeks - the Liturgy Commission and the Choir are working on making these temporary liturgical apces beautiful worthy and appropriate. (The Building & Maintenance Committee will say more about the project itself a bit later.)

In other business, the Liturgy Commission welcomed Lily Collado as a new member. Lily is a long time parishioner and member of the choir.

At it's January meeting (Jan. 25, 2014) the Liturgy Commission also continued it's reading of the book, "The Liturgy Committee Handbook". We evaluated our celebration of Advent and Christmas, and briefly looked at our Masses during ordinary time. Our next meeting will be on April 26 (right after Easter).

The Nativity Liturgy Commission is a representative group of parishioners appointed by the Pastoral Council and Pastoral Administrator (Fr. Bob) to guide liturgical policy, coordinate big feasts and ensure a liturgy at Nativity that is worthy, proper, celebratory and reflective of our community. (mandate)