1171 NE Sand Hill Rd | Belfair, WA 98528

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Pastor's Page 2020-09-20

Dear Parishioners:

  • Today’s Gospel for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time is the parable of the workers in the vineyard (Matthew 20:1-16) serves as a corrective to the false notions of entitlement and merit.  The story reflects the socio-economic background of Palestine at the time of Jesus. The parable is offensive to us and it challenges our sense of justice.  In order to grasp the full impact of the story, it is essential to understand the sequence of events in the parable.

The landowner hires laborers for his vineyard about 6:00 a.m. for a denarius, which would be considered a fair day’s wage.  We are already given a hint of the landowner’s generosity as he engages laborers at varying hours during the day.  Could it be that the landowner has a compassionate concern for the unemployed and their families as opposed to actually needing them for the harvest?  The question is open-ended.

The fact of the matter is that from the purely human, logical point of view, they had reason to complain.  However, this parable is not about ethical and fair labor management, but rather about the radical nature of God’s generosity, compassion, and the in-breaking Kingdom.

  • Please be generous to the Catholic Campaign for Human Development Collection.  This special collection is this weekend, September 19 & 20, come to our attention in order to challenge us to bring HOPE to the poor (C.C.H.D.).

The Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD) allocates funds to community projects that promote the mission and vision of CCHD while adhering to the moral and social teachings of the Catholic Church.  Please visit www.usccb.org/cchd to view funding criteria and see a detailed list of the most recent grants and annual report.

  • Responding to the call of our American Bishops and our own Archbishop Etienne, our parish community of Prince of Peace is joining with all the parishes of the Archdiocese of Seattle to take up an “emergency collection” next weekend of September 26 & 27 for all people who have been affected by Hurricane Laura and the many wild fires from many different states.

Our hearts, too, are moved with pity for tens of thousands of our brothers and sisters in many states dealing with the on-going and horrific consequences of Hurricane Laura and wild fires.  This category 4 hurricane hit the Gulf Coast in a catastrophic and devastating way, bringing with its severe flooding and high winds; the same can be said to the many wild fires in many different states … which have taken human life, caused countless injuries, and severely damaged homes and property”.

Our prayerful and financial support is greatly needed.  The proceeds from this special collection will be distributed by the USCCB (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops) to Catholic Charities USA for direct disaster relief, and to support the pastoral and rebuilding efforts of the affected areas.  Thank you for generous response to the help of all the Victims of Hurricane Laura and many Wild Fires.

  • Our parish community of Prince of Peace will be taking part in the Called to Serve as Christ Campaign, beginning this month (September 20 – October 10). 

The Archdiocese has initiated a campaign to provide long-term funding for retirement and medical needs of priests and women religious, as well as support of individual parishes. A successful campaign will allow the Archdiocese to:

    • Establish a stronger position to provide a consistent, appropriate retirement for priests by moving from a pay-as-you-go system to a fully-funded model for priest pension and medical plans.
    • Increase the ability of women religious orders to care for their senior members while continuing their ministry to God’s people.
    • Give parishes more resources for their local ministries, services, works and programs.
    • Lead by example in prayer, action, and generosity.
    • Reinforce a dynamic faith for the next generation of Catholics in Western Washington.

You should have already received a package from Archbishop Paul Etienne this past week or will be in your mailbox very soon.  Please read through this material prayerfully and respond with a gift of Faith.  Archbishop Etienne will not able to contact you personally, although, he will do his part in this once a lifetime Capital Campaign and many of your generous parishioners from our own parish, also, have volunteered to give you a call to remind you about this campaign in the days and weeks ahead.  Please receive their calls in the spirit of generosity and partaking in an opportunity to strengthen and build up the Body of Christ in our local Church of Western Washington (Archdiocese of Seattle).

For more information on the campaign you can visit the Campaign website: https://www.calledtoserveaschrist.org/

Christ’s Peace, 
Fr. Phuong Hoang

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