Lenten Season
It’s hard to believe that the Lenten Season is here already. Lent begins next week on Ash Wednesday, February 22. I invite you to join us for one of the Masses which will be at 7am, 9am, 5pm and 7pm, or the Liturgy of the Word with distribution of ashes at Noon. The Stations of the Cross will be held at 6pm in the St. John Bosco courtyard on Fridays through the Season of Lent. Many people make Lenten promises, which is a common tradition and good strategy that helps us to develop and maintain personal disciplines and strengthen our relationship with God. As you do so this year, I encourage you to consider including the three pillars of Lent: prayer, fasting and almsgiving in your Lenten promises. May God give us His grace and strengthen us to be able to carry out our Lenten promises faithfully to the end.
The Dynamics of Prayer
This year, due to limited space and complicated logistics, we are not able to have a Lenten Mission in our parish. However, in place of that, I will be holding a weekly program called, “The Dynamics of Prayer.” There are five sessions in total beginning on Tuesday, February 28, from 6:15-7:15 pm in the 8th grade classroom (B100) of St John Bosco School. I encourage everyone to take advantage of this opportunity for spiritual growth and nourishment.
Parish Picnic
I invite you and your family and friends to come join us for our Annual St. Benedict Parish Picnic from 12:30pm-3:00pm this Sunday at Desert Breeze Park in Chandler. I am excited and looking forward to the fun. We will have free hot dogs, hamburgers, kids crafts, cornhole, Lip Sync contest, raffle baskets, music, and more. We have close to 200 parishioners who have signed up to attend as of today. Please remember to RSVP on the parish website (www.stbenedict.org) to enable us to plan for enough food for everyone. A big thanks to our Fr. Binta Knights of Columbus Council for sponsoring the event and providing the hot dogs and hamburgers. I look forward to seeing you at the event.
First St. Benedict Gala
Following the announcement the past two weekends, I am glad to inform you that tickets for our St. Benedict Gala will now be available beginning on Monday. The Gala is being sponsored by Double AA Builders, LTD and will be held on Saturday, March 18 at 6pm at the Hilton Phoenix Chandler Hotel. The evening will include cocktails, a plated dinner, keynote speaker Adria Renke, President of Brophy College Prep, auction and raffles. This is a fundraising event with proceeds going toward the construction of our Church. There are different sponsorship levels to choose from. I invite you and your company to consider being a sponsor by purchasing a table. I also invite families and groups to support us with a table sponsorship and have reserved seating with ten of your family members and friends. Please check our parish website for more details. To reserve a table or if you have questions, call the parish office at 480.961.1610 or send an email to
mfabilena@stbenedict.org
Charity and Development Appeal (CDA) Update
This week’s report for the Diocesan Charity and Development Appeal (CDA) shows that 108 families from our parish community have participated in the CDA with a total pledge of $28,084. This represents 33% of our total goal of $85,000. I thank those who have already participated and encourage those who have not participated yet to consider sending in their pledge or payment this week. The CDA envelopes are available at the entrance to the SJB MPR. Please give us a call in the parish office at 480.961.1610 if you have any questions or if you need help setting up your online payment.
Construction Update From the Building Committee
We have mixed excitement. A lot of internal work continues, but it is limited to those of us who are allowed in the building. We will continue to post photos which will illustrate the work. A/C work along with framing continue.
The new crosses for the bell tower and the upper front (west end) of the building have arrived. We are waiting for the City to inspect and approve the flooring support so we can install the flooring and construct the roof of the bell tower on the ground before we use a crane to lift it. Then we can install the large cross on top of the roof.
The framers and the mechanical teams continue their work on the interior of the building. The plumbers have begun installing the sprinkler system in the Nave. Inspection of all beams has been completed which allows the team to continue to move forward.
Scheduled for next week: work will begin on the construction of the bell tower roof. This will be constructed at ground level and raised, via crane, to be placed on top of the bell tower.
The upgrade to the offices and the existing restrooms continue. As this cost was not part of the project cost, the church contingency fund, which was allocated within the project budget, will be utilized to cover this cost.
Photos for this week are:
Choir loft framing, looking from the Sanctuary. Also shows the cry room (lower left), the main entryway (lower center), and the studs that will hide the south stairway to the choir loft.
Arch under the bell tower, looking north towards St Benedict. The gift shop door is on the left under the tower.
The new external crosses that have been delivered.
The Chapel A/C work underway.
Roofing beam above one of the walkways.
The sprinkler pipe above the Sanctuary. Look for the black pipe with the red cap along the ceiling.
Work continues in the Chapel. Compare this photo to when the Chapel will be completed