Gather Around the Table, Together Again

Dear Sisters and Brothers –

In the last weeks, I’ve reintroduced Nana, my Sicilian grandmother, to the parish. She’s the one who lovingly required her entire family to gather around her dinner table the first Sunday of every month for a feast of the best veal cutlets, pizza, eggplant, spaghetti and meatballs, and, on the most special occasions, her cannoli. It was the place (the experience!) where we learned a lot about what it is to be family.

It seems that this was not an uncommon experience, given the number of emails I have received from parishioners sharing their stories. Elaine wrote, “No one ever explicitly said that our gatherings were mandatory, but no one ever missed being there. Our dinners instilled in us the power of ‘showing up.’  By making a commitment to do so, we were acknowledging that everyone present was a valued and significant member of the family and that we would always support each other.”

That’s part of what Home4Dinner at St. Ignatius is about ­— becoming more deeply a faith community that values one another. Of course, it’s an opportunity to meet new people, perhaps introduce ourselves to someone we’ve seen every week for months but have never spoken to. As important, by coming to this event (which in my mind is a priority for our parish) we say — if only implicitly, by praying together and having a meal together — that we support one another and want to walk with each other as we make this journey of life.

The success of Home4Dinner depends upon the participation of everyone — including you! Please plan to come for Mass and lunch, starting at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday, October 1. And bring a friend!  RSVP and/or volunteer today. 
RSVP and/or volunteer

For those who are unable to be here physically, please plan to join us online via livestream. And for those who wish, we will have an online activity for you that will mirror what will happen during lunch.

Please pray for the success of this event. And, as always,

oremus pro invicem.

Fr. Greg