Little Falls Catholic Community Newsletter — March/April 2021

Little Falls

Catholic Community

Our Capital Campaign

Living Stewardship and Continuing Our Parish Legacy

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hanks to the generosity in both prayer and donated funds, the Our Lady of Lourdes repairs — supported by the 2020 Capital Campaign — are now underway. In total, 221 households contributed more than $760,000 — which surpassed the campaign goal of $600,000. Additional funds will be held for any future or unforeseen repairs.

“These repairs are critical to the structure of Our Lady of Lourdes,” says Fr. Ben Kociemba. “With the building nearing 100 years old, we are excited to have this work completed to help maintain one of the most beautiful churches in the St. Cloud Diocese.”

The majority of the work will be done by a contractor from the St. Cloud area who specializes in repairs on churches with the same type of architecture as Our Lady of Lourdes. This was an important consideration

in choosing a contractor. Parishioners Greg and Michelle Blaine, who helped lead the campaign as Chairpersons, are thankful to be members at Our Lady of Lourdes and to have continued on page 2

M ARCH /A P R I L

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St. Mary’s • Our Lady Of Lourdes • Holy Family

Capital Campaign continued from front cover played a part in this important project. Fr. Ben appreciates all their work and their trustful, servant leadership.

“The repairs and renovation to our church will provide a viable place of worship for many generations to come,” the couple says.

The repairs include critical fixes to the towers, steeples and roof. There has been a problem with leaks causing water damage to the ceilings and bricks, as well as discolorations. The bells will be upgraded for automation and to be able to play more songs.

The main entrance, sacristy, stairwells and parts of the sanctuary floor will also be getting new carpet and tile. The stained glass windows need repair, as they are showing signs of deterioration. The school building’s new boiler project is also in need of completion. Lastly, there are utility issues to address in bringing the building and parking lot up to code. It is hoped that everything will be wrapped up by June.

Fr. Ben has been amazed by people’s generosity. He is so thankful that people are willing to support the upkeep of our parish, which helps serve the Church’s mission to make disciples.

“I just want to give a big thanks to all the parishioners, from the bottom of this heart,”

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Fr. Ben says. “They are living stewardship.

They are stepping forward to take care of what God has given them. Thanks, also, to the Holy Family and St. Mary’s parishioners for their gifts and prayers.”

Our beautiful Campaign Prayer perfectly encompasses Fr. Ben’s and the Blaines’ hopes for this project: “Almighty God, we faithfully acknowledge your mercy and generosity. Give us the grace to respond to your call for discipleship and evangelization. As humble stewards, we fully invest ourselves in attaining the goal of our Capital Campaign with loving generosity for You and future generations. With the intercession of Our Lady of Lourdes, grant us all that we need to complete your mission, through Christ our Lord Amen.”

Just as those who came before us and built our area churches wanted a beautiful place to worship, it is our responsibility to treat these buildings with respect. They worked hard to make these buildings possible, and this is our chance to continue that legacy. We look forward to enjoying the beauty of Our Lady of Lourdes for many years to come.

“We are here to serve the mission of making disciples,” Fr. Ben says. “The building is meant to serve the mission.”

A Letter From Our Pastor

A Month and Year to HonorSt. My Dear Friends in Christ,

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ur Lord and Savior Jesus Christ chose to enter the world through the human family. He came as an infant born into the marriage and home of the two holiest human creatures who ever lived — Joseph and Mary. At a time when our world and our Church needs family and faithful disciples now more than ever, could there be a more fitting time to venerate the man who gave his life and his love to the Blessed Mother and the Son of God? Pope Francis has declared 2021 the Year of St. Joseph in honor of the 150th anniversary of the saint’s proclamation as patron of the Universal Church. Our pope said he established the year so that “every member of the faithful, following his example, may strengthen their life of faith daily in the complete fulfillment of God’s will.”

As Christians, we are blessed to have Mary as our spiritual mother and Joseph as our spiritual father.

Just as Mary guides us from heaven with loving devotion, St. Joseph also diligently provides for the needs of the family of God, the Holy Catholic Church.

Because of his special role as foster-father of the Child Jesus, St. Joseph has merited singular privileges in heaven unmatched by any saint aside from the Blessed Virgin Mary.

To give some modern-day perspective to the significance of this special year, Pope Francis has said the coronavirus pandemic heightened his desire to reflect on St. Joseph, as so many people during the pandemic have made hidden sacrifices to protect others, just as St. Joseph quietly protected and cared for Mary and Jesus.

“Each of us can discover in Joseph — the man who goes unnoticed, a daily, discreet and hidden presence — an intercessor, a support and a guide in times of trouble,” the pope wrote.

At the end of the First Vatican Council in 1870, Pope Pius IX declared St. Joseph the patron of the Universal Church. He is also the patron of carpenters, workers, fathers, and a happy death because he died in the presence of Mary and Jesus.

The title of Joseph’s March 19 feast day is “Husband of Mary.” Pope Pius XII later declared May 1 to be the feast of St. Joseph the Worker to counteract the Communist May Day holiday.

Joseph

As Catholics pray and reflect on the life of St. Joseph this year, they also have opportunities to gain a plenary indulgence or remission of all temporal punishment due to sin. An indulgence can be applied to oneself or to a soul in purgatory. An indulgence requires a specific act, defined by the Church, as well as sacramental confession, Eucharistic Communion, prayer for the pope’s intentions, and full detachment from sin.

Special indulgences during the Year of St. Joseph can be received through various prayers and actions, including praying for the unemployed, entrusting one’s daily work to St. Joseph, performing a corporal or spiritual work of mercy, or meditating for at least 30 minutes on the Lord’s Prayer.

As we devote 2021 to St. Joseph’s honor, we will undoubtedly unlock many special graces — not only for our parish, but for each of the faithful who increase their devotion to him during this special year. There is no greater model than St. Joseph from whom we can learn how to live virtuously in imitation of Jesus and Mary.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Fr. Ben Kociemba, Pastor To read more about Pope Francis’ declaration on the Church granting plenary indulgences for the Year of St. Joseph, visit www.bit.ly/StJoseph2021 Pope Francis’ Prayer to St. Joseph Hail, Guardian of the Redeemer, Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

To you God entrusted His only Son; in you Mary placed her trust; with you Christ became man.

Blessed Joseph, to us too, show yourself a father and guide us in the path of life.

Obtain for us grace, mercy, and courage, and defend us from every evil. Amen.

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St. Mary’s • Our Lady Of Lourdes • Holy Family

Embracing the True Meanin A

bout 10 years ago, when Fr. Mark Botzet was a layperson, he had a profound dream that ultimately changed the course of his life forever.

“One night, I dreamed that I was raising the Host in the orans pose just before elevating the Host,” he says. “I woke up that morning, thinking that I should consider the priesthood. It was one of three similar dreams I had. When I mentioned these dreams to Bishop Kettler, he thought that the dreams were a prompting from God to continue my discernment at major seminary, preparing me for the priesthood.”

On June 15, 2019, Bishop Kettler ordained Fr. Botzet, and now he serves our parish family with a generous heart as our Parochial Vicar.

As he looks forward to being the main celebrant for the Sacred Triduum services at our parish for the first time, he remembers how Our Lord spoke to him years ago.

“Holy Thursday is all about the source and summit of our Catholic faith, which is the Eucharist,” he says. “To me personally, this is the most important aspect of the Triduum. It reminds me of my vocation story. I love Holy Thursday!”

As a priest, Fr. Botzet also savors Good Friday and all that it signifies.

“The Good Friday service begins in silence, and then we priests kneel and lay prostrate on the floor,” he says. “This also occurs at the ordination to the Diaconate and to the Priesthood. There are many different meanings behind it. However, for me, lying prostrate reminds me that I need to submit myself to Our

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Ordained on June 15, 2019, Fr. Mark Botzet now serves our parish family with a generous heart as our Parochial Vicar.

He looks forward to being the main celebrant for the Sacred Triduum services at our parish for the first time.

Lord, and acknowledge that He is in control, not me. On Good Friday, Jesus commits His life into the hands of the Heavenly Father on Calvary, which points us to the altar and the Sacrifice of the Mass. These are all important aspects of my vocation as a priest.”

Fr. Botzet’s inspiring testimony shows us how the rich liturgies, traditions, symbols, and rituals

ng of the

Easter Triduum

of our faith can speak to our souls in varying ways, all throughout our lives. By participating actively in Lenten and Holy Week liturgies, devotions, and Masses, the faithful can receive bountiful graces to enable them to live life to the fullest.

“When we look at salvation history, we see that God’s people have always struggled and suffered,” he says. “In our daily lives, we all endure a lot of trials and crosses, but along with the cross comes the Resurrection. This is huge because it shows us that Christ conquers all things. Death is not the end! There is great hope and joy in Him, and He is always there for us.

Coming to church gives us a clear mind so we can effectively deal with various trials in our life.”

The various rituals which are woven into the Easter Vigil also help the beauty of Catholicism shine forth in all of its splendor.

“The blessing of the Easter fire dispels the darkness of evil,” Fr. Botzet says. “As we bring the Easter candle into the church, and as each

When we look at salvation history, we see that God’s people have always struggled and suffered. In our daily lives, we all endure a lot of trials and crosses, but along with the cross comes the Resurrection. This is huge because it shows us that Christ conquers all things. Death is not the end! There is great hope and joy in Him, and He is always there for us. Coming to church gives us a clear mind so we can effectively deal with various trials in our life.

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person lights their own individual candle, the darkness is increasingly cast away, which signifies the light overcoming the darkness. I also love the wording used during the blessing of the Easter water, because it comes from salvation history. It recalls Noah’s flood, the parting of the Red Sea, and Jesus being baptized by St. John. These are all elements that come into play and bring us up to where we are today.”

Although the Easter services are lengthy, all are encouraged to come to them and be renewed in their faith.

“Taking a break from our daily routine and coming to the Triduum liturgies can fill us with Easter joy and hope,” Fr. Botzet says. “I encourage parents to bring their children as well and not worry about if they make some noise. The Triduum liturgies are more exciting for the children than regular Masses, and there is much for them to see and learn.”

Fr. Mark Botzet 5

St. Mary’s • Our Lady Of Lourdes • Holy Family

Prayer:

COME TO KNOW THE LORD

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e make constant reference to the “three Ts” of stewardship, recognizing that to truly live as a stewardship people, we must give God the first fruits of our time, talent, and treasure. It is easy for us to see the concrete reality of the latter two. If we are to give God our talents, we must first recognize with what talents He has blessed us, and then use those talents for His greater glory. And as we continue our stewardship path, we know very well that our money is something concrete. When we recognize it as a gift from God, we know that we are to give a certain amount back to Him. It is easy for many of us to understand what it means to give God our talent and our treasure.

But what does it mean to give God a portion of our time? This idea is much harder to grasp, and yet giving to God the first fruits of our time is just as important as the other two. And if we understand this idea and implement it properly, our stewardship of time will serve as the very foundation from which our stewardship of talent and treasure bear fruit.

When we talk about stewardship of time, we are referring to prayer time. Prayer is of the utmost importance in a disciple’s life, and in the Diocese of Wichita’s The Pillars of Parish Stewardship, it is also one of the four pillars of stewardship.

Does this mean that in order to be true disciples, we should say the Our Father three times a day or pray a daily Rosary? Not particularly. Of course, we must not discount the merits of prayer, as the Church in her wondrous wisdom has given us certain prayers to help guide our lives. However, the disciple’s deep life of prayer involves even more.

St. John Chrysostom explains, “You should not think of prayer as being a matter of words. It is a desire for God, an indescribable devotion … the gift of God’s grace” (Hom 6). That is, if we look at prayer as a mere regimen that we must follow every day, then we do not see to the heart of it. The reality is that prayer will take on different forms for every one of us. One person may have a deep devotion to the 6

Rosary, and in praying it, he is closely united to the Lord. Another person might feel deeply connected to Him through constant conversation – in the car on the way to work, before bed at night, or at other hours throughout the day. Meanwhile, for another person, a daily or weekly hour of silence before the Lord in Eucharistic Adoration is the best place for him to offer the Lord his heart. No matter how we choose to pray, we must get to the root of it all. If we are to truly give God our time, it must be a gift of ourselves. It must come from the heart and not take the form of mere word repetition. If we offer an Our Father without meditating on the words, it can simply become recitation.

The point of prayer is to get to know the Lord. If we are committed to living as His disciples, we must be on personal terms with Him. The first disciples didn’t know what it meant to pray the Rosary. And until the Lord taught them the Our Father, they couldn’t pray that either. But they were definitely true stewards of their time. They walked with Jesus, talked with Jesus, and ate meals with Him. He was their best friend, and the more they got to know Him, the more they longed to serve Him. The same holds true for us today. We can walk with Him, talk with Him and sit with Him, just as they did. And He wants us to do this, too. St. John Chrysostom proclaims, there is nothing more worthwhile: “For prayer unites us to God as His companions” (Hom 6). How can we serve Him if we don’t know Him? If we truly desire to be a servant people, we must talk to Him whom we wish to serve.

We must get to know Him. Then, most assuredly, we will fall in love with Him. We will undoubtedly desire nothing more than to serve Him. Recognize Jesus as your best friend and spend time with Him as such. He is the Lord, the Creator of the Universe, without whom we would cease to exist.

Bring Him your cares and concerns, your excitement, your worry, your fears and your frustrations, and allow Him to comfort you. He is there, and He wants to speak with you.

Meet Our Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion to the Homebound A Beautiful Ministry Sharing The Greatest Gift of Our Faith

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he entire Catholic Mass is a gift. For those of us who are able to attend each week, we may take for granted the most important part of Mass — that is, receiving the Body and Blood of Christ. For those in our community who can’t leave home, receiving the Eucharist is always a gift and a joy.

Our Lady of Lourdes parishioner Jeanette Ploof spent more than 15 years bringing the Eucharist and a friendly face to those who were homebound and in care centers across Little Falls. She spent some of her Fridays, Sundays and other times during the week delivering this important gift. She saw a need, so she did what she could to help.

Jeanette passed away on Sept. 8, 2020, at the age of 87 and left a space in the ministry of bringing the Eucharist to homebound parishioners. Jeanette’s daughter, Jean Grams, says this ministry was so important to her mother.

“She never left them without prayer and people were always so happy to see her,” Jean says.

All of the ministries in which Jeanette served our parish and community are a testament to her deep faith. Jean says her mother just always believed that you should give back. In her younger years, she taught religious education. She also made the baptismal garments, ran the Fancy Works booth at the yearly bazaar, quilted, served in the Mission Circle, worked on funeral luncheons, and did a lot of organizing over the phone for various ministries.

“She was gone more than she was home,” Jean says. “She just always wanted to make

Our Lady of Lourdes parishioner Jeanette Ploof spent more than 15 years bringing the Eucharist and a friendly face to those who were homebound and in care centers across Little Falls. She passed away in September 2020.

sure others were cared for. She was a selfless person and a special, special lady.”

Jeanette was truly tireless in her commitment to serving others. With her passing, there is a need for someone to continue her work of bringing the Eucharist to those who are homebound throughout the Little Falls area. continued on back cover

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People do really crave the Eucharist, for Jesus to be brought to them in their home. They are so appreciative of it. It is such a beautiful ministry.

Michele Rosha 7

St. Mary’s • Our Lady Of Lourdes • Holy Family Parish Office: 208 West Broadway Little Falls, MN 56345 (320) 632-8243 www.littlefallscatholic.org

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion to the Homebound continued from page 7 Peg (and Jeff) Winkelman, who would occasionally substitute for Jeanette, says this ministry is so rewarding because we are bringing people Jesus, the Greatest Gift. She shares a story of bringing the Eucharist to a woman with Alzheimer’s — the woman was very agitated when Peg first entered her room at the nursing home.

“When given the Eucharist the woman calmed down, closed her eyes and raised her hands in perfect reverence,” Peg says. “Jesus used our presence to bring His presence to her. Even in a time of confusion, we can still recognize and acknowledge His presence.”

Peg hopes that more people will volunteer to bring the Eucharist to the homebound. She says this is a beautiful way to give of your time

and represent our faith community, which is a wonderful act of stewardship.

Michele Rosha also brings the Eucharist to those in hospice. She also agrees that bringing the Eucharist to those who are homebound is such a gift.

“People do really crave the Eucharist, for Jesus to be brought to them in their home,” Michele says. “They are so appreciative of it. It is such a beautiful ministry.”

Jeanette’s daughter, Jean, hopes people will volunteer to fill this role that was so important to her mother. She says after her mother’s passing, family members found a paper she had written in 1949. In it, she wrote, “God alone is the one to Whom we must dedicate ourselves no matter what state of life we choose. We must give our lives to Him.”

If you would like to serve as an Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion to the Homebound, please contact your parish office — Holy Family at 320-632-5720, Our Lady of Lourdes at 320-632-8243, and St. Mary’s at 320-632-5640.