Dear friends,
Today, we celebrate the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, and Jesus’ message to his followers is even more demanding than his previous “hard sayings.” We hear in the Gospel of Luke that “anyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple” (Luke 14: 33). This includes our parents, siblings, children and even our own lives. The question for us to ponder: Do we give God the ultimate place in our life?
This weekend, we celebrate Labor Day and thank God for the ability to labor with Him in continuing the work of creation. We pause for a moment and pay tribute to the contributions and achievements of American workers whose faces we might never see. We also pray for those who are unable to work due to illness and for those who have lost their jobs during these trying times. We continue to ask God to watch over us and protect us from all dangers.
We have received news of Fr. Donald Mainardi’s passing on Sunday, August 28, 2022. His health having declined for a number of years, we were fortunate to celebrate his 86th birthday on 22 August. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, he was touched by the kindness of the priests and religious sisters of his youth. As a result, he joined the Third Order Regular of St. Francis and was ordained a priest on June 8, 1963. Thirty years later, he was incardinated into the Diocese of Orlando (1993). He ministered in a number of parishes as a teacher, a chaplain in hospitals and for the military, as a parish priest, administrator, director, and pastor. Following his retirement in 2003, he settled in Rockledge and began to help the St. John’s community on weekends. Many of us fondly remember his stories of the foibles and follies of his Italian upbringing and experiences as a priest.
We are grateful to God for Fr. Donald and for his service to our community. A gentle man and a fine preacher to the people of God, Fr. Donald touched the hearts of so many of our parishioners. In gratitude for his service, St. John’s will host a funeral Mass for Fr. Don on Friday, September 16, 2022 at 10 a.m. The viewing will be held from 9 to 10 a.m. and, following the Mass, a reception in the Holy Cross Hall. Fr. Don will then be interred at Priests of the Lord Cemetery, San Pedro Spiritual Development Center, 2400 Dike Road, Winter Park. Please mark your calendars and join us in celebrating this gentle soul. May his soul rest in the peace of Christ.
This weekend, we are also blessed to celebrate Fr. Vincent’s second anniversary of priestly ordination. Despite some time of delays due to the Covid pandemic, he was ordained on September 5, 2020. We are grateful to God for his calling and for his service to us at St. John the Evangelist. As we wish him congratulations, let us continue to pray that God will bless him with many years of committed service to the people of God. In his honor, we will declare Monday a holiday. How about that?
Have a blessed week!
With love,
Fr. John