New Catholic Parish Hall Dedication Brings Hope and Goodwill

My family and I were pleased to accept an invitation to attend the St. Mary’s Parish Hall Dedication.  It was an honor to support and mingle with my Catholic friends and to share the joys of my very good friend, Father Vern Smith.  Attending with the multitude was Bishop Richard Pates of the Diocese of Des Moines.  This building was long awaited and has now been realized.  Now, to sit in the triumph of St. Mary’s whose parishioners sacrificed so much to build I am humbled at the outcome.  Humbled in like manner as I am of the perseverance of our Mormon Pioneers and their pursuits in the cause of faith.

I reflect upon our own meetinghouse building expansion back in 1995.  Latter-day Saint buildings are designed and expected to be built with care and quality material.  Not long after the concrete foundation was laid we noticed cracking and buckling.  As it turns out the concrete was substandard and had to be entirely stripped from the grounds.  A new foundation had to be poured.  A new and strong foundation had to be lain in order to build a house upon it.  It was evident on this dedication day that a strong foundation both physically and spiritually was laid for the new Parish Hall at St. Mary’s.  It was an honor and privilege to attend this grand occasion.

This parish hall will serve the needs for both the Catholic community as well as the geographic community at large.  St. Mary’s opens up it’s doors to this facility to those needing the space for a variety of events such as weddings, meetings and other gatherings.  This is a wonderful gesture of outreach to the community.  It is a miracle from the heavens to sit down together as Catholics, Mormons and even other protestant faiths in love and respect yet without any ire.

Our world has taken a dangerous trend in matters of faith.  God has been removed from our schools.  Nobody want to establish a particular faith within public schools, but no one should strip the right and privilege of any individual from expressing personal prayer or some other harmless example of devotion.  When we remove He whom we are accountable to from our infrastructure and establishments then we are no longer in His favor and guidance.  Why?  It is because we have openly forgotten to acknowledge God and equally important our responsibility and accountability to Him.  This creates the world we live in today - a world of divisiveness.

I am eternally grateful that in our little community in southwest Iowa many of us have learned to put aside differences that we often use to offend our neighbor, and instead embrace one another in brotherly and sisterly love.  Not only do we celebrate our differences through goodwill but we also complement our liberties in this great land by learning to be one - out of many.  God loves a wondrous variety!  What better testing ground for a higher state of living, being and coexisting among Father’s many mansions than here in mortality striving to live one with another with all our complexities.

On behalf of the Shenandoah Ward of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and most of all on behalf of my family I thank the parishioners of St. Mary’s for their invitation, hospitality and good hearts.  That includes during this particular time of celebration and at all other times that form and style our growing relationships.  May the new Parish Hall edifice serve to strengthen the Catholic community and the Shenandoah community as a whole.  May it stand the test of these difficult and perilous times.  May it prove that faith and goodwill are timeless ingredients to the favor of God.

May we strive to look forward with hope and peace for the benefit of our families, communities, nation, world and most of all - our very souls.