Dear Brothers and Sisters of St. Andrew the Apostle,

For information about all of the news and events at the parish, please read the bulletin or our parish website. Here are some upcoming events at St. Andrew's:

• Our second collection this weekend is our annual parish needs collection, where we collect donations for a parish project. This year, all donations collected will go towards repaving our parking lot, which is over thirty years old and in need of replacement. The work on the parking lot will begin in June after school has ended. More details about how it will affect parking at the parish will follow in the coming weeks. Don't worry, we will still be able to park at the parish! The walk might be longer some days.
• There will be a Mother's Day Bake Sale after all of the Masses this weekend to benefit our high schoolers going to workcamp this summer.
• The youth group finale will also be tonight (May 11) at 6:30 PM. More information can be found here.
• The next Senior's Group gathering is this Monday, May 13, after the 12:00 noon Mass in the Padre Pio Room. Cathy Corolla will be a guest speaker. More information can be found on our website.
• "Forks, Corks, and Kegs", our biggest school fundraiser, is next Saturday, May 18, at 6:00 PM, on the parish field. It includes samples from local breweries, wineries, and food trucks, a live band, as well as a silent auction and raffles. Your ticket includes all-you-can-eat and drink, plus a tasting glass. Tickets can be purchased here.
• Our final concert of the season for the St. Andrew's Concert Series will be Pentecost Sunday, May 19, at 4:00 PM. Our Director of Music Ministry, Mike Murphy, will be playing, accompanied by our traditional choir. The title of the concert is "Christus Vincit" ("Christ conquers"), so fitting for the last Sunday of the Easter season when we celebrate Christ's victory over sin and death. As always, the concert is free with a reception afterwards in Hannan Hall. Free will donations are gratefully accepted and will support future concerts at St. Andrew's. Come and enjoy wonderful music glorifying the Lord! More information on our website.
• This is the 50th Jubilee of the Diocese of Arlington. In celebration of this event, the Diocese is hosting the Diocesan Jubilee Fest on June 8, 2024, at the Warren County Fairgrounds in Front Royal. It will include a Marian procession, Mass with Bishop Burbidge, rides, a petting zoo, live music, fireworks, and more! The event is free. A complimentary meal is provided to all who register here.

A lot is going on in May, as you can see above. May also includes graduations, our Confirmations at St. Andrew's, Memorial Day, and, as we celebrate this weekend, Mother's Day. In 1914, President Woodrow Wilson declared the second Sunday of May to be Mother's Day. It is fitting to set aside a day for our mothers, for we recognize the influence they have in our life. Ultimately, we thank God for the gift of our life, but the essential, life-giving role of our mothers in giving us life grants them an unsurpassed dignity. Ideally, mothers are nurturing, protecting, and encouraging. They raise their children with charity, joy, and patience. That being said, we know that our mothers sometimes fall short of this ideal, and some fall far short, but even where mothers struggle the most, we trust that they do the best with what they have because the love they have for their children is unsurpassed.

Here's a brief article with 12 quotes from prominent Catholics about motherhood. Included are the Blessed Virgin Mary's words to Juan Diego during the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe: “Do not be troubled or weighed down with grief. Do not fear any illness or vexation, anxiety, or pain. Am I not here who am your Mother? Are you not under my shadow and protection? Am I not your fountain of life? Are you not in the folds of my mantle? In the crossing of my arms? Is there anything else you need?”

The Blessed Virgin Mary is the perfect model of motherhood, for she loves like no other, and motherhood is perfected in love (as is every aspect of humanity). In this month when we honor our mothers, let us pray to Our Lady that she may intercede for all women so that they may live out their call to motherhood - whether biological, spiritual, or psychological - with dignity and charity for the good of all....

Christian Njodzela, our seminarian, is here for a few weeks before he begins his summer assignment in June. Please be sure to say hello to him! Also, as we have been doing the past few years, we will host a seminarian-to-be-named-later for the summer. I know that you will make him feel welcome....

A few weeks ago, a school teacher in Oregon took a picture of an interesting bird when he was out hiking. When he posted pictures of the bird on social media, serious birdwatchers recognized that it was a male blue rock thrush, the first sighting of this bird in the United States. The educated guess is that it was blown off course by a storm or found its way onboard a cargo ship that was traveling to Oregon. Then, only a few days after this discovery, another blue rock thrush was found on an island off of San Francisco, about 500 miles from the first sighting. Since they were both males and the only two examples of the species ever found in the United States, some assume it is the same bird, who if that is the case has a penchant for flying long distances.

I like birdwatching (or birding). I take it more seriously than the average person, but not as seriously as most birders. So when this story was pointed out to me, I was excited to see it. But then, as only a human can do, I felt sorry for the bird. It was hundreds of miles from its home, and an ocean away from any other birds of its species. It had to feel alone. of course, it's unlikely a bird feels loneliness like we do, but I'm sure there's something to it.

Then, a few days later, the hosts of a podcast I listen to talked about endlings: the last animal of an extinct species to die. For example, the last passenger pigeon in the United States was named Martha. She died in Cincinnati in 1914 and was sent to the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. Extinction is part of our history. Human activity has led to the extinction of some species, while others died out from other natural causes. Paleontologists tell us that there have been five mass extinctions of many species in the history of our planet, the last being 99 million years ago, so we didn't play a role in that.

There is a desire to end the extinction of all species. We want everything to live on for all eternity. It's a natural desire. All things are created by God and are inherently good because of that reason alone. We don't want to see the end of a species, to know that a bird or a frog or a fish no longer exists. Part of me wants to capture that blue rock thrush and send it back to Asia to be with its friends.

But extinction is a part of the natural cycle as the history of the earth has taught us. It's a reminder that we must not cling to the world, for the world is passing away (1 John 2:15-17). There will be a new heaven and a new earth at the Second Coming (Revelations 21:1). Perhaps it will have passenger pigeons, wooly mammoths, and pterodactyls. Whether they do or not, those who persevere in the faith and gain the reward of eternal life will be perfectly fulfilled, for our homeland is in heaven. So let us care for God's creation while on earth, for the dignity it has and the goodness it will serve to our children, all the while recognizing that it is a mere shadow of the glory that is to come.

And pray for lonely birds. 😊

Know of my prayers for you. Please pray for me as well!

In Christ,

Fr. Wagner