With great joy and gratitude, I would like to welcome Fr. John Toan Vu, SVD, who joins our parish community as our new Parochial Vicar.

Fr. Toan comes to us as a member of the congregation of the Society of the Divine Word, bringing with him a missionary heart, a spirit of service, and a desire to walk with God’s people in faith and love. We are grateful to God for sending him to Holy Spirit Parish to share in our parish life, our ministries, and our mission.

If one Sunday any one of the clergy stood up before you and said these words about himself you would rightly get up and walk away. But these words aren’t coming from just anyone, they are coming from the Incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ. The very one who raised the dead, healed the sick, walked on water and was resurrected three days after the very death He predicted.

As we celebrate the Fourth of July and mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, we do so with hearts filled with gratitude to God. This important milestone invites us not only to celebrate our nation’s history, but also to remember the blessings, sacrifices, responsibilities, and hopes that have shaped our country.

In Matthew 10:17-18, Jesus said, "But beware of people, for they will hand you over to courts and scourge you in their synagogues, and you will be led before governors and kings for my sake as a witness before them and the pagans."

A friend once shared with me a moment that revealed something deeply true about our world today. She was walking downtown when she noticed a teenager sitting alone on a curb, head buried in his hands. People hurried past him—busy, distracted, unsure, perhaps afraid to get involved.  She felt the same hesitation: Should I stop? Should I keep going? What if I say the wrong thing?

If one Sunday any one of the clergy stood up before you and said these words about himself you would rightly get up and walk away. But these words aren’t coming from just anyone, they are coming from the Incarnate Son of God, Jesus Christ. The very one who raised the dead, healed the sick, walked on water and was resurrected three days after the very death He predicted.