You will remember where you were and what you were doing.  Earlier today, Thursday May 8th at 12:09pm Eastern Time, 6:09 in Rome, white smoke billowed from the small chimney of the Sistine Chapel high above St. Peter’s Square after the fourth ballot of the 2025 Conclave to replace the late Pope Francis. 

It was over an hour later that the world was introduced to Pope Leo XIV, the first American Pope!  Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost on his election. 

Immediately, the Queens church bells rang out for 10 minutes in celebration (you can listen over on our Facebook page), and the black bunting mourning the death of Pope Francis was quickly replaced with white and gold, the colors of the Vatican flag. 

An American Pope?!  Are we dreaming?  May God bless our new Holy Father Pope Leo XIV.  May he shepherd us along the path of our earthly pilgrimage to heaven and happiness with humility and fidelity.

This weekend, we pray for all mothers, grandmothers, Godmothers, foster mothers and mother figures, living and deceased.  We bless these women for the life, love and sacrifice they have given for those under their care.

My mother Rose Ann is seen above with our family in 1976.  I am the youngest one in my father’s arms.  Mom passed in August 2012 and my grandmas went to God long before that, but they are not forgotten.  I exist because they did.  It is the same for all of us.  Where would we be without moms?  It’s simple.  We wouldn’t. 

Mothers are where we first learn unconditional love.  They love us in the womb.  They love us when we keep them up all night as infants, and again, as teens who don’t ‘call in’ or come home by curfew.  They love us when we win and when we fail, kiss it better when we fall, and hug it better when all seems lost.  This love is all too often taken for granted and all too little imitated in our dealings with other people.  If your mother is alive, you’re alive because of her.  Tell her how much she means to you.  If your mother has passed, she is alive because of Jesus.  You can say a prayer asking Jesus to give her the hug you wish you could give her yourself.   

Here is a DSA pledge total update as of May 7:

Pledged:  $232,162 (105%)

Donors:  501 (33% of parishioners) 

Goal:  $220,214

‘Thank you!’ to the 501 Queens donors who have stepped forward to help us get across the finish line.  If you haven’t yet given but feel inclined to do so, please make a gift.  Anything we raise over goal is split 50/50 with the Diocese.  

DSA accounts for 2/3 of the diocesan operating budget and funds 100 programs and ministries that are vital to the ongoing work of the church across the Diocese.  DSA helps Catholic Charities achieve its mission to life up the least among us.  It pays for the care of our future priests and senior priests, prison and jail ministry, outreach to the elderly and the homebound, pro life, marriage and family ministry, and so much more.  

Queens invites ALL graduates of the Class of 2025 and your families to be our guest for the Annual Graduation Mass and Brunch at 11:00am on Sunday May 18.  This includes high school, homeschool, college, university and post graduate studies.

Please wear your cap and gown to Church.  Graduates will process in with me so meet me in the back before Mass to line up. 

Call the parish office at 517.783.2748 by Monday May 12 to RSVP so we can give a head count to the caterer. 

All Queens families with school age children are invited to the Annual Family Fun Fest sponsored by the Faith Formation Department on Sunday May 18 on the south side of the Queens parking lot.  There will be inflatables, a free hot dog and hamburger lunch and snow cones from the Kona Ice Truck!  This is free and open to everyone!

We can always use some help with the inflatables, the lunch and clean up.  If you are willing to spend a couple hours helping out, please use the Sign Up Genius link found here to take a shift:

Join us next Sunday May 18 at 3pm for a free piano concert given by my father Laurence MacDonald.  His program will feature George Gershwin’s ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ and many other favorites from the great classical composers and from the Golden Age of Hollywood!

There will be a free will offering collected by the St. Maria Goretti Circle of the Ladies Guild to benefit the parish.  The ladies will also host a reception afterward in Vincentian Hall. 

Larry MacDonald is also a published author and he will be selling and signing copies of his latest book during the reception.  It is called “Best Picture:  A Critical Look at the Academy Award Winning Films 1927-2022.  It gets a five-star review on Amazon!  My dad also wrote “The Invisible Art of Film Music, a Comprehensive History”.  Second only to his love of music, my dad loves movies.  His books combine the two, commenting on the history of film and soundtracks from major motion pictures.

“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teaching” (Heb 13:8-9).

Fr. Tim MacDonald

Pastor