On Sept. 8, 2017, the Catholic Bishops of Wisconsin issued the following statement in response to the Administration's announced termination of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program six months from now:

"The bishops of Wisconsin affirm their support for the continued protection of youth under the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Most of the nearly 8,000 DACA Wisconsinites, who are among almost 800,000 DACA young adults nationwide, know no other home than the U.S., having been brought here in their youth through no choice of their own.

We are honored to celebrate Catechetical Sunday today. Catholic parishes across the United States arerecognizing people who have agreed to use their God-given talents and abilities to help form our young peoplein the ways of faith. In many cases, including our parish cluster, catechists are volunteers. Many will tell you,however, that their reward comes from deepening their relationship with Jesus, especially through the youngpeople with whom they interact. There is something really special in observing young people “get it” when “it”comes to matters of faith. There is even greater reward knowing that you have made a difference in a youngperson’s life through witnessing to the Gospel.

Every now and again I field questions from people, typically from those who are aging, about suggestionsregarding preparing for the end of life. I’m sure countless volumes of books may be read which explain the bestmethods of making these preparations. I’m also confident, that at the core of any suggestions, is the reality tobe attentive to each person’s relationship with God and how that impacts their relationship with the peoplearound them. In other words, we do a really good part knowing the Gospel, but we also need to consider howwe do in integrating the Gospel message into our daily living.

Carrie Venner and the other teachers at our Saint Boniface Catholic School have been fervently working thisweek preparing for the upcoming academic year. I was a brief part of the in-service on Tuesday morning. Ourconversation included some remarks about the beginning of a school year and the fresh start which the new yearaffords. We reflected on our desire to give each and every student a new chance to begin anew; being sensitivethat their attitudes may have changed over the summer; hopefully for the better. We also hope students andfamilies give us and our programs a fresh start which can always bring about a greater good.

We find all sorts of paradoxes the longer we live. Along those lines, I encourage you, in the light of the Gospel, to make some really clear observations; expand your horizons. The state, nation and world are a lot bigger than southern Buffalo County. For example, the solar eclipse on Monday. In the wake of civil protests which indicate a lot of disunity, did you notice, at least for a few moments, the national unity around this lunar event? In other words, we really did come together as a nation. We were buying glasses, watching news, talking about and observing the eclipse…together! We really can be unified, it’s possible, and unity happened.

While visiting my parents on a recent “day off,” I was setting outdoors perusing YouTube listening to somesongs which bring back good and pleasant memories. My dad who is 71 years old, sat down next to me andinquired as to what I was doing. “You can find those songs on your phone?” he asked. “Sure, and I can showyou how to find them on your phone.” So I did. By no means is my dad technologically advanced, but he hasdone a pretty good job mastering text messaging with my siblings and I. So, after a few steps with his phone hewas listening to songs which helped him reminisce about his younger years. The time together was delightful.

Our current Staff members have been holding things together over the past several days in my vacation absence. Among them is Amanda Burrow, our Coordinator of Religious Education. She graciously agreed to composethe bulletin articles, focusing on Confirmation. While she was busy writing, I was busy reading, praying andquite simply relaxing. I took advantage of doing some reading about Pope Francis. In my reading, I wasreminded by a priest friend to not only learn about his mind, but also to learn his heart. I like that concept whenthinking about our pope, to learn his heart. Hopefully Pope Francis, like any good shepherd, will lead us todiscover an ever deeper relationship with the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ.

Greetings Confirmation Students, Parents and Parishioners,

Is it almost August? How many parents and students are thinking about the return of school? The fall season also brings Confirmation to two groups of students. We have students preparing for Confirmation in October and students who will be at the beginning of their journey towards to the sacrament of Confirmation. We pray for our students and Catechists to share and learn about the Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit.

Either I should read more books, or the ones I’m reading are really good. I’ve experiences some reawakening following myread of The Great Reformer: Francis and the Making of a Radical Pope by Austen Ivereigh. My read of his book, coincidedwell with my anniversary of ordination. The timing also fell along with our annual Priest Unity Days and our Diocese of LaCrosse priesthood ordinations. All of that lead in is to suggest that I’ve been reflecting upon 18 years of priesthood andeven back into the 8 years of studies before being ordained. And, to push back a little further, I’ve been reflecting upon myexperience of American Catholicism throughout my life. I join many people in realizing that our Church has changed; andwill continue to change. Each of us ought to be asking the question about how we are also changing and being faithful tothe one who called us from our Baptism.

Over the years I've been more motivated to grow things from the earth, like Cain in the Old Testament, and more disinterested from nurturing animals, like Abel in the Old Testament. And, in my decades of experimenting with various types of both indoor and outdoor plants, I'm settling on growing grass (the turf type). Nurturing turf also affords me to operate power equipment including a string trimmer, lawn mower and leaf blower; I do enjoy the hum of a fine-tuned engine! I also made a conscious decision over the winter to focus my energy on turf simply because, in some small and dramatic ways, I'm trying to reduce the busy distractions in my life. I really want to focus on fewer things and focus on them more clearly. Included in those things I'm more focused on is my own spiritual life, my priesthood and how I' m called to me a little more effective in serving the people of God.

I have become intrigued about our current Pope Francis. Some of my curiosity stems from the opinion of some people about his radical, progressive and liberal ideas. Some of my curiosity stems from his decision to depart from his Jesuit upbringing and, rather than embrace a Jesuit saint for his name, takes on the name of Francis, the founder of a different religious congregation. Some of my curiosity stems from his election as the first non-European pope in Catholic Church history; he's from Argentina in South America. Some of my curiosity is a consequence of his formative years in Argentina, his ordination class, his lived experience; a good portion of his ministry has been lived post Vatican II (1965).