I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will beOne Flock, One Shepherd. _Jn10:16

With these words Jesus reminded the Jewish people that he came, not only for them, but for all peoples, Jews and Gentiles alike.  Beginning with Peter and the apostles, Jesus has appointed and anointed individual men to act in His Person; shepherding His people in obedience to The Good Shepherd.  All ages and places have been served by, and connected to, the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church through the ministry of these men.

I received the news of the reassignment of our local shepherd with great sadness and disappointment.  Archbishop Charles Chaput is the only Bishop my priesthood has ever known.  I believe Archbishop Chaput to be a good man of integrity, conviction, courage and kindness.  My guess is that most members of Holy Trinity and Our Lady of Visitation parishes were at least equally saddened by the news.

We belong to a community which is so much bigger than our own.  With the struggles of managing our own personal daily lives and parish life, it’s easy to forget our brothers and sisters in the faith around the country and around the world.  The people of Philadelphia will surely benefit from the leadership of the Archbishop as they seek to reconcile problems of the past and move on to a hopeful future.

All of the four Eucharistic Prayers call us to pray for our local bishop.  We will soon be praying for a new shepherd.  However, let us never cease to pray for those who have served us in the past. Let us escort His Excellency Charles J. Chaput OFM Cap. to Philadelphia with the power of our prayers and the knowledge of our and Christ’s love.

Vaya Con Dios Archbishop Charles, we will greatly miss you.

Fr. John Paul Leyba
Fr. Rick Nakvasil
Dcn. Ryan O’Neill
Holy Trinity Parish
Our Lady of Visitation Parish