Pastor's letter for this week
October 23, 2025
Dear Parishioners of St. Andrew,
I hope you are all doing well and staying strong! I’m sending this to you a day earlier than usual due to tomorrow’s Bach to Broadway concert in the evening as well as the Blessing of the Animals in the morning.
Yes, I know it’s the first game of the World Series (5:00pm) and we all want to see the Dodgers win, but the first game won’t make much difference so, come to the concert! This will be our 30th anniversary of the B2B concert so it’s a big deal. It’s not too late to get your tickets, please see the information below.
Also, please read carefully the announcement regarding All Saints Day and All Souls Day below since things are a little different this year due to it falling on Sunday.
I am also looking forward to the inauguration of our new electronic donation kiosks in the vestibule of the church. 25 years in, we are finally officially entering the 21st century as far as our donations go. Please see below.
Here is the rest of the news from the parish:
BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS - The feast of St. Francis of Assisi is in October. Our parish school will be having a special ceremony of blessing of the animals tomorrow, Friday, Oct. 24th at 9:15 a.m. It will be held on the south porch of the church (facing the school) as that area facilitates a nice procession. If you would like to have your pet blessed, please bring it that morning. Dogs should be kept on leashes and cats in cages. Other creatures?
IT'S TOMORROW: OUR ANNUAL BACH TO BROADWAY CONCERT!- Tomorrow, Friday, October 24 is the big day! Our annual Bach to Broadway Concert is here! The concert is at 7:30 p.m. (doors open at 7:00 p.m.) and tickets are now available on our parish website: www.standrewpasadena.org.
Tickets are also available at the Pastoral Center during regular office hours. Patrons are also greatly needed and may donate through the website as well.
This is an event not to be missed! Not only is it a beautiful concert and a community gathering event, but the funds also raised go directly to our Restoration Account for ongoing repairs and beautification of our church. There are several pending projects which are awaiting funding at this time, so the money raised by the concert is absolutely essential. Please invite family and friends and make an evening of it!
Please note that there will be NO evening Mass or Confessions tomorrow evening.
ALL SAINTS DAY- This beautiful Solemnity which celebrates the Church Triumphant in heaven with all those holy ones who came before us, famous as well as the unknown, is celebrated on Saturday, November 1st. Since it falls on a Saturday this year it will not be a Holy day of Obligation, but we will celebrate it on the Vigil (Oct. 31st) in Spanish and on Saturday morning at 8:15 a.m. in English. The evening Mass on Saturday is the Commemoration of All Souls (see below).
ALL SOULS DAY – November 2nd is the Commemoration of All Souls, which takes place this year on a Sunday this year and is a powerful celebration of the doctrine of Purgatory. We affirm our belief in the reality of sin as an offense against the awesome majesty of Almighty God, and in His just punishments. We affirm as well our belief that prayer is a powerful instrument before God's throne, that by it we are able to intercede for our deceased brothers and sisters.
As is our custom, we will pray especially for all those who died in our parish this past year. If you had a family member who passed away this year and the funeral was held here, then that person will be automatically on the list. If the funeral was held elsewhere and you’d like to include them in our prayer, please call the Pastoral Center at (626) 792-4183. This will be the last weekend to request this.
Since it is a Sunday this year, all Masses will be for the dead. However, our special annual Requiem Mass with the beautiful music of Gabriel Fauré will take place at an additional Mass at 7:00 p.m. and all those who had a death in their family this last year will receive a special invitation. I highly recommend coming to this beautiful Mass which will be celebrated solemnly.
November 2nd also begins our All Souls Novena so now is the time to begin to enroll your deceased loved ones in the Novena of Masses which will begin on November 3rd and continue for 9 days. The envelopes are available in the Pastoral Center and also in the church gift shop.
A NEW 21ST CENTURY WAY TO DONATE – Our new electronic donation kiosks will be up and running tomorrow in the vestibule of the church. These are extremely simple to use:
Touch the screen and you will see a donation screen with various amounts
Touch the amount desired
Tap your credit or debit card
Finished!
When one looks at the history of how the faithful have donated to the church we see that it has always changed. In the early Church donations were given in the form of food and livestock. Later, coins were begun to be brought to support the Church. In the more modern age, cash and checks were the norm. Over a decade ago, electronic giving began, and many parishioners give their tithes in that fashion.
But cash has always been a primary way to give. Until very recently. Many people today, especially the young, simply do not carry much if any cash and likely do not use checks at all. All their financial transactions are electronic. This has presented a challenge for the parish as we had no easy way to handle electronic donations. Until now. Please check out the electronic kiosks in the vestibule. There are two and, if they are well used, we will add to the other side vestibules as well.
As always, thank you for your generosity!
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED! – Right now I’m looking for help with assisting families to plan funerals. This ministry is called “Bereavement Ministry” and is one of the less visible but very necessary ministries in the parish. The members of this ministry work with the families who have suffered a loss in order to plan the Funeral Vigil and Mass and then assist at the funeral itself helping the lectors, offertory procession, etc. If you are interested in helping out, please contact me directly at: FrGonzalez@aol.com or (626) 792-4183. Thank you!
PRAY THE ROSARY! – During this month of the Holy Rosary it is especially worthwhile to pray the rosary as a family each day or at least a few times a week. Particularly during this month of Respect Life, please pray for our elected representatives. May they always govern with a concern for the common good of all and especially the most vulnerable of our society, the unborn.
RESPECT LIFE MONTH – October is also designated by the American Bishops as Respect Life Month. There are flyers by the doors of the church which will help all of us to do more to foster the respect of all human life from the moment of conception to natural death. There is also further information in all the bulletins this month as well as links to pro-life resources. Since it is also the month of the Holy Rosary, I especially recommend praying at least a decade of your daily rosary for an end to abortion in our land.
In Christ and St. Andrew,
Father Gonzalez
Virtue & Tradition Series
ETIQUETTE AND MANNERS IN CHURCH
CENTENNIAL ORGAN AT SAINT ANDREW CHURCH
HOW TO RECITE THE HOLY ROSARY
PROCEDURE FOR THE RECEPTION OF HOLY COMMUNION