Pastor's letter for this week
March 7, 2025
Dear Parishioners of St. Andrew,
I hope you are all doing well and staying strong! Today is the feast day of Ss. Felicitas & Perpetua so we wish our friends and neighbors in San Marino a happy feast day!
This week began with a very sad event: the death of our wonderful parishioner, Mr. Carl Paneno. Carl was called home to God on Monday. More information below.
We’ve had a very strong beginning of Lent with great Mass attendance on Ash Wednesday. Yesterday we began our daily noon Mass. I am hoping the attendance will grow throughout Lent. By the way, for those families who volunteered their children to serve at the altar at the noon Mass, please just have them show up to the sacristy 15 minutes prior. Thanks!
This morning we had a beautiful first Stations of the Cross along with our monthly Holy Hour on First Fridays. This afternoon we will have the evening Stations of the Cross at 5:30 p.m. in English and then at 7:15 p.m. in Spanish followed by all night Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. Please remember also the Lenten soup nights (details below).
This past week our school had the WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) accreditation visit. This takes place every 6 years and is a very extensive process of checking on the progress of our school in a variety of areas. Yesterday afternoon, the entire faculty and I met with the visiting team to receive their findings in the final report.
I am very happy to report that it was a very enthusiastic and glowing report which approved us for accreditation for an additional 6 years. I was very pleased at their compliments of our school community and it really speaks very well of the dedication and professionalism of our school staff. In particular, they commended us on our strong Catholic identity, academic excellence, great athletic program and wonderful extracurricular activities especially our music program. I could not have asked for a better report! Thank you, Mr. Kim and faculty!
One last quick note before the news: please remember that tomorrow night we Spring Forward which means that we must move our clocks forward one hour. This does mean that we lose an hour of sleep so don’t be surprised if I’m more grouchy than usual.
Here is the rest of the news from the parish:
THE HOLY SEASON OF LENT – this past week we began the Liturgical Season of Lent with our celebration of Ash Wednesday. Last Sunday in the bulletin we included a list of suggestions for various Lenten Practices. Copies are available again this week in the vestibules of the church.
Lent is truly a privileged time because it forces us to pause and reflect on how we’re living our lives and whether we need to make some adjustments especially regarding our spiritual practices. The dramatic admonition of Ash Wednesday, "Remember that you are dust and unto dust you shall return" should be a reminder to each of us that our spiritual life must be a priority above all things.
There are three practices, in particular, that I would encourage for everyone in our parish: regular Confession, frequent Mass (perhaps daily or at least several times during the week) and weekly Stations of the Cross. The regulations of the Church concerning fast and abstinence are again included in today’s bulletin and on our website: wwwstandrewpasadena.org. Abstinence is observed on all Fridays of Lent and fasting is observed on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.
Please remember that we are now celebrating 3 daily Masses including a 12 noon Mass each Monday through Friday in order to create more opportunities for our parishioners to make the Holy Eucharist the center of their spiritual lives. So our schedule is:
8:15 a.m. Mass – English (Monday through Saturday)
12:05 p.m. Mass – English (Monday through Friday)
6:30 p.m. Mass – Spanish (Monday through Friday)
Lent is primarily a time of prayer and penance. Think of it as a 40-day retreat. In other words, this time should be different from the rest of the year in terms of our food, our entertainment, the use of technology, and the way we spend our time. In particular, I recommend making good use of the marvelous app called “Formed” which has a lot of good resources for Lent. The link is on our parish website under the “Faith Formation” tab. Other resources are available there as well. May each of us strive to make this a truly holy Lent!
LENTEN MORNING OF PRAYER FOR LITURGICAL MINISTERS TOMORROW – all Lectors, Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, ushers and sacristans are invited to a Lenten morning of prayer tomorrow (Saturday, March 8th) in the sacristy chapel. We will begin with the regular 8:15 a.m. Mass in the church followed by a small continental breakfast in the Altar Server sacristy. Then Fathers Paul Okello and Sebastian Josephraj will each offer a reflection with time for private prayer between the two presentations. We will conclude with Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament at 11:45 a.m then dismissal. Tomorrow will be in English. On March 22 we will have it in Spanish.
STATIONS OF THE CROSS ON FRIDAYS – One of the most beautiful of Lenten practices is the Way of the Cross. Our Stations of the Cross each Friday will be at 9:00 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. in English and 7:00 p.m. in Spanish. At the end of the English Stations in the evening we will have Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. The Spanish Stations will take place after the evening Mass. Come and pray this beautiful devotion with your parish family.
LENTEN SOUP NIGHTS ON FRIDAYS!- We are once again having our "Lenten Soup Nights" on Fridays after the Stations of the Cross. These will take place as follows:
1st session: after the English Stations & Benediction (approx. at 6:00 p.m)
2nd session: after the Spanish Mass and Stations (approx. at 7:30 p.m.)
This practice is meant to help us fulfill the Lenten practice of abstinence as well as frugality and penance. The soups will be prepared and served by our various parish groups and will consist of a variety of non-meat recipes. Bread is also provided. A free will donation is taken which will go to feed the poor.
I have always found this Lenten practice to be very spiritually worthwhile as it is a concrete way of living our Lenten penance as well as building community with our fellow parishioners.
Note: On Friday, 3/21 and 4/11 the soup night will be cancelled due to a special musical presentation of the Stations. More details to follow.
LENTEN PARISH MISSION IN ENGLISH COMING UP – The Parish Mission for 2025 will take place during Lent this year on the week of March 31-April 3. This year it will be conducted by the Legionaries of Christ who are here locally. Our own Fr. Donal O’Keefe, LC will conduct the Mission. Please mark your calendars now as there will be two English conferences: one in the morning after the 8:15 a.m. Mass and one in the evening at 7:15 p.m. Please note that our English Parish Groups will NOT be meeting that week so that everyone can attend the mission. Further information will be forthcoming as we get closer to the time of the Mission. Fr. O’Keefe will be preaching at all the English Masses the previous Sunday to introduce the Mission.
LET’S EACH DO OUR PART – Our annual Together in Mission Campaign began two weeks ago. As you know, this campaign assists the poorest parishes and schools of the Archdiocese. Our parish goal this year is $79,002. This reflects our income in 2024. It is a great opportunity to help out these poor parishes even more.
The important thing is that everyone participates according to their means. If you have more then give more, if you have less, then give less. But everybody’s part is important. The pledge envelopes are available in the pews and in the Pastoral Center. You may also make your contribution online by going to: togetherinmission.org. Please be sure to click on "St. Andrew Church" as your parish so that it is credited to our goal.
Thank you to all of you who have already made your pledge!
CATHOLIC SCHOOLS NEEDED NOW MORE THAN EVER- Last month the National Center for Education Statistics released the results for the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests taken last year by students in the fourth and eighth grades. They showed that Catholic schools have continued their winning streak over public schools. Since 1990 (when they started doing these comparisons) each year, Catholic school students beat their public-school contemporaries in these tests. The amazing thing is that Catholic schools spend a fraction of the money spent on public school students. The contrast has been even more dramatic since the Covid 19 health crisis since most Catholic schools returned to in-person learning as soon as the authorities allowed us to do so. This was not the case with public schools. As a result, the learning gap has grown even larger.
I bring this us because, more than ever, I want to ensure that every child in our parish has the opportunity to receive the best education possible. This is done through our wonderful parish school, St. Andrew School, which has been educating the children of Pasadena in a wholesome way since 1897. It is an incredible history of achievement.
Right now our school is taking registrations for the Fall term. Our Principal, Mr. Jae Kim, would be happy to provide a tour for any interested family. Please visit the school website at: www.saspasadena.com
WE’VE LOST A WONDERFUL MAN- This past Monday, the Lord called home our beloved Carl Paneno. Carl was a very active parishioner of St. Andrew’s for many years. He was our head usher, and he led the St. Vincent de Paul Society with incredible dedication. We will miss him greatly. Our sympathies go to his wife, Christina and to their children. Funeral arrangements are pending.
In Christ and St. Andrew,
Father Gonzalez
LENTEN REGULATIONS
LENTEN PRACTICES
HOW TO RECITE THE HOLY ROSARY
PROCEDURE FOR THE RECEPTION OF HOLY COMMUNION