From the Pastor’s Desk:

Yes it is spring time and with the month of May we celebrate graduations both in the high schools as well as grade schools.  We celebrate Mother’s Day, First Holy Communion and in some parishes Confirmation.  Throughout the Diocese it is the month each year that our Bishop comes to us in our Diocesan Development Appeal, commonly known as DDF.  Each parish and each mission is a part of the larger church, or Diocese of Springfield Cape Girardeau.

The funds which are collected enables our Diocese to offer our parishes and parishioners many different areas of ministry that parishes would not be able to provide on their own.

The DDF provides for: 1) Family Life Ministries, helping those preparing for marriage, 2) Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, those coming into the Church, 3) Social Ministry, all different aspects of reaching out to those who have no voice, or need a stronger voice in our society, 4) Campus Ministry, helping to staff priests on 2 of our public college campuses 5) Tribunal, those who are seeking annulments for their broken marriages, 6) Vocations/Seminarians, continuing to reach out to young men and women searching a religious vocation, 7) Youth Ministry, which includes Camp Re-New-All, Catholic Scouting, College Campus Ministry, 8) Office Of Worship, providing for all the Diocesan Liturgies, 9) The Mirror, our Diocesan Newspaper keeping us informed with all that is happening in our Diocese, 10) Catholic Schools, guided by our superintendent, 11) Finance Office, overseeing the monies of the Diocese as well as guiding parishes.

I ask that everyone study the above paragraph to see how many different areas of ministry affect your life, or the life of your family.  There are more areas, but for the most part these are the major areas of ministry that are supported by our gift to the Diocesan Development Fund.  Please be as generous as you have in the past years, or make a first time gift this year if you have not given in previous years.