Bishop David Konderla celebrated the Rite of Dedication for a new church building during Mass at St. Francis Xavier in Stillwater on Sunday, March 11. He also installed Father Brian O'Brien as the new pastor for the parish at the end of the liturgy.
In his homily, Bishop Konderla encouraged the congregation, “Jesus Christ died on the cross to free sinners. It is the whole reason we are here. The whole reason for all this effort and expense is because Jesus Christ died on the cross to free sinners. The cross is our greatest symbol of hope. When you drive around this area and see the cross towering over the church, it draws your face upward to heaven, the place of true hope. And God desires that every person that comes through these doors would enter into the life of faith, receiving saving faith in Jesus Christ and know the fullness of faith in the Catholic Church where they can receive the Eucharist.”
Bishop Konderla continued, “We know that in the Eucharist, Jesus Christ is present with us, body, blood, soul and divinity. He is keeping His promise to us that He will never leave us or forsake us. Now we do not see it with our human eyes, but this place will glow. This place will radiate the light of heaven as Jesus dwells here, calling all to come and spend time with Him and be comforted by His presence. Many thousands of people will drive back and forth across the streets here and when they look at this beautiful church, they will have no idea that Jesus waits for them and desires that all people would enter these doors and spend time with Him. This is why after we are fed by Christ, we use these doors to leave. We are fed and strengthened so that we can go out and tell the world the Good News that Jesus Christ has come among us and lives here in this place and calls all to the fullness of life in Him.”
For more information about the Rite of Dedication, see Father John Grant’s article, “The Church Visible,” in the March issue of the EOC.