We went to a party yesterday \u2014 Emily was excited that we were going, but when she found out it wasn\u2019t a \u201cFrozen\u201d party, she lost her enthusiasm. Anyhow, the party was to celebrate the 40th anniversary of our pastor, Fr. Mat Rowgh, being ordained as a priest.<\/p>\n
Religion is a personal thing and how, when and where you choose to worship is a personal choice. I\u2019ve talked to people that don\u2019t go to a particular church because they don\u2019t like the building or there isn\u2019t enough parking or the services aren\u2019t held at a convenient time \u2014 or some other reason. A church, like other organizations \u2014 only more so, isn\u2019t the brick or siding, paved or unpaved parking, or location \u2014 it\u2019s the people \u2014 and \u2014 it\u2019s leaders.<\/p>\n
When we moved to West Virginia, we looked around to decide where we thought we wanted to go to church. From our house, we had several obvious choices but when we visited St. Agnes the choice was obvious \u2014 and easy.<\/p>\n
I read somewhere that the first 12 minutes in a church dramatically influences whether you\u2019re coming back or not. It didn\u2019t take anywhere close to 12 minutes for us \u2014 Fr. Mat made the decision easy.<\/p>\n
It occurred to me that as everyone in that crowded room yesterday was (rightfully) congratulating Fr. Mat, we probably all should have been offering him an apology, or at the very least feeling a little guilty. I\u2019m afraid most of us only think of Fr. Mat as the true Shepherd that he is. We forget that he has his own problems \u2014 probably because he is so good at putting his own situations aside and making us feel as though we<\/em> matter more to him than anything else. When we call when he\u2019s busy (he always is) he never tells us to call back. When we suffer the loss of a loved one, when we have trouble in our lives or homes, when we are sick\u2026. he\u2019s always there.<\/p>\n So I think I speak for the entire St. Agnes community when I say, Congratulations, Fr. Mat but, more importantly, Thank You! And thank God for His gift that we have in you. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We went to a party yesterday \u2014 Emily was excited that we were going, but when she found out it wasn\u2019t a \u201cFrozen\u201d party, she lost her enthusiasm. Anyhow, the party was to celebrate the 40th anniversary of our pastor, … Continue reading
\nHappy Anniversary!!
\n\u2014 30 \u2014<\/p>\n