“Peace to this household!” (Luke 10:5)
Jesus asks his disciples to declare peace to every household as they move about preaching the Gospel. Throughout the Diocese of Orange, last week and this week, a number of parishes are saying goodbye to pastors and parochial vicars and, with the peace that is bestowed upon us in Christ, we shall all persevere through this time.
I am honored to be named Pastor of Saint Timothy Catholic Church. First, because I know it is a vibrant and active parish. Second, I have the honor of following a priest I have a tremendous amount of respect for, Monsignor John Urell. How blessed Saint Timothy’s was to have him as Pastor the past 14 years. I know through my conversations with him he was blessed to be a part of this community as well.
Monsignor John was my Pastor at St. Catherine of Siena in Laguna Beach when I was a seminarian back in the late 1990s. He was kind, welcoming, and he taught me a lot about what it means to be a priest. Monsignor John also taught me how to capture skunks and raccoons, but that is a story for another day. I am so grateful to have been able to learn so much about being a priest from him.
I look forward to getting to know you all as parishioners of Saint Timothy’s and as disciples in Christ called to the great commission to “Go out and preach to all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19-20). I have had the opportunity to meet most of the staff and a number of parishioners in the last month, what a warm welcome I have received! I look forward to getting to know more of you in the near future.
Peace be with you all!
With my love and prayers,
Father Patrick
