Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
Fr. Augustine, Fr. Chauncey, the deacons, the staff, and I would like to wish you a very blessed and merry Christmas! Christ is truly the light of the world, and He Who is to come. He is the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last. We put our trust in this infant King rather than the things of this world—a world that can be at many times unreliable. Our trust in the King has born blessings and fruit as we look back on 2022.
In July, the Diocese called our beloved Fr. Shea to serve as an acting pastor in south Scottsdale at the parish named “St. Daniel the Prophet.” While we certainly miss him, we pray for him in this new endeavor where his leadership skills will be more fully utilized. In his stead, the Diocese sent Fr. Chauncey Winkler to serve at St. Timothy as parochial vicar. He has been ordained nearly two decades and has served in several assignments in the Diocese of Phoenix. He is a wonderful addition to our team!
Another blessing that we received this year was the completion of the narthex at the entryway of our church building. It is a beautiful and bright space that keeps us out of the sun and the heat as we encounter each other before and after Mass. This new part of the building also features two, much needed, upstairs bathrooms that were designed using the most modern of fixtures to facilitate energy and water savings. For me, the component that is the bright shining star in the vestibule is the new elevator! I am elated every time I see it used. One use that I did not foresee is young moms with strollers loaded with a child or children moving from the upper level to the lower level. Seeing this unrealized use of the elevator does my heart good. Lastly, with the addition of the narthex, I believe our parish church has more curb appeal: people from the street can see it better and easily identify the parish church.
We’ve experienced some big blessings over at St. Timothy Catholic School this year as well. Shea Homes selected us this year for a comprehensive upgrade to our school and partnered with us in a major remodel of our infrastructure and interior spaces. Our next big venture in our partnership with Shea Homes is to demo the hall on the campus and erect a multistory multipurpose building in its place. This new building will have space for multiple classrooms and a lunchroom. It will have a warming kitchen and upstairs and downstairs restroom facilities. Office space will be included with the possibility of an elevator as well.
We have been blessed this year to see an even greater return of our ministries. Many parishioners that were meeting virtually have returned to in-person meetings. As I write this, we just celebrated our first communal penance service since 2019. The priests who came from the different parishes in our deanery joined us for dinner (also the first time since 2019). I must tell you that this was a very
blessed time to gather with our brother priests, to break bread, and to share our stories. This means so much to the priests!
Probably the most recent blessing to our parish involves the installation of the flag poles and flags just a couple of days ago. When we finish adding all the flags that I want to fly, we will have six—The American flag, the Arizona flag, the Vatican flag, the Knights of Columbus flag, a newly designed Diocesan Flag, and a newly designed St. Timothy flag--6 flags over St. Timothy! The poles have built-in lights that are solar powered with the lights coming on at sunset till sunrise.
Friends, let this time of Christmas be a time where we turn to God and thank Him for His abundant blessings!
In Him Who reigns forever more,
Fr. John L. Greb
Pastor, St. Timothy Catholic Church