Fr. Mike's Message - 08/02/2020

Thank you for your warm welcome to me as your new Pastor. I am so grateful to be here at St. Francis Borgia Parish. Things seem to have come full circle as I reflect on my 26 years as a Priest of the Archdiocese of St. Louis.  When I was first assigned to Washington as Associate Pastor of this fine parish, I quickly grew to love this town and this parish.  I have also been fortunate to have been assigned to Our Lady of Lourdes across town and to St. Francis Borgia Regional High School. As I begin my tenure as Pastor of SFB, I feel so blessed.  I tell people all of the time that I feel like the luckiest priest in the Archdiocese.

I want to thank Fr. Joe Wormek for his years of service here at Borgia. Fr. Joe had a knack for making people feel comfortable and his care and compassion were so evident.  We can all be thankful for the commitment he had for this parish and for the People of God.  Let’s pray for him as he moves on to All Saints in St. Peters as Senior Associate Pastor there.  Godspeed, Fr. Joe.

I am blessed to serve alongside Fr. Tony Ritter.  He’s a blessing to this parish family and is a joy to live with at the rectory.  Fr. Tony is balanced, kind, compassionate and has a great love for people.  And he has a great sense of humor!  We will work as a team and will do our best to lead this parish community closer to Christ.

I am excited to work with the talented staff of our parish and parish school.  We are here to help, so please feel free to reach out to me or any member of the staff if we can be of assistance to you.

I’ve been asked about my priorities for the parish.  My response is simple: whatever we do, we must first pray.  Our worship together should be the center of all we do.  After all, all of us are disciples of Jesus and walk together on this journey of faith, so we need to be nourished by the Word of God and the Sacrament of the Eucharist.  We are called to take care of each other and the larger community, especially those who are most in need.  All of our parish activities have to lead from and to prayer, worship and service.

I look forward to walking with you on this journey, praying with you, and serving alongside you as we reach out to spread the message of Jesus Christ to the people of this great City of Washington and the surrounding area.

Be assured of my prayers for you and your loved ones.  I ask that you please pray for me.