I received the following e-mail letter from a visitor to our parish and decided to print it for all of you to see as my pastor's column for the week.  I appreciate so much about the parish including (and maybe firstly) the vibrant way Mass is celebrated and the hospitality that is offered to fellow parishioners and visitors alike.  Here it is:

Father Elser, I just wanted to say thank you for providing me with such a wonderful church to offer Mass for me when I visited our cabin near the Village.  I came in this past weekend for vacation and was very pleased to see there was a Catholic Church so close by.  I was also very happy to see so many parishioners attend Mass on Sunday at 10:00 a.m. The church itself is very beautiful and welcoming to all.  As not all churches offer Confession on Sunday, I was very relieved to be able to receive the sacrament before Mass.  The visiting priest was very enjoyable with his homily, too. Overall I felt that I got exactly what I needed while in town.  Sometimes Catholic churches outside of south Louisiana are somewhat watered down and more Protestant than Catholic.  Thank you again for giving me a home away from home when I am there in your area. 

In my almost 27 years of priesthood (May 31), I have often been blessed by people thanking me for my prayers for them or their loved one.  By asking me to pray for them or someone else, they recognized the power of intercessory prayer. Such prayer is a good and healthy part of a growing prayer life that includes prayers of praise, thanks, contrition and meditation.  I recently have benefited from the prayers of those who found out I had shingles on my forehead.  I thank those who lifted me up to the Lord.  I truly believe that with the help of those prayers, my sickness was short lived and devoid of much pain or itching.  To be on the receiving end of intercessory prayer strengthens me in the call to intercessory prayer to others.

Please don't hesitate to ask for prayers from others when there is sickness and/or other needs.  Also, be quick to offer to pray for others who are in need and DO IT.  You will continually see the hand of the Lord working in some wonderful ways. 

May is the month of _________.  Most Catholics, I hope, would fill-in the blank with Mary, the Mother of God.  The Church has a very long tradition of honoring Mary as God's chosen one who brought our Savior, Jesus Christ, into the world. She is also respected as a great intercessor before the throne of God.  The Bible tells us that at the wedding feast of Cana, Mary said to the waiters "Do whatever He tell you" (John 2:5), and Jesus responded to Mary's request and turned water into wine.  Mary is also a model disciple who treasured what Jesus said in her heart and put His words into action in her life.  There is much to be commended in our devotion and prayers for Mary's intercession.  A caution, however, is in order to guard against anything that might elevate Mary to a position that might put her on the same level of her Son, Jesus Christ.  This would be the last thing that the humble virgin of Nazareth would want.  Everything, I believe she would say, should point to Jesus Christ as our Savior and Lord, the one who changed death into eternal life for us all.