Update on our Parish Naming Process / The Rosary in a Year

The joint meeting of the PLT and two members of the Name Our Parish (NOP) committee held a final meeting on February 4, where a name for our new parish was recommended to me.  I accepted that recommendation.

Parishioners will remember that the last round of potential names included St. Josephine Bakhita, St. Crescent, St. Katharine Drexel, Our Lady of Guadalupe and Transfiguration.          
I am confident that the committee worked very hard to find the best name for our new parish, and it was not easily done.  Through many months of discourse and deliberations, we explored the strengths and the weaknesses of the five names.  

We will announce the name over the next month or so.  We want to do some planning so that the official announcement of our new parish name can be accompanied by an appropriate amount of information and celebration!!

Therefore, please pray that our new parish name will be received with joy and excitement!   If you are feeling particularly confident, call your bookie and get in your bet.  The choice was a bit of a surprise even to the PLT and NOP members ourselves!

Rosary in a Year
Please see the following article by Meg Anderson with more detail about Rosary in a Year, one of our lifelong faith formation focuses this year.  Thanks to those who read it and call on the Spirit to inspire them to participate in this life-changing opportunity!
 
Sincerely and with Love in Christ,
Fr. Pat
 
 
Rosary in a Year
From Meg Anderson, Director of Stewardship and Outreach 
 
Dear Crescent Parishioners,
This weekend, we are excited to launch the Rosary in a Year program within our Crescent Family! Inspired by Pope Francis’s call to reflect on the life of Christ “through the gaze of Mary” during the Jubilee Year of Hope, this program offers a beautiful opportunity for each of us to grow deeper in our relationship with Jesus and Mary. As Pope Francis beautifully states, “The Rosary, a simple instrument within everyone’s reach, can support the renewed evangelization to which the Church is called today.”

Aligned with our Stewardship of Time initiative, this program invites us all to enrich our spiritual lives through daily prayer and lifelong faith formation.

A Path to Spiritual Growth
Hosted by Fr. Mark Mary and produced by Ascension Press (Bible in a Year, Catechism in a Year), Rosary in a Year is a daily podcast designed to guide you on a transformative journey of prayer and meditation. Each episode will offer profound insights into the significance of the Rosary, helping you build a lasting prayer habit while deepening your understanding of the lives of Jesus and Mary.

The podcast is available on the Ascension Press website (ascensionpress.com/riy), their app, YouTube, and streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music. To support your journey, each parishioner will receive a Rosary and the companion booklet, How to Pray a Better Rosary. We will bless the Rosaries during this weekend’s Masses, marking the official start of the program.

Six Phases of Deepening Prayer
The Rosary in a Year program is thoughtfully structured into six phases to help deepen your connection to prayer and meditation:

1. Forming the Relationship (Days 1–7): Strengthen your relationship with Jesus and Mary through focused prayer and reflection.
2. Biblical Roots of the Rosary (Days 8–68): Discover the Scriptural foundation of the Rosary’s prayers and mysteries.
3. Meditation on the Mysteries (Days 69–188): Engage in Lectio Divina (Scripture reading) and Visio Divina (sacred art), enriched by reflections from the saints.
4. Finding Focus (Days 189–208): Deepen your meditation on each mystery, enriching your prayer practice.
5. Building Up the Decades (Days 209–335): Gradually progress to praying all five decades daily, incorporating the insights you've gained.
6. Praying Together (Days 336–365): Complete the journey by praying a full daily Rosary, uniting with the faith community in prayer.

A Journey for Everyone
Whether you are already devoted to the Rosary or just beginning, this program is for everyone. If you are already devoted to the Rosary, it will deepen and enrich your practice with fresh insights. If you’re new to the Rosary, this program will provide structure, guidance, and a meaningful way to grow in faith.

We invite you to participate in this year-long spiritual journey. Throughout the year, our staff members will share reflections on the Rosary in a Year program, offering encouragement and insights as we walk this journey together. As we reflect on the life of Christ through the Rosary, we encourage you to take part and experience the grace and peace that come with it. 
A Special Thank You
I would like to extend my gratitude to those parishioners who generously donated their time to help assemble our Rosary packages: Tom, Peggy, Beth, Janet, Marlene, Ann, Kathleen, Donna, Mary Kay, and Paula.
 
With Gratitude and Blessings,
 Meg Anderson