Pastor’s Message – Church of Saint Benedict

May 22, 2026

Memorial of St. Rita of Cascia

O God, who by the mystery of today’s great feast sanctify your whole Church in every people and nation, pour out, we pray, the gifts of the Holy Spirit across the face of the earth and, with the divine grace that was at work when the Gospel was first proclaimed, fill now once more the hearts of believers. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, forever and ever.

Collect for the Mass on the Solemnity of Pentecost

Brothers and Sisters,

This Sunday we conclude the Great Fifty Days of Easter with the Solemnity of Pentecost. In the Acts of the Apostles, we are told that while they are gathered in prayer in Jerusalem the Holy Spirit is poured out upon the Apostles. In various languages they speak of “the mighty acts of God” to the crowds of different nations who have gathered in the city for a Jewish religious festival.

Addressing the crowd, St. Peter calls upon them to repent, by being baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins. Some 3,000 are baptized that day (Acts 2:1-41). It is the best day of “fishing” that St. Peter every had. Pentecost is rightly seen as the beginning of the Church in its mission to live and share the Gospel message that Jesus is Lord.

One of the themes of the Solemnity of Pentecost is unity. As St. Paul tells us, “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body (the Church), whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink the one Spirit” (1^st Corinthians 12:12-13).

Pentecost reminds us that as Catholics we are more than members of individual parish communities. The word “catholic” originally meant universal. We profess this unity every Sunday at Mass in the Creed. We state that we are part of the “one, holy, catholic and apostolic” Church.

Although we are from many different places and speak a variety of native languages, we are part of a universal Church. Our mission remains the same as it did on that first Pentecost. We are to speak in both word and deed of the mighty works of God, specifically in the Cross and Resurrection of Jesus for the forgiveness of our sins.

Our Parish

At Mass for Pentecost Sunday, you are welcome to wear red, the liturgical color for the Holy Spirit.

Next week, we welcome two seminarians for the Diocese who will be here this summer, Joseph Jones and Peter Satorius. Joseph is a parishioner at St. John Before the Latin Gate Parish in Bartlesville. He is in formation at Conception Seminary College in Missouri. Peter is a parishioner at Holy Family Cathedral and is in formation at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in St. Louis.

Our condolences to the families of Marcus Vazquez and Sergio Perez. Both men died last week. The funeral Mass for Sergio Perez will be on Wednesday, May 27 at 10am in the parish church. The funeral Mass for Marcus Vazquez will be on Friday, May 29 at 12 Noon, also in the parish church.

Registration for Summer Youth events, including 4 X 4, Vacation Bible School, and Totus Tuus, is available in the church commons.

Memorial Day

Daily Mass on Memorial Day, May 25, will be at 9:00am. The parish office will be closed in observance of the National Holiday.

Church Etiquette – A Gentle Reminder

The words and actions that we use at Mass, especially on Sundays, are reminders to ourselves of the importance of what we are doing. One such action to genuflect (kneel on one knee) as one enters the pew prior to the start of Mass. If one cannot genuflect due to age or infirmity, a slight bow can be made instead.

In this action, we are reminding ourselves that we have not entered an auditorium to hear a lecture nor a theater to watch a performance. Rather, we have entered a holy place to do holy things as God’s holy people, the Church. By genuflecting or bowing, we are acknowledging the Presence of Christ in the Blessed Sacrament in the tabernacle behind the altar. We are coming into the Presence of the Divine. This same action should be repeated at the end of Mass as one exits the pew.

In the Sacrifice of the Mass, we offer our worship and prayers, praise, and thanksgiving to God for all that is offered to us in Jesus Christ. The experience of Sunday Mass should be seen as the single most important act that we do all week.

Banns of Marriage

Donnovan Houtmann-Harper and Sarah Bryson will enter the Sacrament of Marriage on Saturday, June 6, 2026, at Holy Family Cathedral. Please keep them in your prayers.

Banns of Ordination

Deacon Stephen Matthew McClain is to be ordained to the priesthood on Friday, June 26, 2026, at Holy Family Cathedral. As a seminarian he was assigned to our parish during the summer of 2019. Please keep him in your prayers.

Feast of Corpus Christi

On Thursday, June 4, Bishop Konderla will be leading a Corpus Christi Procession through the streets of Tulsa starting at Christ the King Parish. The Procession will conclude at Holy Family Cathedral. Shuttles going from Holy Family to Christ the King beginning at 4:30pm. Mass at Christ the King will be at 6:00pm with the Procession of the Blessed Sacrament starting at 7:00pm. The Procession should reach Holy Family by 8:30pm. All are welcome.

Our parish’s Corpus Christi Procession will be on Sunday, June 7 after the 9:00am Mass. All are welcome.

Parish Feast Day

We will celebrate the feast day of our patron, St. Benedict, on Saturday, July 11. Bishop Konderla will celebrate a Mass at 8:30am with a reception to follow. We will also be welcoming that day our new associate pastor, Fr. Robert Williams. That evening, after the 5:00pm Vigil Mass, we will have our annual parish picnic. It will include food and games for children and youth. It is a family friendly event. All are welcome.

God bless and keep you safe.

Fr. Bryan