Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

For the past two years I have had the privilege of serving as parochial vicar here at St. Joan of Arc and the time has come for me to say goodbye. Beginning July 1, I will serve as the parochial vicar at Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Scottsdale.

These past two years have gone by quickly and I will take with me many fond memories of my time here. It's been a great experience working with Fr. Kline, as he and I have been friends for many years. It's also been entertaining to spend time with his bulldog Maggie. The staff at this parish is truly exceptional. You're all very blessed to have such a competent and dedicated group working here. And it has definitely been a joy to minister to such a prayerful and faithful group of parishioners.

It's never easy to leave a place where you feel comfortable and settled, as I do here at St. Joan of Arc, but that is a part of what priestly ministry is all about. We go where the Lord calls us to go, and serve as the Lord calls us to serve.

Please remember me in your prayers as I will remember you in my prayers. Most especially let us pray for each other during the greatest prayer of the Church, the Holy Mass.

In Christ,
Fr. Greg Menegay

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

This weekend we celebrate the Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ, known for many years as the Feast of Corpus Christi which is Latin for "the Body of Christ." The origins of this celebration date back to the 13 Homecoming for Returning Catholics: No matter how long you've been away, you can come home again. Check out www.catholicscomehome.org th century but the belief that Jesus is truly present in the Eucharist goes back to the beginning of the Church.

When Jesus gathered with His Apostles in the upper room for the Last Supper he took bread and blessed it and said "This is my body." He also took a chalice filled with wine and said "This is my blood of the covenant." What Jesus did at the Last Supper fulfilled what we read in John 6: 53 – 54; "So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day."

For over 2000 years now whenever Mass is celebrated, bread and wine are consecrated and by the power of the Holy Spirit become the Body and Blood of Christ. Every time you are at Mass it's as if you're in the upper room with Jesus and the Apostles during the Last Supper. And so let us rejoice on this great feast the Our Lord is truly present with us in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. Jesus is that "heavenly food" which leads us towards the promise of eternal salvation.

In Christ,
Fr. Greg Menegay

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Today we give thanks to God for those who have the special title of father. St. Joseph, the appointed father of Our Lord, teaches us the importance of the role of a father. His steadfast presence as provider and protector for Our Lord and Our Lady are beautiful reminders of a father's love. Those who have experienced a father's love – have experienced a great blessing. For those who have had a negative experience of their earthly father, Our Lord provides us with the answer.

Jesus told us to call God – FATHER. When His disciples asked Him to teach them to pray, Jesus said to them, "When you pray, say: 'Our Father…' " Our Lord actually went a step further than telling us to call God "Father." He himself addressed God as "Abba." (Mk 14:36). That word is from Jesus' own language, Aramaic. It is the word small children used when addressing their father; it is the word for "Daddy." We don't need to bother asking a little child why he or she calls their father "Daddy." The whole point is that it's not something that has to be thought about: it's a spontaneous expression of affection and trust. It's something a child just does because they simply love and trust.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

This week I would like to continue to speak about pleasing Our Lord by how we dress for Holy Mass.

I read that Muhammad Ali explained modesty to his daughter this way: "Where do you find diamonds? Deep down in the ground, covered and protected. Where do you find pearls? Deep down at he bottom of the ocean, covered up and protected in a beautiful shell. Where do you find gold? Way down in the mine, covered over with layers and layers of rock. You've got to work hard to get to them...Your body is sacred. You're far more precious than diamonds and pearls, and you should be covered too."

While mothers need to teach their daughters the art of being attractive without compromising their dignity, fathers need to teach their sons how to be gentlemen. Gentlemen do not wear shorts to church or hats inside church. Furthermore fathers need to speak to their sons about how to appreciate the gift of a woman without reducing her to a mere object of pleasure. For example, if a woman fails to dress appropriately the young man needs to learn the value of practicing custody of the eyes. Our Lord has warned us, "Everyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart" (Matthew 5:28).

Brothers and Sisters,

A few nights ago, I was watching the news and there was a segment at the White House. I noticed that when the President walked in, out of respect for the office, everyone stood. Those gathered wore suits and dresses and everyone was well-groomed--ready to meet a world leader. By the anticipation in the eyes of those gathered, you could tell that no one would have missed the chance to meet the President of the United States of America.

Of course, because I am a priest who relates everything back to Jesus, I started to wonder if we have the same attitude and awe toward the second person of the Trinity present at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass?

I just want to remind you that Eucharist means, "to give thanks" and the MANY gifts that we enjoy in our community, "thanks" should be happening EVERY Sunday. I've heard that people "take the summers off" and by our Mass attendance records, there is significant proof that this is the case. But, as a Catholic, we are to go to Mass EVERY Sunday. If you are traveling, masstimes.org will direct you to another community where you can give thanks to Our Lord who has given us everything.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance--not meant to honor veterans or those currently serving in the Armed Forces. It's the day we honor the memories of members of the armed forces who never made it to veteran status because they were killed fighting for our country in wars, police actions, peacekeeping missions or more recently, terrorist attacks.

While I was in the seminary, I remember going to Arlington and seeing the many graves of military personnel who lost their lives in defense of our country. On Memorial Day, flowers dotted the cemetery, marking also the prolonged grief of mothers and fathers of fallen soldiers.

That's why, to me, Memorial Day is the most "Catholic" of American holidays. Respect and honor for the dead, and the connection between the body that lies in the ground, awaiting resurrection, and the soul that has gone before it--these are very Catholic themes. Memorial Day reminds me of All Souls Day (November 2). It is a day to pray for the souls in Purgatory, especially those who died in the service of our country.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Recently I was presented with the question about having a relic of a Saint in our altar. Here is the present teaching on fixing a relic of a Saint at the altar.

As you know from catechism class, the altar is absolutely necessary for the lawful celebration of Mass. The altar is the table representing the table at which Our Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist on the evening of the Last Supper. You may wonder what does this have to do with placing a relic in the altar. The practice of placing relics within the altar goes back to the days of the catacombs, when the flat-topped tombs of martyrs were used as altars.

The Church suggests that the altar stone, consecrated by a bishop, an oblong slab of stone, measuring perhaps ten by twelve inches by placed on the 'mensa', or the flat rectangular top of the altar. It has five crosses cut into the stone, and near its front edge a "sepulchre" or cavity containing the relics of saints and sealed with a cemented stone lid.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

There is a very popular video that just came out on YouTube called "the world's toughest" job, which is really the world's most important job. The video shows various interviews for the position. The applicant only knows that they were applying for a position entitled "Director of Operations". During the interview, potential candidates are told about the responsibilities and requirements of the position.

The job requires that the person be able to work standing up most or all of the time – constantly on your feet, constantly bending over, constantly exerting yourself, and a high level of stamina. The work hours were explained as 24 hours a day, 7 days a week or unlimited number of hours of work per week with no breaks available. This position would be 365 days a year with very little time to sleep. You would eat only after your associate was done eating. The position requires excellent negotiation and interpersonal skills with a degree in medicine, finance, and the culinary arts. You must be able to wear several hats and the associate needs constant attention. Sometimes you would have to stay up with the associate throughout the night. You would need to work in a chaotic environment and if you had a life you would have to give that life up. There are no vacations, if fact, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, and others holidays meant the workload would increase and you would need to have a happy disposition. However, the people connections that you make and the feelings you get from helping your associate are immeasurable. The salary would be $0.00, completely pro bono. The video concludes by letting the person being interviewed (who is completely confused at this point) in on the fact that billions of people currently hold this position as "Director of Operations".

Because of the excitement around the canonizations of Sts. John XXIII and John Paul II, another saint with an important messages for our time was celebrated this past week but a bit hidden in the shadow of these celebrations.

April 28th is the Feast of Saint Gianna Molla, a medical doctor and mother of four. She is a saint for our modern times and has much to teach Catholics, mothers, and working women.

St. Gianna was a fun loving wife and mother who put her faith into action, regularly serving the poor of her day. After opening her own medical clinic she gave special attention to mothers, babies, the elderly and the poor. Her faith inspired her to specialize in Pediatrics at the University of Milan in 1952.

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

"But he was pierced for our sins, crushed for our iniquity. He bore the punishment that makes us whole, by his wounds we were healed."
—Eph 2:4-5

On Divine Mercy Sunday, the focus is on the healing power of Our Lord's Mercy. Through Adoration of the Most Blessed Sacrament, Confessions, praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet and the celebration of the Eucharistic Liturgy, we will draw special attention to God's Divine Mercy. Along with the regular Mass schedule, we will have Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament in the main church and Confessions beginning at 2:00 pm. In honor of Divine Mercy there will be the recitation of the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. We will conclude the octave day of Easter with Mass at 3:00pm in which we will ask for Our Lord's Divine Mercy to heal our hearts, our minds, and our bodies.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

A Blessed Easter to the entire world as we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead! I want to say how blessed we are as the Catholic Church to welcome, those men, women and children who were received into the Church at our Easter Vigil! I also want to especially welcome those who have been away from the church and may be visiting St. Joan of Arc for the first time. Please come again! It is my prayer that the light and love of our Risen Savior will be with you throughout this Easter season leading all to eternal life!

Easter Sunday is the most important day in the liturgical year. As St. Paul reminds us: "If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain" (I Cor 15:4) Resurrection was and is the central point of what St. Paul preached--for without the Resurrection we would not have faith. We also see in the Catechism of the Catholic Church which reminds us, "the Resurrection of Jesus is the crowning truth of our faith in Christ, a faith believed and lived as the central truth by the first Christ community." So what the first Christians believed as the crowning truth of faith we as believers do today. Otherwise, as St. Paul implies so emphatically, what a huge waste of time and effort all of this would be!

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Today, Palm Sunday, the drama of Holy Week begins as we recall Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem. This whole week is filled with beautiful signs and symbols that are meant to direct our attention to Christ's life, death and resurrection. The Church has been celebrating this season in this way for nearly 2000 years.

The roots of our liturgical observance of Holy Week go back to the second century and the core of the celebration of Holy Week is the Easter Vigil. In the beginning, it was a vigil in remembrance and expectation of Jesus' resurrection.

Soon, thereafter, the reception of the sacraments of initiation: baptism, confirmation and the Eucharist were added. It became and is the great sacramental night of the Church. Over time, the Easter Vigil was transformed and elongated into the Triduum of the Lord's passion, death and resurrection as is mentioned in the writings of St. Augustine in the 4th Century. In the Triduum, therefore, the Church added Holy Thursday and the Memorial of the Lord's death on Good Friday to the Easter Vigil.

At one time, Holy Thursday included three masses, a Mass to reconcile sinners, the Chrism Mass and an evening Mass to commemorate the institution of the Eucharist. Today, the Chrism Mass is celebrated at some point during Holy Week at the Cathedral with the bishop and his priests who renew their priestly promises. In our case, the Chrism Mass will be held Monday night of Holy Week at 7:00pm. During the Mass, the Bishop also consecrates three oils needed for the sacraments: Holy Chrism, the Oil of the Catechumenate and the Oil of the Sick.

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

This weekend is also the 5th Sunday of Lent and we observe the third of three Scrutiny Rites in the Rite of Christian Initiation at the 10:30am Mass.

These Scrutinies always happen in this time just before Easter to help our candidates to focus on leaving their old lives of sin behind. Interestingly, the Church's RCIA scrutiny process isn't just for the Catechumens and Candidates. The Church also asks us as fully initiated members of the Church to reflect, and scrutinize and examine our lives as well.

Our Lord gives these last few weeks of Lent to us as a gift. This is a time for us to reflect and discern how we need to repent from certain ways of living and acting. This is a time to look at patterns of addiction, of mediocrity, of selfishness that we must let go of for good. It is a time to uproot the weeds in our lives! Our Lord is always inviting us to scrutinize our behavior because it can lead us to conversion. Conversion is what leads us to a deeper relationship with Our Lord. Examining our lives helps us to be better disciples of Christ.