A Word from the Pastor

November 18, 2022

I think Thanksgiving Day may be my favorite holiday. As I ask myself why I think that way, I guess it is because it is a holiday that has not been hijacked by secular images. It’s not like when Santa Claus eclipses Baby Jesus, or the Easter Bunny gets more spotlight than the Risen Christ. The focus of Thanksgiving is pure and simple: it is a day to give thanks. Although sometimes unspoken, the One to whom we give thanks is God. Not even a turkey or football games can obscure that intent.

To give thanks means that we recognize that everything is a gift. God has blessed us with so many gifts. We gather with family and friends to give thanks for the many blessings that we have received. Life itself is a gift. Even if we have had struggles or hardships, we can usually find something for which to be grateful.

Gratitude is a virtue that I think is closely related to humility. Why would I say that? Humility is the recognition that I am not self-made. Humility means realizing that I am not in control of everything (or anything). It means accepting the truth about myself and about God who created us and sustains us in being. Humility leads one to give credit where credit is due: to our benevolent God. Gratitude is an expression of that humble recognition.

Likewise, the virtue of gratitude leads to another virtue: generosity. When you realize that all is gift and that God will always bless you with gifts, then you are ready to freely share of your blessings with others. That is why so many people feel especially generous at Thanksgiving time. Here at St. Patrick’s, our collection at Mass on Thanksgiving Day (all of it!), goes to providing our Christmas Gift Baskets to those in need. Thank you in advance for making it possible for us to help our less fortunate brothers and sisters.

Please join us for our Bilingual Mass on Thanksgiving Day. It will be celebrated on Thursday, November 24 at 9:00 am. It is our only Mass on that day. I will preside and give the homily, and all our priests will be concelebrating. Let us join together as a parish family in giving thanks to the Lord, our God.

In one Heart,

Fr. Ron 

rbagley@stpatrickcarlsbad.com

Collection for National Needs 

In order to reduce the number of special collections taken up for national Church needs, the US Catholic Bishops have asked us to take up one collection that covers many areas. On the weekend of November 19-20, you are asked to use the envelope for this purpose in your packet or the Online Giving site to contribute to the work of the US Bishops. Envelopes are also available at the doors of the church. This replaces the former collections for Black and Indian Mission, Catholic University of America, Catholic Communications Campaign and Catholic Home Missions Appeal.

Thank you for your generosity.

Five Year Old Alberto Cartuccia

Cingolani Plays Mozart

Listen to this child prodigy play a famous piece by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Jesus – Priest, Prophet, King

When we were baptized, we were anointed with Sacred Chrism “as Christ was anointed priest, prophet and king…” What does that mean for us as we celebrate the Solemnity of Jesus Christ, our King?

WWWA Advent Mini-Retreat

Enter into Advent by pondering Mary’s humble “yes” and reflect on the areas in our own lives where we may be challenged to say “yes” to God’s plan. Anamaria Anthony, Department Chair of Theology at Mater Dei Catholic High School, will facilitate this journey. Wednesday, November 30, 6:30 - 8:30 pm, at Mission San Diego De Alcala, St Francis Chapel, 10818 San Diego Mission Road, San Diego.

Another Special Request from Fr. Ron

Thank you to all who helped with the purchase of our new van. We have reached the goal and I am very grateful.

After many months of inquiries and exploring options, we are ready to move forward on the removal of the bees from the bell tower of the church and then proceed with the termite control. We also need to repair a leak in the bell tower that causes damage in the sacristy whenever it rains.

We will need to rent scaffolding and enlist the services of a specialist in bee removal. Once the bees have been removed and the inside of the bell tower has been cleaned (to avoid their return), we will be ready to proceed with the tenting of the church and termite extermination.

We will move on these two projects as quickly as possible. All work will be done on weekdays to avoid conflict with weekend Masses. There will be some weekdays that Mass will be moved to the parish hall. We are not sure yet of the exact dates, but I will communicate them to you as soon as we know.

Here is where I need your help. The total cost of scaffolding, bee removal, leak repair and termite exterminating will be approximately $35,000. The biggest chunk of that cost is the termite extermination. It is urgent that we have this done as soon as possible. If you can help defray the cost of this major expense, I would be most grateful.

Once again, I would ask you to make your donation for this extraordinary expense through our Parish Construction and Repair Fund (gold envelopes) or by going to Online Giving and choosing Parish Construction and Repair Fund and contributing there. Please indicate that it is a donation for “bees and termites.” All donations given for this purpose are “restricted giving” and will be used exclusively to pay for this repair.

Thank you again for your generosity.

Fr. Ron 

Our School Celebrates 60 Years

St. Patrick Catholic School is proud to be celebrating 60 years of quality Catholic education. Their mission is to foster a community where students grow in faith and knowledge in order to bring Christ's light to the world. 

Listen to what students, parents and teachers have to say in this video.

St. Patrick Catholic School

Now Accepting Applications

If you are interested in giving your child or grandchild the

opportunity to experience the strong faith, positive values, and high educational standards of our Catholic School, we’d love to meet you. We are now accepting applications for the 2023-2024 school year

Please visit us at: www.stpaddys.org

or call Cynthia Orozco at 729-1333, ext. 105

Annual Catholic Appeal



Perhaps you have been waiting to make your donation to the Annual Catholic Appeal (ACA). Maybe you want to make a thanksgiving offering for blessings received. Maybe you want to make an end-of-the-year donation so you can count it as a deduction.



Thank you to all those who have already made their annual donation to ACA. For those who need more information, there are brochures at the doors of the church. You can also visit the diocesan website https://giving.diocese-sdiego.org/. You can also access this through our parish website. If you have questions, you can also call our parish office.

Online Giving Reminder



Please remember to log in to your Online Giving account to make sure your payment method is up to date and that your gifts are being processed.

Help us fund our expense on the used van by using the Parish Construction and Repair Fund using Online Giving.



For help with forgotten passwords, please contact Online Giving technical support at 800.348.2886, ext. 2.

Click on the Online Giving logo below to create or access your account.

We appreciate your support!

Catholic Trivia



"Catholic Trivia”... not because they are trivial but because these might be things that not everyone knows. Test your knowledge by reading the five questions, remember your answers (or jot them down), then click the link below to find the answers.

1. Who established the Solemnity of Christ the King?
2. Why was the Solemnity of Christ the King established?
3. When was the Solemnity of Christ the King established?
4. Which 20th century pope wrote an encyclical on “Peace in the World?”
5. What liturgical season begins next week?