Join Us as We Continue our Mission

12-08-2019Pastoral ReflectionsFr. Steve Kunkel

As we embark on Saint Thomas the Apostle's 70th anniversary in 2020, I am moved by the opportunity to serve as your pastor at such a pivotal time for our parish. I reflect on our rich history—the many lives that have been transformed by our church and school; the many hearts that have been opened to the Gospel; the community traditions and memories we share that make this place so special—and it foreshadows a promising future. For those of you that joined me in 2016 when we launched our first Building Virtues campaign, thank you for your foresight and long term commitment to the future generations of Saint Thomas.

For those of you that are new to the STA family or were reluctant to join our previous campaign efforts, I welcome you to be a part of this important endeavor and ask for your participation, not just financially but in faith as well. As we kick off the next step in our campaign and "Continue Our Mission", I encourage every family, every parishioner, every student in our community to consider how you might make this an opportunity to grow in virtue and give of yourself sacrificially. Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God's grace in its various forms (Peter 4:10).

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Preparing for Perpetual Adoration-What is Adoration?

11-10-2019Pastoral Reflections

Our parish is preparing for Perpetual Adoration beginning in February 2020. To learn more about how you can participate in adoring our Lord, please consider attending our Advent Eucharistic Mission December 16 & 17 or contact adoration@staphx.org.

What is the Eucharist?

The Eucharist is the sacrament that Jesus established when he took bread and wine, blessed them, and declared them to be his body and blood (see Luke 22:17-20). He commanded his disciples to "Do this in memory of me." He had earlier foretold that his presence in the Eucharist would be real and substantial: "I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever ...Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink" (John 6:51, 54- 55). When a Catholic priest follows this command of Jesus and offers the words of consecration, the bread and wine are permanently changed, and they become Jesus: his body, blood, soul, and divinity. [CCC 1373-1376, 1406, 1410, 1412-1413]

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Building Virtues Capital Campaign Update

06-04-2019Pastoral ReflectionsFr. Steve Kunkel

This is an exciting time for Saint Thomas the Apostle. Our Building Virtues Capital Campaign these past three years has helped us make incredible progress on the vision we outlined when I became your pastor just a few years ago. Together, we have achieved so much in a short time! I want to keep the momentum we have and make progress on our master plan that will take Saint Thomas long into the future.

The parish is preparing to launch an important effort that will continue to build on the efforts we have made so far. In the past couple weeks, we began a feasibility study that will assist us in determining how to move forward. To conduct this study, we have retained the services of Ruotolo Associates, a national firm with local presence that has experience working with Catholic communities just like ours.

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Letter on Ad Orientem Letter 2 of 2

11-11-2018Pastoral ReflectionsThe Priests of St. Thomas the Apostle

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

Starting on the feast of Christ the King, we will begin to offer the 11:00 Mass “Ad Orientem,” which is to say that the priest and the people will together turn to face the Lord in the Eucharistic Prayer. In our last bulletin letter, we began to address the reasons for this decision, starting with a brief analysis of the Second Vatican Council’s stated ends in proposing a reform of the Liturgy.

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Letter on Ad Orientem-Letter 1 of 2

10-28-2018Pastoral ReflectionsThe Priests of Saint Thomas the Apostle

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

One of the many great blessing of serving St. Thomas the Apostle parish is the beauty and solemnity with which this community approaches the celebration of the Sacred Liturgy. This is a commitment we not only want to maintain but also to continue and to deepen.

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Welcome Fr. Musie Tesfayohannes

09-02-2018Pastoral ReflectionsFr. Musie Tesfayohannes

Fr. Musie Tesfayohannes will be joining Saint Thomas as Parochial Vicar this week. He looks forward to his new assignment and meeting our community. Fr. Tesfayohannes wanted to share this letter of introduction with you and please give him a warm Saint Thomas Welcome when you meet him.

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State of the Parish and School

08-15-2018Pastoral ReflectionsFr. Steve Kunkel

Dear STA Family,

Welcome back and Happy "FALL"! I know it's still entirely too hot to feel like celebrating, but we have much to be glad about as we finish the summer and welcome home all our vacationing parishioners and students back to Saint Thomas. I spent some of the summer overseas, traveling through Europe and as great as my adventures were, it is GREAT to be back, together with all of you.

I want to kick off our new fiscal year and school year with general updates on the state of the parish and school.

*To read Fr. Steve's complete letter, please click on the button below.

Letter from the Pastor

Lift Up Your Hearts

04-21-2019Pastoral ReflectionsFr. Steve Kunkel

Dear STA Family,

In 1987, Saint Pope John Paul II visited Phoenix and was surrounded by 75,000 faithful as he celebrated Mass and the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. I was recently moved by a recording from that event and want to share a portion of it with you today, thirty-two years later as we celebrate the Risen Lord and the restored hope He brings this Easter. In his address, Saint Pope John Paul II reminds us of our universal heritage as children of God - that we are an "Alleluia!" people, healed from sin through the sacraments and destined for eternal love.

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