Dear friends in Christ,
Many blessings and peace to you during this holy Lent! I pray that you are all experiencing the love of Christ in a new and powerful way through your penances, prayer, and alms-giving during these 40 days. As usual, many great things have transpired since the last post, so I hope to share a few of them with you.
Firstly, I completed my second bachelor's in Theology (with the exception of my thesis this June) and have already begun taking Masters classes towards my Licenciate in Theology. Classes are more interesting and challenging, which is great! I've also made a little progress on my icon...which will be pictured in the next post :)
Secondly, at the initiative of Brandon (another seminarian here) and myself, we hosted a "Lord's Day" celebration at the seminary--probably the first one in the history of the American College--which was awesome! You can see some pictures of it below. Brandon made the chili and bread pudding, and I cut the bread bowls and made a strawberry/blueberry/walnut/vinaigrette salad (a first for me). It was a blessed time of community building and I hope that it becomes a tradition. Please pray for continued strengthening of our brotherhood.
Lastly, and most exciting, is that I have been told my pastoral placement for next year: I'll be in Astoria at "Mary Star of the Sea" Parish with Fr. Ken Sampson, a wonderful priest, who I know will be a great mentor for me this next year.
As always, you are in my heart and prayers; each day I yearn more to return home to begin serving you the best I can. Until then, I trust that the Lord will sustain our friendship even across these great distances.
