Message from Fr. Price
"A Church parish is a gathering of God's people in a particular area under the leadership of their pastor and united with the diocesan Bishop. A church parish is, in every way, the family of God's people gathered and united in the praise of God the Father, in discipleship and service to Jesus Christ, and reconciling the world under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. It is of great honor and favor that we are under the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Jesus Christ, Mother of the Church, Mother of all Christians.
St. Mary of the Pines had its beginning in the 1970's when a group of Catholic residents in Southern Hills felt the need for a new gathering place. St, catherine of Siena was becoming crowded as the Southern Hills community was growing. Bishop Greco approved the idea and Father Hugh Biggar was appointed the founding pastor. The first gathering places for the new Catholic community were the schools in the neighborhood. Eventually, the first buildings were erected, and the Catholic community began to gather on the present site.
We have been blessed this year with the "moving in" of our brothers and sisters from the former Holy Rosary Parish. We mourn the loss of that Catholic Church and School complex. We mourn the loss of their active and exemplary present in their old neighborhood. We rejoice that many of the former Holy Rosarians have moved into this wing of our Father's house. They bring with them many talents, joys, enlivening ideas, great faith, and yes, the sorrow of closing their parish. We receive the great gift of these living stones built upon into a wonderful edifice for the glory of God. We, and they, are recognizing more and more the truth of the Scriptures which tell us that we are the "living stones," a building not made with hands.
We at Saint Mary of the Pines are called by God to be a blessing to Himself, to his Church and in his world. We, the merged faith communities of Saint Mary of the Pines and Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, are a wonderful and rich embodiment of that saying, "Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something Blue." This saying, associated with weddings, speaks to God's work of bringing together these two communities. We are blessed with the"old." Old not in the terms of age, but in the terms of valuable and vintaged persons. We have founding members from both, Saint Mary of the Pines and Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, many of whom are still quite active in the vineyard of the Lord. We are blessed with "new" members from the former Holy Rosary, plus new members from our Southern Hills community, especially through our RCIA spiritual program. We have not "borrowed," but we have been graced with the spiritual gifts and talents of our Holy Rosarians. They have blessed us with the assets of the former Holy Rosary Church complex, especially in the former of a Catholic Schools Scholarship Endowment, and a Capital Improvement Endowment. The "blue" is the mantle of the Blessed Virgin mary that we the joined family of Saint Mary of the Pines wear. Our Holy Rosary brothers and sisters wore and continue to be draped in the mantle of the Blessed Virgin Mary's intercession and spiritual love. We are "blue" in the sense of saddness of the closure of Holy Rosary. At the same time we rejoice in and are strengthened by the "blue" heavenly love and aid of the Mother of Christ who is also our mother.
We even have a "Trinity," if you will. We have the presence and input of our Sister Quasi-Parish, Sacred Heart of Jesus Church. That small community is committed to working for the Lord and his Church in outreach to the civic community. They are committed to rebuilding from within so that in time, under God's guidance, they can regain full parish status. We both encourage and support their spiritual efforts. As we live our lives in the days and years to come, may we, in the spirit of God's love, help one another grow to full stature in Jesus Christ. Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for us."
In Amore Christi,
Father Rothell Price
PASTORS, ASSOCIATE PASTORS & PRIESTS IN RESIDENCE:
| 1973-1980 | Rev. Hugh Biggar prufrock@prodigy.net | Founding Pastor |
|
1974 |
Rev. John Vandegaer | Assisted founding |
|
1978-1979 |
Rev. Ron Matthews | Associate Pastor |
| Rev. William L. Up de Graff | Associate Pastor | |
|
1979-1980 |
Rev. Roger McMullen | Associate Pastor |
| Rev. Bernard Zagst | Temporary Admin | |
| 1980-1983 | Rev. Robert Inzina | Pastor |
|
1980-1982 |
Rev. Patrick Madden | Associate Pastor |
|
1982-1983 |
Rev. Ken Roy | Associate Pastor |
| 1983-1993 | Rev. Msgr. J. Carson Lacaze | Pastor |
|
1983-1987 |
Rev. Stephen Wright | Associate Pastor |
|
1987-1988 |
Rev. Daniel Walsh | In Residence |
|
1988-1990 |
Rev. Rothell Price | Associate Pastor |
|
1991-1993 |
Rev. Peter Mangum | Associate Pastor |
|
1994-1995 |
Rev. Curtis Woods | Associate Pastor |
| 1993-1999 | Rev. Philip F. Michiels | Pastor |
|
1995-1997 |
Rev. Joseph Howard | Associate Pastor |
|
1997-2000 |
Rev. Andre' Mcgrath | OFM in residence |
| 1999-2005 | Rev. Edmund A. "Larry" Niehoff | Pastor |
| 2005-present | Rev. Rothell Price frprice@bellsouth.net | Pastor |
| 2006-2007 | Rev. Thomas Vempala | In Residence |
|
11/2008 |
Rev. Dariusz Pawlowski | Parochial Vicar |