Pastor’s Column

OPPOSE AB 2223

The California Catholic Conference shares the concerns of Assemblymember Wicks that women not be prosecuted for pregnancy outcomes, including abortion, miscarriage, and stillbirth. Whenever women experience pregnancy loss, whether intentional or unintentional, the caring response of the community is critical in helping women and families heal. We are asking Assemblymember Wicks to further amend AB 2223 to clarify the language in this bill surrounding the use of the term “perinatal death.” “Perinatal” is defined in the CA WIC code 14134.5 as “the period from the establishment of pregnancy to one month following delivery.” The use of this imprecise term in AB 2223 leaves the door open for an interpretation of support for infanticide. The California Catholic Conference opposes AB 2223 unless amended to redefine or substitute the term “perinatal death” to definitively exclude infant death due to abuse or neglect.

AGES FOR CAMPS

A clarification: We are opening Camp Immaculate Heart up to girls ages ten and up; Camp Sacred Heart is as usual for boys ages nine and up. I had the impression that the sisters wanted the age for the girls to be a little higher; they had the impression that I wanted the age a little higher; Tish had the impression that I wanted the age for the boys to be a little higher! So there has been some miscommunication.

Given the confusion, I am opening camp registration to boys ages nine to eleven, and to girls ages ten to eleven, until next Sunday, June 5.

P.S. We have about eighty boys and sixty girls signed up for camp so far. Outside of some very narrow circumstances (families that used to belong to our parish but have moved away from Sacramento, families that attend Mass elsewhere but are well known to a priest that is well known to me), I am not taking children from outside the parish.

NEW TABLES & CHAIRS

We have ordered new tables and chairs, which match those that we have in the parish hall. They should arrive sometime this summer. They will replace: the circular white tables in the parish hall and the long rectangular white tables in the classrooms, which are in various states of disrepair; and also the smaller seat-desks in Classroom 1. Those seat-desks we will be giving away. They don’t make good use of the space in that classroom, and they prevent the use of that classroom for anything other than instruction for very small children.

The nicer brown chairs, in addition to filling out the classrooms, will supplement the chairs in the choir room, and also replace the white chairs which are currently in the side chapel and used by side servers.

We are hoping soon to acquire new picnic tables, as well.

NEW GATE

You will probably have noticed the new gate installed under the awning of the 28th Street vestibule entrance. This gate represents part of our efforts to make the campus safer. We will plan on leaving it locked on weekdays and Saturday, but having it open on Sundays. You can exit the gate even when it is locked, but I would prefer that during the week people only enter and exit the campus through the parking lot, under normal circumstances.

PIG ROAST

Mark your calendars for the St. Stephen’s Pig Roast: Sat, Aug 6. If you wish to volunteer for this long awaited celebration, please contact Gloria Santana at (916) 832-2811.

(We’re hosting the pig roast on a Saturday because the Sunday schedule has so many Masses now. The schedule will be forthcoming.)