As Parochial Vicar Fr. Mark Botzet says, there is something beautiful happening at St. Donatus.
“When you walk up the aisle to celebrate Mass and you get goosebumps on the back of your neck as you go, you know the Holy Spirit is alive and well here!” Fr. Botzet says.
Fr. Botzet’s remarks may seem counterintuitive as many of us grapple with the reality that things are changing here at St. Donatus. For those of us who have been St. Donatus parishioners for quite a while, the changes may be jarring, and many of us are pondering what is left for us as a parish. How do we move forward? Who are we now? But Fr. Botzet is quick to point out that his remarks speak not only of St. Donatus’s past as a parish but also of her future.
“The parish is still alive and well,” Fr. Botzet says. “The Holy Spirit is still living and acting within this place, and the people of St. Donatus are still coming together to serve one another and grow in their faith. The parish still exists!”
There have been rumors and misinformation milling about, so Fr. Botzet wanted to take the opportunity to clarify any confusion and assure us that we parishioners of St. Donatus remain just that, and we ought to move forward accordingly — grateful for all God has given us today and always!
Sure, we will need to find our way to other churches to celebrate Sunday Mass, but there are multiple churches close by, and our parish is still a very active one despite this change.
“While there will no longer be any Sunday Masses celebrated at St. Donatus, there is still the regular Wednesday Mass at 8:15 a.m., followed by the Sacrament of Confession and Eucharistic Adoration,” Fr. Botzet says. “There is a group that meets for coffee after Mass each Wednesday, and there are people who show up for adoration each week as well.”
In addition, baptisms, weddings, and funerals can still be celebrated at St. Donatus — simply call the office to schedule them.
Fr. Botzet says he recognizes that taking Sunday Masses off campus is a big shift for us, and acknowledging that this is a difficult transition is very valid. Yet, he encourages us to look forward with hearts of gratitude for the faith God has gifted us with and the Church we are a part of.
“God is still here,” Fr. Botzet says. “He has not abandoned us.”
We must stay strong as a parish and come together in faith-filled love and service, recognizing that our identity as Catholics and as parishioners of St. Donatus lies in our faith in Christ and His Church. He remains faithful to us even when life gets rough or things feel hard. Change is always hard. But beyond the difficulties, there is so much beauty! We need only to open our hearts to what God has in store for us to recognize and receive the beauty and the fruitfulness that is there.
“I remember a while ago, when a storm came through,” Fr. Botzet says. “It was a bad storm. Trees had fallen — one even fell on the church. Parishioners came together and took care of the church.”
Needless to say, God is here and He is working. Our parish is still alive! And Fr. Botzet wants to assure all of us that he is around.
“I am down there often,” he says.
Both Fr. Botzet and Fr. Greg continue to serve our parish community. They want to see us flourish and grow as a parish, as individual people, and as the family that we are! We have not been abandoned — things have simply changed a bit. But if we give our uncertainty and fears about these changes to God and allow Him to use them for His glory, we are sure to see a smooth transition and continue to relish in the fact that we are still the people of St. Donatus. We are still Christ’s very own! And it is in that reality that we ought to find our true identity and peace.