Dear Sisters and Brothers of Saint Thomas the Apostle Parish:
May the peace of the Lord be with you. May the Divine Physician, Jesus Christ, watch over you and protect you during these harrowing times in this pandemic. I miss being with you who cannot join us for a public Mass.
As your Pastor, I invite your help in meeting our parish’s assessment toward the success of this year’s Archdiocesan Appeal. In 2021, our parish is obligated to contribute $182,100 (which is above and beyond our weekly collections). If we don’t make the goal, then we will have to pay the Archdiocese from our offertory/operating income. And our offertory is down from last year. In 2020, we exceeded our $179,300 assessment by $39,072, for which I am very grateful to those who pledged and completed their pledges. The overage is returned to the parish, which is a huge blessing for our parish.
Since so few people can attend our public Masses as the pandemic continues in 2021, I bring the appeal into your homes with hope that you can make your pledge via one of the two systems in place:
- Fill out the pledge envelope and return it to the parish.
(Please do not return your pledge envelope to the Archdiocese.) OR
- Pledge electronically at donate.archatl.com
Please make sure your pledge is directed to the credit of our parish, St. Thomas the Apostle (Smyrna).
(There are other St. Thomas parishes, so choose carefully, please.)
I just made my pledge electronically and it went very smoothly.
Archbishop Gregory Hartmayer’s invitation is to make “Our Joyful Return to the Lord” so that ministries, education, and offices of the Archdiocese be supported. I recommend going to the Archdiocese of Atlanta’s web page for all details and the Archbishop’s video appeal. https://archatl.com/appeal/ Your pledge can be fulfilled in the next 10 months. Small monthly payments can add up to a sizable gift. Payments may be made through December 31, 2021. Please take the time to pray, think, and decide how you can respond and help your parish meet this year’s goal. Our joyful return to the Lord brings many blessings. Thank you very much.
In Service of Our Lord and His Blessed Mother,
Father Brian R. Sheridan, M.S.
Pastor
