“...everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” At the heart of this saying is the question, “What does it mean to be humble?” I believe that it consists of knowing yourself with your positive qualities and your negative qualities, owning your successes and your failures, knowing the importance of God’s place in your life and giving thanks to God for all that you have. We recognize who we are before God. Being humble is something we all strive to be.

     The End of the Year Financial Report for the Fiscal Year 2009- 2010 is available here.   There are also printed copies of it on the table in the lobby of the church. Your generosity made it possible for us to go through this difficult financial period and end up in the “black.” The Fiscal Year 2009-10 began on July 1, 2009 and you will remember that the Church Restoration was going on at that time. Almost $250,000 was raised to be used for that project and the additional lighting that was added in the autumn. There was also money in the existing Restoration Fund which helped pay for the whole project completely. I want to “Thank You” for your weekly donations and a special “Thank You” to all those who gave to the Restoration Fund. This has made it possible for the projects that are finished to be paid for completely. It has also meant the timely paying of our weekly expenses, and having us end up in the “black.” Thank You and God bless you!

     Welcome back University of Tampa students and Welcome to the new students! We here at Sacred heart Church are going to continue our custom of a once-a-month dinner after the Sunday 6 PM Mass. Our first dinner will be Sunday, September 12th. All students, faculty and staff are invited to this dinner which is held in St. Francis Hall in the building behind the church. Each month there is a home cooked dinner and delightful people to share the meal with. So, mark your calendars!

     As we begin another autumn-winter-spring year here at Sacred Heart, there are many ways to become involved in the parish. The weekend of September 11-12 at all the Masses, you will hear talks by a number of parishioners on their involvement in the various ministries and activities of the parish. This will be followed on the weekend of September 18-19 by our annual Ministry Fair sponsored by our Stewardship Committee. At the Ministry Fair, tables are set up by the various ministries in the lobby of the church and you are invited to look them over and offer your talents and time to one or more ministries. This is a great way to be of service and to meet people. There is more to come this autumn.