First I would like to thank God for calling me to the priesthood and sending me here to St. Anastasia. Secondly, I cannot forget to mention my parents and family who nurtured my vocation. I would like to personally thank everyone for welcoming them and making them part of our parish family. I would also thank Cardinal Maida for having faith in me, for sending me here, and for Archbishop Vigneron for having the same faith in allowing me to stay here as well. 

The staff needs a lot of thanks for ‘putting up’ with me for three years. They showed a lot of patience, understanding, and showed much joy in their service for the Church. They truly helped in forming me into the priest I am today. I would also like to thank Deacon Ron and Fr. Varghese for challenging me to really think about my faith and about theology. They both made being a priest enjoyable. The friendships I made with the staff and Deacon Ron and Fr. Varghese I will always cherish.

Of course I cannot forget about Fr. J.J.  As you all know he gave me a lot of grief for three years.  With all the grief and the pranks he pulled on me, I have one thing to say to him. “Thank you!”  Fr.  J.J. showed me how to be a servant priest. His joy has been contagious. There is no better pastor I could have asked for to learn from than him. I would also thank Fr. J.J. for his friendship and for our continued friendship in the future.

Last but not the least, I need to thank all the parishioners at St. Anastasia. Thank you for the friendships I have made and for allowing me to be a part of your lives. It was through you that I learned most of what it is to be a priest. You took this young priest and helped to mold him into the priest he is today. Thank you for all you have done and for the many memories I have.

It is hard to believe that my time is done and I am going out to Canton, MI. Know that you will always be in my heart and in my prayers. Also know that you are always welcomed at my new parish, St. John Neumann. St. John Neumann is at 44800 Warren Rd. Canton, MI 48187-1857. Know that you are “Always Loved and Always Welcome” at St. John Neumann or wherever I go. Good bye and may God’s blessing be with all of you.

Fr. Mark Prill

I would like to thank everyone who purchased a St. Anastasia bumpersticker or attended the St. Anastasia Irish Night. With both of these event we were able to donate almost $2500 to help the World Youth Day Pilgrims. I know they appreciate our help. I would also like to tank the Knights of Columbus for a wonderful meal and Kevin Enright who was the head chef, directing the Knights in meal preperation. A big thank you to the Young Adults who put the event together.

We will be having an informational meeting to kick off a new outreach ministry. It will involve inviting our neighbors to come to St. Anastasia to learn about us and to explore our faith. Many people are just waiting to be invited to come and experience the love of Christ. We are called by Christ to make this invitation. This ministry, Opening Doors to St. Anastasia,  encourages us to do this and gives us the tools to accomplish our goal.  The fist meeting is Saturday, April 2nd from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the parish social hall (enter through the Church doors).  A pizza lunch will be served.

Attention all Parishioners!

Here’s a wonderful family event and a good way to support vocations to the priesthood. On Friday, Feb 4^th at 7pm is the annual Priest vs. Seminarian basketball game. This is a fun event and in the past two years many from St. Anastasia have come out to support the priesthood. While the priests have only won 1 time since I have been in the seminary to now, it is still a lot of fun. Pray for us priests who are all out of shape. Pray also for our head coach, Fr. J.J. I hope to see many familiar faces there. The price is free but the memories will last a life time. The address of the seminary is 2701 Chicago Bvld. in Detroit. If you are planning on coming, let me know because I may be able to set up a tour of the seminary.

I hope everyone has a great year and know that I am praying for all of you.

Fr. Mark

One thing that we have to remember most this holiday season is what it is truly about.  A fruition of the yes that Mary gave to God that led to the birth of Jesus.  Let her yes be an example to us.  That when we feel called by God to do anything we have that same courage to say Yes.  Mary’s and Joseph’s lives were forever changed by that one word.  Let that one word be on our lips as we continue to celebrate the Christmas Joy.  Thanking God for coming into the World and for all of us to have the courage to say yes to Him every day.

I hope everyone has a great Christmas and a wonderful time with family and friends.  Also be assured my prayers during this Christmas season is for all of you.

Fr. Mark

On September 22nd I will be going to “Jail”. I am taking part in the fundraiser for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA.)  If you do not know what the MDA is, I direct you to their website www.mda.org. What I am taking part in is raising money to help send kids to camp. They set a goal of $1600 for me to achieve. However, as a parish I think we can do better than that. If we can raise over $3000, St. Anastasia will be represented on the Jerry Lewis Telethon. This is a national telethon and we would sponsor an hour of it. It would be great way to let people see how generous we are and how we help those in need as a parish. So let us take up the charge to help as many children as we can. You can either write on an envelope “Fr. Mark MDA” and place your donation in the collection or bring it to the offices. All checks can be made out to “MDA” and I also have a form for credit cards as well. Thank you for your support.

I have had many questions asked regarding my notes from the talk I gave last month, “Reformation and Response.”  If you would like these notes please email me or call me.  I should have them organized so you can follow them in the next two weeks. Also as many of you know a certain football game is happening next month between U of M (the Victors) against msu. Fr. J.J. and I are going to do a bet again this year and we would like some ideas. Feel free to let Fr. J.J. or I know your ideas. Have a great fall and know my prayers are with you. GO BLUE!!

Fr. Mark

One of the events that we have that many people are not sure what it is or know what it is about is Tenebrae. Tenebrae is a service that draws us deeper into the fact that Jesus died. It is like a funeral for Jesus. That wold be the best way to describe it. There are readings and songs that take place. There are also candles that are lit at the beginning and as each aspect of the service is completed a light is turned off in the church and a candle is extinguished. It ends with the one candle lit as the light of Christ in the darkness of sin and death. It is deeply moving and powerful. I encourage you to take part in the service. It is on Good Friday at 7 p.m. in the church.

Also I realize that many people work during the day and it is impossible to get Good Friday off to take part in the Good Friday service (Tre Ore). That is why this year we will be showing The Passion of Christin the William B. Davidson Activity Center.  This is a great way to deepen your journey towards Easter. This is a powerful movie and makes what happened 2000 years ago more real. The showing will be at 8 p.m. in the Davidson Center on Good Friday. Go to Tenebrae and then come see the screening of The Passion.

During this time of Holy Week we need to pay close attention to our Lenten promises and not cheat. We are in the home stretch. Also during Holy Week, besides taking part in the variety of services and Masses we are offering, I ask you to pray the rosary each day and pray specifically the sorrowful mysteries. As you pray and remember Christ’s Passion, let us unite our prayers and sorrows with Jesus who died on the Cross. Everything we may be feeling and struggling with we should offer them up to Jesus on the Cross. Then on Easter Sunday pray the glorious mysteries in thanksgiving for what God has done for us.

I would like to thank you all for your prayers and support. As you know last week I told everyone that I had pneumonia. I told this not for sympathy, but to remind people to take care of their bodies as well as their souls. Our body is a temple of God and we are to take care of it. I pray you don’t fall like I did and wait 3 weeks to go to the doctor; this illness could have been prevented. Thank you to those who nagged me every day to go. I pray that if you have been sick for a while to go to the doctor and get checked out. Since I started antibiotics I feel the best I felt in 3 weeks.  Thanks again for the prayers for my health and know that my prayers are with you.

Fr. Mark

On January 15^th at 7pm is the annual Priest vs. Seminary basketball game will occur.  I will be playing in the game once again and Fr. JJ has agreed to be our coach again.  With his great coaching skills and his ability to talk to the score keeper into giving the priests a 45 point bonus at halftime I am sure the priests will win!  I invite everyone to come on down for this fun event.  It is a lot of fun and a great time for the family.  The seminary address is 2701 Chicago Blvd. Detroit MI 48206.  Hope to see you there.

Some of you have brought to my attention that it looks like I have been losing weight.  In truth I have lost about 12 lbs in the past month or so.  The reason for the weight loss is because I have been excersing and lifting weights.  Thank you for all words of encouragement.  I do encourage all of you to remember while we are to take care of our soul; we are also to take care of our bodies because our bodies are temples of God.  I hope everyone has a great 2010 and know my prayers are with you all.

Fr. Mark

Religious education is in full swing now. The children are all excited about the new year. Having the children around brings some added life to the parish. I would like to thank all the catechists, the hall monitors, and all people who have any role in religious education for all of the hard work they do. By their sacrifice and dedication they make these programs possible every year.

 Later this month CYO basketball practices will start. I ask for your prayers for all the teams, players, and coaches. I believe it is through sports we learn a lot about ourselves, team work, and God. I am hoping for a fun and successful season. Say a prayer for me as I coach the 7^th and 8^th grade girl’s team that I lead them well and that I do not end up with any more gray hair!

 Not that long ago I was involved in the creation of a Facebook page for the parish. This is a great tool for all of us to gather together who love St. Anastasia. I am on there regularly in case there is a discussion going on. I encourage all of you who use Facebook to look up this group and to join it. The group is called “St. Anastasia Roman Catholic Church.” I will soon be starting a group for young adults as well.

 This month on the 28^th I will be giving a talk at Faith@Work on the New Age Movement. This is the follow up talk to the one I gave on the occult. Hope to see you all on October 28^th at 7pm at Faith@Work.

 As we move on towards Advent, let us prepare our hearts for the best Christmas possible. Let’s pray that we continue to move our hearts towards Christ daily. I pray that you all have a blessed week.

 Fr. Mark

On September 21st we celebrate the feast of St. Matthew. We know St. Matthew as the author of the first gospel in the bible and also as an Apostle. He was probably born in Galilee and was a tax collector at Capernaum (Mt 9: 9-13) when he was called by Christ to follow Him (Lk 5: 27-32). This is a dramatic scene in the life of Jesus because he calls a tax collector, the lowest of the low in Jewish society, to be an Apostle. This shows that Jesus did not come into the world for the just, but to call sinners to Him. He immediately stood up and left everything behind; his way of life and his attachment to sin. He preached in Jerusalem and then eventually went to Ethiopia and was martyred in Persia (modern Iran). Matthew is recognized in liturgical art by an angel holding a lance, a coin, a pen, or a money box.

“The Occult and the New Age Movement”

Wednesday, September 30th at 7 pm

Fr. Mark Prill will address the threat of the occult and the New Age Movement in our sociey.

It is hard to believe summer is almost over. School supplies are now for sale and I can hear the Athens teams and bands practicing outside. This is not just a time for the students who are planning what subjects to take and preparing for school, but it is also a time for all of us who are not in school to figure out what we are going to learn more about in regards to our faith. There are a variety of programs that are taking place this year. I encourage you to take part in them to learn more about our faith. As I said in my homily last week, true wisdom is to live out our faith each and every day, but we are also to use our minds to learn more about our faith and Jesus. Truly living out our faith is learning more about it and living out our faith each day to the best of our ability.

In the theme of education, I would like to first invite everyone to my morning Bible study every Wednesday from 10:30 a.m.—12:00 p.m. We cover the upcoming Sunday readings to help prepare us for Mass and learn how to pray with Scripture. Also for the past 6 months or so, I have been giving coffee chats at Faith @ Work on a variety of topics. Some of the topics have been the Mass, Angels and Demons (not the book, but the teachings of the Church), prayer, and the four last things we experience; Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell. When I have dates set up for future talks I will make sure to publish them. Please know that you are invited to join us.

I hope everyone enjoys the remaining days of summer and know that all of you are in my prayers.

Father Mark