After serving about 1½ years as administrator of St. Patrick Parish in Thompson and St. Mary Parish in Chardon, Father Scott Goodfellow got a new title: pastor.
Bishop Edward Malesic celebrated liturgies at each parish on Dec. 11, Gaudete Sunday, to formally install him. Since it was the Third Sunday of Advent, the priests wore rose vestments as sign of rejoicing because the birth of the savior is near.
(See photo gallery above with pictures from each Mass.)
“I am aware of your needs,” the bishop told the faithful at each parish as he began the Mass. To that end, he told them Father Goodfellow is now officially their pastor. “The people of God need a pastor and a pastor needs people,” he said, noting the job of a pastor is leading his people to Jesus. The bishop also thanked Father Goodfellow’s parents, who attended both liturgies, “for raising such a good son.” He is a son of St. Joseph Parish in Avon Lake and was ordained to the priesthood in 2014.
The faithful at each parish welcomed the bishop and several of Father Goodfellow’s priest friends served as concelebrants at each Mass. At St. Patrick, a smaller, more rural parish of about 300 families, Father Damian Ference, vicar for evangelization; Father Chris Zerucha, pastor of St. Bernard and St. Mary parishes in Akron; Father Thomas Sweany, retired, concelebrated. Father Stephen Spisak, parochial vicar at both parishes, was ill and unable to attend, so the congregations remembered him in prayer.
At St. Mary, which has about 2,500 families and a robust school, there were about 18 concelebrants, including Father John Betters, pastor of SS. Robert and William and St. John of the Cross parishes in Euclid, and Father Larry Jurcak, pastor of St. Mary Parish in Hudson. SS. Robert and William and St. Mary in Hudson were Father Goodfellow’s first and second parish assignments after his priestly ordination.
He also thanked his ordination classmate, Father Tim Roth, for attending the celebration at St. Mary. Father Roth, who is studying in Rome, is home for Christmas break.
“God gives us shepherds to help with the life of the faithful,” Father Goodfellow said. “I’ve been able to celebrate Mass and the sacraments and to lead you closer to Jesus. You do the same for me,” he told his parishioners.
“I need to be strong enough for Christ,” something I’ve learned in the past year. “But I have to be weak enough for him so I don’t get in the way,” he added.
A friend inquired about his “pastor coronation,” Father Goodfellow said. “I am not being crowned king of Thompson and Chardon,” he quipped, explaining to the congregations that it’s not a coronation, but rather an installation.
Playing off the Gospel message for the day, Father Goodfellow questioned, “Are you the one who is to come or should we wait for another?”
While he is their pastor, he said he is not their savior. That role belongs to Jesus. As pastor, he brings stability and the fruitfulness of the Gospel to life among the faithful.
“Our heart longs for a pastor. I never got a mug that said ‘best administrator ever,’ but I have seen mugs that had that message,” he said. However, he emphasized that as pastor, his role is to be a shepherd and not to get in the way. “I have to be patient and allow ‘updates’ to happen, both technologically and spiritually. We can’t be enough without God. We have to surrender to him and I have to be weak enough that he can work through me.”
In recent weeks, Father Goodfellow said he’s reflected on the doxology from the Mass: “Through him, with him and in him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,” noting the Lord goes before us in all things. He said each of the two parishes he now shepherds had multiple pastors before him. “I need your support,” he told the faithful.
Father Goodfellow said priests and bishops have mottos. In Bishop Malesic’s case, his is “Serve the Lord with Gladness.” Father Goodfellow said his motto came to him during his diaconate year, as he prepared to say “yes” to his calling as a priest. “Father, they are your gift to me” (Jn 17:24) is his motto.
“I’m a gift of the Lord, a gift of Jesus and his love is unique to me. You are a gift of the Father to Jesus. Jesus, I want to live with you, through you and in you,” he added.
“This is Gaudete Sunday, a joyful day. Jesus provides us shepherds for his Church and allows us to work with him, through him and in him. If I didn’t say my ‘yes’ to my call, there would be a hole in the Church,” Father Goodfellow said.
Bishop Malesic thanked him for accepting the call to his vocation and for his willingness to lead and serve both parishes.
“We need good priests. We need to listen for God’s call. Sometimes, we have ‘spiritual earwax,’” the bishop said.
He also pointed out everyone – priests included – can get trapped by earthly things like balancing the budget. “I want you to have a balanced budget,” he told Father Goodfellow, but noted it’s also important to focus on the spiritual side. “You don’t need a beautiful church to follow God. We need beautiful hearts.”
The bishop also reminded the faithful that as a Church, we need to be more welcoming. “We’re a community of faith,” he said, encouraging them to be evangelists. “The Eucharist draws us together. Jesus is our food for the journey. He is really present here – body and blood, soul and divinity. These parishes are a gift. Don’t keep them for yourselves.”
Each parish had a reception after Mass where parishioners could meet the bishop and congratulate their new pastor.
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