By Archbishop Thomas Wenski - The Archdiocese of Miami
Homily by Archbishop Thomas Wenski at Mass for the 75th Anniversary of Holy Family Parish in North Miami. Nov. 15, 2025.
Holy Family was born 75 years ago – just like me. But Holy Family has lots of years still ahead of it, and I hope I do too.
75 years might not seem like a long time for a Church that is almost 2,000 years old; but here in this still young Archdiocese, 75 years is certainly something to celebrate.
The word, parish is derived from the ancient Greek: pa-roi-ki-a; the Spanish, parroquia, is much closer to the original Greek than its English equivalent. It meant a sojourn in a foreign land, or a community of pilgrims or sojourners. And so, when the Hebrew Scriptures were first translated into Greek, pa-roi-ki-a was used to describe the Israelites as they journeyed through the desert on their way to the Promised Land. As Catholic Christians, we know that here on this earth we have no lasting dwelling place, for our citizenship is in heaven, our true Promised Land.
And since we are nearing the end of both the calendar and the liturgical years, the Scripture readings speak about the “end times”. In the gospel, Jesus speaks about the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem, he talks about natural disasters, about wars and persecutions. When seeking to understand the Scriptures, we might come away with the idea that Jesus is just a prophet preaching doom and gloom. But that would be wrong, for faith in Jesus Christ does not promise a life of calm – even while the storms and hurricanes of life swirl around us. Rather faith offers hope that in every situation we can weather any storm.
In the past 75 years, Holy Family has weathered many storms and challenges. Today, we thank God that Jesus has been for the parishioners here a sign of hope; he has been calm in the eye of the storm, wisdom in the face judgment, love in the face of hatred, perseverance in the face of persecution and protection in the face of adversity.
Istwa pawas sa a plen limyè ak lonbray. Nou pa dwe sezi pou sa. Jezi fonde legliz la pou sove pechè yo. Legliz la tankou yon filè ki pran bon ak move pwason nan dlo lanmò pou gide yo nan peyi lavi a. Nou ka nan filè a ak move pwason yo; nou pa la poutèt youn oswa lòt, men paske se filè Granmèt la.
Se poutèt sa, nou ka afime, jan nou fè chak dimanch nan Kredo a: Legliz la sen, epi li sen pa poutèt nou, men poutèt Lespri Sen Bondye ba li a. Epi malgre feblès ak echèk manm li yo, Legliz Bondye a kontinye grandi isit nan Sid Florid, ak isit nan Pawas Sent Fanmi Sen.
So, our parishes, where the community of sojourners or pilgrims meet, are then like way stations along our pilgrim way. But Holy Family, and all our parishes, are called to be more than just simple way stations or rest stops: they are called to be oases, oases of faith, hope and love in a world that increasingly seems like a barren, lifeless desert.
So, parishes must be oases where you parishioners can be refreshed by those “rivers of living water” found in the sacramental life of our Catholic faith.
La historia de esta parroquia, como toda historia forjada por seres humanos imperfectos, está llena de luces y sombras. No debería sorprendernos que la Iglesia que Cristo fundó para salvar a los pecadores esté, precisamente, llena de pecadores. La Iglesia es como una red que atrapa peces buenos y malos de las aguas de la muerte para guiarlos a la tierra de la vida. Puede que estemos en la red con los peces malos; no estamos aquí por uno u otro, sino porque es la red del Señor.
Por eso, podemos afirmar, como hacemos cada domingo en el Credo: la Iglesia es santa, y es santa no por nosotros, sino por el Espíritu que le ha sido dado. Y a pesar de las faltas y debilidades de sus miembros humanos, la Iglesia de Dios ha seguido creciendo aquí en el sur de Florida, y aquí en la Sagrada Familia. Y, si Dios quiere, guiada por ese mismo Espíritu, bajo el liderazgo de su párroco, el Padre Fritzner, que continúe creciendo.
In this parish, you, together with your fellow sojourners, can learn how to live your lives in such a way that you can show that God does matter to you. And nourished by the sacraments and enlightened by God’s Word, you are strengthened to witness to a world marked by violence, discord and division what a reconciling and a reconciled world looks like.
The history of this parish, like any history forged by fallen human beings, is full of lights and shadows. We should not be surprised that the Church which Christ founded to save sinners is - well - full of sinners. Church is like a net that catches good and bad fish from the waters of death to lead them to the land of life. We may be in the net with bad fish, we are not here for this one or that one but because it is the Lord’s net.
Because of this, we can affirm as we do each Sunday in the Creed: the Church is holy, and she is holy not because of us but because of the Spirit that is given to her. And despite the shortcomings and foibles of her human members, the Church of God has continued to grow here in South Florida � and here at Holy Family. And, please God, guided by that same Spirit, under the leadership of your pastor, Father Fritzner, you shall continue to grow.
Over the years, many have come and gone; and today, we lift up in prayer your former pastors and those pioneers who are still with us and pray also for those who were here at the beginning and have already gone home to the Lord.
La parroquia de la Sagrada Familia nació hace 75 años, igual que yo. Pero aún le quedan muchos años por delante, y espero que yo también.
Pawas Lasent Fanmiy ap fete 75 rekòlt kafe– menm jan avè m. Nan yon legliz ki egziste preske 2 mil ane, li jen toujou. Li gen anpil ane devan l. Ni mwen menm tou.
