News - March 2026

A blessed and joyful Easter to you – to our longtime parishioners, to those who join us each week, and to the many visitors and guests who are with us for this holy day. We are truly glad you are here!

Water is essential for all life, including human life. While a healthy adult may go several weeks without food, that individual can only go 3-4 days without water. And yet water is becoming an increasingly scarce resource throughout much of the world, including in our own region. As this new year unfolds, the story of water in the American West is both hopeful and sobering. Recent storms have filled many of California’s major reservoirs, and drought maps now show our state largely drought-free. Yet, high in the mountains—where next year’s lifeblood is stored as snow—the picture is far more fragile.

In Laudato Si Pope Francis noted that human consumption of fossil fuels (which are carbon-based) has made a significant contribution to global warming, which in turn is damaging our planet (Laudato si', 23), and he asserted that “there is an urgent need to reduce carbon emissions” (LS, 165). He called this not only a scientific necessity, but also a “moral and spiritual responsibility.” (LS, 172-175).

Several weeks ago, in my pastoral letter addressing the plight of migrant sisters and brothers in the US, I invited our faith community to consider the question, “What do you want me to do?” I later suggested three opportunities for direct action, and parishioners provided information the following weekend at all Masses. On March 10, I joined 14 other parishioners and staff at the Interfaith Movement for Human Integrity (IM4HI) vigil at the San Francisco ICE Field Office on Sansome Street. I’d like to share with you below the reflections of two people who participated.

Irish immigration to the United States began early in the 17th century. Many of the immigrants worked as indentured servants or sought refuge from political and religious persecution. The largest wave of immigration occurred during the 19th century, particularly during and after the Great Famine (1845–1852). Over one million Irish persons fled starvation and poverty. Many Irish immigrants landed in major US port cities such as New York, Boston, and Philadelphia.

I remember learning to walk as a child. But it was my father-in-law, Jack, who showed me how to walk as an adult. As his new daughter-in-law, Jack invited me on his regular after supper stroll through the small woods near their family home in Rochester, New York. Jack loved their home near the trees, and not too far from that big “ditch,” the Erie Canal.

Previous reflections have addressed waste reduction and prayerful eating. This week let’s talk about plastics. Plastic was invented in 1907 as a material called Bakelite made from fossil fuels and used in dials and knobs. The 1950s and 1960s in the US saw a surge in plastic use in the form of convenience goods and packaging. Plastic was used in cars, medical devices, furniture, building materials, as well as toys and clothing. As plastic trash grew, we were encouraged by plastic manufacturers, i.e., the petroleum industry, to recycle it. Recycling was promoted as an individual responsibility, not a problem in production or marketing. The Plastics Industry introduced resin identification codes—those numbers 1 – 7 found on the bottom of plastic packaging. In reality, only numbers 1 and 2 plastics can be recycled. And, like with the tobacco industry, the plastics industry knew decades ago of the harms of plastic pollution, but hid the information from the public.