What a sight we had at 7:30 a.m. this past Monday morning. Perched atop the cross on the very pinnacle of the roof of the church was an extremely beautiful and stoic American Bald Eagle. Although this was a very rare site, the symbolism of his visit is far reaching. Did you know that the symbol of St. John the Evangelist is the Eagle? Because it soars upward, the eagle is a symbol of the resurrection or ascension of Christ. By extension, the eagle symbolizes baptized Christians, who have symbolically died and risen with Christ. The eagle is the symbol of John the Evangelist. The eagle represents John because of his lofty and “soaring” gospel (it is much more theological in nature than the other three). Christian tradition has long connected the authors of the four canonical Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John) with the four “living creatures” that surround God’s throne, as described in Revelation 4:7, in the following pairs: Matthew – Human/Angel, Mark – Lion, Luke – Ox and John – Eagle. Believe it or not, this is the second such sighting in the past three years, and I was once again unable to get a picture worthy of publication in the bulletin.
Although it does not feel like autumn in Naples with temperatures and humidity levels in the mid 90s, fall will arrive next Saturday morning at 10:49 a.m. in conjunction with the autumnal equinox. So as the sun begins to head south of the celestial equator and the days become shorter and shorter, we can take solace in the fact that there will be less searing heat, if only for the fact that there will be progressively fewer minutes of daylight each day. Ironically enough, as we complain about the oppressive heat, our friends to the north have just experienced their first cold front of the year. If you have always wondered how our seasonal parishioners choose the date of departure from their northern residences, one parishioner appropriately stated that the thermometer rather than the calendar dictates when they head south. With that being said, I would assume that we will be seeing a substantial influx within the next few weeks. 
Samples of the new wall sconces for the lighting project arrived this past week and were unanimously approved. We are attempting to expedite the six week lead time on these fixtures as well as the chandeliers.
“Andrea’s Angel” is now installed in the southeast corner of the Memorial Garden. I assumed this would be done last week, but we were unable to get a crew onsite to re-route the irrigation. Attached is a picture of the finished product (minus the landscaping.) Please take a minute to check it out after Mass as the picture really doesn’t show its true beauty. If you would like to make a donation towards the purchase of this beautiful statue, please contact me at 566.1678. We are currently only $500.00 short of fully funding Andrea’s Angel.
I will be attending the International Stewardship Conference in Chicago on September 16-19. Joining me at this conference will be two members of the Stewardship Committee. We hope to gain a better understanding of stewardship as a way of life with Christ in the Church! The ICSC Stewardship Conference is an exciting gathering of bishops, pastors, parish leaders, diocesan stewardship and development directors and religious congregation leaders from all over the world. Conference registrants will learn both the spiritual foundation and the hands-on details for bringing stewardship as a way of life into their parishes, dioceses, congregations and organizations.
Have you remembered St. John the Evangelist in your estate plans? The legal wording to include St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in your Will is: “I bequeath the sum of $____ or ____% of the residue of my estate to Bishop Frank J. Dewane (or his successor), Roman Catholic Bishop of the Diocese of Venice, a corporation sole, whose principal office is located at 1000 Pinebrook Road, Venice, FL 34285, for the benefit of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church.” You may further restrict the use of your gift to be used for a ministry, capital improvement, Catholic Charities, etc….Bequests are NOT assessed by the diocese
Parishioners have asked me for years if there was a way to make a gift directly to the church without it being assessed by the Diocese. Well, the previous paragraph is the answer! Although it will be your final gift on earth, your spirit will rejoice in knowing that it was not assessed.
In His work together,
Scott Schlossberg, MBA
General Manager