Closed until Further Notice 

After consultation with the Diocese of Helena and two positive COVID cases in our parish, St. Francis Xavier Church is closed until further notice.  (4/2/20)

Please remain at home and continue to visit our website and Facebook page in order to follow important parish updates and live-streaming of Sunday Mass. 

Though this sanctuary is closed, we are united as Church by the grace of Christ.  A grace that empowers us to love with deeper compassion, and allows us to experience deeper communion with new eyes and new hearts.  

“If we love one another, God lives in us and love is made complete in us… and the love of God drives out all fear.” 1 John 4:12 

Joseph Carver, S.J. 

Weekly Updates from Our Pastor

Friday March 27th, 2020

Dear St. Francis Family,

We are a people of Sacrament, and today we experience that Sacrament fragmented—the various dimensions of “real presence,” which we are used to experiencing together separated from one another. We can hear the word, proclaimed in a broadcast—on Facebook live or streaming—but we cannot gather together as People of God to receive the wondrous presence of Christ in the Eucharist. In these days of contagion and pandemic, we can feel as though the Sacrament itself has been broken, taken from us by the dangers of the world. Yet, here, I think, we miss the grace at work so powerfully in these days. For if the Mass seems broken, we know that Christ, too, was broken on the Cross, for our sake—i.e., that all those he loves might be raised up anew. The breaking of Christ in death does not lead to an end of grace, or to our destruction; rather, it is the prelude to resurrection and to all the graces that the People of God receive. In the same way, this time of suffering and separation may well lead to a resurrection in the Church, and a new sense of how precious each member of the Body of Christ is. 

Today we are called to share—not in symbol alone, but in fact—some part of the separation and brokenness which Christ accepted in his journey to death. Further, as we are summoned to social distancing and maybe even to sheltering in place, we have a sense of the powerlessness felt by the women and the beloved disciple who stood witness at the foot of the Cross.

Today, we are called in some ways to break the Mass apart, separating the presence of Christ in the Assembly from the presence of Christ in the Eucharistic elements; but by our willingness to make this move, we proclaim something revolutionary: that the Eucharistic meal, blessed as it is, is never more important than the People for whom it has been given.

Today, though we may receive only partially all the ways Christ is present in the Mass, yet if we act out of love for our sisters and brothers, we still receive fully the grace and love that Jesus gave to us in the Paschal Sacrifice.   

May this profound Lenten experience give us new and richer grace, a grace that empowers us to love with deeper compassion, and helps us to experience the Mass with new eyes and new hearts—to see its fullness not simply in the gift within the tabernacle but in the life of every woman and man beloved of God. 

With great and holy affection,

Fr. Joseph Carver, S.J., Pastor

A few gentle reminders:

• Find a way to pray which works for you – we will post ideas, options and methods on our Facebook page.. 
• Call, text, and message friends, family, and neighbors today.
• If you have a sacramental need such as anointing please call 406-542-0321 or email JCarver@sfxmissoula.org

LiveStream Recording of Sunday 10am Mass

• This is new every week. The current recording below is from March 29th, the 5th Sunday of Lent.
• Click on “Watch Now” in the image below. It SHOULD work even if you don’t have a Facebook account. Thanks for your patience with us as we manage new technology right along with you.