Message from Bishop John
August 2025
CATY MRAZ | THE U.P. CATHOLIC
Bishop John Doerfler, Fr. Ben Hasse (vocations director), seminarians for the Diocese of Marquette and discerners pose for a group photo at the top of the Log Slide Overlook in Grand Marais. The excursion was part of the annual seminarian retreat, which was held Aug. 10-13 at Holy Rosary Parish in Grand Marais. The retreat was also open to young men discerning the priesthood. For additional photos from the retreat, visit www.flickr.com/photos/theupcatholic/albums.
"And a rock feels no pain, and an island never cries."
Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
The title words of this note are the concluding lines from the 1966 Simon and Garfunkel song, "I Am a Rock," from the Sound of Silence album.
The lyrics are chilling. For example, they sing:
"I've built walls,
A fortress deep and mighty,
That none may penetrate.
I have no need of friendship, friendship causes pain.
It's laughter and it's loving I disdain.
I am a rock. I am an Island."
The song is about the pain someone has experienced in a broken relationship. As a result, the wounded person isolates himself, trusts no one, and shuts himself off so that he will not be hurt again. Are we not tempted to do the same when we have been hurt? It is hard to trust again, to open up our hearts to another person.
If you have experienced the deep wounds of a broken relationship, know that Jesus wants to heal you. Give him your pain and invite him into your life.
Part of the healing process is experiencing Christ's love through other people. As tempting as it might be to shut ourselves off, becoming a rock, an island, will only get us stuck in our pain.
The Lord has given us each other in his Body the Church. In his plan, we are meant to reach out to each other, to be that true friend in Christ. We foster hope that wounds can be healed when we treat each other as precious gifts of God who can enter into hearts and heal wounds. Let us not be islands, but sisters and brothers in Christ.
Sincerely in Christ,
+Bishop John Doerfler
+Bishop John Doerfler
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
On Aug. 15, Catholics celebrate the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This significant feast day recalls the spiritual and physical departure of the mother of Jesus Christ from the earth, when both her soul and her body were taken into the presence of God.
The feast of the Assumption is a Holy Day of Obligation. Check your parish bulletin for Mass times in observance of the feast.
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