Farewell Message from Fr. David
Dear Brothers and Sisters:
I see the providential hand of the Lord in the readings of this Sunday, which is also my last day as your parochial vicar. As you know, Church of the Little Flower has been my first parish assignment. I came here two years ago straight out of the seminary, after ten years spent in formation at the Redemptoris Mater Seminary—seven years living on campus in Hialeah and three years of mission in Northern and Central California.
In these years as a priest—only two—I always reminded myself that I am first one of those “sheep without a shepherd” that Jesus is talking about. This is how I came to truly know Christ: by experiencing that when I left the shepherd I ended up being troubled and abandoned. Despite growing up Catholic, I did not really know Christ until I met Him while troubled and abandoned. I experienced Christ as someone who was moved for me. He did not scold me—Jesus did not scold the sheep He had in front. He felt compassion for them; he did not try to understand or beat them up, he just loved them. This has been my experience as well: a God who did not scold me but loved me.
It is this experience of the grace of God who made of me a laborer for His harvest. This is the bewildering mystery that I have experienced in these two years: to be at the same time a laborer in the harvest and a sheep who is in constant need of conversion, who constantly needs to be loved and forgiven. Being dressed in black and wearing a collar does not exempt me from the need to have someone to preach to me and call me to conversion. On the contrary: without receiving a word myself I wouldn’t be able to give anything to you. That is why in these two years it has been fundamental for me to remain connected and faithful to my Neocatechumenal community: that’s the only way in which my priesthood could be fruitful.
Being a laborer in the harvest then, meant to mirror the experience that I had unto the people God put in front of me. This has been my mission in this parish, and this is what I hoped to accomplish: to work in the harvest by loving sinners. By doing this, I hoped to help making the name of God present in this community: “The LORD, the LORD, a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in kindness and fidelity.” (Ex 34:6)
This was my mission for the last two years. This was the will of God. Now God has spoken and said: leave Little Flower and go to Saint Bonaventure, that is the new harvest that I prepared for you—you are a laborer, not the owner. We know that man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes out of the mouth of God. Hence, there, in that word we will all find life. In that will is our happiness. Now a new prophet will be sent to you, and he will have words of eternal life. Listen to him.
I want to conclude by thanking Fr. Manny, the first laborer sent by God to work in this harvest and to care for you. Under his care I learned a lot on how to serve God’s will. I also want to thank all the priests who live in the rectory, who welcomed me and with whom I could establish bonds of friendship. Finally, thanks to all of you, dear brothers and sisters: you accepted me and opened your houses and your lives to me. I am nobody, and yet you respected me. I could only give you without cost what I received without cost. Each time I was surprised by how much this impacted you. Thank you for allowing me to be a witness to this.
Peace,
Fr. David Zallocco