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I look forward to joining the community of St. John the Baptist Catholic Church this July.   I am currently on a four-month sabbatical in the southern Arizona desert.   Then main part of this time away is an extensive contemplative retreat which focuses on becoming more aware of the presence of God in creation, in self, and in others.    I will be returning to the Northwest by the beginning of June to begin the transition of leaving St. Vincent de Paul Parish in Federal Way where I have been the past thirteen years and starting July first at your parish in Covington.  I am excited to discover how God is present among you, especially as you “Gather in God’s name, grow in God’s time, and go in God’s Spirit.”

Fr. Jim Coyne has done an amazing job these past nineteen years serving as your pastor.  Even in spite of Covid, I hope you find ways to express your gratitude for his ministry as he now enters senior status in his priestly vocation.  It is a blessing to know he will still be a part of the community in his retirement.  Covid may make transitions a bit more challenging as I seek ways to get to know you and the parish community. I ask for your patience and your prayer.  I look forward to serving with your spectacular staff, supporting so many of your parishioners engaged in ministry and being with each of you called to be God’s presence in your home and neighborhood.

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Bill McKee

We have achieved our goal of raising over  $113,000 for the Catholic Church in Western Washington! Thank you, thank you every one! Any amount you send over and above the goal will now be sent back to us to fund our lavatory project. The Annual Catholic Appeal reaches out to individual Catholics in all parishes to ask for their support for the ministries of the Archdiocese. Ministries that are Archdiocesan-wide include jail ministry, ministry to seafarers, mental health ministry, and grief ministry. In this 9 minute video, Joe Cotton and Erica Cohen-Moore talk a bit more about those ministries.

Prayer During Time of Transition

Loving God,

Your wisdom is beyond our understanding, and your goodness to us is more than we can imagine.

Surround and fill us with the light of your truth and love during our time of transition.

Let us view this moment of change and renewal
as an invitation to build upon the foundation that your creative power has begun in us.

As we offer our thanks for all we have experienced together as a parish community,
help us to look forward with trust to the future you have planned for us.

Empower us to be your Church at all times:
a people united in faith, where all are welcomed and connected by your love.

Give us the courage to carry the torch forward,
being open to new possibilities and embracing the new life to come.

As our Good Shepherd, guide us through this transition to become more fully the community of disciples you call us to be.

Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

Priest: St. John the Baptist  All: Pray for us!

Recently, a number of Catholic churches and institutions in western Washington have started working together as the Creation Care Network.

The Creation Care Network is at a point where they want to appeal for Archbishop Etienne to prioritize Care for Creation. They have composed a letter to him and are now inviting all Catholics in the Archdiocese to join by signing the letter.

To mark Earth Day this year (April 22, 2021), the Creation Care Network of Catholic parishes and institutions welcomes you to join in asking Archbishop Etienne to rise to the challenge of the climate crisis.

Please read the Creation Care Network’s letter to Archbishop Etienne and indicate your support for these proposals for personal and community-based actions to care for our common home.

To read the letter and sign on to support it, go to: https://forms.gle/EPtuTJrTJewKfViEA.

All signatures are due by April 19, 2021.