SHELBY — Applause welcomed Father Peter Ascik on Sunday as he was installed as pastor of St. Mary, Help of Christians Church and its mission in Kings Mountain.
Father Ascik was officially installed during a bilingual Mass Aug. 1 celebrated by Bishop Peter Jugis. The first-time pastor comes to Shelby after serving three years as a parochial vicar at St. Matthew Church in Charlotte.
He succeeds Father Michael Kottar, who died unexpectedly in May after battling a rare brain infection.
“I am grateful for the gifts that Father Kottar brought to this parish,” Father Ascik recently told the Catholic News Herald. “I know that I am reaping the benefit of his years of prayer and hard work.”
Any change in pastors can be challenging, he acknowledged, especially under such tragic circumstances. “Prayer and patience with one another will be important for our parish as we go forward together,” he noted.
In his homily at the installation Mass, Bishop Jugis encouraged Father Ascik to lead following Jesus the Good Shepherd as his model.
The bishop described the roles a pastor has in teaching, sanctifying and governing the parish, from teaching the faith to young and old alike to celebrating the sacraments and comforting people in their times of need.
Overall, he emphasized, the work of a pastor is about preparing people and helping them get to heaven. “That is his mission.”
In addition, the bishop noted, a pastor helps unify his parish family and connect them to the larger Church.
“No parish exists in isolation from another, but each is part of a larger communion,” he said.
Father Ascik told the Catholic News Herald that among his primary tasks is to foster the parish’s faith formation program and youth group, “so that we can continue to prepare the youth of our parish to receive the sacraments and help parishioners of all ages to grow in their knowledge of the faith.”
Building unity and communion – both as a multilingual parish family and as part of the larger community – are also important, Father Ascik said.
“I also want to provide opportunities for our parish community to socialize and grow in friendship and fellowship. This has been difficult during the past year due to the pandemic, and I want to safely bring back these opportunities,” he said. “I also want our parish to be part of the wider community in Shelby and Kings Mountain, especially through charitable outreach and collaboration.”
At the conclusion of the installation Mass, Father Ascik expressed gratitude to the bishop and to the people of the parish.
“I look forward to getting to know each of you and your families, and I thank you for the welcome that you have given me,” he said.
“There is a story about St. John Vianney that recounts that he met a small boy when he was trying to find his way to his parish in Ars for the first time. He said to the boy, ‘Show me the way to Ars and I will show you the way to heaven.’ A pastor's job is to show his flock the way to heaven, which is by living a life of communion with Jesus Christ through His Body the Church. A pastor must faithfully pass on the teaching of the Church, which is the teaching of Christ passed on to us by the Apostles. He must make the sacraments, which make God's power work in us to heal and sanctify, available to his parishioners. And he must accompany them in life, helping them to bear their burdens with hope.”
“I found Shelby with the help of my GPS,” Father Ascik quipped, but “like St. John Vianney I do wish to show you the way to heaven. That way is not my way, but is the way of Jesus Christ.
“I invite you to join me on this way to heaven, which we will walk together as a parish in the years ahead.”
— Patricia L. Guilfoyle, editor. Photos by Giuliana Polinari Riley, correspondent.
At top: Bishop Peter Jugis leads the congregation of St. Mary, Help of Christians Parish in congratulating their new pastor, Father Peter Ascik, during his installation Mass Aug. 1.
