Gift of Mercy

The entrance antiphon to begin our day states, "Do not abandon me, Lord. My God, do not go away from me! Hurry to help me, Lord, my Savior" (Ps. 37:22-23). Our God is there to help us with His great love and mercy. We have that assurance as we listen to Saint Paul's letter to the Romans. This is what Paul writes at the very beginning, "Brothers and sisters: the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable. Just as you one disobeyed God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience, so they have now disobeyed in order that, by virtue of the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy. For God delivered all to disobedience, that he might have mercy upon all." We are truly a blessed and redeemed people. God has shown and continues to show us His unconditional love and mercy. Those are beautiful gifts that we are called to share with others. Pray that the gift of mercy and love will be ours and that we may live those gifts each day. God Bless You!!! A reminder that November 1 is a Holy Day of Obligation! Please be sure and get to church, either for the vigil Mass or the Mass of the day!

Priesthood Sunday

A blessed Priesthood Sunday to all the priests as they live their faith and service to God's people to the fullest! Of course, I include myself in this greeting as I strive each day to live this beautiful faith and vocation that God has called me to. As we mark this observance, there is a story that comes to mind. People will ask me is there anything that I can do for you Father? I can probably come up with several answers as I look over the daily duties and commitments, but there is one gift that really stands out and that is where this story comes from. When I was an associate pastor, I had the privilege to serve with two other priests, one active and one retired. The retired priest would help us out on the weekend and he loved hearing confessions. Two priests would be hearing confessions at the same time. Whenever I was in the confessional I would hear my share of confessions and then the line would stop. I would look out the door and the retired priest would still have a line and I thought, what is he doing that I am not? One Saturday afternoon, I needed to attend the Sacrament of Reconciliation so I went to this priest. He listened to me, gave me some encouraging words, and then he gave me my penance which was simply, "Pray for me!" That was it, there were no long prayers to say or do something for my neighbor, because I should already be doing that, but just that simple invitation to pray for that priest. Since then, I have given that penance to people whom I have come to know well and they say, "Are you serious?" Yes, I am serious, Pray for me!!! That is the gift that we can give to our priests, not just on Priesthood Sunday, but everyday! I am grateful for the people of God who pray for me and support me in all I do. In a special way this weekend, thank your priest for their service to the priesthood of Jesus Christ and for following God's call in their life. We are here to serve God and His people and what helps us along the way is your prayers!!! Thank You! Blessings to you all!!!

Saints Simon & Jude

The biography for our two saints today is short and to the point. "The name of Saint Simon usually appears eleventh in the list of the apostles. Nothing is known of him except that he was born in Cana and is surnamed 'the Zealot.' Saint Jude, also called Thaddeus, was the apostle who asked the Lord at the Last Supper why he was going to manifest himself only to his disciples and not to the whole world (Jn 14:22)" (Magnificat, 373-74). We hear the account of Jesus calling his disciples together, after spending the night in prayer, and calling 12 of them whom he also called Apostles, Luke 6:12-16. As I said at our daily Mass, we may not know too much about them, but we know that they were called by our Lord and were given the mission to proclaim the Good News. That is our call as well as we live in this present day. The Lord calls us to be his disciples and in doing so, we must deny ourselves, pick up our cross and follow him. Those early disciples and Apostles did that and we need to do the same. Let us follow the example of Saints Simon & Jude and may they intercede for us as we continue to the mission of the church that has been entrusted to us! God Bless You!!!

Staying Connected

As I write this blog, I think about the scripture passage where our Lord says that he is the vine and we are the branches. We need to stay connected to our Lord because he is the source of all life. Grace and strength comes from our connection to the vine. In his letter to the Romans, 8:31b-39, Saint Paul asks the question, "What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?" To conclude his letter he writes his answer, "I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." Is that our belief as well? If we were asked that question about what can separate us from the love of Christ, would we be able to say, like Saint Paul, "I am convinced..." We need to be firm in our confession of faith and what we believe. We might be the ones who separate ourselves from the love of Christ because of our sins, but we have the opportunity to repent, seek forgiveness, and turn back to God. Ultimately, God loves us unconditionally! He sent His Son to be the Savior of the world. We live in the love of God everyday and we truly know that nothing will separate us from the love of Christ because it is always there! Bless You!!!

Celebration of Diaconate!

Today is a very special day for me! It was on this day, October 26, 15 years ago that I was ordained a deacon in the Monastery of the Immaculate Conception Church in Ferdinand, Indiana. At that time, the Archabbey Church at Saint Meinrad was undergoing extensive renovations so we needed a place to be ordained and the Benedictine Sisters were gracious in hosting us. There were seven of us ordained on that day, so Happy Anniversary to my classmates and to all of those in my class who were ordained deacons in 1996. This timeframe begins the journey towards celebrating our 15th Anniversary as priests in 2012. There are three levels in the ordained life: Bishop, Priest, Deacon. It was as a deacon that we made our commitment to celibacy and our promise of obedience. The Ordination to the Diaconate began a new page in our lives and that continues now as priests. There are many memories that I remember from that day but it is these words that have stuck with me. In fact, I printed these words and had them hanging in my room. These words come from the Presentation of the Book of the Gospels during the ordination rite: "Receive the Gospel of Christ, whose herald you now are. Believe what you read, teach what you believe, and practice what you teach" (Catholic Rites Today, 464). Those were great words then and they still apply to my life today. I thank God for the gift of ordained life. May we always pray for one another and the commitments that God calls us to live! Have a blessed day!!!

Power of Endurance!

Sometimes I refer to myself as an "endurance biker!" That is the pedal version of biking. Endurance refers to the number of miles ridden, the elements ridden in, some of the places I have been that test your stamina: mountain biking, long distance trails, etc. In terms of Saint Paul's letter to the Romans, 8:18-25, endurance is a gift. Saint Paul is telling the Romans and us that we live in hope. "For in hope we were saved. Now hope that sees for itself is not hope. For who hopes for what one sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait with endurance." We are waiting for the coming of the kingdom of God! We wait in joyful hope and endurance for the full reality of the kingdom. Of course, we are called to build up the kingdom of God in our midst while we wait for the full kingdom to be revealed. The gifts that help us prepare for the coming of the kingdom are: faith, hope, love, endurance, and the list can go on. In the gospel, Luke 13:18-21, Jesus talks about the mustard seed and leaven as an example of the kingdom. They start out small but eventually grow and our faith and hope does the same. As the commentator states, "If we hope, like the man who confidently plants a mustard seed in the garden, then we are willing to wait with endurance" (Magnificat, 340). Let us pray for the grace to endure because all things are in God's hands and they will be revealed in His time! Blessings to you!!!

Saint Anthony Claret

We celebrate the memorial of Saint Anthony Mary Claret. Saint Anthony was born in Spain in 1807. After being ordained a priest he traveled many years through Catalonia preaching to the people. He founded a society of missionaries and, after being named a bishop in Cuba, he won renown for his pastoral zeal. He died in 1870 (Magnificat, 329). The prayer at Mass says this about Saint Anthony, "Father, you endowed Anthony Claret with the strength of love and patience to preach the Gospel to many nations" (330). Here we have the example of an evangelizing saint. Saint Anthony, as we heard, traveled many years preaching the gospel. Even in scripture, Jesus says the same thing, that he came to preach the Good News and that Good News is that the Kingdom of God is at hand. The mission is still the same in our present day. Each one of us is called to be evangelizers, to proclaim the Good News, not just with words, but by our very example. People do watch to see how we live our lives, how we live our faith and we need to be a model. May the prayer that is used for Saint Anthony Claret be ours as well. Pray that God gives us the grace, strength, love, and patience that we need to preach the gospel to our brothers and sisters! God Bless You!!!

Commandments of Love

I have a beautiful chalice cover that my mother made for me which reads very simply, "God is Love." Each time I prepare the chalice for Mass I read those beautiful words and how true they are. Each of us has been created out of love because God is love and He is the author, the Creator of all human life. Since we have been created out of love, God bids us to share His love with our brothers and sisters. That is the beauty of our gospel for this 30th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A, Matthew 22-34-40. A scholar of the law asked Jesus this question, "Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?" Jesus said, "You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and the first commandment. The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself." As I have told people, when we live these two commandments of love, we are living the 10 Commandments. The first three commandments focus on love of God and the final seven focus on love of neighbor. The commandments are what they are. They are not suggestions or recommendations, they are commandments. Love is a beautiful gift and we are called to live it daily. If we find that our love has grown cold, we need to bring that to God in prayer and ask Him to renew and strengthen the love that He has given to us and help us share that love with others. We are truly blessed and we thank God for the gift of His great love! Have a blessed weekend!!!

Roman Missal

On Thursday, the priests of the Diocese of Salina gathered for our workshop on the revisions to the Mass translations. These revisions will take effect on the First Sunday of Advent, November 27, 2011. The Church has been waiting for some time on these revisions to the Mass language. I remember hearing about the possibility of a new Sacramentary when I was in the seminary and I have been away for almost 15 years. During our workshop, the priests received the new Sacramentary for use in our parishes. In that is one of the changes that we will notice. The book is no longer known as the Sacramentary but "Roman Missal." It is a thick book because of all the additions and the revised translations. I will be going through those changes in my parishes starting this weekend. This is a great time for the Church and hopefully it will bring a renewed effort to living our Catholic Faith. My hope also is that all the faithful will fall in love again with the Mass and grow in their reverence and devotion for the Holy Eucharist. If you would like to look at a good resource on the "Roman Missal," I would invite you to look at the website of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, www.usccb.org/romanmissal. I have printed out the bulletin inserts and they are very informative. Take the time offer these next few weeks to look at the Roman Missal and see the transformation that will take place in our parishes beginning in Advent. All of the aspects of the Mass will be the same but what is changing is the language. The translations take the english language back to the authentic latin language, which is still the official language of the church. Let us be open to the presence of God in our lives and the gifts that He gives to us as we live our lives, our faith to the fullest. Blessings to you!!!

Saints Isaac Jogues, John De Brebeuf, and Companions

Today we remember the North American martyrs, those eight members of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits) who were killed in North America between the years 1642 and 1649. They were tortured by members of the Huron and Iroquois tribes and they had worked hard to bring the true faith to the natives in that region (Magnificat, 273). These are the words that caught my attention as I thought about the memorial we celebrate this day, "For the North American martyrs whom we honor today, the pain of exile, torture, and even death was transformed into joy by their love for Christ and for the peoples to whom they were sent to proclaim his good news" (271). We concluded our parish mission last night and that was the premise of Fr. Jim Sichko's talk, we need to be positive, we need to have an "attitude of gratitude," we carry our crosses at all times, and in the midst of everything that happens in our lives, God is always present. The North American martyrs experienced that joy and sorrow, happiness and pain, and they did all things for the glory of God. They gave up everything for the sake of Christ and the Church. They worked hard to evangelize, to preach the Good News, and to bring the true faith to those they served. Those martyrs did not give up and they were able to rejoice because they knew their reward is in heaven. That is the joy that carries us as we live our lives and our faith. Yes, we all have a share in the cross, we will experience all ranges of emotions, but do not be afraid because the promise of Jesus Christ is eternal! Blessings to you!!!

Saint Luke

The Church celebrates the Feast of Saint Luke. Saint Luke was born of a pagan family. Converted to the faith, he became a fellow-worker of Saint Paul. From the preaching of Saint Paul he compiled the gospel that bears his name. He is also attributed with the Acts of the Apostles which details the beginning of the Church. As we pray in the opening prayer: "Father, you chose Luke the evangelist to reveal by preaching and writing the mystery of your love for the poor" (Magnificat, 264). Saint Luke is also known as the "beloved physician" (Col 4:14). Luke "preserves some of Jesus' best-known stories of God's merciful and healing love for all peoples, whether respected or despised. Among the parables are the Good Samaritan and Prodigal Son" (268-69). As Saint Luke points out the love, mercy, compassion of Christ, we know that we are called to follow that same example. We are to put on the mind and heart of Christ. These are qualities that we need to live everyday. In our time of Mission, Fr. Jim has been asking us, "Do you give off signs and signals that would let people know that you profess and live the Catholic faith?" Here is a good example right here, sharing the love, mercy, and compassion of Christ. Of course, there are many other wonderful qualities of Christ that we can live but like the song says, "They will know we are Christians by our Love." Pray that is true for all of us. May God bless you all! Saint Luke, pray for us!!!

Renewed Mission

Beginning last night, continuing tonight, and concluding tomorrow night, the Catholic Community of Washington County, Kansas is experiencing a Mission led by Fr. Jim Sichko, a priest from the Lexington, Kentucky Diocese. He is a very dynamic and engaging speaker. He preached the weekend Masses, putting in a plug for the mission and it helped because we had a wonderful turnout on Sunday evening. Hopefully those folks and more will attend tonight and tomorrow night. Those in the local area who read my blogs, please take the time to join us because this a great time of prayer, fellowship, and renewal. Everyone needs a tune-up, recharge our batteries, and renew our lives of faith, holiness, and prayer. The key word last night from Fr. Jim was, "TRUST." He broke those words down by saying, "T- is for time, R- is for relationship, U- is for understanding, S- is for surrender, T- is for trying." Each of these letters and meanings apply to our relationship with God. We need to do our part everyday to give God the time, grow in our relationship with Him, understand God and His will for us, surrender to the will of God, and keep trying in all aspects of life. The premise for the talk last night is what we find in our entrance antiphon for the Mass today, "With Christ I am nailed to the cross. I live now not with my own life, but Christ lives within me. I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and sacrificed himself for me" (Gal 2:19-20). The two words from this blog today, "Trust and Faith" are a way of life. We live them each day, but sometimes we get off the path and need some guidance to get back on it. This mission is helping us do just that and I hope many people will take the opportunity to be a part of it so their lives and faith will be renewed! Have a blessed day!!!

The Love of God!

Several weeks ago, I had the opportunity to cover our religion classes in the Catholic School. After my talk I decided to play a game by asking questions from a stack of cards about our faith. One of the questions was a fill-in-the-blank. The question went as follows: "We are the made in the image and _________ of God." It was a simple question but I was surprised how many did not know the answer. Of course, the answer is, "Likeness." Yes, we have all been created in the image and likeness of God. We have been created out of love, by God, to share His love with others. I bring this up because our gospel for this weekend, Matthew 22:15-21, talks about this image, but in a rather unique way. The Pharisees were trying to trap Jesus by asking him who is to pay their taxes. Jesus asks for a coin and so he asks them whose image this is. The image on the coin was Caesar and that leads Jesus to say, "Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God." Everything belongs to God, even our very lives because we have been created in His image and likeness. Saint Lawrence of Brindisi, a doctor of the church, wrote this in the 17th century: "We are made in the image and likeness of God. So you, O Christian, because you are a human being, are God's tribute money - a little coin bearing the image and likeness of the divine emperor. Therefore, with Christ I ask, Whose likeness and inscription is this? Your answer is, God's, to which I reply, Then why not give God what belongs to him? We bear the imprint of your glorious face, O Lord" (St. Anthony Messenger Press, Oct. 16). That is a beautiful quote from Saint Lawrence of Brindisi and we live that goodness each day because of God's great love for us! Have a blessed weekend!!!

Saint Callistus I

We celebrate the memorial of a pope and martyr of the Church, Callistus I. It is said that Callistus was a slave. Once he obtained his liberty, he was ordained a deacon by Pope Zephyrinus and succeeded him in the Chair of Saint Peter. He fought against the Adoption and Modalist heretics. He was crowned with martyrdom in 222 and was buried on the Aurelian Way (Magnificat, 189). The entrance antiphon for Mass speaks well of this holy man and all those who have given of their life for the sake of Christ and the Church, "This holy man fought to the death for the law of his God, never cowed by the threats of the wicked; his house was built on solid rock." Even the gospel for today, Luke 12:1-7, tells us to not be afraid. Jesus is telling his disciples that they need to fear the devil because he can kill both body and soul but, do not be afraid. The conclusion of the gospel shows that we are worth everything to God, even the hairs on our head have been counted. God does not abandon us, He does not leave us orphan, He is with us at all times. No matter what trials, tribulations, struggles that we will face in life, we are not alone. God is always present and that is the faith that needs to be built on solid rock. Saint Callistus, pray for us!

The Way, the Truth, the Life

The gospel acclamation uses these words from our Lord, "I am the way and the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me." It is the Lord in whom we place our faith and our trust. He will lead us to our eternal home. Here is another thought that we can consider, "Like the Israelites in Babylon, we live in exile from our true and lasting home, the heavenly Jerusalem. However tempting the oases in which we rest along the way, we are called always to journey toward the goal for which we hope in faith, encouraging one another along the way in preparation for the life of the city to come" (Magnificat, 183). Like the question I asked recently at church, "How many of you want to get to heaven?" Quite a few hands popped up but not all, so I presumed that everyone wanted to get to heaven and told them that we need to do our part. God sent His only Son, Jesus Christ, to be our Savior. Through his death and resurrection, we have the forgiveness of our sins and the hope of eternal life. Of course, we have to do our part and that is where are faith comes in. We need to have faith and believe in God who loves us unconditionally. We also need faith in Jesus because the way to the Father is through him. Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life and this is great news to live each day! God Bless You!!!

Faith and Works!

"Lord, you give back to everyone according to his works" (Ps.62). That phrase from our psalmist sums up the readings for today. As the caption from Saint Paul's letter to the Romans (2:1-11) states, "God will repay each according to his works, Jew first and then Greek." From another letter, Saint Paul will say, "Faith without works is dead." Both faith and works go hand-in-hand. Just like the Benedictine motto, "Ora et Labora," "Pray and Work." You need one with the other. To make sure our work is efficient we need to pray and we need to have faith. Jesus chides the Pharisees in the gospel, Luke 11:42-46, because they lord their authority over the people. They will tell the people what to do but do not lift a finger to help them or do their part. We cannot do that either because we are all on this journey of life and faith together. If we are going to tell someone what to do, we have to be willing to do the work as well. We are to rejoice because our reward will be great in heaven, but we have to get there and we need to do our part by living holy, faithful, prayerful, dedicated lives. We put our faith into action by the works that we do and the service we offer our brothers and sisters. Do not be afraid to live your faith. When we live our faith, we are doing the works that God will repay to each of us. Blessings to you!!!

The Interior Life!

In our gospel, Luke 11:37-41, Jesus invites the Pharisees to take a look on the inside. Our Lord says, "Oh, you Pharisees! Although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, inside you are filled with plunder and evil." He emphasizes that the Creator who created the exterior also created the interior. If what is on the outside is clean, so should the inside be clean. Our minds and hearts need to be holy and pure. One of the ways that we can go about working on the interior life is to make an examination of conscience. When we do that we are truly taking a deep look into our lives, to see how we are living, and to see how the interior is being expressed through the exterior. What comes from within is to be expressed in healthy, holy ways on the outside. Spending time in prayer is a wonderful way to work on the interior life as well. During our prayer we can make an examination of conscience, seeking forgiveness of our sins, and if need be, make frequent use of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. All of these tools that God gives to us will help us as we work on our interior and exterior lives, because both go hand in hand. Let us work to live happy, healthy, holy lives so that all may know the love of God because it truly comes from the inside! God Bless You!!!

A Blessed Weekend!

As we mark this Columbus Day, I cannot help but think about the weekend that has just concluded. This past weekend, our parishes had the blessing and honor of hosting and praying with the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe. The image of Our Lady of Guadalupe is part of the Marian Prayer Program that has been established by the Knights of Columbus. This beautifully framed image of Our Lady of Guadalupe has many blessings connected to it. The image was touched to the tilma of Saint Juan Diego, the humble servant whom our Blessed Mother appeared to in 1531. This image was blessed by our Holy Father, Pope Benedict XVI. The frame itself is sealed with soil from Tepeyac Hill, where Juan Diego encountered our Blessed Mother. The image is very beautiful and stunning. It truly shows how much God loves us and how Mary guides us with her maternal and loving hand. I had the privilege of taking the image to the three parishes I serve for our weekend Masses. In the context of the homily, I spoke about the image, how blessed it is, and then we concluded by reciting the Litany of the Blessed Virgin. This is an appropriate time of the year for the image to be traveling as we remember the Holy Rosary and Respect Life during this month of October. If your Knights of Columbus district has the opportunity to host the image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, please take the time to go see the image and seek the prayers and intercession of our Blessed Mother. We are truly blessed and this is a great way to evangelize and share our faith with others. God Bless You!!!

Come to the Feast!

In about a month and a half, the Roman Catholic Church will implement the revised translation of the Third Roman Missal. This is an exciting time for us as church because it will hopefully bring about a renewed love and devotion for the Eucharistic litury. The translations go back to the Latin language, but the Mass will not be in Latin, it will still be english, but with a more definitive translation. I have been working with our Catholic School students on the changes that are coming and in a couple of weeks I will work with the parish communities. The invitation to the parish communities is, "Come to the Feast!" The feast is the Eucharist and it is our preparation for the great feast that is to come in God's Heavenly Kingdom. Listen to the readings for this weekend because they focus on the feast that is to come. The caption for Isaiah 25:6-10a says, "The Lord will prepare a feast and wipe away the tears from every face." That is the hope of the Resurrection, the promise of eternal life, that death will be destroyed and there will be no more tears. This is the day that we all look forward to. Of course we need to prepare ourselves right now and that is the message of Matthew 22:1-14,
"Invite to the wedding feast whomever you find." However, as Jesus says at the conclusion, "Many are invited, but few are chosen." We all have choices and options in life and hopefully we make the right choice and decisions as we live our lives and our faith. We have a rich history and beautiful traditions in the Catholic Church, all to help us in our journey and sustain us as we walk on the road to the kingdom. Let us come to the feast, be renewed in body and spirit and be thankful for the many gifts that God continues to give to us! Have a blessed weekend!!!

Our Lady of the Rosary

An appropriate feast to celebrate during this month dedicated to the Holy Rosary. Our Blessed Mother has given us a beautiful and powerful prayer to say everyday. As one commentator writes, "Mary, Mother of the Church, prays with us and for us. Through her example and intercession, we learn the lesson of faithful prayer, just as through our meditation on the mysteries of the rosary, we learn the lesson of faithful life taught by Mary and by her Son Jesus" (Magnificat, 106). Just think how the mysteries of the Rosary give us a glimpse into the life of Jesus and Mary: Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious, and Luminous. Each mystery is thought provoking and a great meditation for our time of prayer. We thank God and our Blessed Mother for this beautiful gift of prayer, the Rosary. May we continue to pray the Rosary with great reverence, love, and devotion. Our Lady of the Rosary, pray for us!!!

Blessed Marie-Rose Durocher

We celebrate the memorial of Blessed Marie-Rose Durocher, a North American blessed. Her next step would be canonization so we pray that one day Blessed Marie-Rose will be raised to the altar of sainthood. Blessed Marie-Rose was born in Canada in
1811. She served as a housekeeper to her brother who was a parish priest. She nursed ill priests and seminarians, and promoted devotion to Our Lady. When she was 33, Eulalie Durocher took religious vows and was given the name Marie-Rose. She founded the teaching Sisters of the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary and died in 1849 (Magnificat, 96). Blessed Marie-Rose was beatified during the pontificate of our late Holy Father, Blessed John Paul II. This is an appropriate memorial to celebrate during the month of October because it is dedicated to the Holy Rosary and the intercession of our Blessed Mother, Mary. The gospel for today is very appropriate, Luke 11:5-13, because it speaks about our persistence in prayer and I am sure that is a gift that Blessed Marie-Rose used very well. She took our Lord's words to heart when he said, "And I tell you, ask and you will receive, seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." As one meditation says, "The purpose of prayer is not to change the order established by God, but to obtain what God has decided to accomplish by means of our prayer" (Magnificat, 99). God wants to hear the prayers from us and we need to be persistent in that great gift. May we follow the example of Blessed Marie-Rose as she strived to teach the faith to others and be renewed in her mission by the gift of prayer. Blessed Marie-Rose Durocher, pray for us!!!

A Bold Prayer...

The gospel reading for our Mass is from Luke 11:1-4. The setting is Jesus taking the time to pray and the disciples observing his example. Those disciples wanted to learn how to pray and so Jesus taught them. He gave them the "Lord's Prayer," but this version is different from what we know. Here is what one of the commentaries state, "Luke's version of the Lord's Prayer is considered by scholars to be closer to what Jesus actually said than the one found in Matthew's gospel. For centuries this prayer has been praised and glorified as the perfect prayer" (Liturgical Press, 1357). That last statement is true because the "Lord's Prayer" says it all. Everything that needs to be said is said, but there are other beautiful prayers that we can offer as well. Another statement that I find unique is this one, "The Lord's Prayer is unique because of its radical boldness. It encourages the one praying to be bold and make demands on God and insist that these demands be fulfilled right now. It takes a special relationship with God to feel free to make such bold demands" (1357). We need to be bold when we pray! Jesus gave us an example of prayer and we need to use that gift each day. Let us take these words to heart and trust in the presence of God and always know that our prayers are answered because God truly knows what is best! Blessings to you!!!

Saint Francis of Assisi

As we celebrate the memorial of Saint Francis of Assisi, I remember fondly 15 years ago my journey to Assisi with the group from the seminary that I was traveling with. It was a very meaningful and blessed pilgrimage for us. We had the opportunity to visit the sites that were meaningful to Saint Francis and to walk where he walked. This is a great memorial for us because Saint Francis left us a tremendous example and we know that as we journey through life we have his intercession. We know that Saint Francis lived the gospels each day and he did so not just with words but with his very actions. He renounced all material wealth and committed himself to following the will of God. Saint Francis lived a life of poverty and humility. So many people get caught up in the trappings of this world and just think if we all had the attitude of Saint Francis what we could do. I think our house would be in order because we would have the right and proper perspective. Everything that we have received is a gift from God! We cannot take it with us when we die. We are to use all our resources and gifts for the glory of God and the good of our brothers and sisters. As the entrance antiphon stated, "Francis, a man of God, left his home and gave away his wealth to become poor and in need. But the Lord cared for him" (Magnificat, 73). I truly believe that God always provides so we need to have that spirit of humility, poverty, faith and trust because God knows what is best and He will give us what we need at the proper place and time. Let us follow the example of Saint Francis of Assisi and truly put our trust in the living God! Have a blessed day!!!

Gift of Life!

As we begin this month of October, we also begin our observance of "Respect Life" month. The theme for this year's observance are the words of Jesus, "I came so that all might have life and have it to the full." Sunday was "Respect Life Sunday" and it sets the tone for this entire month. However, we know that the precious gift of human life is not confined to one month but is a gift that we need to promote every day of our lives. The booklet for Respect Life, which comes from the Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), has a wonderful drawing of Blessed John Paul II and it calls him, "An Apostle of Life." Our late Holy Father was truly an apostle for life and he did not miss an opportunity to talk about life and tell the world that we need to do all that we can to protect, promote, and defend God's precious gift. Blessed John Paul II would say that we live in a culture of death and we need to turn it into a "culture of life." That call is still very loud and clear because of all that we see going on around us: abortion, euthanasia, etc. People take innocent human life without giving them a chance and we know how long life is to be, from natural birth to natural death. God is the Creator of all human life and our lives are mapped out so we need to follow the Will that He has for each of us. The Pro-Life booklet states for the homily from Respect Life Sunday, "But eternal life awaits those who embrace the Gospel of Life and seek to bring truth and life and beauty to the vineyard God has planted for us. That is why we celebrate this Respect Life Sunday each year. It's to save our lives and the lives of the most vulnerable among us. Let us proclaim that life, preserve it, and devote ourselves to its protection" (Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, USCCB, 4). We pray that we will not lose hope or give up in our efforts to create a culture for life. This is a very important time for all of us and we pray that God will give us the grace and strength that we need to make the gift of life known to all peoples! God Bless You!!!

The Vineyard of the Lord!

The gospel acclamation states, "I have chosen you from the world, says the Lord, to go and bear fruit that will remain." Amazing how the images of farming, tending to the resources of the earth can apply to our lives, but they do. As a farmer tils the soil, plants the seeds, does what can be done to nurture those seeds, and then collect the harvest when it is ready, so God does with us. God tils the soil of our lives and hearts. He plants the seed of His word into our lives and hearts and He gives us the grace and strength that we need to allow those seeds to grow. Then when the seeds have grown to their full stature they produce much fruit and the harvest is ready. When it comes to the seed of God's word we have to do our part as well. We have to nuture those seeds along through prayer, the Sacraments, Sacred Scripture, spiritual reading, spiritual direction, and faithful service. We need to put our faith into action, be of service to our brothers and sisters, and proclaim the Good News, not just with words, but with our very lives. The vineyard is the image in our readings for this weekend, Isaiah 5:1-7, Psalm 80, and
Matthew 21:33-43. We truly live in the vineyard of the Lord and this is our time to build up the Kingdom of God in our midst and to bear much fruit. As Saint Paul tells the Philippians (4:6-9), "Keep on doing what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me. Then the God of peace will be with you." Have a blessed weekend!!!