Re-Dedicating the Dedicated!

Today is a beautiful feast in the Universal Church, the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica. This basilica is the "Mother Church" of Christendom and the Cathedral of the Pope. I really liked what the Magnificat magazine had as the "Meditation of the Day," a piece written by Fr. Pius Parsch. Here is just a part of that: "The parish church is the visible symbol of God's kingdom upon earth. Here Mother Church holds her official services; here her heart beats fastest for her Bridegroom Christ, as also for her children." Then, "The parish church is for us the gate of heaven, a foretaste of heaven, a preview of our heavenly home... The parish church symbolizes the individual Christian" (129). Those are great images as we think about our parish churches because they are the place to be when it comes to worship. We need to be there and we need to encourage our brothers and sisters who have been away from church for awhile to come back. The church is God's House, a house of prayer. The church is where we go to be fed and nourished and we take the church with us when we leave because the people are the "Living Stones." This is a wonderful time for all of God's people to re-dedicate ourselves to living our faith, being strong Catholics and disciples, and being active church members and goers. As this passage says, "Like living stones let yourselves be built on Christ as a spiritual house, a holy priesthood" (I Peter 2:5). May God bless us and help us in our re-dedication! Have a blessed day!!!