News from P.I.T. (Pastor in Training)
May 12, 2019 | Fourth Sunday of Easter
It’s Good Shepherd Sunday! The 4th Sunday of Easter is always “Good Shepherd Sunday.” No matter what cycle of scripture readings we are in, they will all speak of Jesus and shepherding on the 4th Sunday of Easter. And today we also celebrate Mother’s Day!
One of the favorite images of the early Christians was Jesus carrying a lamb over his shoulders. Throughout the scriptures Jesus speaks of Himself as a good shepherd – watching over His flock, going after the lost sheep, referring to a flock not of His own but that He needs to shepherd them as well. Often times, appropriately, vocations to the priesthood is preached on Good Shepherd Sunday. But this year, since Good Shepherd Sunday falls on Mother’s Day, I got to thinking about how the image of the good shepherd could be applied to women, especially mothers.
Did you even know there were female shepherds in Jesus’ day? In ancient Israel it was not unusual that when a girl was eight to ten years old, she began leading the family herd out to nearby pasture. At the end of the day, the shepherdess brought her sheep back to the safety of home. Tend- ing the family herd was reserved primarily for girls, and they continued this work until married at age fifteen or sixteen. It was the male members of the family who were more nomadic and moved the herds to distant fields. As a young shepherdess, Rachel met Jacob when she came to water her sheep (Genesis 29:9) Moses’s wife Zipporah was one of seven daughters who tended their father’s sheep (Exodus 2:16-21). Besides pasturing the flocks, watering and watching them, tending minor injuries and sheltering them at night, a shepherdess also had the responsibility of spinning. Equipped with her drop spindle and a bundle of wool, she could spin yarn during her hours in the field – a sort of multi-tasking that is required of mothers today!
And so, I think we can apply the image of a good shepherd to our mom’s and those women in our lives who have been a shepherdess to us in various ways. They protect us, nurture us, and keep us close to home, sheltering us from our fears when we were young. They tended to our minor injuries, kissed and put a band aid on our little cuts. And often today, they tend to more complex medical challenges that many children face. Then later in life they listen to the injuries of our broken hearts when as teenager’s we didn’t make the team or experienced our first break-up with a girl or boy friend or didn’t get accepted to the college we wanted to attend. They were there with consoling words, hopeful words, wise words, reassuring words, and a hug. Our mom’s still always have a watchful eye out for us and our wellbeing – no matter how old we become!
Today we thank our mom’s and other women in our life who have in- deed been a good shepherdess to us! Let us ask our Father in heaven to bless them and watch over them!
Happy Mother’s Day!
Fr Don
May 5, 2019 | Third Sunday of Easter
Last Saturday and this Saturday and Sunday we celebrate First Holy Communion with 144 of our parish children. What a joyful day this is! These children are so excited and full of enthusiasm – all dressed up for a special occasion! Mom’s, dad’s, and grandparents are smiling and perhaps reminiscing about their own First Communion day. But, as we’ve aged, have we still kept the same sense of wonder and awe we had on our First Communion day? Or, has receiving the Eucharist become routine? Worse yet, some have stopped receiving communion altogether! Why? When I preach First Communion Masses, I ask the children why do they eat food every day? They know the answer!! To grow, to keep healthy, to keep strong. And yes, we must do that to keep our bodies functioning. BUT, there is another part of us that needs to be fed besides our bodies, and that is our spirit. We are BOTH body and spirit. Why feed one and starve the other? It makes no sense, but many do it! When we feed our spirit with the Eucharist, the very body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus – the original “soul food” – we are strengthened to face and deal with the challenges of life. We are not alone in those times when everything seems to be falling apart. So, if you’ve been away from the Eucharist, I encourage you to go to confession first, then join us around the table to partake in the Eucharist – food for the journey.
And what about adoring Jesus in the Eucharist? I once read an article written by a woman who was invited by a member of her parish to commit to one hour a week to adore the Eucharist in her parish’s chapel. She thought it would be a great way to start the day, so she took an early shift. She wrote about her first time doing it “I felt anything but peaceful. I’d never adored before, and I discovered it’s incredibly hard, at least for me, to sit quietly and pray for that long! I walked out feeling restless and agitated – like I’d failed somehow.” She chatted with a woman who showed up for the next shift who told her how much she enjoys adoring the Eucharist: “Jesus and I just look at each other for a whole hour, and I feel so loved for who I am.” Our first time adorer then realized: “I’d missed the point that Jesus is actually present, which of course makes the encounter a two-way exchange. It wasn’t just me doing all the work of adoring. By being there, Jesus was loving me back. And then it wasn’t work at all!” We have Eucharistic Adoration on Mondays and Thursdays from 8:30AM to 6:00PM. Join us….Jesus is waiting!
Have a blessed Easter Season!
Fr Don
April 28, 2019 | Divine Mercy Sunday
For a number of years now, the Sunday after Easter has been designated as “Divine Mercy Sunday”. Our second reading today begins with the words: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope…” In the Gospel reading, Jesus shows mercy to Thomas even though Thomas doubted in the Resurrection. Mercy defines God…..it should define us too! An article I read in the August 2016 issue of Columbia magazine published by the Knights of Columbus was entitled “Mercy Begins in the Home”. The author of the article, Kathleen M. Masi stated that we often think of “mercy” in relation to forgiveness. But if we look at the corporal and spiritual works of mercy in their essence, they are about recognizing and honoring the elemental goodness – the presence of God – in everyone around us. Mercy is about opening our hearts and minds to accept and love others, rather than judge and censure them. She wrote that mercy begins with kindness. But kindness is in short supply these days. Our culture doesn’t encourage us to find the best in others; we’re conditioned to assume the worst. So, she asks how can we expect our children to honor the presence of God in a complete stranger – and even enemies – unless they first learn to honor that presence in who are closest to them? Thus the title of her article “Mercy Begins in the Home.” Throughout the article she gives examples from raising her own children of how showing mercy to others begins with small acts of kindness. As I thought about the article, I realized that “new birth to hope” we celebrate at Easter is a hope that our world, our nation, our families, our very self can be more kind, more merciful. The salvation we celebrate at Easter, mercifully given to us by God through our baptism, is a gift. We are called to BE gifts of mercy to others! So, as an Easter people, on this Sunday we celebrate Divine Mercy, may we show a little of the Divine in us by being merciful to others! Not just today, but for a lifetime!
All are welcome to come to our Divine Mercy celebration today starting at 1:30PM.
Blessed Easter Season!
Fr Don
April 14, 2019 | Palm Sunday
Today we start the most solemn and wonderful week in the Christian calendar – Holy Week! It is not only a week to remember historical events, but to enter into the mystery of what God has accomplished through these historical events and what God is doing NOW in our lives. They celebrate God’s taking possession of our hearts at their deepest core, recreating us as a new human community, broken like bread for the world’s life – a community rich in compassion, steadfast in hope, and fearless in the search for justice and peace. So I invite you to share in the mystery of God’s love that is so much a part of this week. Come and celebrate the Liturgies of the three sacred days – the Paschal Triduum. While these liturgies are lengthy, when you enter the mystery they celebrate, time stands still! Come and be transformed!!
Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper at 7:00 PM is rooted in the Jewish feast of Passover which celebrates the historical event of the Israelites’ freedom from political slavery in Egypt. Jesus transforms this celebration into a new covenant, celebrating freedom from our slavery to sin and death for those who believe in Him. The bread of ancient freedom Jesus transforms into His very self – body, soul, and divinity – as food for the journey as his disciples. The priesthood of Jesus is rooted in the “mandatum” the command to be of service as He washed the feet of His disciples. That priesthood, shared with ALL the baptized, calls ALL his followers, not just the ordained, to be of service to others.
Holy Thursday also celebrates the institution of the ministerial priesthood shared by the ordained priests of the Church. Following Mass, the Eucharist will be processed to an altar of repose (this year in the PLC) where people can spend time in prayer and reflection, as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane, assenting to the will of the Father. Church will be open until midnight. Good Friday is the only day of the year when Mass is not celebrated anywhere in the world. The Liturgy of the Lord’s Passion on
Good Friday at 3:00 PM will start with readings from scripture, a homily, Universal Prayers, then veneration of the wood of the Cross. The Church instructs that only one cross should be used for the veneration, as this contributes to the full symbolism of the rite. I realize this adds to the length of the service, but I believe the symbolism is worth it. The Liturgy concludes with the reception of Holy Communion using hosts that were consecrated at the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday evening.
The Easter Vigil Mass is the most important Mass of the entire Church year! It is even more significant than Christmas!! Starting in darkness we begin with the lighting of the Paschal candle – the symbol of Christ’s Resurrection and triumph over the darkness of death. We hear several scripture readings recalling our connection to our ancestors in faith. New members will be Baptized and Confirmed in the Church. We will renew our own baptismal promises, and be reminded that in Baptism we died with Christ, and because of that, we will share in His Resurrection. We will share in the Eucharist and become once again an Easter people! Join Us!
April 7, 2019 | Fifth Sunday of Lent
This weekend is the Men’s CRHP (Christ Renews His Parish) retreat, and next weekend is the Women’s CRHP retreat. Please keep the retreatants in your prayers these two weekends that they will have a life changing encounter with Jesus. Thanks and may God bless the teams that are leading the retreat weekends. The fruits of your labors will be seen in the new enthusiasm for Jesus and his Church that the retreatants will leave with.
It is hard to imagine that Lent will soon be over! Next week is Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week. Lent will end with the beginning of the celebration of The Sacred Paschal Triduum, starting with the celebration of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday evening. The Sacred Paschal Triduum ends at the conclusion of the Easter Vigil Mass on Holy Saturday evening. Even though Lent ends on Holy Thursday evening, we begin the Paschal fast that goes through the celebration of the Easter Vigil.
So, what you gave up for Lent is to continue until the conclusion of the Easter Vigil Mass on Holy Saturday evening. Then you can have that chocolate!! So what does the Sacred Paschal Triduum – Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil – celebrate? While we recall the events of salvation history, the Triduum celebrates not what once happened to Jesus, but what is NOW happening among us as a people called to conversion, gathered in faith, and gifted with the Spirit of holiness. The liturgies of the Triduum celebrate God’s taking possession of our hearts at their deepest core, recreating us as a new human community broken like bread for the world’s life – a community, rich in compassion, steadfast in hope and fearless in the search for justice and peace. I invite and encourage you to celebrate all three liturgies of the Triduum (Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil) with us as one single seamless three-day celebration. And then, be bathed in the light of the Resurrection as you renew your baptismal promises on Easter!
At the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday evening we will begin using new communion cups. The cups that have been used for many years are ceramic and some have chipped and the gold plating inside is wearing off. In the past, only cups made of precious metal were used for communion. After Vatican II the Church affirmed the goodness of vessels made of other materials such as pottery, wood, and glass. At my ordination in 1981 my cousins presented me a set (chalice, paten, cruets) of hand-made ceramic with their names on the bottom of the paten. After the experience of many years of using these materials, the Church has returned to the use of communion vessels made of precious metals. This is not to say that other materials are not dignified to hold the Body and Blood of Jesus, but that these materials are susceptible to breakage and spillage. As I mentioned, we will start using our new cups on Holy Thursday.
Have a blessed Lent!
Fr Don