Pastor’s Letter: June 16, 2019

Pastor’s Letter: June 16, 2019

14 Jun 2019 | Posted by: chadmin

Dear friend,

Happy Father’s Day! This weekend gives us the opportunity to thank our fathers for their love and sacrifice. Whether our fathers are currently enjoying their eternal reward in heaven or they are a phone call away, it is part of the Church’s prayer to reflect in thanksgiving. The Mass, which makes the Eucharist present, is the act of thanksgiving that puts things into perspective. When we live our lives in thanksgiving, our hearts in a state of gratitude allow for a more patient and humble response to the world.  Many of the great stories in the Bible, not only reveal the mindset of God, but also encourage us to live our lives like God the Father. The Bible does not communicate a distant or uncaring God, but one who is close, loving, and exemplary. We call ourselves Christians because we seek to follow the Christ. We know only God is perfect, but there is goodness in all who seek the truth of God. Father’s Day is a time to reflect and be thankful for the ways our fathers have modeled the truth of God. May our gratitude for the love and service of our fathers encourage us to also lay our lives down in service of others.

After celebrating the mystery of the Pentecost last Sunday, it is appropriate to be thankful to God our Father and the gift that fathers are to the world. This Father’s Day the Church celebrates the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. This feast allows us to meditate on the reality of God as a trinity of Three Persons. It is one of the great mysteries of faith that we know only because Jesus revealed Himself to be the Son and promised to send the Spirit upon the Church. Last weekend, we read the stories of the Spirit descending in tongues of fire to give power and authority to the apostles to speak in God’s name. This week invites us to reflect on God the Father as being “Father” from the beginning of time. There is no time in which the Father is not the Father. While Jesus was born in this world in time, Jesus is begotten of the Father before the beginning of creation, before the beginning of time. There is no time in which Jesus did not exist. We know the Spirit, not only because of the Spirit coming on Pentecost, because Jesus promised the gift of the Spirit and prepared their hearts to receive the gift. Every prayer we pray in the name of God, we pray in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. May this weekend remind us to grow in our relationship, by time spent in prayer, with the persons of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

The St. Philomena parking lot will be replaced over the next week. The parking lot was last paved in 2005. As I write this, the plan is to mill off the top two inches of the parking lot around the school and church, and then replace those two inches with new asphalt. It will be a bit challenging to park and enter campus this weekend, but by next weekend the parking lot should be restored. Thank you for the patience and all the financial support which allows us to take care of our campus.

God bless,

Father David