{"id":4922,"date":"2023-07-21T08:30:41","date_gmt":"2023-07-21T13:30:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/?p=4922"},"modified":"2023-07-24T08:32:56","modified_gmt":"2023-07-24T13:32:56","slug":"pastors-letter-july-23-2023","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/","title":{"rendered":"Pastor&#8217;s Letter July 23, 2023"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The <a href=\"https:\/\/discovermass.com\/church\/st-philomena-peoria-il\/\">July 23 bulletin<\/a> can be found online.<\/p>\n<p>Dear friend,<\/p>\n<p>The passage this weekend from St. Paul\u2019s letter to the Romans reads, \u201cBrothers and sisters, the Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings.\u00a0 And the one who searches hearts knows what is the intention of the Spirit, because he intercedes for the holy ones according to God\u2019s will.\u201d\u00a0 These two simple lines invite us into St. Paul\u2019s understanding of the working of the Holy Spirit in our lives.\u00a0 Paul know that we are all weak.\u00a0 He knows that we are sinners and imperfect.\u00a0 Paul knows that we all need help.\u00a0 Paul is simply stating that he has experienced the promise of Jesus fulfilled, that Jesus would send the Holy Spirit to be our helper and guide.\u00a0 Not only does the Spirit provide God\u2019s help, or grace, but searches the mind and heart to know the intention of the human heart.\u00a0 This process is the form of prayer that helps each \u201cpray-er\u201d to grow in communion with God.\u00a0 We each received the gifts of the Holy Spirit at Baptism.\u00a0 These gifts were fully sealed within us at Confirmation.\u00a0 The words of St. Paul are a reminder to lean on the Holy Spirit; to trust that the Holy Spirit is in fact communicating the Father\u2019s truth to us while speaking on our behalf to the Father.\u00a0 This great gift of the Spirit calls us to search our own hearts with Him to grow in authentic union with God each day.<\/p>\n<p>The parable of the wheat and the weeds this week invites us to reflect on the challenge of evil in the world.\u00a0 The seed sown by God is to produce good wheat in the field of the farmer.\u00a0 The key question in the parable is \u201cwhy does God allow the weeds to grow along with the wheat?\u201d\u00a0 The wheat represents the children of God while the weeds represent the children of the evil one.\u00a0 The weeds appear with the wheat and the assumption is made that an enemy to the famer has sabotaged the field.\u00a0 The landowner, God in the parable, chooses to let the evil weeds grow along with the wheat, in order to not hurt wheat.\u00a0 Christ says that you can\u2019t uproot the weeds without also uprooting the wheat.\u00a0 Jesus makes the point that God can\u2019t take away our free will and force evil to stop in the world without it affecting our freedom to choose doing good.\u00a0 The words of Christ give us God\u2019s perspective on permitting evil in the world, despite the negative affect.\u00a0 All of us would remove evil from the world if we could.\u00a0 We would all control the outcome of life situations, especially medical ones, if we could.\u00a0 God\u2019s love is shown in the gift of freedom and His unwillingness to control the created world.\u00a0 Despite the problems and the evil in the world, God calls us to use our freedom to choose the good while patiently suffering the world\u2019s evils.\u00a0 This is one of the principal models in the life of Jesus.\u00a0 May the Lord give us the strength to resist anything that would keep us from union with God and patiently endure the things we can\u2019t change, especially the result of people choosing evil actions.\u00a0 May the Lord continue to guide thoughts and actions toward holiness.<\/p>\n<p>God bless,<\/p>\n<p>Father David<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The July 23 bulletin can be found online. Dear friend, The passage this weekend from St. Paul\u2019s letter to the Romans reads, \u201cBrothers and sisters, the Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings.\u00a0 And the &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Pastor&#8217;s Letter July 23, 2023<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1248,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[83,40],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4922","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-father-david","category-letter-from-pastor"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Pastor&#039;s Letter July 23, 2023 - St. Philomena Catholic Church<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"chadmin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"chadmin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#\/schema\/person\/5e00f5f2ab9dc0c9672d91f3666e7572\"},\"headline\":\"Pastor&#8217;s Letter July 23, 2023\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-21T13:30:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-07-24T13:32:56+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/\"},\"wordCount\":591,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/RICHARDSON-Father-David-P.-Pastor.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Father David\",\"Pastor's Weekly Letter\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/\",\"name\":\"Pastor's Letter July 23, 2023 - St. Philomena Catholic Church\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/RICHARDSON-Father-David-P.-Pastor.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2023-07-21T13:30:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-07-24T13:32:56+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#\/schema\/person\/5e00f5f2ab9dc0c9672d91f3666e7572\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/RICHARDSON-Father-David-P.-Pastor.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/RICHARDSON-Father-David-P.-Pastor.jpg\",\"width\":1250,\"height\":1000},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Pastor&#8217;s Letter July 23, 2023\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/\",\"name\":\"St. Philomena Catholic Church\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#\/schema\/person\/5e00f5f2ab9dc0c9672d91f3666e7572\",\"name\":\"chadmin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ded2ff7c26a780bffc380e3c5959dc4aa8a8b7bd3fb1899fe03ebfb94180bec?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ded2ff7c26a780bffc380e3c5959dc4aa8a8b7bd3fb1899fe03ebfb94180bec?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ded2ff7c26a780bffc380e3c5959dc4aa8a8b7bd3fb1899fe03ebfb94180bec?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"chadmin\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/author\/chadmin\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Pastor's Letter July 23, 2023 - St. Philomena Catholic Church","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"chadmin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/"},"author":{"name":"chadmin","@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#\/schema\/person\/5e00f5f2ab9dc0c9672d91f3666e7572"},"headline":"Pastor&#8217;s Letter July 23, 2023","datePublished":"2023-07-21T13:30:41+00:00","dateModified":"2023-07-24T13:32:56+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/"},"wordCount":591,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/RICHARDSON-Father-David-P.-Pastor.jpg","articleSection":["Father David","Pastor's Weekly Letter"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/","url":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/","name":"Pastor's Letter July 23, 2023 - St. Philomena Catholic Church","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/RICHARDSON-Father-David-P.-Pastor.jpg","datePublished":"2023-07-21T13:30:41+00:00","dateModified":"2023-07-24T13:32:56+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#\/schema\/person\/5e00f5f2ab9dc0c9672d91f3666e7572"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/RICHARDSON-Father-David-P.-Pastor.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/RICHARDSON-Father-David-P.-Pastor.jpg","width":1250,"height":1000},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/pastors-letter-july-23-2023\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Pastor&#8217;s Letter July 23, 2023"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/","name":"St. Philomena Catholic Church","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/#\/schema\/person\/5e00f5f2ab9dc0c9672d91f3666e7572","name":"chadmin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ded2ff7c26a780bffc380e3c5959dc4aa8a8b7bd3fb1899fe03ebfb94180bec?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ded2ff7c26a780bffc380e3c5959dc4aa8a8b7bd3fb1899fe03ebfb94180bec?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7ded2ff7c26a780bffc380e3c5959dc4aa8a8b7bd3fb1899fe03ebfb94180bec?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"chadmin"},"url":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/author\/chadmin\/"}]}},"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4922","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4922"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4922\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4923,"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4922\/revisions\/4923"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1248"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4922"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4922"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.stphils.com\/church\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4922"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}