Clergy Bulletin Articles

This weekend we get the gospel reading of Jesus telling us the Parable of the Prodigal Son. We have all been prodigal sons or daughters who sinned against our Father and distanced ourselves from God. But now is the time to come back, and going to the Sacrament of Reconciliation is THE way to do it. It truly is a Sacrament about God’s mercy and compassion that brings joy to us and to God. The Father is waiting for us just like the parable:

 

Mass is boring, isn’t it? Well, if we don’t understand what is going on it certainly seems to be. It’s not entertaining. We sit, stand, and kneel at various times, and half of it seems like we’re just watching the priest do his thing up there on the altar. But hey… we don’t want to go to hell, so we show up. Week-in and week-out. We punch our card, satisfy God, and move on with our lives. 

 

This Sunday, the 2nd Sunday of Lent, we always get the account of Jesus’ Transfiguration. An ancient tradition is that this occurred forty days before Good Friday. Jesus literally shines on the mountain as he prays: “While he was praying his face changed in appearance and his clothing became dazzling white.” (Luke 9:29)

 

We have begun the season of Lent, but likely much of our attention is on the news concerning Russia’s unjust invasion of Ukraine. We pray for peace and for all those who have died and suffered in the war, especially the innocent. We are reminded how broken our world is and of fallen human nature. Also, we should recall there is a bigger enemy and a bigger war occurring that we must fight in this Lent. As St.

In this Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus challenges us to remove the wooden beam from our own eyes first so that we may see clearly, and only then are we able to even consider removing a splinter from our brother’s eye. Did you know your pastor is literally almost blind in one eye? I have a rapid growing cataract in my right eye.

Did you know the Catholic Church is engaged in a Synod on Synodality? Synodality is term meaning the process of fraternal collaboration and discernment. The current Synod is a two-year process of listening and dialogue which began late 2021 and will conclude in 2023. As such we are invited to reflect and answer questions which will be summarized and gathered by the bigger Church. I’d invite anyone to answer any of the questions below and reply back to me at frgreg@popolathe.org. Please be as clear and brief as possible.

Happy World Marriage Sunday and Valentine’s Day! I thought I’d share some wisdom on the importance of prayer for married couples. I always give this spiel as part of engaged couples’ marriage preparation. I believe shared prayer in a couple’s life is the most intimate thing they can do, and intimacy is so important for marriage! There is nothing more intimate than sharing what is deepest in one’s heart, and that is what we should be praying to God about.

Okay, this is new! You have a “guest columnist” this week – it’s Deacon Mike. Father Greg had the idea of having his deacons write a column once a month. Time will tell how long Father Greg will pursue this risky venture, but he did select an appropriate week to start – this Monday kicks off National Marriage Week. The National Marriage Week initiative was launched by laypeople in 2010 to pay respect to the beauty of marriage and to honor all spouses for their faithfulness and sacrifices.

Happy Catholic Schools Week! This week we celebrate the gift of Catholic education. There is a proverb, “A falling tree makes more noise than a growing forest.” In the midst of a world of lots of noisy falling trees—bad news, troubles, etc.—we can easily miss all the good going on right before us, a true growing forest. Catholic education is a growing forest as our young people soak in learning and formation and grow into faith-filled, mature young adults before our eyes under the tutelage and care of our most dedicated teachers and staff.

January 22 is the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children, the anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision. The Church encourages us especially these days to pray for life. I include a couple of prayers I found on the USCCB’s website you might like. Let’s pray for a deeper respect for life in every heart.

 

Peace,

 

Heavenly Father, thank you

for the precious gift of life.