23rd Sunday in Ordinary time -Year A
A few summers ago, my family had a big reunion. It included my parents, my four siblings, and all their many children. One of my favorite moments was simply watching my parents’ contented faces as they took in all of us together, laughing, sharing food, singing, telling stories. They loved seeing their children happily together with each other. That is something like the heart of God we see in today’s Gospel message about Christian reconciliation. These verses come right after Jesus’ parable of the lost sheep. He is not giving the disciples a cold formula for dealing with conflict. He is revealing the Father’s longing for children who love and reconcile with each other. His heart aches when his children are divided and isolated. So when Jesus says, “Go and tell your brother his fault,” He is not deputizing us as morality police. He is inviting us into His mission of reconciliation. When He adds, “If he listens to you, you have won over your brother,” we glimpse the real goal. Not winning arguments, but reuniting a divided family. These days, we often think religion is just between God and me. But the Father’s dream is about a lively family, one in which His children forgive, gather, and rejoice together.
Lord Jesus, give me the courage to seek reconciliation where it is needed. Make my heart resemble the Father’s heart, longing and working for unity among His children. Amen. -Father John Muir
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
This Monday we celebrate Labor Day which was a holiday that I used to wonder about for two reasons – first we celebrate labor by taking the day off from our labors! Second, the fact that we are celebrating labor at all after all it is work so what is there to celebrate? However, after becoming a priest (which actually means I do not get Labor Day off anymore) I have a new appreciation for the holiday at least from the religious side of things. You see, our labor is a chance for us to join in the work of God as creator. If we turn our attention to the book of Genesis and the story of creation, God labored for six days and rested on the seventh – (keep in mind God’s seven days are not our seven days, He did not go by our calendar. We do not know God’s time – a million years could be a day and day could be a million years in God’s time for He is timeless.) He created everything including humanity out of His great Love. By giving us the ability to labor with our hands, minds, voices and any and everything else we use to complete our tasks, He is giving us the gift of being like Him – being creators. This is what we celebrate on Labor Day – being part of God’s creation with the ability to also create. Let’s be sure to use this great gift from God to create good things, to create out of Love like He created out of Love. To thank Him for the gift of being able to imitate Him as creator!!! Have a safe and enjoyable Labor Day!
God Bless you and have a wonderful week, Fr. Michael
SCRIPTURAL REFLECTIONS ON STEWARDSHIP
“You, Son of Man, I have appointed watchman for the house of Israel…”
Many of us are generous with our gifts. However, many of us are not generous in proportion to the gifts we have been given. How often do we give at the minimum level required? Remember, the Lord calls us to nurture and develop our gifts and to give back with increase. He calls us to be generous with all the gifts, especially the one that means the most to us.
Back-to-School Blessing
Dear God, we ask that You bless the students in our congregation, giving them inspirational teachers, studious habits, solid friendships, and Your Grace in every moment of this school year. Bless the teachers and school staff in our congregation, too. Fill them with Your love and care so that, as they teach and minister to our young people, Your wisdom and light may be known, encountered, and shared. Amen.
Prayer for Vocations
Dear God, Give us the courage and strength to answer when You call! Give us clarity and trust to hear Your soft invitations. Give us the love to respond, and the bravery to take the steps that will bring us ever closer to You. Amen.
PRACTICING CATHOLIC
RECOGNIZE GOD IN YOUR ORDINARY MOMENTS By Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman Treat Him Like a Gentile
In today’s Gospel, Jesus gives instructions for ministering to those persisting in error. Here’s the CliffsNotes version: If all else fails, “treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector.” In other words? Don’t give up. Tell him the truth. Wash, rinse and repeat. Technically speaking, I’m a Gentile. I’ve done those mail-in DNA tests, and none of my ancestors were Jewish. So whoever told my family about the God of Abraham, it wasn’t Moses, and it probably wasn’t Jesus Himself, unless He spent some time in northwestern Europe that the Gospels fail to mention. Nope, my ancestors were big old Gentiles living in a big old Gentile world. Lucky for me, someone evangelized them. At first, my ancestors probably didn’t listen. But the evangelist, whoever he or she was, didn’t give up. I say “lucky for me” because this all means that I was born and raised Catholic. It makes it easier, I think — but it doesn’t make it easy. I’m not an automaton, and I still have to accept the truth of the faith I choose to live. So do you. So do we all. Inevitably, we falter. What then? Who are the tax collectors? Zaccheus was one. Matthew was another. Maybe you recognize his name — he’s the guy who wrote this Gospel. And who are the Gentiles? Me. You, maybe. Everyone the disciples decided not to give up on. Everyone the Church is called not to forget about, not to dismiss, and not to take for granted. So treat them all like Gentiles, and remember that God sees the future, not just the past.
PRAYER REQUESTS
That God will relieve their suffering and restore them to health. Please pray for: Kellie Salata, Kelly Chinchar, Jessica, Daniel Breslin, Stanley, Joseph Marrone, Anthony, Michael, Joseph, Jessica Esopo, Steve, Audra, Bernadette, James Weiss, Baby Ford, Rosemary Malangone, Elizabeth Malangone, Sue West, Colleen Emery, Richard, Joan Russo, Christina Martin, Mornia Evans, Valerie Valverde, Diana McGuckin, Cheryl Prinjinski, Stephen West, Bryan Westfall, Cathy Bruno, Anne Trainor and Lheny Sunga.
Holy Name Medical Center is looking for Eucharistic Ministers, volunteers, who are willing to help out in giving out Holy Communion to their patients. If you are interested, you can email them at pokafor@holyname.org or call their office at 201-833-3243 or stop by their Pastoral Care Office, behind the chapel, lobby/ground floor at Holy Name Medical Center.
Please consider sponsoring our Bread & Wine, Altar Flowers, and the oil for the Sanctuary Lamp.
Opportunities for Parish Support
There are several ways you can help support our parish and honor loved ones at the same time. As you may have noticed on the first Sunday of every month in our bulletin, we thank the donors of our Altar Gifts. You can donate the Bread & Wine, Altar Flowers, or the Sanctuary Lamp in a two-week block for $50 in someone’s memory. We have blocks open for this year. We also need to purchase a new Easter candle each year (the tall candle on the altar) for $300-$400 which can also be donated in someone’s memory. You do not have to fund the entire amount, anything you wish to donate towards the purchase of our Easter candle is appreciated. We also have masses available for your intentions. If you wish to honor someone in any of these ways, please call the rectory.
Prayer for our Nation
God our Father, giver of life, we entrust the United States of America to your loving care. You are the rock on which this nation was founded. You alone are the true source of our cherished rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Reclaim this land for your glory and dwell among your people. Send your Spirit to touch the hearts of our nation’s leaders. Open their minds to the great worth of human life and the responsibilities that accompany human freedom. Remind your people that true happiness is rooted in seeking and doing your will. Through the intercession of Mary Immaculate, patroness of our land, grant us the courage to reject the “culture of death.” Lead us into a new millennium of life. We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
Praying the ROSARY
The Rosary is a meditation, a time to recall and think about the life of Jesus as seen and experienced by Mary. As the model of faith, Mary’s life sets a pattern that we strive to follow: saying ‘yes’ to God’s will in our lives and sharing His love and message with others. The Mysteries of the Rosary form a mini lesson of faith, using the highlights and significant moments of the life of Jesus. Like paging through a family scrapbook, we see in brief the events of salvation history that are the core of our belief and the hope of our eternal life.
WE NEED BULLETIN ADVERTISERS!!
We would like to thank all the advertisers who have supported us throughout the past year. Our parish benefits greatly from the ads you see in the bulletin. The revenue pays for the printing which is an important means of communication for the parish. If we do not have enough advertisers, the cost of our bulletin goes up. We thank the local businesses that advertise with us especially in these tough economic times. We have some spaces on the back of our bulletin that need filling so if you would like to advertise your business as well as benefit your church, please contact John Patrick Publishing at 1-800-333-3166.
Please support our advertisers at the back cover of bulletin.
