Jesus does something new to the ears of those who are hearing him between the days of his baptism in the Jordan by John and the days of his Passion, Death, and Resurrection. He challenges them to hear that to truly love, honor, and serve God is not a separate reality from the love, honor, and service due to his or her neighbor. Fulfilling the mandates of God’s laws does not allow a heavy emphasis on those laws that focus on God and religious practices to the dismissal of concerns for others, but requires a deeper and broader appreciation of how the two are intertwined.
As parish family, “what we do” is most easily identified in the liturgies we celebrate in church or the programs of faith formation that occur in our parish center. I would like to acknowledge and thanks those groups in the parish who gather regularly to assure our strength as a parish family for the sake of the service we provide to our fellow parishioners and to the wider community:
Parish Council – setting the pace and coordinating resources for the service of all
Finance Committee – ensuring that we plan for and implement plans to manage financial resources to keep us healthy and strong
Religious Education Committee – planning for and supporting our fellow parishioners in the exercise of our mission to proclaim, teach, and otherwise support our faith in Christ
Legacy of Hope Committee – guiding our participation in the current diocesan campaign.
There are unique moments throughout the year when folks gather around certain tasks without there being a standing committee. I thank those who are doing the many tasks pertaining to the Annual Mass of Remembrance. This is a ministry of service, and especially of healing.
God’s grace is surely with you!
Fr. Tom