From the Pastor&#039;s Desk: October 23, 2022

From the Pastor’s Desk: October 23, 2022

In the Gospel for this Sunday, St. Luke tells us that Jesus "addressed this parable to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone else." His words powerfully complement the life and message of St. Paul, who today reminds us of the kind of journey of life that matters most. “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” These are expressions that, God-willing, each of us will be able to say honestly at the end of our life. The world we live in presents a struggle to be a Christian. To be a Christian today is not easy. It is not only a battle between good and evil, against our weaknesses and failings, but to a greater degree a war against the forceful attempts to turn us from and against God.

In truth, the Christian way of life is not a walk in the park. It is not about sitting down on a comfortable chair waiting for others to serve us and letting life pass us by. It is not a pretentious attitude as we ask God a favor when we come to Mass every so often. Christianity as a way of life is a journey. It is a life-long marathon, a race. St. Paul ran that race all over the ancient world and we, too, are called to live our faith with similar disposition. We are called to hasten to Church, to hasten to serve others, to hasten to grow in faith and virtue. And we are called to persevere in the marathon of Christian life, up hills and down into valleys of our everyday life. And yet way too often we tend to compare ourselves to others on the journey of life and faith as we deprave ourselves the greatest and unique gift that God created for us to be.

So, when it comes down to faith, it is the greatest gift that someone can receive in life. Imagine if someone offered you the most incredible promise of happiness – but you could only receive it as a gift - you could not earn it nor deserve it. Would you accept it? To accept is to remain faithful, humble and true to the loving covenant God has established. And to be truly happy is to share the gift with others. “But how did St. Paul preserve the faith? Not in a safe! He didn’t hide it underground, like the lazy servant who buried the talent… he kept the faith because he didn’t limit himself to defending it, but proclaimed it, spread it, brought it to the farthest reaches of the world. He preserved the faith because just as he received it, he passed it on, throwing himself into the peripheries without hiding behind bunkers. Here we can ask ourselves: how do we, in the family, keep our faith?” -Pope Francis

It is with tremendous joy that I want to express my most sincere words of gratitude to everyone who contributed their time and talents to make our Annual Celebration of the Patronal Feast of St. Luke such a success. With delicious food, fun and fellowship, with the greatest ever participation at the Parish Picnic on Saturday, as well as the great number of parishioners who gathered for Eucharist last Sunday to welcome for the first time in our parish Bishop Pohlmeier, the entire weekend was such a splendid success! In a special way I want to commend the Pastor’s Advisory Team for their dedication and hard work to make this all happen.

I also want to extend words of thanks to all who came to join in such a wonderful gathering of fellowship, friendship and prayer to help to build our community. As your pastor, I am overjoyed to see so many of you involved to contribute to build our parish and to share with one another the best you have– your very selves as the true image of the love of God. Without you, none of this would be possible. Thank you!
“Like train announcers, they know all the stations, but never travel. Head knowledge is worthless, unless accompanied by submission of the will and right action.” The Wisdom of Fulton Sheen

I wish you a blessed week and pray that we all will find ways to humbly serve one another in this upcoming week.

With prayers,

Fr. Andy