Delphos St. John the Evangelist Parish September 2018 Ministry … Sept... · 2018-08-31 ·...
Transcript of Delphos St. John the Evangelist Parish September 2018 Ministry … Sept... · 2018-08-31 ·...
Delphos St. John the Evangelist Parish September 2018
ofMinistry PraiseThe Exaltation of the Holy Cross
To this day, on September 14, the Eastern , Catholic, and Orthodox churches alike celebrate this feast. The Cross has become the universal image of ChrisAan belief.
Countless generaAons of arAsts have turned it into a thing of beauty to be carried in procession or worn as jewelry.
To the eyes of the first ChrisAans, it had no beauty. It stood outside too many city walls, decorated only with dying
corpses as a threat to anyone who defied Roman authority. Although believers spoke of the Cross as the instrument of
salvaAon, it seldom appeared in ChrisAan art.
The Holy Cross is the expression of our Lord’s immense love for us, of life, of joy, of victory over death, sin and evil.
FOR US, in order to follow Christ, we must take up His Cross daily. However, we should not consider Christ’s Cross — sacrifice, difficulAes, suffering — in a negaAve way. We should not be surprised to find Christ’s Cross along the way: illness, family and economic problems, daily contradicAons. LET US NOT FORGET THAT THE CROSS IS THE SYMBOL OF OUR LORD’S LOVE FOR US, OF LIFE, OF JOY, OF HIS TRIUMPH OVER SIN AND EVIL. WE MUST WILLINGLY EMBRACE CHRIST’S CROSS WITH ARMS OPEN WIDE, JUST LIKE OUR LORD DID! Pope Paul VI once said, “Too many people are suffering today.” Wars, hunger, unwelcome immigrants, domesAc violence, abuse, health care, prisoners, terrorists, educaAon … the suffering of Jesus is connected with the suffering of the world and its people of all Ames and places, especially the poor and powerless. As we think of the Cross, we are called into a deeper awareness of life and its sorrow and for a deeper desire to work for an end to injusAce and suffering.
Do we remember all those who suffer injus3ce in any way?
O Jesus, grant us, by virtue of your Cross, to embrace with meekness and cheerful submission the difficul<es of our life and to be ever ready to take up our Cross and follow You. May we never shrink from suffering but rather rejoice if we should be
counted worthy to suffer for your name’s sake.
LORD LIFTED HIGH TO SET ME FREE: MY LORD, MY GOD, MY SALVATION.
Delphos St. John the Evangelist Parish September 2018
Feast of Sts. Michael, Gabriel, Raphael
SEPT.29
THE THREE ARCHANGELS. Michael, Raphael, and Gabriel are the only angels named in Sacred Scripture and all three have important roles
in the history of salva3on.
St. Michael is the “Prince of the Heavenly Host”, the leader of all the angels. He is invoked for protecAon against Satan and all evil. HE IS THE PATRON SAINT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS
and is called upon to protect all those who serve us.
SAINT MICHAEL, be our refuge here, Preserve us from all useless fear;
Through you may God his peace bestow on all the naAons here below.
SAINT GABRIEL (message-‐bearer) be with us this day,
Reveal God’s will to us, we pray, As Mary did once answer you,
may our response be firm and true.
SAINT RAPHAEL (healer) heal our sinful heart, May God his grace to us impart, And may you guide us on the way,
That we may never go astray.
GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD, ALL HIS ANGELS, MIGHTY IN POWER, AS YOU HEED AND FULFILL HIS WORD.
ARCHANGELS
Delphos St. John the Evangelist Parish September 2018
Words by Pope Francis:
“How is it that we can all shout cheers for a favorite sports team but are shy about raising our voices in praise of the God who
made us?”
Our Needs, Worries and Concerns
✞ That the Church will be a place of mercy freely given, where everyone can feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live the good life of the Gospel, we pray: Father hear us.
✞ That all may contribute to the common good and to a society that places the human person at the center, we pray: Father hear us.
✞ For the sick, the suffering, and the homebound, we pray: Father hear us.
✞ For the vicAms of natural disasters, especially the raging fires in the Western U.S., we pray: Father hear us.
✞ For school bus drivers, that they may safely transport students to school and to sporting events, we pray: Father hear us.
✞ That GRANDPARENTS continue to give unconditional love, patience, comfort, lessons in life (and cookies) to their grandchildren, we pray: Father hear us.
✞ That the faithful departed may be welcomed into Paradise, we pray: Father hear us.
Those Who Recently Found Eternal Rest:Caroline GallmeierTherese Reinemeyer Thomas Geddings, Jr.
Roger StantSteven GoeddeOmer Pothast
Anna Jean Bockey Rita Mae Pohlman
Geri BaileyLoving Father, hold us close.
With confidence in the Father’s love, we ask for his mercy:
Delphos St. John the Evangelist Parish September 2018
TO REMEMBER In September… Sept. 3 — LABOR DAY Loving Father, we pray for all who Shoulder the tasks of human labor — in the marketplace, in factories and offices, in the professions and in family living. We thank you, Lord, for the gid and opportunity of work; may our efforts always be pure of heart, for the good of others and the glory of your name. We lid up to you all who long for just employment and those who work to defend the rights and needs of workers everywhere. May those of us who are now reAred always remember that we sAll make a valuable contribuAon to our Church and our world by our prayers and works of charity. Heavenly Father, may our working and our resAng always give praise to you!
Sept. 11 – PATRIOT DAY “May all beings on this planet know peace, be at peace, spread peace
and live in peace. Amen.” (LamentaAons 3:20-‐23)
BACK TO SCHOOL Jesus, hear our prayers and help us to always recognize
the value of our children.
For Catholic schools, that they may strive for Academic Excellence and the formaAon of students as followers of Christ, we pray: Jesus hear us.
For public schools, that legislators and administrators come together to offer the best possible educaAon for all, we pray: Jesus hear us.
For private schools that their dedicaAon and creaAvity may never waver, we pray: Jesus hear us.
For schools and educators serving special needs children, we pray: Jesus hear us.
May the Holy Spirit be at work to help our children grow and learn.
Delphos St. John the Evangelist Parish September 2018
RHYTHMS OF THE SEASON
(Adapted from “Autumn MeditaAons” by John Bartunek, LLC,STHD)
AUTUMN Autumn is a transiAonal season and a teacher of TRUST. In the springAme we sow and plant. We are moved to do so by hope. We can hope more daringly if we trust in the goodness and
POWER of PROVIDENCE, in the rhythms and fruiiulness of earthly life.
As we carve our pumpkins, peel our apples and gather our wheat we are shown again that the harvest does come. “Amen, amen I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies it remains just a grain of wheat but if it dies it produces much fruit.” (John 12:24). There
is room for trust in this world. ________________________________________________
The JOY of autumn is the JOY OF THE HARVEST. It is mulAdimensional … the abundance of good produce that keeps our economy flowing … the delighiul colors, tastes, smells that create a dimension of enjoyment and the very process of planAng, growing and maturing that creates a dimension of SPIRITUAL JOY which can feed our souls if we let it. LET’S NOT MISS THE JOY OF THE HARVEST! Whether material or spiritual, it is a joy that only comes to those who wait and allows the wonderful mysteries of life on this earth to unfold as God
intends them to.
Summer doesn’t last forever. When the light dims and the temperature drops, the trees sense that summer is over. The green leaves surrender their green color to other
pigments … yellow, gold, red, bronze, purple. Goodbye summer! Hello Fall! There is glory in their ACCEPTANCE OF CHANGE. There can be glory, too, in our surrender. SomeAmes, only in ACCEPTING CHANGE can we actually discover the beauty beneath the green, hidden within us. Even for Jesus, the glory of the resurrecAon emerged through
His ACCEPTANCE of the Cross.
Delphos St. John the Evangelist Parish September 2018
Autumn is the perfect season for a THANKSGIVING holiday. The images of THANKSGIVING spark joy as well as humility; the overflowing cornucopia, the fallen leaves, the family and
friends gathered around a feast-‐filled table. We must give thanks for all that we are and have. The highest act of worship and the purest prayer is GRATITUDE. “What gives true strength to a
man’s heart is GRATITUDE.” (Heb 13:9)
The Gospels oden show Jesus giving thanks to His Father. Why not live the spirit of THANKSGIVING ourselves every day?
The experience of the SACRED is a gid, a necessary gid if we want to live life to the fullest. We need to pray and hope for SACRED encounters. The noise of summer is over, and the silence of winter has not yet descended. Autumn is full of whispers. The whispers of fall invite us to stop our franAc acAvity, clear our minds and look with childlike eyes at the wonders of the season.
These are the SACRED bridges to God that they are truly meant to be. _______________________________________________________________
Autumn’s WISDOM has to do with planning ahead to survive the coming winter. It is work of preparaAon that requires thinking long term. The rhythms that God has built into the world require that we enjoy the present moment without forgeong that it will pass and tomorrow
will have its own challenges. “Do not fret over tomorrow; let tomorrow fret over its own cares; for today, today’s troubles are enough.” (Maphew 634.)
Fall is the sunset of summer and the fading glory is a gentle hint of death. Death shows itself to be a natural companion. It is not a stranger. Death teaches us DETACHMENT, that we should
not cling too closely to what is here below.
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and decay destroy. But store up treasures in heaven. For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.” (Mathew:
6:19-‐21)
Praise be to you, my Lord, through our sister, MOTHER Earth, who sustains and governs us. — St. Francis of Assisi