Fr. Mark's Weekly Homilies

April 26, 2009 3rd Sunday of Easter

My Dear People,

What is a "resurrected" body? It's a good question. We can say what it is not. It is not human flesh like ours. It does not corrupt. It cannot be impeded by walls or any physical object. It can consume food and drink. It can be touched and felt. It does have intellect and will. How do we know this? We know these things from the Resurrection accounts of the Bible. Jesus did some amazing things in His Resurrected Body. He tells us that if we die with Him, we shall also rise with Him. So after our purification in Purgatory, we will receive a perfected and resurrected body like Jesus Christ. So if you are sick and tired of being sick and tired...GOOD NEWS! Live a good and holy life. Die in good graces with Our Lord. And you too will reign with Him in Heaven in a resurrected body as well.

May we have the courage to do the work that God has sent us to do, knowing that only in this way will we find true peace and joy.

Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark

April 19, 2009 Divine Mercy Sunday

My Dear People,

Divine Mercy Sunday was instituted by Pope John Paul ll before He died. St. Faustina was given the special grace to see and hear Jesus during her lifetime. Faustina relays in her writings, that no sin is greater than Jesus' Divine Mercy. It was Our Lord's desire for the Sunday after Easter to be established as a universal day in the Church where everyone might benefit from the prayers and indulgences of Holy Mother Church. When praying the Mercy Chaplet before the Blessed Sacrament, and receiving Holy Confession within a week of the Feast, one will receive full pardon and freedom from the temporal punishment due to our sins on that day. Please join us this Sunday afternoon for this great grace of the Church. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament will be available at St. Mary Church from 1:30pm to 3:30pm.

May we learn to see all of our blessings as abundant fits from God. Placed in our hands so that we may use them for the benefit of all God's people.

Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark

Divine Mercy Article in the St. Louis Review - April 16, 2009

Father Joseph Classen likely received his first formal introduction to Divine Mercy Sunday as a young associate pastor at Incarnate Word Parish in Chesterfield.

“They have a huge Divine Mercy celebration,” said Father Classen, now an associate pastor at St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in Oakville, which also hosts a special celebration on Divine Mercy Sunday. “We have a strong group of devotees to spread more information on the devotion,” he said of his current parish.

Divine Mercy Sunday, which is always observed on the octave day of Easter, is a celebration of the fullness of Christ’s Resurrection. Some have likened the devotion to a second Baptism, noting that Catholics who participate fully in the devotion can be forgiven their sins and absolved of the punishment for them.

In her diary, St. Maria Faustina Kowalska outlined Christ’s message of mercy for the faithful. It was Christ who said to her, “On that day, the very depths of my tender mercy are open. I pour out a whole ocean of graces upon those souls who approach the fount of my mercy” (“Divine Mercy in My Soul, Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska,” n. 699).

While he can’t remember exactly how he first learned about Divine Mercy, Father Classen said he’s had some understanding of it at least since his high school days.

“Father Mark Bozada was one of the priests I knew at Duchesne High School, and I was in a prayer group, and we would always do the Divine Mercy chaplet after the Rosary.”

“The immensity of God’s mercy is what has always stuck with me,” said Father Classen. “Catholics sometimes take for granted God’s great mercy for us. It’s good to have another special day to focus on that.”

Father Bozada, pastor of St. Mary Parish in Villa Ridge and St. James in Catawissa, said he had the chance several years ago to meet Father Seraphim Michalenko, a priest of the Marians of the Immaculate Conception who helped with St. Faustina’s canonization cause.

It was through Father Seraphim that Father Bozada learned about Stanley Villavicencio, a Filipino man who years ago began bleeding uncontrollably and claimed to have encountered Jesus as the Divine Mercy before his miraculous healing. Villavicencio shared his story before a group at Father Bozada’s former parish, St. Joseph in Apple Creek, several years ago.

“He described Jesus’ great mercy and love for us,” Father Bozada recalled. “Stanley has spent the rest of his life going around and promoting the devotion to Jesus’ merciful heart.”

Father Bozada said Catholics should understand that “Jesus’ mercy is far greater than any sin we could possibly commit. No one is barred from His mercy.”

April 12, 2009 Easter Sunday

My Dear People,

The joy of Easter message rings loudly throughout the next eight days (Octave) of the Resurrection. Mary Magdalene and the other women rose early to go to the tomb with the spices they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away and the tomb empty. Fearing that the body had been taken, they ran to tell the other disciples. Peter peers in first, and finds the tomb empty as well. They saw and believed. Our whole Christian Faith is based on these Easter testimonies. For without the Resurrection the Christian message would be very different. Rejoice in the Good News of Easter. Allow God's special Light to shine in you and your families.

May the celebration of Easter may help us become more grateful for the sacrifice Christ made for us; and more willing to make our own sacrifices to continue His work.

Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark

April 5, 2009

My Dear People,

The Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ is central to the faith life of every Christian. This is the holiest of all the liturgical weeks. Our Salvation and Redemption are sealed here. This is the beginning of our NEW life in Christ. If our hearts and minds have been purified during Lent, we are then ready to be filled with the new "Easter Light". Holy Saturday is filled with images of LIGHT. From the entrance of the Easter Candle at the beginning of the Holy Mass, to the lighting of the whole Church at the Gloria, Light is central. The darkness of our sin has been replaced with New Life of Christ. Please take the time to attend Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday this year. Don't miss out on all of the graces given during the "Holy Triduum"

Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark

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