|
October 26, 2008
My Dear People,
"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, and
soul...and your neighbor as yourself!" This is the key phrase in
today's Gospel. It is also the greatest of all the commandments. Our
charity and mercy need to become concrete, evident in our daily lives.
When we love our neighbor as we love ourselves, it is then that God's
presence is made knowable to others. We all can remember a time when
we felt as though the weight of our own problems seemed overwhelming.
Then, as if our of nowhere, someone comes along to share the burden.
How great is that moment in our lives. A little charity and mercy go a
long, long way when we feel down and out. The love of our neighbor can
change our whole perspective on life. It may not get rid of the
problems we face, but it does make them more manageable; all because
of someone's charity. Be determined this week to perform simple random
acts of charity and mercy. When we do so, we make God's love very real
for our neighbor; and come to live the Gospel.
May we find peace in
loving and serving the Lord in all we say and do.
Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark
October 19, 2008
My Dear People,
What do we truly OWE Our Lord? This is a question that Jesus answers
in the Gospel today. "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's...give to
God what is God's." Jesus made it very clear. We have both
temporal and spiritual responsibilities. By God's permissive will, He
has given temporal authority to our civil leaders. It is a Divine
gift. As God's representatives, these civil authorities, have limited
authority over us. Hence, when taxes are levied (federal, state and
social security), we must pay them. We owe this to Caesar. By the same
token, we also owe God as well. He has not limited, but
"supreme" authority over us as our Creator. All that we have
and are belongs to God Himself. That is why at the very end of our
lives, we must file a complete "life report" to our God.
Jesus reminds us of this throughout the Gospel. Of the four last
things: death, judgment, Heaven and Hell, we experience two JUDGMENTS
by Our Lord. First, we experience personal judgment. Secondly, we
experience general judgment. Nothing get past Our Good Lord. He knows
and sees all things. That is why it is so important to plead His
Divine Mercy over us. Without God's Mercy, flowing from the Most
Sacred Heart of Jesus, we would all be TOAST. No one could survive
either judgment. So, live in God's truth and love. Plead His Mercy
upon you every single day.. and trust in HIM!
Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark
October 12, 2008
My Dear People,
We continue with the Kingdom parables this Sunday in our Gospel.
Matthew presents us with the wedding feast motif. The Father has
prepared a great banquet for his guests. In doing so, He expects us to
be ready to celebrate with Him. He has dispatched his angels to gather
the elect. All have been invited to the feast. But some have
completely ignored the invitation. Some were to busy with everday
affairs. Others abused and murdered his servants. Afterwards God told
His servants to out into the highways and byways to gather His guest.
The only requirements God expects from us, is that we arrive properly
disposed (properly dressed). One such guest was not and cast into the
darkness outside the banquet hall. There was much suffering and
remorse. The suffering was not imposed by the Father, but was
experienced by the son who had wasted his time with things not
preparing his entrance into the Kingdom. This great Divine Mercy is
called Purgatory. Our hearts, minds, and souls must be purified and
cleansed of all darkness and sin before we can live in God's Holy
Light. Even venial sin must be removed before entering into Heaven.
That is why it is so essential to sacrifice and pray for the dead,
especially in our own families. Without our prayers and offerings,
they continue to wail and agonize in the fires of Purgatory. Next moth
we celebrate All Souls Day. Pray daily and often for the repose of all
souls who have died. It is a great act of Mercy!
May we as good stewards,
learn to recognize the difference between what we need and what we
want, trusting that God will always give us all that we need.
Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark
October 5, 2008
My
Dear People,
October a traditional month dedicated to the Blessed Mother. On the
seventh day of the month, we celebrate the Feast of Our Lady of the
Most Holy Rosary. This day marks a Marian Miracle which protected the
Church from being overtaken by Her enemy. Even though the great odds
were against the papal supported army, the enemy was crushed, and the
Church survived another great trial. This was due to Our Lady's
intercession. If you fallen out of the habit of praying your daily
rosary, make a resolution to start October 1st. Ask Mary our Mother in
Heaven, to crush the enemy in your own family. Together with St.
Michael, they are an unbeatable team. It is the moral obligation of
all Fathers to lead their spouses and children unto the Lord. SO
ATTENTION ALL DADS AND GRANDPA'S.... you set the example for the whole
family and pray the Most Holy Rosary with your spouses and children.
In this time of chastisement in our country. ALL dad's need to lead
their families into the way of God's PEACE. PRAY! PRAY!
PRAY!
May
we find joy in faithfully and generously giving our time, talent and
treasure to produce fruit for the Kingdom of God.
Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark
September 27, 2008
My Dear People,
Doing the Father's will is the theme of the Gospel today. How do we know what God's will
is for us? How did Jesus know what the Father's will was for Him? Jesus prayed. He prayed
often. He prayed from the heart. In obedience to the will of God the Father, Jesus, His
only Son, always spoke in His Father's Name. Today's Gospel from Matthew, focuses doing
what God's asks of us. Being one in mind and heart in union with God, is a key to
fulfilling His Divine Will. Our vocation is a life response to the Will of God. Catholics
are called to live three lifestyles; the single state, married life; and priesthood or
religious life. This is why it is so essential that a lot of prayer and discernment must
go into choosing our vocation. When we enter into the covenantal stage of our vocation, we
receive all of the help and grace that we need to complete it. PRAY for the discernment
and grace to know and live God's will.
May we support the work
in God's vineyard with their time, talent and treasure.
Entrusting you to the care of Our Lady,
Fr. Mark
|
 |
