Pastor’s Letter & October 4 Bulletin

Pastor’s Letter & October 4 Bulletin

2 Oct 2020 | Posted by: chadmin

The October 4 bulletin is now available online.

Dear friend,

This past week was filled with some beautiful Catholic feast days. The feast of the Archangels, Gabriel, Raphael, and Michael, was on Tuesday, September 29. In the scheme of Creation, we believe that God created the spiritual beings, or the angels, first. There are many Scripture references to the angels and their service to God and then humanity. Essentially they serve as messengers between God and us. Obviously, God in His nature, does not need assistance, as He is omnipresent, all perfect and all powerful. But God creates both the spiritual angels and the physical world, including us, to share His Divine Love. Angels exist to assist God with the sharing of His Love. Whether we ponder the message from Gabriel to Mary about the miracle of the Incarnation or the spiritual protection provided by Michael from the fallen angels, the role of the angels is intimately connected with our path to heaven.

The feast of the Guardian Angels was on Friday, October 2. Like the Archangels, the Guardian Angels are spiritual beings that support our journey home. God gifts each soul at conception the gift of an angel to guard us throughout life. Many saints and ordinary folk like us, are granted visions of their angel at some point in life. Usually this happens around some life-threatening event. A good reminder of the role of the angels to protect and guard us. Catholic teaching reveals that the spiritual beings are more “powerful” than the material world, as awesome as that sounds. Just as the soul animates our body with life and the ability to see, taste, feel, smell and think, so the spiritual angels have the power to effect the physical world. Just as our souls are a spiritual identity, it is important to ponder the spiritual identity of not only our deceased loved ones in eternal life, but also the angels who we can have relationships with. As a good friend wants to inspire and instruct us, so our angels exist to provide heaven-directed inspiration. A good life goal is to continue developing a relationship with one’s guardian angel, that will be with us for all eternity. Simple conversation, petition, thanks, and awe develop this ongoing friendship.

The feast of St. Therese of Lisieux was also this week on October 1. St. Therese is one of my personal favorites, and one of the reasons I believe I am a priest in Peoria. There is much information about her life available for study. Her autobiography, “Story of a Soul” is an excellent read if you are looking for some inspiration. The “Little Way” of St. Therese resulted in her being named a Doctor of the Church. The “Doctors” of the Catholic Church are those that understand a spiritual truth and proceed to live it to perfection in this life. Therese was an expert in child-like humility. Whether spoken or in deed, her autobiography as well as the testimony of her religious community, testify that she lived for God first, for others second, and for herself last. She lived her life from the words of Jesus, “unless you become like a child, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” The dependence and simplicity of a child sets the model for other-directed love. May the saints and angels always provide the inspiration we need to live our Catholic Christian faith. Have a great week.

God bless,

Father David