Pastor’s Letter & July 4 Bulletin

Pastor’s Letter & July 4 Bulletin

2 Jul 2021 | Posted by: chadmin

The July 4 bulletin is now available online.

Dear friend,

The reading from Paul’s letter to the Corinthians this weekend gives us one of the more important spiritual reflections that St. Paul gives to the Church. “I am content with weakness, insults, hardships, persecutions, and constraints, for the sake of Christ; for when I am weak then I am strong.” Prior to this summary, Paul said that “a thorn in the flesh was given to me, an angel of Satan, to beat me, to keep me from being too elated.” Paul states how he begged the Lord to be delivered from this persecution, but Jesus responded with “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” We don’t learn in the Scriptures what exactly St. Paul was referring to when he talked about this “thorn” or suffering, but we do learn how Paul responded. Like most people, St. Paul was tempted to want life to be perfect. Because of his joy in Jesus Christ and his belief in truth, he was tempted to think everything should just work out well. If God is who he claimed Him to be, then God should have the power and authority to take care of any obstacles to Paul’s ministry.

What Christ teaches St. Paul, and what Paul then offers the Church is a simple submission to the reality of the world and one’s strengths and weaknesses. We have all been tempted to beg Jesus to fix this or that situation or make aspects of our lives better. What St. Paul learns and embraces is the reality that every person is different. Even though we have different challenges, all are called to holiness and everyone lives in the same world. The differences, the challenges, and the struggles are not to be sources of complaint, but rather opportunities to recognize our need for Jesus Christ. Essentially it is the difference between pride and humility. Paul, in his developing humility, realized external rewards and societal affirmation were not the keys to success. Success in his ministry was built on obedience to God and faithfulness to the truth. The same invitation is presented to us. Be content with one’s strengths and weaknesses. Lean into Jesus for strength and don’t be filled with pride when one’s situation isn’t perfect.

As the fiscal year 2020-21 comes to an end, we begin to complete the annual reports for the Diocese. Each church gives a financial and sacramental report to the Diocese and then the Diocese offers the reports to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). This shows the status of the Catholic institutions in our country. This past year has been a real struggle on many levels. In the fall, we will present the annual report to the parish community. In general, we know that our total income dropped during the pandemic, but the parish community maintained the budget. Thank you to everyone who helped us get our parish and school though the challenges of the pandemic. I am hopeful that with things opening up, our church and school operations will continue to reflect a sense of normalcy.

Happy 4^th of July! I pray this year allows for more family celebrations for each of us. Have a great week.

God bless,

Father David