| Vignettes |
Bulletin Vignettes Church: A Family of Faith—6th Sunday of Lent As a family of faith, the Church enters into the “holiest” of weeks in its celebration of Liturgy. Lent began with Jesus battling with the demons in the desert. As Jesus prepared for His passion and death, He met head on the forces of evil in the final expression of doing His Father’s will. It is in the Holy Week Liturgies that we experience Jesus’ great self-emptying love and humility through His humanity. He is the Suffering Servant, who is faithful to His Father’s mission, to overcome evil and defeat its every manifestation that has come together to try and undo Him. Mark has tried to lead us this Lent to “be with Jesus” as His disciple. We, now, experience the full impact of Jesus’ humanity, His struggle in His agony to do the Father’s will. In walking with Christ this week, this sort of suffering and death activates our own awareness of our limitations and weakness. We walk with faith and hope and learn from the Centurion, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” It is the love of Jesus who redeems and saves us! How does this profound act of Jesus touch our lives right now, our illness, discord, death of a loved one? Do we believe that “all will be well”? How will you walk with Jesus this week? Church: A Family of Faith—Easter Sunday In the death of a loved one, especially the death of a parent, a brother or sister, or a best friend, we have all experienced the painful loss. It is really the loss of our loved one’s presence with us. We can imagine how Mary Magdalene felt when she went to garden to find the stone rolled away and Jesus was not there. There is an empty feeling of hopelessness until Mary runs back to Peter and the other disciple to share her story. The story of evangelization begins here when Peter and the other disciple run to the tomb and they “saw and believed”. The whole story of the Acts of the Apostles is also a story of evangelization fleshing out that Jesus is Risen and is among us. He is the anointed one of God whose earthly ministry of healing and salvation was certified and validated by His resurrection from the dead. Mary Magdalene, Peter and all the apostles are witnesses to His life and to His return from the dead, witnesses empowering them to testify to His ongoing Messianic mission. This testimony is not meant just for the Apostles, but for all who believe in Him. We, too, look forward to our own final resurrection to be with the Lord and with those who have gone before us. In the meantime, we continue the mission of proclaiming the Gospel: “We proclaim your Death, O Lord, and profess your Resurrection until you come again.” How do you give witness to the presence of Christ in your life and the lives of others? Church: A Family of Faith—2nd Sunday of Easter “Bring your hand and feel the place of the nails, and do not be unbelieving but believing, alleluia!” Jesus, who reaches out to Thomas’ weak faith, offered him divine mercy and peace. It was through these locked doors that He appeared to the frightened disciples to alleviate their fears, to strengthen their faith, and to offer reconciliation and peace. Like the disciples, we experience fears and brokenness. The Church, through the gift of the sacrament of Holy Orders, the ordained priest offers the Family of Faith, the opportunity to forgive sins. It is through the gift of the community of believers that we offer one another forgiveness and reconciliation. Each follower of Christ is baptismally called to exercise this ministry. It is the heart of Jesus’ ministry. It is the very foundation of community. Celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday by attending the Prayer Service in your parish. Bring someone who has been who would like to receive the Sacrament of Penance. “Give thanks to the Lord for He is good, His love is everlasting” (Ps. 118). Church: A Family of Faith—3rd Sunday of Easter “You are witnesses of these things” (Luke 24: 48). What are we witnesses too? The apostles and disciples of Jesus were witnesses to Jesus’ death and resurrection, and “to that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem”. The mission of evangelization began and we, the Church, the Family of Faith, continue the same mandate. How do we become an evangelizing people? We keep God’s commandments. What are these commandments? They are the way of life we witness in Jesus. The commandments enjoin us to be loving, forgiving, compassionate to the poor and outcast. In observing the commandments, we model ourselves on Jesus and become more like Him. The way we come to know the risen Lord is to allow Him to live in us and we in Him. Like Jesus, we will be asked to suffer with Him, but our faith will be strengthened by recognizing that Jesus is alive in us. Once we are confident He is alive in us we will be able, like the disciples, to announce and demonstrate this good news to our neighbors. How do you give testimony to the risen Jesus? How are the commandments good news to you? To what extent do you love others as Christ loves you? Church: A Family of Faith—4th Sunday of Easter The Good Shepherd lays down His life for His sheep. The primary role of a shepherd is to take care of the needs of his flock and to make sure they are protected from various threats of any kind. He knows exactly how to provide for them. Throughout the history of the Church, we have been blessed with good leaders, our pastors and bishops. The Bishop’s staff is a symbol of his function to protect and to attend to the needs of his people under his care. Church leaders, especially our Bishop and pastors, have a great responsibility to hand on the traditions and the teachings of the Catholic Church that lead the faithful to salvation given to us by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Today, we are attracted to many hopes, dreams, and promises that bombard us from politicians, media, advertisements, etc hoping to find help and support to keep us from hurt and harm. There is only one true salvation: the Lord Jesus that the apostles proclaimed at the beginning and that the Church proclaims now. As the pilgrim people of God, we journey with our pastor and Bishop, to learn the truth of the Good Shepherd. It is with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, that we discern God’s call and God’s viewpoint, to articulate His mission to continue to build up the Kingdom of God. As a community of faith, let us pray to the Holy Spirit to help us discern the wisdom of God and His will with compassion and concern for all His people so that we may continue to articulate Jesus’ mission for our day and time. How do you work with your pastor and Bishop to discern God’s will for your parish community and diocesan family? How do you use your gifts and talents to further the mission and ministry of your parish community?
Bulletin Vignettes Church: A Family of Faith—5th Sunday of Easter The way to bear fruit in continuing the mission of Jesus is to remain in Him and He in you. The early Church as related in the Acts of the Apostle in this week’s readings is growing because the people walked in the way of the Holy Spirit. It was the way of keeping the commandments and doing what pleases God. In the Gospel of John, he tells us how we must live the Gospel. It is not simply enough to talk about it. Jesus talks about the deep connection that He has with us. He is the Vine; we are the Branches. Apart from Him, we can do nothing. This intimate relationship that Jesus desires for us is deep and real. Our very being depends on being attached to the Vine. This calls for a trusting faith relationship if we are to bear fruit for the mission. Being attached to Jesus calls forth pruning which, in turn, will provide greater growth and more fruit. Intimacy and growth in and with Jesus involves daily conversion, continual dying to self that we might have life, and have it more abundantly. How will you show your willingness to take risks in working with God and others so that good fruit may result from your relationship? Church: A Family of Faith—6th Sunday of Easter As a community of believers, we are a family of faith sent forth to continue the mission of Jesus to preach the Good News. We evangelize where we are, at home, in the community, in the workplace by the way we witness love God and in the way we love God and one another. God’s love is for everyone. He shows no partiality. He longs and desires that all people be saved. The Easter message of Jesus’ resurrection is proof of what God has done for us. Pope Benedict XVI’s call for New Evangelization efforts in the Church means reaching out to those who have already been catechized, those away from the Church, or to those to be invited into the Church. How do we do this? The heart of evangelization consists in reaching out in love and concern to all, giving of ourselves even to the point of death. “No one has greater love than this” (John 15:13) is the very foundation of ministry. This can only be done in intimacy with Jesus who said, “I have called you friends, because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father” (John 15:15). As a family of faith, parents, children, the parish family, we are called to “remain” in God’s love as expressed in the person of Jesus. Let us listen to the Spirit of God speak to us in continuing His mission and ministry of love to one another and place no obstacles in the way of God’s grace to act. In what ways is God calling you to witness His love in your ministry? What are the challenges you experience? How do you “remain” in Christ’s friendship to continue your work of love? Church: A Family of Faith—7th Sunday of Easter To be consecrated is to be “set apart”. For Jesus to ask His Father to consecrate His disciples in the truth was a “tall” order when He knew what the disciples would have to face after Jesus’ death and resurrection. The truth is speaking God’s truth, His word, that is, Jesus is the revelation of the unseen God. To be consecrated in the truth means to have a closer union with Jesus who is the Truth. The disciples have accepted Jesus and kept His word; now they must bring Him and His word to others. Jesus sends them as He Himself was sent. The mission of this community of the faith is to continue the mission of Jesus. By His death (His “consecration”) Jesus will confirm and consecrate His disciples. His death is a sacrifice of love, the culmination of His priestly act to the Father on behalf of His people. As a family of faith, we are to proclaim that truth to and for one another. As disciples of Jesus, as His evangelizers, we are committed to truth, consecrating one’s whole life to proclaiming the reality and truth that God is love. Let us continue to consecrate ourselves daily to truth and make Jesus’ prayer a lived reality in our midst. In what specific ways in your life have you consecrated yourself to truth and to testify in truth? Church: A Family of Faith—Pentecost Sunday The gift given to the disciples on the first Christian Pentecost was clearly under the direction of the Holy Spirit. So is the Church today. The first public proclamation given by Peter was an exercise of the ministry of the word. Notice the words “speak”, “proclaim”, “hear” appear in the reading from the Acts of the Apostles. The Church today is a community of preaching, of speaking out the mighty acts of God in all the languages of the world. What the apostles had to say was addressed to people from all over the world. Right from the beginning, the Church was universal. It is still universal—catholic, today. The point of whether we know all of these languages is not the point. What we celebrate is Christ in whatever language people speak. Inclusiveness is a great sign of the kingdom of God and a wonderful invitation to come and feel at home. The Holy Spirit continues to guide the Church today and will continue to do so until the end of time. We need to pray to the Holy Spirit every day to discern the voice and actions of the Holy Spirit, functioning in the Church on behalf of the world. As a family of faith, we need to pay attention to the “signs of the times” in the light of the gospel message so that we can learn where the Spirit is guiding us. How do you attune yourself to the action and movement of the Holy Spirit in your world: for yourself, your family, your community, your work, your Church?
Bulletin Vignettes
Church: A Family of Faith—The Most Holy Trinity The Creed we profess at Mass every Sunday is more than just a list doctrine. The Creed expresses a drama of the community of love—the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. When we pray the Creed, we place ourselves again at the baptismal font. I believe gives the assent of my heart and mind and soul. When we speak of the Trinity, we approach God the Father in the Son and through the Holy Spirit. Jesus shows us the face of God, and the Spirit reveals in our hearts the experience of God, but all still turn to God the Father. John’s Gospel makes clear that our faith begins and lives with the revelation of God’s awesome love, so much so that He gave us His only-begotten Son. The gift of the Son is the gift of His own life in order that we might share in His life. It is the love of the Father for the Son in the gift of His Spirit that empowers us to live the Christian life as a community of believers. What significance does the Creed have in your life? How does it affect the way you think and behave? How can you make the Creed a living reality in your life? Church: A Family of Faith—The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi) The Eucharis is our most treasured gift in the Catholic Church. It is the Eucharist, the Body of Christ that nourishes and sustains us as the Family of Faith and strengthens the bond as a community of believers. It is the Eucharist that draws many back to the life of the Church. They miss the Eucharist. If we were to try to describe briefly who Jesus is, what better way to communicate the Person and the message than in Eucharist? His words, His action of laying down His life in love for us, His acts of blessing, thanksgiving, healing, His Cross and Resurrection are all here in the breaking of the bread. The Eucharist is the greatest sign we have of what Christ is to us. We have the privilege of being able to receive the Eucharist daily in our parishes. We need to be aware that non-Catholics and those who cannot receive the Eucharist are present in the Church. Let us be welcoming, be friendly, be receptive, be thankful, and be the bread for the world. As the Body of Christ, we are the face of Christ for others. St. Augustine is attributed as saying to those gathered around the table: “Believe what you receive. Receive what you believe. Become what you receive.” How are you the Body of Christ for others? Church: A Family of Faith—11th Sunday of Ordinary Time The mustard seed is a tiny seed, so small, it is a wonder how large the plant becomes. In order for this bush to grow and blossom, it needs nourishment, which is good soil with plenty of water and sunlight. Jesus uses this parable to talk about our faith. The nourishment that is needed for our faith to grow in our Family of Faith is trust in God’s ways. The virtue of hope anchors our faith in God in times of trial and suffering, just like the early Church experienced after Jesus had risen from the dead. In our ministry in the parish and in our workplace, we may not seem to make a dent in witnessing our faith or bringing many back to the Church. Our call is to cultivate the soil of our lives and live the Word of God. It is our small acts of kindness, listening, a smile that often brings someone to hope and to trust in God again. We provide sanctuary for people, like “the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade”, by disclosing the love and mercy of God. The Word of God will do what it is meant to do if we are open and fertile. Whom do you know who seems to live a life of gospel hope in spite of challenging circumstances? What is it that makes him or her so? Church: A Family of Faith—The Nativity of St. John the Baptist It is not often that the Church celebrates a birthday of a saint in the Sunday Liturgy. But today, the Church celebrates “the prophet of the Most High”; the man sent from God, named John, who would prepare the people of God for the coming of the Messiah. The readings from Isaiah and from the Acts of the Apostles testify to the witness of who John the Baptist was in God’s plan of salvation. John was a man of the desert who prepared himself to be the forerunner of Christ’s appearance and ministry. There was never a question that John knew who he was, “What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. Behold, one is coming after me; I am not worthy to unfasten the sandals of his feet” (Acts 13:25). In John’s own manner, he became the way, the evangelizer, for the coming of the Messiah. The witness of his humility, his cry to prepare the way, and his proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins were the beginnings that laid the foundation for Jesus’ ministry to announce that the Kingdom of God was at hand. In what ways do you announce the Good News to another? Have you considered becoming a commissioned lay minister for the service of the Church? Or a permanent deacon? Are any of you being called to priesthood, a consecrated religious? Many are called to the married life. As a family, how do you hand on the faith to your children? The Church needs you to be the seeds of faith to prepare the way for our young people so that they may pass on the faith to others. |