Ordinary Time

24^th Sunday

 

 

Dear Friends in Christ,

          I am writing this on Monday.  I woke up at 3:30 this morning (now I very seldom wake up before the alarm).  But I knew immediately that the Holy Spirit was asking me to get up and pray.  I never felt this so strongly before. So I got up and went outside.  I looked up at the stars and the moon and my heart was filled with praise and thanksgiving.  I found myself singing little phrases from songs, especially the song we sang last night at our parish gathering: “Open my eyes, Lord.”

 

           I know the reason my heart was so full was because of the “Generations of Faith” gathering.  I found myself picturing all the faces there.  John who is 87 (not even sure he was the oldest person there) to holding Abigail.  I pictured Jackie playing Penelope Pray-er and Steve leading us in music with his autoharp.  In short I really felt Church: eating together, praying together and sharing something of ourselves about prayer.  I also found myself being led to listen again to the musical “Les Misérables” and hearing those beautiful words: “To love another person is to see the face of God.”  And I found myself writing in my journal which I had not done for some time.  I wanted to be critical and evaluate how I could have done more to make the evening better but it was like the Holy Spirit would not let me go there.  I could only go back to giving thanks to God and praising God.  Ironically the evening was set up to help you the parishioners grow closer to God and it was me that really was touched by God, touched by you and I am the one who was deeply moved.  Thanks be to God!

 

     Fr. Joe is heading to Idaho for a week to visit with Fr. Simeon.  Fr. Simeon is a close friend of both of us and his heart is giving out.  He has had numerous operations and there is no more they can do for him.  Fr. Simeon was my teacher and was an inspiration to get me into communications and preaching but also has been a good friend (also one of the great characters I have known in my life).  I am so glad that Fr. Joe is able to go and see him before he dies.

My prayers and best wishes to all of you,

Fr. William

 

Parish News

 

 

WEEKLY CALENDAR

Morning Prayer 7:30 am      Daily Mass 8:00 am

 

 

GENERATIONS of FAITH

 

October 8 from 5-8 pm

Topic of Prayer continues, with a look at a variety of prayer like the Rosary, to Centering and Meditative prayer to methods and styles for the Whole Family. 

 

A Prayer for:

Patty, Jerry, Ann, Therese, Ernie, Al, Loris, Hugo, Hanna, Lynn, Paul, Marilyn, Faye, Mamie, Marie, Ann, Tony, Margaret, María, Santiago, Kathryn, Casilda & Matilde, Mary, Pam, Diane, Ron, Tony and Sharon.

Jesus, Emmanuel:

Help them and protect them.                                                       Saturate them with Your Love.

Let every face they see be Yours. AMEN”

 

Bible Study resumes on Thursday Evenings at 6:30 pm on October 5^th in the Parish Library. St. John’s Gospel and three Letters will be studied first followed by the Acts of the Apostles. Interested? Questions? Contact 873-6044. All are welcome!

 

 

“The Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me—a prayer to the God of my life.”        Psalms 42:8

 

Do you know someone who may want to be Catholic?

…The RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) will begin classes September 27 at 7 pm in the Parish Center. These classes continue to meet on Wed. evenings from 7-8:30 pm through the spring. If you or someone you know is interested please call the Parish Center at 503-873-2044 or 503-873-6577.  Or just come to the class.

 

 

Religious Education

 

Please! Children need to be registered for the 2005-2006 Program by the September 24^th Kick –Off.  It would be great to have all the necessary materials for all children on the first day! So sign up NOW.

 

                            

Youth Ministry

 

 

               

Don’t Forget!

The first Confirmation Session is only 2 weeks away-- October 1^st at 4:30 pm.  If you have not registered to prepare Confirmation yet, please contact Carolyn Rich at 503-873-2044 A.S.A.P.

                  

 

                   SPY and SPAM KICK-OFF!    Wednesday, September 27 at 7 pm.

 

 

Beach Trip 9-24-06  Permission slips are at the church entrance and at the office, please turn these in to Carolyn.

 

Anyone have a Lap Top and or DVD Player? Are you willing to donate it to the Youth Ministry department. Needed prior to 9-26-06. Thank You and Bless you.

 

In the Area

 

It is encouraging to hear how many young people are interested in learning more about the vocation of religious life!  In response the Sisters of St. Mary of Oregon Vocation Committee will offer several retreats and a prayer workshop this year for women between the ages of 18 and 40 who would like to learn more about religious life today.  The first of these retreats will be a "Twilight Retreat" on Friday, October 6 from 6:30 - 9:30 p.m. at St. Mary of the Valley Motherhouse in Beaverton. Overnight accommodations are available for those traveling from a distance.   If you know someone who might be interested, please invite them to contact Sr. Charlene at srcharleneh@ssmo.org or at 503-906-1131.  Someone may be waiting for a word of encouragement – be there for them.  Please visit our website:  www.ssmo.org.

 

Scripture Readings Sept. 18-24

 

 

 

Twenty-Fourth Sunday Ordinary

September 17, 2006

 

            "See, the Lord GOD is my help; who will prove me wrong?" (Isaiah 50: 5- 9). "The cords of death encompassed me; the snares of the netherworld seized upon me; I fell into distress and sorrow... “O LORD, save my life!"  (Psalm 116)  "But who do you say that I am?"  (Mark 8: 27-35)

 

These verses from Isaiah seem to welcome the humiliation of their oppression in exile because it means that God's suffering servant is there to deliver them out of it.  Isaiah pleads Israel's case before Yahweh's "court": who is stronger than our God who comes to the weakest?  The Psalm echoes the people's depression and hopelessness in exile and their prayer for rescue from it.

 

Jesus questions his disciples about who they and other people think he is.  The people want him to be Moses or one of the prophets.  Peter comes forward as the first to acknowledge that Jesus is "the Christ", but then argues with him about the need for the Son of Man to suffer and die.  Like everyone else, Peter has his own expectations about who Jesus should be and what he should do.  How could it have been otherwise?  No one at that point could have imagined what would happen later.  Nor can Peter be judged too harshly for not wanting his beloved rabbi to even suggest the unthinkable, that he would be taken away from them as Isaiah described.  Wouldn't we all prefer the all-conquering superhero Messiah to the suffering and repudiated Son of Man?  Jesus is very clear that as the Messiah he will be a liberator of the spirit, of souls, hearts and minds.  They only way in to the divine world of the Messiah will be embracing repudiation, suffering and death as he would do.

 

The disciples only gradually came to understand and accept the whole picture as it unfolded.  The answer to Jesus' question changes depending upon our historical and personal perspectives.  We see this in how Christ is portrayed in art over the centuries, changing as our spiritual needs and experience shift one way or another.  Christ suffering, teaching, healing, rising in glory, judging, liberating.  All of them are incarnations of God.  I remember the Christ of my first adult religious discoveries as a young man.  He was my "Lord", and "master".  I was without uncertainties of any kind, but with many anxieties.  There was so much life, so many choices ahead.  I needed the certainty that there was only one correct Jesus.  How different it is forty-five years later from the vantage point of all that has happened to me and to those I have known and loved.  Now he is my brother and teacher.  It is wonderful getting older, less certain about the right answer to Jesus' question, because there are so many right answers.  We become less clear about the details, more confident about the essentials. Certain faith gives way a bit to certain hope that the promise of Isaiah will come true.  Which Christ do we need at this moment?  They are all there for us.  All we need is to pray, "Oh Lord save my life" and the "cords of death" are broken.

 

Loris Buccola

 

 

Area Parish and School Fundraising and Activity Dates

Including St. Paul, Updated 11/9/05

 

 

OKTOBERFEST 2006                                              3^rd Weekend- September (9-14/17-06)

Lourdes School Chicken Dinner                            4^th Sunday- September (9-24-06)