Category: Parish News & Events

Seeds of Gratitude

“I gave you a land you had not tilled and cities that you had not built, to dwell in; you have eaten of vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.” -Josiah 24:13

Josiah is addressing the people of Israel, standing in ranks before him. From the chief priests to the judges, to families. Josiah is reminding them of God’s mercy. He is telling them to be grateful for all God has done for them.

How much do we need that same reminder today!

For most of us, we worship in churches that we didn’t build. We eat food that we have not tilled and live in cities that we couldn’t begin to conceive of building.

I attend Sunday Mass at a beautiful little mission Church in West Michigan. When our Church was first started over 150 years ago, 3 families mortgaged their farms to buy the land. I have told this story 100 times, but it wasn’t until I read today’s passage that it started to sink in. They mortgaged their farms. At that time, farms weren’t just the roof over their head; their farm was their livelihood; it was their source of income, of food, and their shelter.

This is more than just a story from the past; it is a challenge for the future. What am I willing to mortgage to further the kingdom of God? What am I planting for the next generation? What will I be leaving behind? Am I planting seeds of gratitude? Am I taking care of my little corner of the world so that it is in good condition for those who will come after me?

I feel challenged today to stop and say extra thanks. To live in a heightened awareness of just how much I am given. That God’s mercy doesn’t only extend to my the state of my soul but also to every breath of the life I live.

God is good. May you, to plant seeds of gratitude today.

Contact the author

If you catch Sheryl sitting still, you are most likely to find her nose stuck in a book. It may be studying with her husband, Tom as he goes through Diaconate Formation or figuring out a new knitting or quilting pattern. Since every time she thinks she gets life all figured out, she realizes just how far she has to go, St. Rita of Cascia is her go-to Saint for intercession and help. Home includes Brea, a Bernese Mountain dog and Carlyn, a very, very goofy Golden Retriever.

Friday of the Nineteenth Week in Ordinary Time

Reading 1 Jos 24:1-13

Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem,
summoning their elders, their leaders,
their judges and their officers.
When they stood in ranks before God, Joshua addressed all the people:
“Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel:
In times past your fathers, down to Terah,
father of Abraham and Nahor,
dwelt beyond the River and served other gods.
But I brought your father Abraham from the region beyond the River
and led him through the entire land of Canaan.
I made his descendants numerous, and gave him Isaac.
To Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau.
To Esau I assigned the mountain region of Seir in which to settle,
while Jacob and his children went down to Egypt.

“Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and smote Egypt with the prodigies
which I wrought in her midst.
Afterward I led you out of Egypt, and when you reached the sea,
the Egyptians pursued your fathers to the Red Sea
with chariots and horsemen.
Because they cried out to the LORD,
he put darkness between your people and the Egyptians,
upon whom he brought the sea so that it engulfed them.
After you witnessed what I did to Egypt,
and dwelt a long time in the desert,
I brought you into the land of the Amorites
who lived east of the Jordan.
They fought against you, but I delivered them into your power.
You took possession of their land, and I destroyed them,
the two kings of the Amorites, before you.
Then Balak, son of Zippor, king of Moab,
prepared to war against Israel.
He summoned Balaam, son of Beor, to curse you;
but I would not listen to Balaam.
On the contrary, he had to bless you, and I saved you from him.
Once you crossed the Jordan and came to Jericho,
the men of Jericho fought against you,
but I delivered them also into your power.
And I sent the hornets ahead of you that drove them
(the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites,
Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites)
out of your way; it was not your sword or your bow.

“I gave you a land that you had not tilled
and cities that you had not built, to dwell in;
you have eaten of vineyards and olive groves
which you did not plant.”

Responsorial Psalm Ps 136:1-3, 16-18, 21-22 and 24

R. His mercy endures forever.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever;
Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his mercy endures forever;
Give thanks to the LORD of lords,
for his mercy endures forever.
R. His mercy endures forever.
Who led his people through the wilderness,
for his mercy endures forever;
Who smote great kings,
for his mercy endures forever;
And slew powerful kings,
for his mercy endures forever.
R. His mercy endures forever.
And made their land a heritage,
for his mercy endures forever;
The heritage of Israel his servant,
for his mercy endures forever;
And freed us from our foes,
for his mercy endures forever.
R. His mercy endures forever.

Alleluia See 1 Thes 2:13

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Receive the word of god, not as the word of men,
but, as it truly is, the word of God.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Mt 19:3-12

Some Pharisees approached Jesus, and tested him, saying,
“Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause whatever?”
He said in reply, “Have you not read that from the beginning
the Creator made them male and female and said,
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh?
So they are no longer two, but one flesh.
Therefore, what God has joined together, man must not separate.”
They said to him, “Then why did Moses command
that the man give the woman a bill of divorce and dismiss her?”
He said to them, “Because of the hardness of your hearts
Moses allowed you to divorce your wives,
but from the beginning it was not so.
I say to you, whoever divorces his wife
(unless the marriage is unlawful)
and marries another commits adultery.”
His disciples said to him,
“If that is the case of a man with his wife,
it is better not to marry.”
He answered, “Not all can accept this word,
but only those to whom that is granted.
Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so;
some, because they were made so by others;
some, because they have renounced marriage
for the sake of the Kingdom of heaven.
Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.”

For the readings of the Optional Memorial of Saint Stephen of Hungary, please go here.

– – –
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

We Are Made For Heaven

Today’s official liturgical celebration is “The Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.” This is significant if we understand that there are three categories of celebrations throughout the year: Solemnities, Feasts, and Memorials.

“Solemnities” are the highest degree of Catholic celebration and so we are obliged to participate in Mass on these days – Sundays, Easter, Christmas, Pentecost, and other Holy Days of Obligation are solemn celebrations of the most important mysteries of our faith.

These are higher than “Feast Days,” which are not days of obligation, but are set apart as days to honor special saints and events of salvation history, such as the Apostles, the Archangels, the Visitation, the Presentation, and the Baptism of the Lord.

The final level of importance on the liturgical calendar, and the one we encounter most often, are “Memorials,” which usually honor the saints, though there are Marian Memorials as well, such as Our Lady of Fatima (May 13) and the Queenship of Mary (August 22).

With that little liturgical lesson done, it is worth asking: Why do we rank the Assumption – a dogma that was not “official” until 1950 – as a solemnity, along with Christmas and Easter?

Pius XII, in the Apostolic Constitution Munificentissimus Deus, stated: “By the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory.”

Mary’s Assumption into heaven, body and soul, means that the resurrection is not limited to Jesus alone; where the Head has gone, we are called to follow, body and soul. Knowing with the certainty of the Church’s infallible teaching that Mary’s whole being, body and soul, was taken into heaven, we have the certainty of knowing that there is a place for our glorified bodies as well.

So, onthis Solemnity, we are called to participate togetherinthe Eucharist and look to Mary ina particular way: as one like us (a creature, thougha sinless one) who exists to bring Jesus to us andto bring us to Jesus, andwho is alreadyfullyin heaven.

There are two human bodies in heaven and they are our BROTHER and our MOTHER, whose two Hearts beat as one with love for us! In our participation in the Eucharist we are joined already to those in heaven and to the Body of Christ on earth, and we are reminded that our destiny is beyond what we see and touch right here and now, that we are called to an eternity of love and belonging and peace beyond all understanding.

And that is a solemn celebration indeed.

Contact the author

Kathryn Mulderink, MA, is married to Robert, Station Manager for Holy Family Radio. Together they have seven children (including newly ordained Father Rob and seminarian Luke ;-), and two grandchildren. She is a Secular Discalced Carmelite and has published five books and many articles. Over the last 25 years, she has worked as a teacher, headmistress, catechist, Pastoral Associate, and DRE. Currently, she serves the Church as a writer and voice talent for Catholic Radio, by publishing and speaking, and by collaborating with the diocesan Office of Catechesis, various parishes, and other ministries to lead others to encounter Christ and engage their faith. Her website is https://www.kathryntherese.com/.

Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Reading 1 1 chr 15:3-4, 15-16; 16:1-2

David assembled all Israel in Jerusalem to bring the ark of the LORD
to the place which he had prepared for it.
David also called together the sons of Aaron and the Levites.

The Levites bore the ark of God on their shoulders with poles,
as Moses had ordained according to the word of the LORD.

David commanded the chiefs of the Levites
to appoint their kinsmen as chanters,
to play on musical instruments, harps, lyres, and cymbals,
to make a loud sound of rejoicing.

They brought in the ark of God and set it within the tent
which David had pitched for it.
Then they offered up burnt offerings and peace offerings to God.
When David had finished offering up the burnt offerings and peace offerings,
he blessed the people in the name of the LORD.

Responsorial Psalm Ps 132:6-7, 9-10, 13-14

R.(8) Lord, go up to the place of your rest, you and the ark of your holiness.
Behold, we heard of it in Ephrathah;
we found it in the fields of Jaar.
Let us enter his dwelling,
let us worship at his footstool.
R. Lord, go up to the place of your rest, you and the ark of your holiness.
May your priests be clothed with justice;
let your faithful ones shout merrily for joy.
For the sake of David your servant,
reject not the plea of your anointed.
R. Lord, go up to the place of your rest, you and the ark of your holiness.
For the LORD has chosen Zion;
he prefers her for his dwelling.
“Zion is my resting place forever;
in her will I dwell, for I prefer her.”
R. Lord, go up to the place of your rest, you and the ark of your holiness.

Reading 2 1 Cor 15:54b-57

Brothers and sisters:
When that which is mortal clothes itself with immortality,
then the word that is written shall come about:

Death is swallowed up in victory.
Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?

The sting of death is sin,
and the power of sin is the law.
But thanks be to God who gives us the victory
through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Alleluia Lk 11:28

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are they who hear the word of God
and observe it.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel Lk 11:27-28

While Jesus was speaking,
a woman from the crowd called out and said to him,
“Blessed is the womb that carried you
and the breasts at which you nursed.”
He replied,
“Rather, blessed are those
who hear the word of God and observe it.”

– – –
Lectionary for Mass for Use in the Dioceses of the United States, second typical edition, Copyright © 2001, 1998, 1997, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine; Psalm refrain © 1968, 1981, 1997, International Committee on English in the Liturgy, Inc. All rights reserved. Neither this work nor any part of it may be reproduced, distributed, performed or displayed in any medium, including electronic or digital, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.