From the Pastor:
This Thursday is our annual Independence Day celebration. It’s a special opportunity for every person of this country to give thanks to God for the many blessings we have been given. Every one of us has reasons to give thanks. Some have been blessed more than others, but that should not prevent each of us from recognizing our blessings and being grateful for them at least for the day. President Lincoln understood this.
For me, Independence Day is more than a federal holiday commemorating the Declaration of Independence of the United States from Britain on July 4, 1776. It is a celebration of every American who worked to make this nation better over its rich history. As a nation, we have had our bright, shining moments, but also our times of darkness and struggle. We will continue to have both of these. The battle between virtue and vice, good and evil, will always be part of earthly life. However, what we celebrate Thursday are the countless men and women who work and sacrificed, prayed and persevered, to make this nation more of what it should be and what God wants it to be.
If there is any thread of continuity through the many generations of Americans before us, it’s sacrifice and hard work. Throughout most of our nation’s history, there wasn’t much of anything in excess. Most Americans had just enough food and money to manage from day to day. Things we enjoy in luxury and great abundance today were a dream for them. An older priest from the seminary told me how his family had to separate during the Great Depression and his sister mailed him her own tooth brush and half a tube of toothpaste when he didn’t have any. One was grateful to give, another was grateful to receive. St. Therese once said that Godly love takes away the bitterness of the cross.
Catholics haven’t always been loved and appreciated here in the United States. This isn’t known by the younger generations, including my own, because we didn’t live it. However, Catholics were grateful for the opportunities they did have. They worked hard to build not just churches, but also schools and hospitals. They were contributing in the ways they could to make their nation a better one for everyone. John F. Kennedy being elected president was for Catholics what Barack H. Obama was for Black people.
This week, as we gather with family and friends, we should laugh and have fun. We should even fly the American flag in celebration of every American who worked to make this nation better over its rich history. More work will always be needed, but now is the time to pause from that work to give thanks to God and to ask God for guidance and strength for us and our nation. Please consider attending a special Mass this Thursday morning (9am) for our tri-parishes at St. Peter.
In next Sunday’s bulletin, I’ll share some thoughts about Fr. Kevin’s departure and Fr. Evarist’s arrival. In the meantime, please mark your calendars for three consecutive Sundays of meet-and-greet potlucks to welcome Fr. Evarist. The first of those will be at St. Mary (July 7), the second at St. Peter (July 14), and the third at Resurrection (July 21). Each of these will be at 5pm. Parishioners can attend whichever of the three is most convenient with their schedule. I’m looking forward to it and I hope you are too.
Sincerely,
Fr. Miller