MCFARLAND — Christ the King Parish in McFarland hosted its kick-off Rosary Rally on Thursday, June 27, with Fr. Steve Smith, pastor, presiding.
Fifteen people, from three parishes came to pray at the outdoor Marian Garden.
Tag: Christ
The triumph of the Cross and our salvation
Dear Friends,
This past week we celebrated the Feast of the Triumph of the Cross. There is no shortage of crosses in our lives, and we pray for one another and lift one another up as we encounter those crosses. It is through those crosses, which some of you experience right now, that can come the Resurrection victory. So engage the struggle to embrace your cross and do not forget the triumph which comes by way of our following the Lord.
The vision will not disappoint
Visus Non Mentietur — “The vision will not disappoint”— is taken from the book of the prophet Habakkuk 2:3.
This scriptural text, which happens to be the Episcopal Motto of His Excellency the Most Rev. Robert C. Morlino, in a way captures his vision for priestly vocations in the Diocese of Madison.
Mary’s Assumption inspires us to imitate her discipleship
Fr. Mark Link shared an inspiring story of a Catholic teenager who felt that her mother rejected her. She transferred her anger for her mother to Mary.
The girl reluctantly went on a required Confirmation retreat. The director talked about Mary. As the girl listened, angry feelings towards her mother surfaced. She rejected everything good the speaker shared about Mary. After the talk, she went outside to walk off her anger. She wanted to cry but her tears froze. She felt bitter loneliness and rejection.
She wandered aimlessly until her curiosity attracted her to a small grotto-like building. She looked inside and discovered a large statue of Mary from whom she was trying to escape. She wanted to run, but she was drawn to the kneeler at Mary’s feet. She fell on her knees, weeping in the folds of Mary’s robes. When she stopped crying, she felt cleansed and renewed. Touched by Mary, she began to accept her as her spiritual mother.
The priest: in persona Christi
I met a young priest in Fairfax, Va., last week. Of course “young” is a relative term. Everyone around me gets younger with each passing year.
Father Jaffe had been at the parish for less than a week and was the priest on call for the local hospital. It was 2 a.m. when his pager went off. A couple had lost their eight-year-old son hours before and the mother wouldn’t let go of his body.
All attempts of the staff and hospital chaplain to get her to release her son had failed. She sat rocking him, unresponsive to anyone. The woman wasn’t Catholic, but the staff knew from experience that it was time to call in a priest.
When the newly ordained 26-year-old arrived, he did the only thing that came to mind. He sat with the parents in silence for a moment and said, “It looks like you need some prayer.” He opened his rite book, The Pastoral Care of the Sick to the section with the prayers for the deceased and he began to pray aloud.
The Almighty has done great things for us
On behalf of Bishop Robert C. Morlino and all our seminarians, I would like to congratulate Deacons David Johannes and Mark Miller on their upcoming ordinations to the priesthood.
The entire Diocese of Madison rejoices because the Lord has shown us great favor in calling these two men to be numbered amongst the Levites. I also want to extend our congratulations to Deacons Vince Brewer and Garrett Kau who were ordained to the transitional diaconate in May. We wish you all fruitful ministry in the Lord’s vineyard.
God works in our midst
Ordination of men to the priesthood is a good reminder to us of how God continues to work in our midst. The Holy Spirit working through the bishop, by his imposition of hands and prayer of ordination, raises these men to become in effect “Alter Christus.”
The hidden power in our suffering
In a 1999 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, patients with serious illness were asked to identify what was most important to them during the dying process.
Many indicated they wanted to achieve a “sense of control.” This is understandable. Most of us fear our powerlessness in the face of illness and death.
We would like to retain an element of control, even though we realize that dying often involves the very opposite: a total loss of control, over our muscles, our emotions, our minds, our bowels, and our very lives, as our human framework succumbs to powerful disintegrative forces.
Pentecost reminds us to use gifts of Holy Spirit received at Confirmation
I was confirmed in seventh grade. In religion class, I learned that in the Sacrament of Confirmation we receive the Holy Spirit who strengthens us to be Christian witnesses. I worried whether I could witness to Christ by dying for him as a martyr. I took Confirmation seriously.
The Church received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. To prepare to receive the Spirit, for nine days key followers of Jesus gathered in the Upper Room in Jerusalem. These included the apostles, together with Mary, some other women, and disciples. They were united in intense prayer.
In Acts 2:2-4, it says, “Suddenly there came from the sky, a noise like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they were. Tongues as of fire appeared to them, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim.”
We thank God for our mothers
Some mothers claim that they would do anything for their children. Stephanie Decker, a 37-year-old Indiana mother, demonstrated this in a heroic way.
On March 2, as a tornado crushed her family home, Stephanie covered her children with her body to protect them. Debris from the tornado caused her to lose part of both legs while saving her children from the deadly 175 mph tornado.
Enduring maternal bond
Someone wrote that a mother carries her child in her womb for nine months and in her heart for the rest of her life. Conceiving, carrying, and giving birth to a human being is as close as any person can come to the act of creation. After birth, motherhood continues through nurturing, sacrificing, loving, and ultimately letting go.
The challenge of Lent continues beyond Easter
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As the Lend ends, let us never forget its commanding start: “Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel!”
We could spend most of our lives reflecting and acting on this single powerful sentence. And indeed we should.
For in turning away from all that hurts our relationship with God — sin — and being faithful to the essential foundation which nurtures that relationship — the Gospel — we discover ever more fully the beauty, peace, joy, and meaning of this life, and prepare well for the incomprehensible wonders of eternal life!
Turning away from sin
This is the ideal time for the nation as a whole to turn away from sin.