The parish is planning for our Community Carnival which will take place here on the Mother of Divine Providence Parish campus from August 20th to 24th. One of our offerings is a dessert booth in Providence Hall. The PANTHER CAFE offers homemade baked goods — cookies, cakes, pies, brownies … We depend on the wonderful bakers in our parish to help make this booth a success during the carnival. If you are able to help by offering your homemade specialty, please be sure to fill in the insert that will be in our bulletin this weekend or call Sister Veronica at the parish offices. We are grateful for all of your help. Come and enjoy an evening or two at the carnival. Meet new people, enjoy good food and help us to build community.
Author: Father Cioppi
Just Do It!
Twenty-five years ago this month a small but growing shoe manufacturer decided it needed help in selling more shoes. So it did what every aspiring company does in that situation. It hired a Madison Avenue advertising agency to develop a marketing campaign. The focus of the campaign featured well known people using the company’s shoes with a simple, short slogan as its tag line.
It was the perfect pitch: not too specific to exclude either the older or younger generations, yet catchy enough so that shoe buyers would associate themselves with the successful personalities featured in the ad. As the campaign rolled out something totally unexpected happened. The simple slogan used in the ad was adopted by people of every age, gender, nationality and race and became an anthem for action. Continue reading “Just Do It!”
“Stay rooted in Christ” Luke 9:51-62
Reading the paper and watching the news lately makes me feel anxious. When I read about federal and state governments; when I read about not having the ‘right’ to herald the Gospel of Jesus in the public forum; or that there are people who think Catholics should be forced to go against our consciences in matters of faith and morals.
I ask myself, what about Jesus? What about my love for Him that I want to share not just with others but also with everyone! “Go out to all nations!”
I want to confess the truth about who Jesus is and what He teaches us about love, about freedom and about human dignity. I can become afraid of being labeled backward, ignorant, sub-human; stupid, bigoted, close-minded and much worse.
When did people stop believing in God, or rather, when did they begin hating Him? The result of this hatred is anger and alienation and a spiritual poverty, which enslaves humanity in self-loathing.
When I feel this way, I go to the chapel and I pray. I remember not what I learned so much as what I believe. I touch again the gift of faith that God gave me and in this way I get a sense that what I always believed is true and that my only true freedom is in obedience to Jesus. If I stay with him in the Church, I will be safe.
The Scripture passage about the stormy seas always comes to me with the admonition of Saint John Bosco to stay in the boat with Jesus. Hang on! Your only freedom is with Jesus! Hang on!
There have been many martyrs of all types throughout our Christian history. Among us even today, there are Christians suffering for what they believe. So why not us; are we any less than they? Do we believe any less than they? Have we not all been “called for freedom?” In these days of clarification, free yourselves from earthly bonds and rejoice in surrendering your lives to Divine Providence!
As Christians, our only true happiness is in the warm embrace of Christ in His Church. We cannot help it; we are born lovers of Jesus, the Son of God. “Blessed are you when they persecute you and utter every form of slander against because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven will be great!”
I believe that, and in my heart I am comforted and not afraid! But I must speak, I must herald and must make clear in the public forum the way of the Lord, the way that is most human and the only way we can accept reconciliation and true peace. If I choose Christ then I have no choice but give my whole self to God. If not, I will never be free; I will never find peace.
The earthly consequences of our confession will be difficult, but our eternal happiness will be assured. Saint Paul tells us clearly, “for freedom Christ set us free; so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. So my dear friends, be brave, hold on to your faith; hold on to our families, your spouses and your children. God has already given you the strength to fulfill His Will for you in this life. BE NOT AFRAID.
Annual Liturgical Conference
Today, the Solemnity of Saints Peter andPaul, gives us an opportunity to reflect on the mysteries both of the Petrine Ministry and our collaboration with him to spread the Gospel to every creature.
In the Gospel, Jesus is confronted by two things: his short time frame and the faith of his disciples. He asks his disciples then the question, “Who do men say that I am?” Caesarea Philippi was a cosmopolitan town so was heavily influenced by paganism.
Against this background Jesus challenges his disciples to clarify their faith and understand the consequences of that belief. The circumstances are repeated for us today. Many gods and many people who have abandoned God surround us. More people overwhelmed by too much information are finding themselves lost and scattered. Everyday we are being challenged to clarify through the teaching of the Church the identity of Christ and his importance in our lives. It took great insight on Peter’s part; it took the firm and maturing faith of Paul to proclaim Christ and to be willing to suffer the consequences of that proclamation.
This has been quite the week for us with the Supreme Court overriding a referendum of the people and the Administration insistent that we still be forced to go against our consciences in matters of faith and morals.
We look to Peter and Paul today, in the person of our Holy Father Francis, for the same firm and maturing faith. We rely on him to be fully conscious of the work Jesus began, preaching with confidence the Good News.
We look to the Pope to reaffirm our role in that work and to lead us in both worship and proclamation so we can carry on as collaborators with him in spirit and truth. The Pope’s first and foremost responsibility is insuring unity among all Christians, leading us into full communion with Christ.
And so, the Church asks us to be straightforward in our response to Jesus’ question; to answer it with a firm and maturing faith and to be more aware of the work we are called to do in the Lord’s vineyard with joy.
Who do you say that I am? Your answer is key to your salvation.
Jesus did not die alone! Luke 9:18-24
The readings today teach us how to have a good relationship with Jesus. There are three key places we need to search out: the desert, prayer and the community.
As Christians we have a natural desire to be alone with God. This desire does not come from us. It is a call by God to be alone with Him.
The desert is a metaphor for this calling. It has come to symbolize not only our physical need to be still and quiet but also for our souls as well. We cannot hear the voice of Jesus without first listening without noise or movement for His Word.
Our second natural desire is to have a conversation with God. Not a one sided conversation where we list all our wishes and wants. We desire a true give and take with God. This builds up our confidence and trust. God wants to listen to us as well and return His desire to speak with us.
Our third desire as Christians is to live in community, to be with fellow disciples of the Lord who are engaged in the same mission as we are.
This is why parishes are so important for Christians. They enable us to be supported and encouraged to take the small steps necessary to build up a good spiritual and physical relationship with Christ and to worship God as He wants to be worshipped, not by individuals, but by the community; by the parish, here on Sunday, the day God chose to be worshipped.
So, in order to have a good relationship with Jesus, we need to seek out and find these three key places the desert, prayer and the community. Here we can, look God in the face and sing with David with great confidence and love, “O God, you are my God whom I seek…You are my help and in the shadow of your wings I shout for joy.”
“Christ lives in me.” Galatians 2:16, 19-21
It seems that St. Paul is setting high standards for us today. Not high perhaps, but ones that are natural for us who have been baptized. They might seem high because our culture has lowered her standards. Christ sets us up to be natural and declare what we have always been: “It is now no longer I who live, Christ lives in me.” This reality tests us everyday. Is everything I do, everything I think, or say, done in God?
It is not easy to evaluate our lives in Christ. Every time we examine our conscience, we can see downfalls but also accomplishments to completing God’s Will for us.
Today’s Gospel gives us hope! It reminds us of a sinner who puts herself at the feet of Jesus. She is humbled before the Pharisees; yet, she washes His feet, a dirty business for sure.
What is God trying to say? The Pharisee expects Jesus to turn the woman away but instead he offers her forgiveness and reconciliation. She refuses any longer to allow her sins to define who she is. She allows herself to be welcomed by her Lord who tells her to ‘live by faith.’
God is teaching us not to be defined by our sins but rather to let them go and allow Him to welcome us back into His life. We can do this if we accept true love, not human love. True love is giving your self away completely for the sake of another and, at the same time, accepting the unconditional love of God. For ‘I live by faith in the Son of God who has loved me and given himself up for me.’
Do not be afraid to surrender to the love of God and to accept His forgiveness and offer of reconciliation.
Graduation MTC 2013
My dear parents and friends of the graduates,
The Gospel this evening presents us with a self-portrait of Jesus. In it we see the details of a solid Catholic life, through it we find our Way to heaven. The attributes represented here are poverty of spirit, compassion, meekness, righteousness, mercy, chastity, and making peace. These characteristics of Jesus are given to us within the context of their consequences: you may be persecuted for the sake of righteousness; people may insult you and utter every kind of evil against you (falsely). Nevertheless, the Gospel says, “Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.”
We have re-built a Catholic School for the purpose of re-enforcing young Catholic families who want to lives these virtues in the workplaces, in their homes, and in their communities. Our success does not depend on grades or national averages. Our success is measured by the discipleship laid out for us in the Beatitudes, which we teach, by word and action. A Catholic School means nothing in the end if we have not learned together how to reflect the face of Jesus to others.
This Catholic School is graduating its first class. We are indeed proud of this moment when as members of different parish communities, we can finally realize the good ends for which we worked and sacrificed. And so, it is time to send our students forth to other schools so they can continue, with God’s help and our own, to mature in faith. It is an important moment in the life of your family, in the life of our parishes and in the life of the Church. We are indeed proud of the work we together have accomplished.
My dear graduates,
You will receive much deserved awards today and we are all proud of your accomplishments. But, we cannot deny for a moment that ‘the why’ you are here, is to learn to be Catholic and that the ultimate reward is given you here at the Altar. While these awards will honor a part of your life and serve as a building block for years to come, the Eucharist will always be the center and core of your eternal life.
The future can be scary, the unknown always is, but it can also be exciting! You can be confident in the future if you continue to grow in your faith and ‘do everything for the love of Jesus.’
After the Beatitudes, there is a little more Jesus has to say to us. What to do when we have worked hard to imitate the life Jesus. “You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world. Your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”
I was reading my Haiku last night and came upon this one, which I would like to share with you:
“Where has time gone?
You will be missed, but you are off
to do great things.”
Goodbye, then friends, dream well, work hard to model your life after Jesus’ and be at peace with your destiny, to be for God a light that will lead others to Christ.
PILGRIMAGE OF FAITH
p>
Join Mother of Divine Providence Parish for a Pilgrimage of Faith on Saturday, September 14, 2013, to St. Rita Cascia Shrine in Philadelphia. St. Rita is wife, mother, widow, Nun, and peacemaker. She is known as the advocate of those in need. Our Pilgrimage will include Mass, a tour of the Shrine, time for private prayer and confession and lunch. Our Pilgrimage will be a wonderful experience of faith and healing as we honor this Saint. Please SAVE THE DATE. More details will follow as the time comes closer.
St. Rita of Cascia, advocate of those in need, pray for us.
He is the God of the living! Luke 7: 11-17
This Gospel passage is interesting. It portrays a funeral march for the son of a widowed mother. The listeners would have remembered the story in the Book of Kings because Nain was only a ten-minute walk from where Elisha raised the son of a widowed mother.
So you have this mourning procession, filled with people who know the family but also people who were hired to wail and thrash about, lamenting the loss of such a young person and the tragedy of the widow who has no one to care for her.
You also feel the fear of death and the unclean. Virgil, the Roman poet, spoke about the ‘tears of things,’ that, “in the nature of things we live in a world of broken hearts.” This sounds all rather morose. Perhaps this is why our culture is afraid of the sick and the dead. Perhaps this is why we are afraid even of our own weaknesses or our children’s. Perhaps we have become fearful to touch the reality of human life and seize the moment of our sorrow in light of what we believe as Catholics.
Jesus was moved to the depths of His heart. He feels like any human being. He feels sad. He feels sorry for death. And so He stops the procession and He reaches out to the horror of the crowd and touches the body!
Amazing! That Jesus is so stirred with compassion that He reveals the Father’s tears for us when we are sad and sorry. Here is the Lord of Life, Victor over death, touching us and raising us up because He lives!
My friends, when we believe, we are not afraid of suffering and death, in fact we embrace it because God suffers with us and He is not dead! When we bring to this Altar ourweekly sins, when we place upon this paten our fears and sadness, the priest lifts it up and angels carry them to the Altar of God. We do this because God is the God of both the living and the dead. He reaches out to us through Jesus and touches the very part of us that we try to ignore, the ugly side, the weak side, the side that is afraid to fail.
Jesus is here now, reminding us never to be afraid of falling, never be afraid of suffering or of death. Be afraid of not standing up again, of not being reconciled with God or of not being prepared to take the next step in living.
Take time to reread the psalm we sung this morning, “Hear, O Lord, and have pity on me; O Lord, be my helper. You changed my mourning into dancing; O Lord, my God, forever will I give you thanks.”
“Listen for His Voice” John 10:27-30
This Easter season has been filled with miracles, revelations and works; all to demonstrate the saving power of God. We see these works through the poor, the sick, the lonely and in the ordinariness of our simple lives. The sacramental life of the suffering members of our parish show us what it means to be created in the image and likeness of a God Who was born lowly and suffered dishonorably.
By becoming one of us, the Son of God reaches into our bodies and raises them up so that we can become vehicles for human redemption.
Jesus, the Good Shepherd understands our struggles, our feelings of alienation and fear, our arrogance and ignorance and still gathers us up like lost sheep and rests us on His shoulders. He carries to communion with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
My dear friends, Jesus can lead us safely home if we learn to depend on Him. We cannot do it alone. We cannot save ourselves. Only God is the Lord of all life, human beings have no power over Him.
Now is the time my dear friends to listen for His voice and follow where He leads. Take His hand and allow yourselves to be transformed more greatly into the Christ. The Church needs you to know Jesus, to love Him and to confess His Name with everyone in your family, in your neighborhood, and in the workplace. Jesus is proud to say to the entire world today, “I am the good Shepherd; I know my sheep, and mine know me!”