Dear Parishioners,
Before I start my note to you– let me thank Atlantic Maintenance Group for the work they did on our grounds. Mary’s Garden looks wonderful as does all the rest of our landscaping. These generous folks donated a whole day of work to beautifying our campus—and we want them to know how much we appreciate it! As I write this, I am excited about attending opening day for the Baltimore Orioles. It’s something I last did over 60 years ago. Hopefully the Orioles will win and take another series from the Yankees.
Baseball, a game I used to play and still enjoy watching, used to be our national pastime. Years ago when TV coverage was rather limited, we would listen to the radio to the voices of Bailey Goss or Chuck Thompson in the living room, kitchen, the porch, or sometimes the garage, especially if there was a refrigerator with cold beverages.
Alas, no longer is baseball our national pastime. It has been replaced by a movement called “rush to judgement.” You see it all the time. There was the charge against Duke’s lacrosse team several years ago; it turned out to be false. There were charges against Justice Kavenaugh, but there was no proof, only an accusation. Recently, there was the Covington Catholic High School and Native American interaction where a student and the school were pictured as insulting to Native Americans. Additional videos showed the student and the school to be innocent.
Where will it all end? Perhaps Jesus has some guidance for us. In the Gospel (John 8:1-11), the woman was guilty of adultery; she was caught in the act, and there was no way for her to deny her sin. The Pharisees had already judged her and wanted Jesus to do the same. However, our Lord was not so quick. The Pharisees had to ask him twice before he answered and put them in their place. While we humans rush to judgement, God takes his time; He is patient, kind, merciful, and “slow to anger.” Jesus does not, however, let the woman off the hook. While he does not condemn her, he tells her to sin no more. How relieved that woman must have felt. It’s the same relief I feel whenever I meet Jesus in the Sacrament of Penance. You can have the same experience, too, in the sacrament the next time you go. And you should go soon.
Fr. Carl
Rev. Stephen Hook is Pastor of the Pastorate of the Visitation which includes the Catholic Churches of Pasadena, Maryland: St. Jane Frances de Chantal (Riviera Beach) and Our Lady of the Chesapeake (Lakeshore). He is assisted by Associate Pastor Rev. John Belinki, Deacon Howard Klohr, and Deacon Rick Clemens. To learn more about our pastorate, please visit www.catholicpasadena.org.
