Dear Parishioners and Friends,
THANK YOU! I love being your Associate Pastor! Thank you for warmly welcoming me at Our Lady of the Chesapeake and St. Jane Frances. I’m very happy to be here and enjoy greeting you after Mass and getting to know you at parish events and other gatherings.
ABOUT FATHER JIM. If you’re looking for conversation starters, here’s a little about me... SPORTS.
Following in my late father’s footsteps, I’m a Baltimore Orioles and Washington (Redskins) Commanders fan. “Go Navy, Beat Army!” OUTDOOR HOBBIES: Fishing, hiking, camping, riding my bike, vegetable gardening, “driving in the country,” and exploring waterways. INDOOR HOBBIES: Home improvements, and cooking healthy & delicious food. I love spending time with my sons and daughter in law. I like history, and am enjoying learning about the history of the beautiful Pasadena Peninsula of our Pastorate. I love when you share with me something about yourself and your family, often leading us to discover things we have in common.
RAISING A FAMILY NEAR THE WATER. My wife Shirley and I raised our two sons in Cape St. Claire on the south side of the Magothy. I’ve been in the same house for 34 years, and I love walking two blocks to the community beach & dock to pray Evening Prayer when I’m home. Shirley and I enjoyed paddling the Magothy and south shore creeks in our 2-person kayak. My son, Michael, and I enjoy sailing the Magothy in our small sailboats, although he’s much more skilled than I am; he was on Broadneck High School’s Sailing Team. My son, Jeff, rowed crew in high school, sailed the Coast Guard’s tall ship Eagle from the Gulf Coast of Florida to north of Nova Scotia one summer, and has competed in the famous Na Pali Challenge Hawaiian Outrigger Canoe Race off the Kauai Coast. And my daughter-in-law Julia, raised in Florida and Texas, is quite the fisherwoman!
SUNDAY’S GOSPEL. “Ask and you will receive.” (Luke 11:9). Why does it sometimes seem that God does not answer prayer? Because of our limited perspective. God answers EVERY prayer with one of two responses: 1. “Yes” (with perfect timing, which sometimes means waiting). or 2. “I have a better plan.” God always answers prayer from the perspective of eternity. “How much more will the Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him?" (Luke 11:13). Sometimes what we ask for in prayer will neither help us nor others get to heaven. Other times when we pray, we or our loved ones remain suffering. Yet there is a mysterious power of suffering for Christians: suffering leads to the cross, which leads to the resurrection. We no longer have to fear death—Jesus is Risen! Let our prayers lead to Jesus rising in our hearts.
Peace in Christ,
Father Jim
