When God Weeps

Dear Parishioners,

When you hold your broken heart in your hands because something or someone intentionally or unintentionally put a knife in your soul, only you as broken as you are can say, “I forgive you.” What you did hurt me more than you will ever know, but I refuse to let my pain continue to wound me and through me, you and others. I choose to let it go and pray we can find a new place to go forward in faith and love. But when we fail to practice forgiveness and seek reconciliation, God weeps with us and for us.

- Deacon Robert

“A Good Christian mounts a chariot in this world—
borne by angels and conducted by our Lord. ”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Health Food

Dear Parishioners,

A good father knows what his children need, and he provides it. Our heavenly Father is no different. He saw his children, Israel, and their hunger for food in the Sinai desert. So he sent them bread from heaven (manna) to fill their stomachs (Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15). Jesus knows that there is a more important food than material food (John 6:24-35). It is Jesus himself because, as St. Augustine wrote 1400 years ago, “You have made us for yourself O, Lord and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” So Jesus feeds us with the Eucharist, his body and blood, his soul and divinity to keep us healthy. This food is the most important health food of all because it gives us a share in God’s very own life. Let us be ever grateful to Jesus for this precious gift and faithfully partake of the Eucharist each weekend, for only with it are we fully alive.


- Fr. Carl

“The Kingdom of God is within us when we
love him and are in a state of grace. ”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Feeding the Multitudes

Dear Parishioners,

It was probably mid-day on a windy hillside in Galilee when Jesus turned to his disciple Phillip and asked, “Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?” Incredulous, Philip blurted out, “Six months wages wouldn’t buy enough bread for each of them to get a little.” At that moment, the miracle starts to happen. Andrew pipes up: “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish. But what are they among so many people?” In full control of the moment, Jesus orders the people to sit down on the grass beneath their feet. He takes the loaves and fish, gives thanks to God, and passes them out to all who are there. The food kept multiplying so much so that “all were satisfied,” and still, there were 12 baskets of leftovers… one for each of the skeptical disciples. (John 6:1-15)

The boy could have kept his lunch to himself. I have no idea how Andrew learned the boy had it, but knowing children, my guess is the boy saw the problem and in his naïveté, believed he could solve the problem. We can debate at length exactly how this miracle happened, and all roads eventually take us to Jesus… but the first factor in the formula was a boy with some loaves and fishes and childlike generosity on a hillside a long, long time ago.

- Deacon Robert

“The saints did not become saints without
many a sacrifice and many of struggle.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Change Is Inevitable

Dear Parishioners,

The summer is not only a time for vacation but also a time for changes. In the Catholic Review, new assignments for priests and deacons have been announced. Here at St. Jane’s, some changes in our staff are happening as well. Our wonderful administrative assistant, Lori Reinecke, is retiring and moving to Florida to be close to family members and friends. She has been a great help to me and a real blessing to the parish. I will miss her loyalty, dedication, efficiency, and her upbeat friendly attitude at all times. I wish her all the best.

Fortunately, we have found an able replacement in Genevieve (Gina) Bujanowski. She is no stranger to St. Jane’s having worked in the Religious Education Office for 4 years. She comes to us from St. Athanasius where her duties were much the same as Lori’s. She, too, comes with a good attitude and should readily adapt to our parish, and we are pleased to welcome her back. For the next several weeks while she and Lori hold a turnover of responsibilities, please be patient. It will be necessary to close the office on Wednesdays to facilitate the transition.

Today I was pleasantly surprised when I walked into the sacristy of the church. There I saw a dozen members of our Youth Group down on their hands and knees cleaning and scrubbing the floor, wiping the shelves of closets, and cleaning the grime from the radiator vents. We are so blessed with our youth and the leadership of Miss Claire.

I also want to thank our Sodality for their generous donation for the AED (Automated External Defibrillator). Hopefully, it won’t be needed, but it can save a life in an emergency situation. So it is good to finally get one.

- Fr. Carl

“Wherever we are, and whatever we do,
we shall always meet with spiritual difficulties. ”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Live For God’s Glory

Dear Parishioners,

In Christ, we are called to live to the praise of God’s glory, to think and act, to believe and serve, to understand and give. How do we live to the praise of God’s glory? We do so following Jesus who loved the unlovely, healed the broken, sat with sinners, and forgave those believed to be unforgivable. We all long for glory, for wonder, for that feeling deep within our souls that what we believe really matters to us, to God, and to others. When we live as God’s children, when we act as God’s people, when we take up the hard work of putting holy words into holy actions, we live for God’s glory.

- Deacon Robert

“Our Lord wishes nothing but your happiness.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Freedom of Religion?

Dear Parishioners,

This weekend as we celebrate the Fourth or July, we relish the liberty for which our forefathers fought and sacrificed. We are the land of liberty, freedom, and opportunity. And while freedom is a great blessing, it is not enjoyed by all people around the world. Freedom is not an end in itself. Otherwise, it becomes a false idol; it takes the place of God, the only one we should adore. Freedom has limits and boundaries which, if not respected, lead to chaos, violence, and self destruction. St. Peter, in the New Testament, tells us, “Live as free men, but do not use your freedom as a cloak for vice.” (1 Pet 2:16) And Pope St. John Paul II teaches us that, “Freedom consists not in doing what we like, but in having the right to do what we ought.” (Homily at Camden Yards Mass, Baltimore, 1995)

One of the blessings that God bestowed upon the human race was free will or freedom. We know from the story of Adam and Eve what happened when they abused that gift. Satan entered into human history, and we have had problems ever since. (Gen 3:1-24)

Today, our religious liberty and freedom is being threatened by the courts, legislature, and executive branch of the government which wants to restrict freedom of religion to the four walls of our church buildings. Some of the teachings of the Bible and our moral beliefs are being labeled as hate speech and bigotry, because they contradict the views of modern culture. The late Cardinal George of Chicago opined that while he expected to die in his home, his successor would die in prison, and his successor would die as a martyr. Perhaps that insight is a bit far-fetched. However, many years ago when Margaret Sanger was told that legal contraception would lead to abortion, she said that would never happen. Well it did. What will happen to freedom of religion if we do nothing?

- Father Carl

“The saints did not all begin well,
but they all ended well.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

God Never Gives Up On Us

Dear Parishioners,

Those who don’t believe in God, atheists, sometimes use death, suffering, and evil to justify their lack of belief. They say, “A good God wouldn’t allow all this suffering and pain, especially in the tragic death of a young innocent child.” However, the first reading teaches us differently (Wisdom 1:13-15; 2:23-24). As we hear Wisdom say, “God does not make death nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living… But by the envy of the devil, death entered the world.”

Adam and Eve lived in a beautiful garden where all their needs were met, and they did not have to work, suffer, or die. Furthermore, they had a personal and intimate friendship with God who regularly moved around in the garden in the “breezy part of the day.” Since the devil no longer had this kind of relationship, he was envious. His successful temptation led to the sin of Adam and Eve which brought about the sin and evil we see all around us. Still, we know God didn’t give up on the human race. He sent Jesus. In today’s gospel (Mark 5:21-43), we see our Lord restoring health and life to those suffering physical evil in this world. He wants to do the same to us, curing the spiritual evil (sins) in our life and leading us to eternal life.

Let us pray for the grace to remain faithful to God in resisting the devil’s temptations and turn back through the sacrament of Confession when we fail. For Jesus will never fail us.

- Father Carl

“Do your work, not in order to grow rich or to
win the approval of men, but for God’s sake.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars