Introducing Deacon Steve House

Dear Parishioners,

I would like to introduce myself. I am Deacon Steve House. I have been assigned to serve as deacon at St. Jane Frances. My wife, Rochelle, and I moved to Annapolis from Columbus, Indiana this past June. I am a retired psychologist. My wife is a retired high school guidance director. We have been married for 41 years. We have three children. One son’s family lives in Leesburg, Virginia. A second son lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. We live with our daughter here in Annapolis. You can see that our move brings us closer to our children and our 6 granddaughters. That is great for us, I’m not sure how it is for them! Although I grew up in Philly, we lived in Indiana for 35 years. The church has been a big part of our lives, and we had a wonderful parish community there. Our move here was planned but probably hastened by the fact that our daughter has Natalie, a two year old special needs child. She and her husband asked if we would come and live with them to provide support. It was really a no-brainer. I was getting tired of the 10 hour trip anyway! Now we are just down the stairs. I think my job is to color with Amelia, their 4 year old. I have so far avoided dirty diapers!

I was ordained in the Archdiocese of Indianapolis in 2012. Unlike the Archdiocese of Baltimore, in Indy, ours was only the second class of deacons ordained. I am very excited about being assigned to St. Jane Frances. I have to admit however, that when I was first aware of the parish, I had to ask what saint is that? But Rochelle and I have been praying for God to lead us, and he has not let us down. We have greatly changed our lives, leaving what we knew and were comfortable with to find a new normal. God has blessed us with opportunities beyond our dreams, and we look for his continued guidance as we seek to live out his will for us. St. Jane Frances will be a part of that. I look forward to meeting you, learning about the parish and how best to be a servant to all of you.

May God bless you,
Deacon Steve

“He who does not see, does not know; he who does not
know, does not love; he who does not love God, loves
himself, and at the same time loves his pleasures.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Guardian Angels

Dear Parishioners,

This Sunday, October 2nd, is the Feast of the Guardian Angels where we celebrate the fact that God gives each of us a guardian angel to watch over, guard, and protect us. We get this idea from Jesus himself who said, in Matthew 18:10 concerning children, “See that you do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father.”

Devotion to the angels is an expression of faith in God’s everlasting love and care of each person until the end of our earthly love.

Pope St. John XXIII had a great devotion to his guardian angel and often used him as an intermediary. For whenever he was due to meet a difficult person about a troubling situation, he asked his guardian angel to talk to the other person’s guardian angel before hand. The talks often went well. So it would be good for us to talk to our guardian angel each day. “Angel of God my guardian dear, to whom God’s love commits me here, ever this day be at my side, to light and guard to rule and guide. Amen.”

- Fr. Carl

“Our Guardian Angels are our most faithful friends, because they are with us day and night, always and everywhere. We ought often to invoke them.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Cheerful Giving

Dear Parishioners,

My old boss in the Navy used to say, “The best surprise is no surprise.” Usually that’s true, especially if the surprise isn’t good news. Last Sunday at the 10 o’clock Mass, I was surprised by our Knights of Columbus. I knew they were going to make a donation to the kitchen/hall renovation project, but the check was much more than I expected. It was for $30,000.00! Knights thank you ever so much for your generosity.

In this week’s gospel (Luke 16:19-31), the rich man experienced a very different surprise after he died. Back in those times, wealth was thought to be a sign of God’s favor and that the person had a good relationship with the Lord. The rich man did not, and upon his death, he found himself in Hell because of his greed and insensitivity to poor Lazarus. Had he shown some generosity and concern for Lazarus, he too would have been welcomed by Abraham.

May we be grateful for God’s blessings and share what we can with the poor. As St. Paul tells us, “God loves a cheerful giver.” (2 Cor 9:7)

- Fr. Carl

“People talk about Lazarus who had the joy of
entertaining the Divine Saviour in his home; but
Lazarus only had him by his side, while we, if we will,
may have him in our heart just as often as we wish.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Generosity

Dear Parishioners,

Halleluia! The hall/kitchen renovation is complete. Those of you who saw it last weekend know how nicely it was done. I appreciate the members of the committee who worked on the planning and over-sight team: Mike Wist, John Sullivan, Mike Little, Carlita Unger, Dave Horvath, and Gerry Rather. They put in many hours and came up with a wonderful plan. I also appreciate the Knights of Columbus who not only cleaned the chairs but also put on the protective chair boots to protect the floor. All we have to do now is treat everything with care.

The gospel this week reminds us that we are God’s stewards (Luke 16:1-13). All we have ultimately comes from him. It comes from his generosity. None of us can match God’s generosity to us. He held nothing back not even his son. However, he does expect us to do what we can in our treatment of others sharing with them our time, talent, and treasure. The psalm response tells us the Lord lifts up the poor. I believe he also lifts up those who are generous to the poor as well. At least that’s what Jesus says about the final judgement about feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, and clothing the naked, etc.

- Fr. Carl

“A MERCHANT does not consider the trouble he undergoes in
his commerce, but the prof it he gains by it.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Mercy and the Prodigal Son

Dear Parishioners,

It’s all about Mercy. In this Jubilee Year of Mercy, we finally have a Sunday where all the readings deal with mercy. In the first reading (Exodus 32:7-11,13-14), Moses pleads for the Israelites who have merited God’s wrath by worshiping the golden calf. So in his mercy, God relented. The psalmist also calls not only for God’s mercy but also a clean heart and a steadfast spirit (Ps 51:3-4, 12-13, 17, 19). St. Paul, in his letter to Timothy (Timothy 1:12-17), rejoices in the fact that God has treated him mercifully. And finally, we hear the famous parable of the “Prodigal Son” and his merciful father who not only forgives his selfish, wasteful, and inconsiderate son, but holds a great celebration to welcome him home (Luke 15:1-32).

In view of all this mercy in the readings, it would seem that we are all called to receive God’s mercy in the sacrament of Penance as soon as possible, and on a frequent and regular basis as the Church recommends.

- Fr. Carl

P. S. Once we receive God’s mercy, we need to show that same mercy to others. It’s only just.

“To what outrages does our Lord expose himself in the
Blessed Sacrament that he may remain in the midst of us! He
is there to console us, and therefore we ought often to visit him.”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

What's God’s Plan?

Dear Parishioners,

“Plan your work and then work your plan.” That was an old saying we had in the Navy to accomplish our tasks whether they were easy or difficult. That’s good advice in human affairs but also in spiritual affairs as well. The key in both areas is to find the plans of our boss so that our plans lead to his/her goals. The reading from Wisdom (Wisdom 9:13-18b) tells us that God’s plans are superior to ours and need the Lord’s guidance to have a positive outcome.

In the gospel (Luke 14:25-33), Jesus reveals God’s plan for us—to become his disciples no matter what. In some cases, “the no matter what” will result in alienation from our closest family members. We need to always remember that. If not, we might not be able to withstand their hatred for us when we choose God’s ways over theirs.

Basically, our plan is to enter into a committed loving relationship with Jesus and loving our brothers and sisters. And each day, we should remember that plan and ask ourselves each morning “How am I going to work that plan today?”

- Fr. Carl

“Where are the Christians today who would be ready, I do not
say to give their lives for God, but even to put up with the least
unpleasantness or inconvenience rather than disobey Him?”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars

Catholic Olympians

Dear Parishioners,

The Olympics are over, and the United States did very well. However, what impressed me the most was a story dealing with the Christian faith of some of the athletes. The world’s fastest runner, Usain Bolt, makes the sign of the cross before each race and offers a silent prayer; he wears a miraculous medal, proudly reveals his middle name, Usain St. Leo Bolt, and is very open about his Catholic faith. The wonderful gymnast, Simone Bailes (4 gold medals and one silver), travels with a statue of St. Sebastian, patron saint of athletes, carries a rosary given by her mother, and is up front about her faith and not shy about giving public testimony about her faith. Katie Ledecky, the great swimmer from Bethesda/Silver Spring, with 4 gold and one silver medal who prays a Hail Mary before each race says, “My Catholic faith is very important to me. It always has been and always will be.” Unlike some of our so-called Catholic politicians who don’t stand up for the faith, these athletes do. We can be very proud of them and hope to imitate their faith, even if we can’t imitate their athletic achievements.

As I indicated at several of the Masses last week, we are coming down the home stretch on our parish kitchen/hall renovation project. Last week, the last of the tiles were removed from the hall, the asbestos was abated, and air samples proved that all is asbestos-free. Currently, the hall is being painted, and next week the new tiles will be installed. The kitchen equipment is being set up and calibrated tomorrow. Hopefully, we will be ready to open on September 10 and 11.

Finally, I would like to thank our Knights of Columbus for power washing the chairs for the hall. They worked hard so that the chairs will match the fresh beauty of our new hall and kitchen.

Thank you, Jesus, for your assistance, guidance, and support throughout this whole project.

- Fr. Carl

“To be loved by God, to be united to God, to live in the Presence of
God, to live for God! Oh! how wonderful life is—and death!”
~ Thoughts of the Cure D’Ars