Gift Giving

Dear Parishioners,

Jesus taught his disciples an unexpected lesson about giving with love in this Sunday’s Gospel reading (Mk 12:41-44). Love is selfless and sacrificial. Jesus drove this point home to his disciples while sitting in the temple and observing people making their offering. Jesus praised a poor widow who gave the smallest of coins in contrast with the rich who gave greater sums. How can someone in poverty give more than someone who has wealth? Jesus’ answer is very simple: love is more precious than gold! Jesus taught that real giving must come from the heart. A gift that is given for display or show loses its value. But a gift given out of love, with a spirit of generosity and sacrifice, is priceless. The amount or size of the gift doesn’t matter as much as the cost to the giver. The poor widow could have kept one of her coins, but instead she generously gave away all she had. Jesus praised her because it was everything she had, her whole living. 

What we have to offer may look very small and not worth much, but if we put all we have at the Lord’s disposal, no matter how insignificant it may seem, then God can do with it and with us what is beyond our imagination. Do you know the joy and freedom of giving generously to God and to neighbor with gratitude and love? In what ways can I give my entire self to God?

God Bless,
Deacon Howard

The Lord Has Done Great Things For Us

Dear Parishioners,

“The Lord has done great things for us, we are filled with joy.” (Ps 126:1-2, 2-3, 4-5, 6) These words from last week’s Psalm were probably not on our lips during the past two years. Still the Lord has done great things for us. The god given intellectual gifts of our scientists coupled with the monetary support of our government have enabled many of us to survive these difficult times and see a light at the end of the tunnel. It’s not all over, but we are moving in the right direction.

I particularly want to thank you all for your prayers and support on behalf of the parish. Obviously, with the church closure and social distancing over a lengthy period of time, our income took a hit. Nevertheless, many of you stepped up and mailed in your weekly/monthly contributions, while still others signed up for online giving. (It sure beats writing a check each week.) Thanks so very much. I was so touched by your thoughtfulness and loyalty to St. Jane’s.

I have enclosed the financials for the parish Fiscal Year 2021 (see page 3 of the 1/31/2021 bulletin). This year’s were not too bad. But last year’s were. The parish had a FY2020 deficit of $273,646, and the school a deficit of $212,865. Fortunately, thanks to your generosity in past years, we had enough savings to weather the storm. This year the parish—even after the church provided deficit funding for the school—showed a modest surplus of $90,948 thanks to you and the financial aid from the federal government’s Payroll Protection Program.

This year we are keeping our head above the water. The end of September showed a modest surplus of $13,000 in our ordinary income. So, thank you for your continued support.

Finally, if your finances allow it, please prayerfully consider increasing your contributions to the parish. Thank you and God bless.

Fr. Carl

Security Blankets

Dear Parishioners,

We learn a valuable lesson this week from the Gospel story (Mk 10:46-52). The blind man, Bartimaeus, provides us a model of faith to follow. The Gospel points out that when Jesus called him, he threw aside his cloak, jumped up, and went to his Lord at once. The cloak was the most versatile item of Palestinian clothing at the time. It was protection against the rapid and frequent temperature changes, insulation against the harsh Judean winds, and at night, it doubled as a blanket. The cloak of the blind man symbolizes our own self-sufficiency, those things in our lives that we depend on for our security—the things that can hold us back when we hear God calling. By leaving it behind, Bartimaeus teaches us that our only sufficiency should be Jesus Christ. Our true security is in Him alone. Let us get up, throw off our cloak, and go to Jesus at once when we hear Him calling.

God Bless,
Deacon Howard

Achieving Greatness

Dear Parishioners,

Next Sunday is World Mission Sunday, when we are reminded that the Mission of the Church is the spreading of the Gospel. So it is very fitting that the Friday before, we celebrate the feast of Pope St. John Paul II, the greatest missionary since St. Paul in the early days of the Church. Traveling 725,000 miles to 129 of the 195 countries of the world, St. John Paul II spread the Gospel in person and through the media, to billions, not millions, of people. He was truly Pope St. John Paul II, the Great. Nobody will ever again have such a global missionary effect. None of us could ever come close to John Paul II and never will we be called “The Great.” However, we can become great without doing what the world considers to be great things. Jesus says, “Anyone who aspires to greatness must serve the rest.” It is a very simple task and yet it is difficult for many to sacrifice their time, talent, or treasure in service to others. Laziness, comfort, and pride are the chief enemies of service which we must try to overcome.

One of the early popes, St. Gregory the Great, realized the value of service calling himself “Servus servorum Dei”—the servant of the servants of God. It’s a title popes have taken upon themselves ever since. So, if they see themselves as servants, how much more should we?

Fr. Carl

Are You All In?

Dear Parishioners,

The rich young man in today’s gospel is eager to inherit eternal life (Mk 10:17–30). So he asks Jesus, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus speaks to every seeking heart with the answer. We must move beyond the bare minimum. We must tear down any obstacles that stand between God and us. To be in right relationship with God, we must rely entirely on him, not ourselves. We know that eternal life is a gift that God offers to us. It isn’t forced on anyone, and we are free to say, “No, thank you.”  To accept God’s gift of eternal life, we must be utterly dependent on Him. We can’t be the one in control. And this is essentially what Jesus is telling the rich man in this week’s gospel. Jesus says that if he wants to have a deeper relationship with God, if he wants to go “all in,” then he must let go of his wealth. When Jesus tells the rich man to give everything he has to the poor and follow him, he is asking him to trust God completely. By giving away his earthly treasure, the rich man will find an even greater treasure. Jesus wasn’t making a bargain with the man. The “letting go” was the only way he would experience true charity and giving of self. This is the love that God wants us to experience with one another. This is the love for which we were created. Are we all in? Yes, I know it’s not easy, but with God all things are possible.

God Bless,
Deacon Howard

Marriage: Permission, Thank You and Forgiveness

Dear Parishioners,

In the first story of creation, we see the power of God. God said and it was done as soon as he said it. Wouldn’t parents like to have that kind of power over their children? When He said “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” (Gen 1:26), it was the high point of creation. However, it was impersonal; he simply said it, and it came to be. But the second story of creation shows God taking a more personal interest. God “formed man out of the clay of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life, and so man became a living being.” But God didn’t stop there, for as the old saying goes “No man is an island.” And so he formed Eve from the side of Adam to be a help mate, wife, and mother. God is good!

There are great blessings and joys in marriage, children, new homes, new jobs, mutual support and encouragement, moves to different states and sometimes countries, family vacations, and companionship in the later years. The devotion between couples married 50, 60, or even 70 years is truly an inspiration.

Still it’s not all sweetness and light. Differences arise, arguments take place, and personalities change. Personality quirks once so interesting become annoyances, and patience sometimes gives way to rude/ hurtful remarks. Marriage can be challenging and difficult at times; so divorce becomes an option. What to do? Pope Francis, in a speech, shared three words to head off divorce—permission, gratitude, and forgiveness. On the topic of permission, the Pope said, “always ask your spouse ‘what do you think, what do you think of this?’” rather than running over the other without getting their opinion. 

He also stressed the need to be grateful, “because it’s the spouses who confer the sacrament of marriage, one to the other. And this sacramental relationship is maintained with this sentiment of gratitude of thanks.”

The third word he noted is forgiveness which is “a very hard word to say.” In marriage, mistakes are always made, he said, noting that the important thing is to know how to recognize one’s mistakes and ask for forgiveness.

Permission, thank you, forgiveness—three words to remember to which I would add one more: crucifix. It would be good to have one hanging in the bedroom as a reminder that real love demands sacrifice—“Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13)

Fr. Carl

Temptation

Dear Parishioners,

Today, we might re phrase Jesus’ words from the Gospel this way: “If it costs an arm and a leg to resist temptation, it is worth it.” (Mk 9:38-43, 45, 47-48) When we talk like that, we are not suggesting that a person literally sacrifice an arm or leg, but Jesus is simply using dramatic language to emphasize and make a point that resisting temptation is very, very important.

However, if we should not take Jesus words, “cut it off,” literally, we must take them seriously. Discipleship sometimes requires amputations. We need to amputate bad habits, resentments, ambitions that cause us to sin. We need to amputate things that stand between us and God. Our Lord teaches us that the pain of removing sinful ways is nothing compared with the sorrow of cutting ourselves off forever from God’s love. May the love of the Lord be our heart’s desire, and may our words and deeds reflect our love.

God Bless,
Deacon Howard