A Note From Fr. Bob

January 24, 2021

Dear Friends,

Grace and peace to you!

Today we celebrate Word of God Sunday throughout all the dioceses of the world.  In his letter, Aperuit illis, Pope Francis says this in the introduction,

 “He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures” (Lk 24:45).  This was one of the final acts of the risen Lord before his Ascension.  Jesus appeared to the assembled disciples, broke bread with them and opened their minds to the understanding of the sacred Scriptures. To them, amid their fear and bewilderment, he unveiled the meaning of the paschal mystery: that in accordance with the Father’s eternal plan he had to suffer and rise from the dead, in order to bring repentance and the forgiveness of sins (cf. Lk 24:26.46-47). He then promised to send the Holy Spirit, who would give them strength to be witnesses of this saving mystery (cf. Lk 24:49).

The relationship between the Risen Lord, the community of believers and sacred Scripture is essential to our identity as Christians. Without the Lord who opens our minds to them, it is impossible to understand the Scriptures in depth. Yet the contrary is equally true: without the Scriptures, the events of the mission of Jesus and of his Church in this world would remain incomprehensible. Hence, Saint Jerome could rightly claim: “Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ”

As we celebrate the Word of God Sunday, a good question to ask ourselves is, “How will I make time in my life to sit with his Word and deepen my relationship with him?”  What if we all took just 5 minutes each day to quietly read the Scriptures?  What a difference that could make.  Some ask, “Where do I start?”  One way to read the Scriptures is to start at the beginning.  Read until we find ourselves stopping on a particular word or phrase.  Then sit with that and allow the Lord to speak to us.  Another way is to read the daily Scripture for the Mass of the day.  Either way is an opportunity to deepen our relationship with the Lord.  It is an opportunity to come to know Christ more intimately.  Let’s start today.

Several people have asked me if we are going to have our annual Seafood Dinner this year.  If you recall, we canceled the dinner last year because of the pandemic and the shutdown that was implemented.  We have discussed if might be possible to have just a drive-through event.  Following a great deal of discussion, we have decided to cancel the dinners again this year.  Our concern is for the safety of all who participate, and it just doesn’t seem possible to keep our workers safe when they have to work in close proximity to one another.  Thank you for your understanding and thank you for your continued support of our parish.

Let’s pray for each other this week.

Peace,

Father Bob