April 21, 2002 • The Feast of Easter!
The Poor Are Hurt Again
Second
Communion
While it’s quite obvious that we continue with our first communion
celebrations this week, it’s also exciting to recognize that dozens
of children will be receiving “second communion” today. This
week the children who received for the first time last week get to be
part of the “regulars” who receive communion. No longer do
they have to look on as others receive. They now know they can receive
Jesus again and again and again in the lives!
Cool Way to Pray
If you’d like to try out a new interactive prayer site online,
go to the St. Brigid’s home page and click on the “Church
Interactive” link.
Away
at College?
If you know of a St. Brigid parishioner who
is away at college, you can help us stay in touch through our parish’s
weekly “letter from home”. Send in their name and e-mail address
just click here.
Today’s Bible Quote
“If you are patient when you suffer for doing what is good,
this is a grace before God.
For to this you have been called,
because Christ also suffered for you,
leaving you an example that you should follow in his footsteps.”
-1 Peter 2
Technology Ministry
If you’d like to give your time and expertise at helping our parish
connect its telephone systems or work on its website, you can let us
know by filling in our
online form
Want
to e-mail Father Ralph?
Past Columns:
April 14: Celebrating
50 Days
April 7: Where have
they put him?
March 31: Alleluia!
Alleluia!
March 24: Hardly
Hosanna
March 17: Roll The
Stone Back
March 10: Here's
Mud In Your Eye
March 3: Our Local
Drought
Feb 24: Welcoming
Bishop Murphy
Feb 17: We Will Rise
Again
Feb 10: Very
Good Now
Feb 3: The Multi
Cultural Church
Jan 27: Appealing
Words
Jan 20:Our
Wonderful School
Jan 13: Changing
Times
Jan 6: Farewell Father
Augustine
A recent news story from Boston indicated that parishioners in that diocese were expressing their hurt and anger at the Cardinal’s handling of the priest abuse situation by withdrawing their support for the annual fundraising appeal there. This was having a direct effect, the article went on to say, on Catholic Charities and other programs which help the poor.
This shows the effect that sin can have. The sins of the priests involved in abuse, and the sins of the “institution” in not dealing with the situation in a forthright manner, are having wide ranging effects that now seem to be hurting the poor in the Boston area. Of course the wide ranging effect of abuse on the children and young people and their families is only starting to be recognized.
Our own diocese is also reeling from the almost daily revelations of the hidden abuses of the last few decades. When all these stories come out at once, it feels like an overwhelming and relentless betrayal of people’s trust in their leaders. Yet I believe that the majority of those who have given their lives in the service of the church do not abuse young people. They attempt to serve others with the gifts God has given them.
The people who work for Catholic Charities and other agencies that work with the sick, the poor, the immigrants, the elderly, the young, etc. are still going to be going to work tomorrow to do the work of Jesus on behalf of you and me. And I’m grateful that in our diocese, and particularly in our parish, that people aren’t ending up “punishing the poor” for the crimes of the priests. In fact, I want to encourage people who have not yet made a pledge to this year’s Bishop’s Appeal to consider that it’s not the bishop who benefits from the appeal, but other people in need. Our parish too benefits from contributions to the appeal since, when we reach our goal, we receive a substantial rebate that we use to pay our bills. (I’m told we depend on this because our income in the weekly collection is not sufficient to cover all our expenses. The Annual Appeal serves something as fund raiser for us, as well as a support for the diocesan agencies that serve the wider church.)
So I wanted to take this moment in the midst of these sad and disturbing times to say thank you for your faith and support. The many times people have reached out to me and the other priests of our parish have mean a lot to us.
