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The Parish Mission was a great success. Many people have told me that the talks of Fr. Allender were truly moving and have had an impact upon their lives. I want to thank, in a special way, Sister Columba who arranged for Father to come and who coodinated the week. All of us are also grateful to the Teen Club for providing child care. One night forty children were watched over. We will make plans for another Parish Mission in the year 2000. The pews of the Church are being refinished. Ten pews or so will be done each week so we will be finished by Easter. A parishioner who wishes to remain anonymous made a donation of $10,000 to make this possible.Please say a prayer asking God to bless this person. The additional cost of $15,000 will be taken from the capital expense budget. Thanks to all of you for your weekly generosity. I hope that more families will join in making a contribution to the Annual Appeal of the Archbishop. My hope is that 500 families will help us reach our assessment of $69,000. Please remember that you do not have to make your complete donation at this time. You can plan to give a certain amount each month. This second week of Lent our theme again centers on the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Try to put this week’s gift into practice at home and at work. This week’s gift of the Holy Spirit: RIGHT JUDGMENT Decisions! From the time we decide to get up and out of bed, we make choices. Modern technology facilitates quick decisions. A computer can process thousands of bits of information in a second. God doesn’t always act so quickly. God worked on the Grand Canyon for years and years. God waited countless generations before sending Jesus. And one thing God is really slow at is anger! Time after time the Bible describes our God as a God who is slow to anger. Right Judgment helps us avoid rash judgments. The Spirit of Right Judgment is the gift to make good choices—to make God’s choices. Many times our decisions seem to be based on merely one thing: money. We choose the career where we will make the most money. We buy the bottle of milk that will save us the most money. Money seems to determine how much time we spend with our families. The Gift of Right Judgment helps us seek God’s counsel, God’s advice. Right judgments are made in the light of God’s great Final Judgment. Idea: This week I will pray about my biggest life decisions: family, vocation, career. Prayer: God of Right Judgment, you are slow to anger and quick to forgive. May your Holy Spirit of Right Judgment free us from all resentment and prejudice. Sincerely, |
