A Letter from Fr. Paul - Sunday, February 7, 2021

Thank you to all who supported our Salvatorian Sunday collection. As of February 1st, $3,957 was collected. I appreciate your support of my community.

Reflections in the Little Black Books for adults and Little Purple Books for children begin with this coming Sunday, the Sunday before Lent. We are beginning to distribute them after Masses this weekend. There will also be prayer cards from the diocese. You can also pick up copies in the back of church and in the parish office. After Ash Wednesday, I will have them outside the main door of the church in a box on a table, as I did for Advent, so you can drive by and get a copy. Please take advantage of these wonderful resources to enter more fully into the season of preparation to celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord. And don’t forget about our Lenten Reflection at 7:00 pm on Tuesday, February 23rd, in the church!

In our Gospel today, Jesus cures Simon’s mother-in-law of an unnamed illness. There are two points I would like to make about this reading.

First, notice the three verbs that are used to describe what Jesus does: he approached her. Jesus always approaches us. He is always there, waiting for us to turn to Him. Grasped her hand: notice how often Jesus uses touch in His cures. But He needs to be close to us in order to touch us. Finally, helped her up. The verb used here is the same verb that is used for Jesus’ resurrection. The implication is that He did more than help her out of bed; He saved her. The point for us is to make sure we are spending time with the Lord, allowing the Lord to approach us and touch us. We need to do that every day.

Second, notice the mother-in-law’s response: she waited on them. The literal meaning of the word used for “waited” is “to give service,” the word from which we get “deacon.” The point for us is that our response to this generous love of the Lord toward us is to go forth in service to others, generously sharing that love as it has been shared with us.

That is one way to describe a Christian: one who allows the Lord to approach, touch, and save and then goes forth in service to others. I invite us to reflect this week on how we are doing with those two aspects of being a Christian, that is, spending quiet time with the Lord and being of service to others. Where do I need to grow the most? What practical steps can I take to make sure that growth happens?

As we strive to grow as disciples, let us support each other in prayer.