A Letter from Fr. Paul - Sunday, September 19th

Fr. Keith Brennan, SDS, who was pastor at St. Pius X from 1994 to 2000, died September 9th.  Please keep him, his family, and his Salvatorian family in your prayers.
 
Our Welcome Back Mass and Reception was a great success.  I found it invigorating to be back together with community members.  Thank you to the Community Life Committee and all who pitched in to make this event happen.  God bless.
 
My retreat went very well: quiet and reflective and the weather was great!  Thank you to all who accompanied me in prayer.
 
In our Gospel this weekend, Jesus asks his disciples what they were discussing among themselves as they walked toward Jerusalem.  Perhaps he puts the same question to us, in effect, by asking us, “What were you thinking about or preoccupied about today?” 
 
Our scriptures are very clear about what is important: serving other people.  The disciples give us an example of the opposite when they argued over who would be the most important, the most powerful in the Kingdom.  St. James reinforces it in our second reading, saying Where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every foul practice.  Jesus puts it this way: If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.
 
Jesus modeled this for us.  He was always able to be concerned about the welfare of others.  Not only was his heart moved to pity, but he did something to help those in need.  The story of the Last Judgment makes it clear what is important: …for I was hungry and you gave me to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me to drink…
 
This is hard.  It goes against worldly wisdom and our natural inclinations.  But it is what being a Christian is all about.  It is so clear and so simple to understand, but we can be like the disciples and resist “getting it” or putting it into action.
 
We will never be perfect but we must be growing in our ability to serve others.  A good question to ponder this week is what Jesus asked his disciples: “What were you thinking about or preoccupied about today?”  God bless.
 
Church sign of the week:  There is an exception to every rule, and most people think that they are it.