Dear Friends,
This weekend, the prophet Jeremiah tells us, “Blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose hope is the LORD.”
If we place our trust in the things of this passing world or in human beings, we will be let down. Making Jesus first in our lives allows us to have our relationships with others and our use of the things of this world in proper order. Jesus is life itself and He vivifies our love.
That is why, when a woman and man marry, they are not to gaze into one another’s eyes as if they were alone in their union. None of us has sufficient strength or willpower to make it alone. Married couples, with the grace of the Sacrament, together are to gaze into the eyes and the Sacred Heart of Jesus, who vivifies, strengthens, and graces them to meet the challenges and joys of their communion of life and love.
Prayer personally, but especially as a couple and a family, frequent reception of the Sacraments, reading the Bible, personal sacrifices for the other, all put us into contact with God’s saving power and strength, helping us to be all that God has created us to be.
At the end of the Masses this weekend, we will give a special blessing to all married couples as we mark World Marriage Day on Sunday and of course Saint Valentine Day on Monday.
Our Archdiocesan Office for Life and Family has a few events lined up this Spring:
- On Saturday, April 2, a Marriages of Grace Enrichment Day at Cardinal O’Hara High School.
- On Saturday, April 30, a fun-filled and blessed family day at Cardinal O’Hara High School.
- The annual Wedding Anniversary Mass is set for Saturday, May 7, at 5:15 p.m. at the Cathedral, and all newlyweds as well as those celebrating a special year (5,10, 25, or 50) are invited. Registration is required. Check out the Archdiocesan website.
Back locally, our Envisioning Team continues to work as we prepare to share our Strategic Vision with our parish family.
The overall focus is on discipleship, especially on missionary discipleship, of course. It is an exciting opportunity to continue to grow in the Lord. Our Catholic men’s group, Into the Breach, has begun a new series on The Mass by Bishop Barron. These gatherings have continued to strengthen our participants as solid Catholic men of faith at this moment of history.
Our first weekend of pretzels (Saturday evening) and donuts (Sunday morning) went off beautifully. It created a buzz and good camaraderie. Thanks to our Legion and Junior Legion of Mary, who hosted this at the Masses. More are planned.
Our dual collections of baby items and food this past weekend also was a huge success. Over 10,000 pounds of food plus the baby items. Thank you to all who donated items. God bless you all for such generosity and care. A large thank you and God’s blessings on the over 100 youth and about 14 adult volunteers who worked Saturday and Sunday collecting and processing the donations for distribution under the leadership of Matt Kirsch. It is a very large undertaking, and the recipients of your generosity are most grateful!
God bless you, God love you,
Monsignor McCulken
