6th Sunday of Easter, May 17, 2020

Readings:

Samuel 3, 3-10, 19,   The call of Samuel by Yahweh.

Psalm402,  Here I am, Lord, I come to do your will.

1 Corinthians 6, 13-15, 17-20,  Your bodies are members of Christ.

John 1, 35-42,  What are you looking for?    

Thanks, John, for celebrating this week while Rosemary & I had a wedding for her youngest sister's son, Sean, in Mount, Laurel, NJ, just east of Philadelphia.

The reading from First Samuel tells a story of Samuel’s call by God and how difficult it was to hear it. The Gospel reading tells a story of the call of Peter and Nathaniel by Jesus. These stories are both dramatic in their details and their telling.

But even kids seem to hear a call on some level—they seem to identify with things bigger than themselves. I remember my grandson Leo, at about age 3, saying: “I want to be a scientist”, or “I want to go to ‘space university’”. At that same age, we heard how strongly he identified with something bigger than himself. Joey would tell Leo that he was going to go to Texas U.(her college), and Daniel would say that he was going to Oklahoma State (his college).

Sir Charlie, I don't trust you so close.

Leo’s speech was still rudimentary then and when we said, “Leo, when you grow up, you’re going to Texas U.”, Leo would say with great determination, “No, I’m going to ‘okeenokee steak’. Without even knowing what it meant, Leo, so young, had listened, heard a call, and strongly identified with a parent’s alma mater. He became a follower.

In the olden days, today’s readings about a call from God would be used to talk up vocations to the priesthood and the religious life. Though the church still suffers from a clerical culture and a vertical patriarchy, we know all are called to priesthood, to minister—to serve and care for one another. So some calls are special, some are dramatic, like Samuel’s and like Peter’s and Nathaniel’s.

Hi, Beth, Hi, Emma.  So nice to see you.

I echo Stack in that the call to serve, to care, to follow—is most often a small voice, usually inaudible. We have to be listening for it. Problem: having a ‘habit of ‘listening’ is not automatic. We’re not born with it. But we can all learn to ‘listen’ and, by practicing listening, we all can develop it into a habit.

So, when we ‘listen’ daily to what we read or to what others say, or become attentive to random daily situations, we are developing the habit of listening. Our practice at the beginning of Mass to pause and ‘listen’ can be the beginning of developing the habit of listening.

Hi Tori, Hi, Zoe, So nice to see you girls, too.

There was the story on TV this week of a man who saved a stranger’s life by pushing her away from an oncoming car which then hit and killed him. This man and this woman had both stopped to help out another driver whose car was stalled. Like Samuel’s and John’s stories, this is a dramatic and amazing example of someone hearing a call, it’s a hero story—difficult, if not impossible, to identify with.

What the newscast doesn’t tell us is the back story, how this man and this woman likely lived their lives—my guess is they had a habit of listening for the many small daily calls to care about others in small ways, in ways we all can. This is within the reach of all of us: to develop a habit of listening for those small everyday calls to serve and to care for others.

 The Girls, Cheryl & Marilyn

 The question: Can you hear those small daily calls? And have you developed the habit of listening?

Isaiah 50:The Lord GOD is my help, therefore I am not disgraced;

Philippians 2: Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave,
coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance,  he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Another Reminder for Palm Sunday, April 13, 2025

Nehemiah 8:  Then Ezra praised God, the great God, and all the people responded, "Oh Yes! Yes!" with hands raised high. And then they fell to their knees in worship of God, their faces to the ground.

1 Corinthians 12:  You are Christ's body – that's who you are! You must never forget this. Only as you accept your part of that body does your "part" mean anything.

John 2:  God's Spirit is on me; he's chosen me to preach the Message of good news to the poor, Sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, To set the burdened and battered free,  to announce, "This is God's year to act!"

Hue reading from Paul's letter to the Corinthians     

Music,   Ben & Shonda

John's birthday cake

Expenses: $   340.00

Outreach: $    80.00

Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.

Randolf gets a cookie for his birthday

Rosemary's Blessing:

Oh God of humor enable us to laugh at your mischievous plans. 

Life can become serious during these cold winter months, and our hearts can become heavy and burdened with responsibilities, decisions and trying to keep everyone happy. 

Let us look for the funny things that happen, the unexpected surprise that catches us off-guard, along with the incongruences that we encounter. 

Smile, snicker, giggle, give a belly laugh, and spontaneously guffaw. 

You will be amazed at how God works through laughter.

Sr. Mary Elizabeth Schweiger

Special thanks, Hue and Ken, for the heads up on a mistake in the last edition of the blog.

The Correction: Mass this Sunday will be at 9:30, the usual Sunday schedule (not 4:00 P.M.)

Community Finances:   

  Expenses: $  925.00

  Outreach: $   170.00

Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.

Acts of the Apostles 2:  They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying favor with all the people.

1 Peter 1:  Although you have not seen him you love him; even though you do not see him now yet believe in him,…

John 20:  Have  you come to believe because you have seen me?  Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.

John  reading from the Acts  of the Apostles

Thanks…     

Music,    Ben

Readers,  Connie and John

Gospel,   John Cade

Homily,   John Stack

Eucharistic Prayer A & B,  John Stack & John Cade

The Magic Zoom makers,   Hue & Kevin

Final Blessing, Rosemary

Connie reading from the First Letter of Peter

Readings:  Download 04-16-23 Readings – 2nd Easter

Homily: 

Shonda and Ben, the music makers

Remember these special people:

For Cindy Cramer's family;  For the family of Ron Senter;  For Frank Esparza;  For Jan;  For Tom  Quinn who had back surgery on November 21st;  For Sandra who has been diagnosed with Large B Cell Lymphoma;   For Lambrini, John Cade's wife, who is dealing with cancer ;  For Madeleine, Richard Eshelbrenner's granddaughter;  For Hue; For Jackie;  For John's sister, Kathey recovering from a fall;   For Tom Good;  For a young man, 19 struggling with a brain tumor and cancer;     For Mary Hall's friend Cadence still suffering from a serious medical condition;   For Sir Charlie & Jan; 

Connie helping with communion

Jackie's mom, sister, & friend, Lynn;  For Rick Turner searching for a kidney donor, Type O neg.;   For Jean & Cliff Wright;  For Dee, and for her daughters, Lisa & Lauren;  For a young man who is suffering from depression;  John Cade's daughter, Joey, with cancer; from Barbara, a little baby boy named Ford recuperating from an operation & friends, Annie, a mom of 3 kids and Michael ;    for the medical staffs, teachers, and coaches in our public & private schools.

John and Connie get a cookie  for their anniversary

Birthdays:  

Anniversaries:  Connie & John Doherty 4/21

Community Finances:   

Expenses: $  450.00

Outreach: $  125.00

Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.