Welcome: Catholic Mass with coffee & juice, and pastries, some bought, some home-made.
Time: 9:30; Celebrate with the Community & Stack
Place: Sigler Elementary, 1400 Janwood Drive, Plano, TX 75075
The Gang. Lot of having fun here. Suspicious behavior.
Readings:
Wisdom 12, 13, 16-19, You judge with clemency
Psalm 86, Lord, you are good and forgiving.
Romans 8, 26-27, The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness.
Matthew 13, 1-23, Kingdom Parables
Minor elevation time.
Community Activities:
ROMEO MEET: Friday, July , Jason's Deli, Collin Creek Mall, west side of Central, 1:00. Welcome all wakos, you will fit right in. The Old Geezer may be away.
JULIET LUNCHEON, (aka.,just us ladies into eating together), For August, TBA
Readings: Isaiah 40, 1-11; Psalm 104, O Bless the Lord, My Soul; Titus 2, 11-14, 3, 4-7; Luke 3, 1-22.
Baptism & Original Sin: traditional & contemporary theology
Traditional theology on baptism & original sin:
a. Original sin: the 1 sin of Eve & Adam, the eating of an apple, ruptured the relationship between God & Humans.
b. Why we baptized: purification & removal of that original sin inherited by all babies. A new born baby was a sinner & would go to Limbo forever if not baptized before dying.
Contemporary theology on baptism & original sin:
a. Original sin:
1. no original sin
2. Genesis story of the fall is allegory, not fact. No Garden of Eden and no Adam & Eve.
3. from Darwin's Origin of the Species the idea has developed that in our human infancy, we needed certain behaviors to survive. For instance, killing another person & stealing (like food). As our ancestors formed communities, norms of social behavior emerged, for example, the 10 commandments.
4. St. Augustine, ca. 400:
–A major, if not the major influence on Christian/Catholic theology of original sin and human nature from his time to today
–After conversion from a rather lusty life at 32, he had a pessimistic view of human nature, different from early Christianity
–St. John Chrysostom, bishop of Constantinople (Istanbul), Pelagius, a British monk, & Julian of Eclanum, Italy, a bishop, all found nature good and fought against Augustine
–Augustine used all means to vanquish his opponents with their positive view that nature was good, even to sending a gift of horses to the pope to influence his decision. Augustine won.
b. Why we baptize today: (using the contemporary theology)
1. To celebrate a new life
2. To ritually & formally welcome the new person into a family, a community, and to a God famous for love and acceptance.
3. To cleanse after the journey
Sources: Elaine Pagels, Adam, Eve, and the Serpent; John Shelby Spong; Wikipedia
We are Getting Better
I have one more Christmas story to celebrate this baptism today.
There are three people in the story. My good friend, her little daughter, and her niece, who is about 16 or 17. The story took place at Collin Creek Mall one or two days just after Christmas. Guess what they were doing. Bringing things back.
It happened that the niece had offered to take the daughter to the mall to have girl fun while her mother went to the mall to return various items. After they had been there a while, the niece phoned to say that it was getting to be time for her to leave. So could she return the daughter?
They agreed that the easiest way to arrange the swap was for the niece to take the girl in her car, drive over to where my friend's car was, and then transfer the daughter & her car seat. So they met in the parking lot, my friend's car in a parking place, the other car in the aisle behind the first car.
Mother goes into the niece's car, unbuckles her daughter, and places the girl in her car. Then she disconnects the car seat and reconnects it in her own car, securing her daughter in place. Somewhere in this process she set her purse down. Yep, you guessed it.
Who knows where she set it down. Maybe by her niece's car, maybe by her own. But apparently outside.
She gets into her car and drives off. Almost immediately she notices her purse is missing. She calls her niece and asks her to look in her car. No purse.
So they both return to where the car was parked. They drive around, ask people. No sign of the purse. The niece finally departs and mom goes home. She calls her mom, then she calls the mall security. Nothing had been reported or brought in. Security says to call the police. The police do not know what to do. Was it stolen? Or was it forgotten?
She thinks of her credit card, of getting a new license, she thinks of her phone. So, using her mom's phone, she starts calling her phone hoping someone will answer No one answers.
Time passes. A few hours later in the evening, her mom gets a phone call. It is young boy, a high school aged kid. He has the purse. He says he and his dad found it in the parking lot and simply used the phone's incoming calls to call the number identified as "Mom."
The mom who got the purse back was Bobbi Jo Whitley, mother of Dillon, Hunter, and Audry. Bobbi's mom is Jo Whitley, who read this morning. The purse came back. Nothing missing.
Are there not lots of good stories like this? Are we not evolving into a better people? Scott Burns said so in his column in the Dallas MorningNews a couple of weeks ago. A great Jesuit geologist and paleontologist, Teilhard de Chardin, thought so, saying that the human race is slowly becoming more mature, more sensitive, more peaceful. I think so, too. For lots of reasons.
Welcome: Catholic Mass with coffee & juice, and pastries, some bought, some home-made.
Time: 9:30; Celebrate with the Community & Stack & John Cade
Place: Legacy Charter School, 601 Accent Drive, Plano, TX 75075
Please pardon the Blog's absence. We took a break and got away for 10 days.
Readings:
Joshua 5, 9-12, The Lord said to Joshua, "Today I have removed the reproach of Egypt from you."
Psalm 34, Taste and see the goodness of the Lord. (Excellent!)
2 Corinthians 5, 17-21, Whoever is in Christ is a new creation.
Luke 15, 1-32, The Great story of the Prodigal Son.
Community Activities:
ROMEO MEET: Friday, March 29, Jason's Deli, Collin Creek Mall, west side of Central, 1:00. Welcome all wakos, you will fit right in. The Old Ex will attend.
JULIETTE LUNCHEON: April - Hi Everyone,
Can’t believe April is almost here. We will be meeting Friday, April 5th at 12:30 at Red Lobster. It is Lent and most of us won’t be eating meat on Friday. Please let me know who will be joining us. It is always fun and a special day to look forward to. Everyone is welcome.
Red Lobster
3501 Central Expressway (West side of the highway) Spring Creek and Central Expressway
Marilyn
972-491-7068
TRUE?
Cherish yesterday, Dream tomorrow, Live like crazy today.
Unknown
What's up in Ye Old Catholic Church? Like…
6 Years of Pope Francis,
See you Sunday,
J.S., 214-783-0443
JSM Mission-Faith Statement:
Help create a Catholic Community that welcomes all God’s People, provides for and challenges spiritual and total growth.
Reaches out to help people who are disadvantaged and make the world we live in a better place to live.
Malachi 3: Look! I'm sending my messenger on ahead to clear the way for me. Suddenly, out of the blue, the Leader you've been looking for will enter his Temple – yes, the Messenger of the Covenant, the one you've been waiting for.
Hebrews 2: That's why he had to enter into every detail of human life. Then, when he came before God as high priest to get rid of the people's sins, he would have already experienced it all himself – all the pain, all the testing – and would be able to help where help was needed.
Luke 2: Then when the days stipulated by Moses for purification were complete, they took him up to Jerusalem to offer him to God as commanded in God's Law: "Every male who opens the womb shall be a holy offering to God,"
Harrison came to visit today and he brought his Mom
Thanks…
Music, Ben & Shonda
Readers, Pat & Fred
Homily, John Cade
Eucharistic Prayer A & B, John Stack & John Cade
The Magic Zoom makers, Hue & Kevin
Final Blessing, Rosemary
John Cade sharing his homily
Remember these special people:
For John Stack; For Shonda's Grandmother; For Geri Moran's sister, Tina in hospice; For Meredith ; For Tom Quinn; For Frank Esparza; For Lambrini, John Cade's wife, who is dealing with cancer ; For Allen Stryker; For Mike and Judy Carrell ; For Madeleine, Richard Eshelbrenner's granddaughter; For Hue; For Jackie; For Mary Hall's family and friend Cadence still suffering from a serious medical condition; For Sir Charlie; For Ron ; For Teresa Quinn's niece, Maddie who has a brain tumor;
Jackie's 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, the families of Annie and Michael and her neighbor, Marie and the family; for the medical staffs, teachers, and coaches in our public & private schools.
The Kiss of Peace
Birthdays: John Doherty 2/2, Rick Turner 2/2, Gil Delgado 2/4, Geri Moran 2/7, Tom Quinn 2/8
Anniversaries:
Expenses: $ 1,340.00
Outreach: $ 360.00
Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.
Richard helping with Communion
Rosemary's Blessing:
What good did it do when you frowned? Let me ask:
Did it help you at all to accomplish your task?
Did it lighten your burden or help you along?
Did the frown that you wore make a right out of wrong?
What good did it do to be grouchy today?
Did your surliness drive any trouble away?
Did you cover more ground than you usually do?
Because of the grouch that you carried with you?
If not, what’s the use of a grouch or a frown?
If it won’t smooth a path or a grim trouble down?
If it doesn’t assist you, it isn’t worth while:
Your work may be hard, but just do it and smile.
Anonymous
John Stack Ministries meets on Sunday for Mass at 9:30 at The ArtCentre of Plano, 902 E. 16th St, Plano, Texas.
JSM Mission-Faith Statement
Help create a Catholic Community that welcomes all God’s People, provides for & challenges spiritual & total growth. Reaches out to help people who are disadvantaged & make the world we live in a better place to live.
For John Stack; For Shonda's Grandmother; For Meredith ; For Tom Quinn; For Frank Esparza; For Lambrini, John Cade's wife, who is dealing with cancer ; For Allen Stryker; For Mike and Judy Carrell ; For Madeleine, Richard Eshelbrenner's granddaughter; For Hue; For Jackie; For John's sister, Kathey recovering from a fall; For Mary Hall's friend Cadence still suffering from a serious medical condition; For Sir Charlie; For Ron ; For Teresa Quinn's niece, Maddie who has a brain tumor;
Jackie's 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, the families of Annie and Michael and her neighbor, Marie and the family; for the medical staffs, teachers, and coaches in our public & private schools.
The Kiss of Peace
Birthdays: Marilyn Ackerman 8/26, Teresa Quinn 8/29
Anniversaries:
Community Finances:
Expenses: $ 620.00
Outreach: $ 50.00
Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.
Marlene
Rosemary's Blessing:
Dust If You Must
By Rose Milligan
Dust if you must, but wouldn’t it be better
To paint a picture, or write a letter,
Bake a cake, or plant a seed,
Ponder the difference between want and need?
Dust if you must, but there’s not much time,
With rivers to swim, and mountains to climb;
Music to hear, and books to read;
Friends to cherish and life to lead.
Dust if you must, but the world’s out there,
With the sun in your eyes and the wind in your hair,
A flutter of snow, a shower of rain,
This day will not come around again.
Dust if you must, but bear in mind,
Old age will come and it’s not kind,
And when you go(and go you must),
You yourself, will make more dust.
John Stack Ministries meets on Sunday for Mass at 9:30 at The ArtCentre of Plano, 902 E. 16th St, Plano, Texas.
JSM Mission-Faith Statement
Help create a Catholic Community that welcomes all God’s People, provides for & challenges spiritual & total growth. Reaches out to help people who are disadvantaged & make the world we live in a better place to live.
Genesis 15, 5-12, 17-18, To your descendents I give this land.
Psalm 27, The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Philippians 3, 17 -4, 1, Therefore, stand firm in the Lord
Luke 9, 28-36, Jesus took Peter, John, and James and went up the mountain.
Getting ready.
INTRODUCTION
You probably have heard the figure of speech, ‘They cut a deal.’ The origin of the Hebrew word for covenant was the Hebrew word cut. As you listen to our First Reading from the Book of Genesis it will become apparent that God and Abraham have entered into a covenant. A covenant was accompanied by sacrifices that were cut, halved. [They were ultimately fulfilled for us by the Lamb of God.]
Paul, in his letter to the Philippians, encourages this early church to continue to be guided by the words of Christ, the Lamb of God.
Brandon with Leo looking over the edge.
HOMILY with Mike
Instead of Sarah being barren, the Luke gospel begins with the barren Elizabeth and her husband Zachariah. They too are symbols, to teach the gentiles, the audience of the Luke gospel, about Judaism in what we call Luke’s Infancy Narrative. [Recall that later she gave birth to John the Baptist, who prepares the way for the Lamb of God.]
Ray and Ben on music and on the stage this week because of a school play.
The Levite and priest, were the ruling classes of Judaism. In the parable of the Good Samaritan, both pass by the man who has been beaten, robbed and left to die along side the road. Zachariah, who is a priest, symbolizes the priest.
Elizabeth is a descendant of Aaron from the tribe of the Levites, symbolizes the Levite. The story teaches us why Judaism is barren. Remember the Jewish law, ‘you must love your neighbor as yourself.’ Within Judaism, the word neighbor referred only to one’s fellow Jew. The Religious leaders of Judaism could claim that they were still righteous [God-like], for they had not broken their law, when they passed by the gentile who had been left to die.
Cowboy Cole arriving.
The words of Christ are not barren; they pour forth the Holy Spirit, the grace given by God to those who live Christ’s words. The voice from heaven to Peter, James and John in today’s transfiguration event is for them to live Christ’s words.
Mike homilizing.
Immediately following the transfiguration there is a story in Matthew, Mark and Luke of a Father who brings his Son to Jesus to be healed from a sickness that has existed since the boy’s infancy. The sickness began to take root with the father’s lack of faith in Christ’s words when he chose instead to have his son circumcised after his birth. The father and his son are to live the words of Christ that do not abolish but fulfill the Law and Prophets. What is it that we can take away from today’s gospel? As parents or grandparents we are to teach our children and grandchildren to live the words of Christ by the way we live them. Young children can do wonders when they receive a little guidance and encouragement.
Emma arriving.
I shared a fond memory about our youngest child, who will be 40 this summer, with Judy a few weeks ago. Judy had been assigned to take communion to a small nursing home when our youngest son was somewhere around the age of seven or eight. The older children would often find reasons for not joining Paul when we went to the nursing home with Judy late Sunday mornings.
Cowboy Cole safeguarding The Cupcake of the Week for his grandmother, Diane.
At that time there were six Catholics for her to visit and give communion. One was an elderly man who certainly seemed depressed about being there, and he didn’t look forward to us, or anyone else, coming to visit. One day Paul, who loved to go fishing with his older brother and me, noticed a small picture on a bulletin board in his room. I saw him looking at it. The two men, one younger than the other, had poles in hand and had definitely been fishing.
Brent, Soul's Harbor director, accepting from Tom the Community's support.
I gave Paul a little push and he asked the man about the picture. A short time later Paul told him about an aquarium that was in the hallway at the entrance of the nursing home. The next week when Judy came to bring communion, we were surprised to find the man in a wheel chair waiting for us. From then on after receiving communion, Paul would push him down to the aquarium where they would talk about fishing. The word of the Lord.
Jeremiah 33: That's when Judah will be secure and Jerusalem live in safety.
1 Thessalonians 3: And may the Master pour on the love so it fills your lives and splashes over on everyone around you, just as it does from us to you.
Luke 21: And then – then! – they'll see the Son of Man welcomed in grand style – a glorious welcome!
Another Reminder for the 1st Sunday of Advent, December 1, 2024