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 Best Music, Shonda, Bethany, & Ray
Readings:
Acts of the Apostles 2, 14, 36-41 Let the whole house of Israel know.
Psalm 23, The Lord is my shepherd. (Beautiful, consoling)
1 Peter 2, 20-25, By his wounds have you been healed.
John 10, 1-10, Whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd.
Leo, the Ace Candle Lighter, at work.
Community Activities:
ROMEO MEET: Friday, May 5, Jason's Deli, Collin Creek Mall, west side of Central, 1:00. Welcome all wakos, you will fit right in.
JULIET LUNCHEON, (aka.,just us ladies into eating together), For May took place Wed. May 3 @12:30 pm, Chef's Gallery Restaurant at The Institute of Art of Dallas, 8080 Park Lane, (east side of Central Expy). Done!
Communion, "Let the little kids come to me."
What is going on in Our Catholic World
Nothing this week.
Thanks for all the help you give us, Buddy.
True?
Those who believe that they can be certain of their salvation because they have indulgence letters will be eternally damned, together with their teachers.
Martin Luther, #32 of his 95 Theses posted on the bulletin board of the church in Wittenburg, 1517 (5th Centennial year)
Peace, Everybody.
See you Sunday.
J.S., 214-783-0443
Peace! Even from Sir Charlie? Maybe.
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.
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.
Malachi 3, 19-20, There will arise the sun of justice with its healing rays.
Psalm 98, The Lord comes to rule the earth with justice.
2 Thessalonians 3, 7-12, See what love the father has bestowed on us.
Luke, 21, 5-19, When you hear of wars and insurrections, do not be terrified.
Some Sundays the selection of readings are beautiful and touching. Some Sundays they are not. Such are our readings today as we come to the end of the church readings for this year.
Who is this little girl in John's arms welcoming everybody?
Observations on Malachi:
What: The very last book of the O.T. A little book, only 4 short chapters.
When: After the return of the Israelites from the Babylonian Captivity, therefore, the 5th century before Christ, i.e., ca 499 and before.
Message: because of laxity and corruption Malachi is warning the people that they will get punished again. Such is our reading today.
Getting ready: you put your left arm in, Buddy, you put your right arm down, and you shake it all around.
Thanksgiving I
With the approach of Thanksgiving, my favorite feast of all, I would like to talk about what I am grateful for on two occasions, this Sunday and next Sunday.
I want to talk today about what I am grateful for because it has been a rough, almost depressing week for me. Tuesday night, of course, was where it began. As the evening progressed I began to tell which way the wind was blowing.
Got it, show time.
As you know, by 9:00 I was ready to go to bed, but I was also tempted to stay up. Temptation. So as not to get wound up, I told Rosemary I was going to be as normal and would check in the morning. I went to bed consciously focusing on my blessings, and in the morning, despite the news, I continued. This focus really helped me to maintain perspective and hope for the future.
Want to know what the blessings were? Here are the big four.
Our Candle Man of The week, Buddy.
First, I was grateful for the relationship Rosemary & I have. Rosemary does not come to bed with me at 9:00, but she and Aviana are all snuggled in when I get up at 4:00. The gift of their presence on a cold morning is almost enough to make me change my mind about getting up.
The second blessing takes place when I get up. After doing some pushups and crunches at home, I head to the Jewish Community Center where I join 10 – 20 others doing spin class and then I work out in the gym for 15 minutes. In the winter I take a shower. I love the exercise and I love the congeniality. I know a bunch of people by name and even know a bunch of birthdays in my spin class. Guess what I do on their birthdays.
Congratulations to Cody and our dear Shonda (marriage).
Connected with the exercise at the J, I love the gift of White Rock Lake and my ability to be able to ride around it. Thursday or Friday The Lake was flat as glass, just beautiful.
Third blessing, you people, our community. Every Sunday I head home with Rosemary and sometimes Aviana on a high. The high continues through the afternoon when I am sorting through all the pictures for about 30 that I plug into the blog.
Hey, Leo, I am jealous of your glasses.
Fourth blessing. Thursday morning I was privileged to visit a guy’s mother who was just on the edge of moving to the other side. She was in one of the retirement homes on Plano Parkway. I went in. She was lying on her back in bed. Her eyes were open but she was oblivious. Occasionally she had like muscle spasms where she would kind of ball up.
I blessed her and then leaned down and caressed her cheek. I put my left hand under her hair and talked quietly to her. I heard the word mama once, so I started telling her her mama was coming for her.
The Best, Shonda & Ray
This went on for, say, 10-15 minutes. I had worn my white alb to give her peace. Then it happened. She focused and looked right into my eye. We looked consciously at each other maybe a foot apart. I continued to reassure her. Then she was gone again.
These are the daily blessings I focused on to maintain my normal inner peace.
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.
Rosemary's Blessing:
Life is short …
Break the rules,
Forgive quickly,
Kiss slowly,
Love truly,
Laugh uncontrollably,
And never regret anything that made you smile.
Mark Twain
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.
We give thanks for friends and remember the friendless,
We give thanks for freedom and remember the enslaved.
May our giving thanks stir us to service, that our blessings may be shared with others. Amen.”
A Thanksgiving prayer from a Dear Abbey column
Mary reading from Daniel.
Thanks to these special people
For the Readings: Mary & Bernadette
For The Team: Buddy & Georgie
For the Communion Bread: Alison & John
For the Special Communion Cups: Jan & Charlie
For the Pictures: Rick & Mike & Connie
For the coffee and extras: Jackie & Becky & Tom
For the altar & sound: Jackie & Hue
For the Music: Ben
For Becky & her generous hospitality at Legacy
For all who helped with communion
Bernadette reads from 2 Corinthians.
Birthdays: Diane McMahon (Sunday, 81), Frank Esparza (Monday), Ron Ackerman (Thursday)
Rosemary reading her Blessing of The The Week.
Remember these special people
For Meredith, cancer free; For David Dinsmore's cousin in W. VA & for Darbyanne; For Jerry Brophy, a high school classmate of mine For Tom Quinn’s brother,Tim; For Hue; For John O'Donnell & Mary Ellen; For Carol's recuperation; For Joe Mazzei's sister, Nina with cancer; For Dee and her daughter, Lisa; For John Schanot's continued recuperation; For a young man who is suffering from depression; For Cliff & Jean, plus Jean's brother Terry; For Rosemary's niece, Beth and her partner, Sarah with cancer; For Laura's sister Claudia; For Dawn; For Anthony & Sabrina;
Our Dearest Emma, you are a natural. You do everything so well.
For John & Jean's son John Louis; For our good friend Kay (at 90 years!) in Ontario; For Jackie's friend, Barbara, plus Angela & her mom; or Sr. Patricia Otillio, a nun I worked with for years in Grand Coteau; John Cade's mother in law, Kalliopi Piskiouli; for Frank’s brother with advanced Parkinsons; For Steve Barrett, Rose, & Katie; Dick Thompson's daughter, Teri Jill, and Judy's aging parents; Barb & Warren's grandbabies, Leighton Elizabeth and Warren Phillip and Ethan Michel, & their friend Chris, plus Barb's Annie & Kaitlen;
Happy 81st birthday today, Dearest Diane. You are still one of my classiest dancers.
Tom and Teresa Quinn's niece, Chawna, with cancer, their granddaughter, Mikayla; plus Neva Flynn, Angel, and Diane Kreeitzer; Connie Doherty's mom and her sister, plus Kevin's cousin, Peter; For a number of David McKeon's family who are having a rough time with health issues; for our friends, sons, and daughters in the military, including Ryan McClurg and Chebino; cure for autism from Laura Chollick; for our President.
And Happy Birthday to you Dear Frank.
Your Finances, November 18, 2018
Expenses: $5235.00
Outreach: $315.00
Thanks for your Generosity, Everybody
We donated $2,000.00 to Soul's Harbor today.
Jim, you got that cupcake because everyone felt sorry for you, being a student in my classes back at Jesuit in the 60's.
Have a Great Week, J.S.
(214-783-0443)
Welcome, Brent, to our monthly contribution to souls Harbor, the great work you do. Wish it could be more.
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.
Isaiah 66:They shall bring all your brothers and sisters from all the nations as an offering to the Lord …
Hebrews 12: So strengthen your drooping hands and your weak knees. Make straight paths for your feet, that what is lame may not be disjointed but healed.
Luke 13: For behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be last.
John asking us to recall our blessings of the past week
For Jan; For Sandra who has been diagnosed with Large B Cell Lymphoma; For Lambrini, John Cade's wife, who is dealing with cancer and Kaliope, John Cade's Mother-in-law; 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;
Linda
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.
Connie and John
Birthdays: Marilyn Ackerman 8/26
Anniversaries:
Community Finances:
Expenses: $ 2,370.00
Outreach: $ 125.00
Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.
The Kiss of Peace, Ben, Cody, Richard and Aggie
Rosemary's Blessing:
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.