Special Announcement

Isaiah 40:   A voice cries out: In the desert prepare the way of the Lord!

Titus 2:   … we might be justified by his grace and become heirs in hope of  eternal life.

Luke 3:  I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming.

 

Thanks……

Music,    Ben & Shonda

Readers,   Denni &Tom

Gospel,     John Cade

Homily,  John Cade

Eucharistic Prayer A & B,  John Cade

The Magic Zoom makers,      Hue, Richard & Mike 

Final Blessing, Rosemary

 

Flowers from Giverny

The Board has decided that we will have Mass on Zoom through the end of January.

 

 

Readings:  Download 01-09-22 – Readings – Baptism of the Lord

Homily:  Download 01-09-22 – Homily – Baptism of the Lord

 

 

               The gardens and lake at Giverny                             

 

 

Remember these special people:

For John Stack having a hard time right now with a bad back;  For Laura Chollick;  For Sandra who has been diagnosed with Large B Cell Lymphoma;   For Richard's grand daughter, Madeleine;   For Esparza's new great grandson  & Frank;  For all the medical personnel struggling to treat the tsunami of sick people, in particular, locally, Cindy's staff at Presby, Dallas, and at Frisco Presby, the mother of Harper and Betsy, Kendle, working in labor & delivery, and for Hue & Linda's daughter, Doctor Rosemary Beavers;   For Mary & Dave Hall's g-daughter Allison Keller working at St. Lukes, The Woodlands and for a friend Cadence still suffering from a serious medical condition;   For Sir Charlie & Jan;  Shonda's mom & Cody &  Leo & all of Shonda's dear family; For Ursuline Sr. Mary Troy,

                                                              

Monet's house

 

Jackie's mom, sister, & friend, Lynn;  For Rick Turner searching for a kidney donor, Type O neg.; For Meredith, cancer free & John Schanot;    For John O'Donnell & Jean;   For Jean & Cliff Wright;  For Dee, and for her daughters, Lisa & Lauren;  For Anthony & Sabrina;    For a young man who is suffering from depression;  John Cade's mother in law, Kalliopi Piskiouli and Lambrini, plus John's daughter, Joey, with cancer; from Barbara, a little baby boy named Ford recuperating from an operation & friends, Anne and a mom of 3 kids ; for David McKeon's brother, Hugh; For Beth's friends & brother;   for the medical staffs, teachers, and coaches in our public & private schools.

                        

The Louvre

 

Birthdays:   Cheryl O'Hagen 1/9, Jan Keszler 1/14

Anniversaries:   Jackie & Rick 1/13

     

Community Finances:   

Expenses: $ 

Outreach: $ 

Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.

                                     

The Louvre

 

Rosemary's Blessing:  

Loving God,

As I journey into the unknown territory of a new year…

As I hurt in the process of loving those I dislike or find difficult…

As I learn to accept my strengths, weaknesses and mistakes…

As I keep searching for the truth in times of confusion, doubt and conflict…

As I try to be a voice for the voiceless and powerless…

As I strive to live and witness your inclusive love, compassion, forgiveness, justice and peace…

As I do the work of the Christmas message and make Christ visible to others…

Walk closely with me, my God.

 

Taken from A New Year’s Prayer by Sister Jean Amore CSJ,  Sacred Heart Academy, Hempstead, NY

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

Philippians 2:  Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend,  . . .

Matthew 26:  The Passion of the Lord Jesus Christ 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There will be a Celebration of Life for Ron Senter on April 1st at 2:00 PM at Restland.

 

 

There will be a memorial service for Cindy Cramer on April 15th at 10:00 at Restland.

 

 

 

 

John Stack Ministries now meets at:  The ArtCentre of Plano, 902 E. 16th St, Plano

 

 

 

 

 

Sez Betsy, "Hi, Everybody.  Welcome in!"

 

Readings

Genesis 12, 1-4, I will make of you a great nation.

Psalm 33, Lord, let your mercy be upon us, as we put our trust in you.

2 Timothy 1-10, Bear your hardship.

Matthew 17, 1-9, The transfiguration.

 

 

Fist bumps for a healthy welcome.

 

Homily by John Cade                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             The Gospel of Matthew and the Jewish Synagogue—Talk Two

Last week we talked about how, as Jewish, the disciples and followers of Jesus continued as members and participants in the life of the synagogue and the Sabbath liturgy. Also, how these followers of Jesus remembered him in the synagogue, and preserved the stories of his life, teachings and deeds. An example of the general pattern of worship on the Sabbath is in Acts 13.

 

 

What a team!

 

It says, “On the Sabbath Paul went to the synagogue. After the reading of the Scriptures—God’s Law and the Prophets—the head of the meeting asked Paul, Friend, do you have anything you want to say? Paul stood up and said, Fellow Israelites and friends of God, listen.” Then he told how God led their ancestors out of Egypt and gave them their own land. He traced their history through King David, and how, from David’s descendants, God sent a Savior for Israel. And that this was the gospel, the good news, they were bringing: that what God promised their fathers has come true for their children—for them.

 

Our Super, All Girls, Sisters Candle Lighting Team.

 

This passage in Acts provides the basic pattern of synagogue worship on the Sabbath: mainly lots of long scripture readings.

First, a reading from the Law of Moses (the Torah, first 5 books of Jewish Scripture) in 1-yr cycle. Then readings from the Prophets, in three parts:  The “former prophets” (stories of Israel before and after the death of Moses, their greatest prophet—7 books of Joshua thru II Kings) in 1-yr cycle. Then more reading from what they called the “latter prophets” (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel—what we call the major prophets) in 1-yr cycle.  Then more reading from the ‘Book of the Twelve’—the last 12 books of Hebrew Scripture, that we call the minor prophets (Hosea to Malachi) in 4-yr cycle. [We use abbreviated 3-yr cycle]

 

 

Buddy, our special reader of the Candle Blessing

 

The psalms were read or chanted between the readings, sometimes for specific feasts of the liturgical year, but also to break things up with so many long readings, (and maybe to wake people up).

I counted, and the weekly Sabbath readings averaged over 16 pages every week, using this type print. After all the readings, the leader of the synagogue would preach on those scriptures or he might ask a visiting preacher to do so, as in the example of Paul. This is how the story of Jesus was passed on and preserved in the synagogue, for 55 years after Jesus’ death.

 

 

John reading his homily explaining the milieu of Matthew's Gospel.

 

So the written gospels are deeply Jewish books, capable of being understood only by those who lived and shared the Jewish mindset. If Jesus’ followers ever moved out of the Jewish world in which they was born, and if their gospels ever came to be read entirely or primarily by those who didn’t understand the Jewish authors’ meaning, they would be misread or misunderstood.  That is exactly what seems to have happened.  Step out of the Jewish world into the Greek and Roman world around the Mediterranean; the gospels would most likely be assumed by non-Jewish readers to be a literal account of what Jesus said and did.

 

Presenting the Gifts, Hue, Patricia, and Linda.

 

 A growing number of Jesus’ followers were beginning to be from urban centers around the Mediterranean—like Corinth, Thessalonica, Galatia, Rome—where they interacted with non-Jewish people and culture.  As the Jewish followers of Jesus became more cosmopolitan, they began to attract the non-Jewish Gentiles, and early Christianity became more and more a Gentile movement.  Near the end of the 1^st century CE, in the year 88CE, a split occurred between the synagogue and the followers of Jesus.  Orthodox Jews came to think of Jesus’ followers as “revisionists” and excommunicated them from the synagogue. So, by the middle of the second century (about 150 CE), there were practically no Jews left in the Christian movement.  Missing that Jewish context, Gentile Christians began to literalize the words and miracle stories, a practice the original Jewish gospel writers could never have imagined. For 55 years the Jewish people had been relating Jesus to the Hebrew Scriptures and incorporating his memory into Jewish liturgical practices. 

 

 

Minor Elevation time.

 

The followers of Jesus, including the authors of the gospels, had been speaking, then writing down, Jewish interpretations of the ‘Jesus experience’, not biographical accounts or historical stories.  As Gentiles throughout the Roman Empire gradually became a Christian majority, Christian literalism or fundamentalism was born.  This way of reading the gospels is the result of misunderstanding their Jewish context and meaning.  E.g., we read Jesus being referred to as “the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”  First-century Jews would have known this was a reference straight out of the Yom Kippur liturgy, not a literal reality.  They would never have imagined that these very familiar Jewish liturgical words could ever be so distorted. 

Next Sunday we dive into Spong’s basic thesis: the Gospels, Matthew in particular, were written explicitly for the Sabbath liturgy, and followed the synagogue’s annual liturgical calendar.

Amen.

 

 

Who dat peeking in the door?

Genesis 9:  “I set my bow in the clouds to serve as a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. . . . "

1 Peter 3:  Put to death in the flesh, he was brought to life in the Spirit.

Mark 1: "This is the time of fulfillment.  The kingdom of God is at hand.  Repent and believe in the gospel."

 

 

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.

 

 

Music,    Ben & Shonda

Readers,  Geri & Mike

Gospel,   John Cade

Homily,  John Stack

Eucharistic Prayer A & B,  John Stack & John Cade

The Magic Zoom makers,      Hue & Richard & Kevin

Final Blessing, Rosemary

 

         

This is our last Sunday at Legacy Preparatory Charter Academy.

Starting Sunday, August 4th, we will be meeting at:

Art Centre of Plano

902 E. 16th St, Plano

             

 Please use the Haggard Park side entrance.

                 

                

Readings:  Download 08-28-22- Readings – 22nd Sunday Ord

Homily:  

 

   

 

 

Remember these special people:

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; 

                           

 

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.

 

   

Birthdays:   Teresa Quinn 8/29

Anniversaries:   

      

Community Finances:   

Expenses: $   400.00

Outreach: $   

Thanks again, Folks, for doing what you can.

                 

 

 

 

Rosemary's Blessing:  

Always pray to have eyes that see the best in people,

A heart that forgives the worst,

A mind that forgets the bad,

And a soul that never loses faith in God.

Unknown

 

 

Readings:

Numbers 67, 22-27,  The Lord bless you and keep you.

 Psalm 67,  May God bless us in his mercy

 Galatians 4, 4-7,  God sent the spirit of his son into our hearts.

Luke 2, 16-21,   The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God.

 

 

Genevieve, are you the little girl in the red dress who stole the whole show at our Christmas Eve celebration??

 

First reading: God blesses people in countless ways.  Today’s reading from the Book of Numbers is a priestly blessing given first to Moses by words that come to him from the Lord.

Second reading, Galatians 4:4-7: God sent his Son to redeem us so that we can become God’s adopted sons.

 

 

 

Brandon says, "Welcome in, Everybody.  Yep, she is the girl in the red dress."

 

Gospel reading, Matthew 25: 31-46:

John gave me permission to switch gospel readings. What you are missing is a small part of a metaphorical story about Mary, an angel, shepherds and the baby Jesus.

You might recall 15 or 20 years ago that the Liturgy of the Word, for each of the A, B, and C cycles on New Year’s Day, had as its gospel Matthew’s parable of The Last Judgment.  I imagine that its purpose was to encourage parishioners to incorporate some of its teaching into their New Year’s resolutions.

 

 

Alison, you know that the kids all love your home made communion bread and want more than one.

 

But I want you for a moment to think about where we live.  When we go shopping, to work, or to a movie or local restaurant, to Whole Foods or Target, it isn’t really clear to us if there is, for example, an orphan or a widow in our midst who needs our help.  

Simply put, we choose to support with taxes and contributions, governmental agencies and nonprofits, to provide food and drink to the hungry and thirsty and stranger twenty miles south of us. The fact is, whether we realize it or not, we distance ourselves from the needy.

 

 

Clear the way, Folks, here come Mike the Coffee Man.  

 

The meaning to today’s parable is this: When we distance ourselves from the needy, we distance ourselves from God.

I placed myself in the following scenario: I was in one of the poorer parts of South Dallas, around seven in the evening, in front of a drug store where I had gone to pick up some cough medicine.

 

 

Aiden with his grandparents, John & Jean O'Donnell.

 

When I got out of the car and pushed the button to lock all of its doors, I immediately noticed, about two yards from the entrance of the store a stranger, at least to me. He was homeless, for he was wearing too many clothes, unshaven, had dark hair and complexion, and he was finishing the last drink of water that he would get from a small plastic bottle.

 

 

Learning:  Big brother teaching little sister how to work a water fountain.

 

He was looking right at me, and I at him. As I approached him he addressed me in a language I did not know or understand.  Searching his face I sought his eyes and noticed a bit of a smile as he ran his fingers through his hair.  He reached to open the door for me.  What should I do? 

 

Mike ready to share his ideas in his homily.

 

In a split second I heard the question from the unrighteous in today’s parable, ‘When was it that we saw you a stranger and did not welcome you?’

 

 

Offertory, Cheryl, Carrie, & Paul.

 

Would I have responded with a joyful smile?  Would I have embraced him with his perfume of sweat?  Would I have kissed him on his forehead, taking hold of his arm to have him enter with me?  Would I have asked the people in the store if anyone knew his language so that I could find out why he was there and what he needed?  Would I have invited him to my home, offered him the opportunity to take a shower, laid out something for him to wear as I washed his clothes and prepared something for him to eat?   

 

 

Brandon, our Candle Lighter of The Week.

 

Jesus, an itinerant preacher, had a dark complexion and nowhere to rest his head.  Was he present to me here and now? The Lord in our parable was hungry, thirsty, a stranger longing for a visit.   Yes, every encounter we have with another is meant to be a holy encounter.  

 

Our School gorilla (know any other school with a pet gorilla at the door to the cafeteria?) says he is happy to see us back in the cafeteria after being in the gym for Christmas Eve.

 

When we name the other person God, we name ourselves.  We verify our name, the body of Christ in the world.