Sunday Homily, March 3, 2019, 8th Ordinary Time

Could we be looking at Santa or Kevin??  Welcome in, Whoever you may be.

Readings:

Genesis15, 1-6; 21, 1-3    Look up at the sky and count the stars.  Just so shall your descendants be.

Psalm, 105,  the Lord remembers his covenant forever.

Hebrews 11, 8, 11-12, 17-19  By faith Abraham obeyed.

Luke 2, 22-40,   Simeon & Anna meet Jesus

Thanks, Dearest Harper, for bringing along you grandmother Cathy.

Genesis obserevations :

What : the very first book of the bible beginning with Adam & Eve, the two creation myths, Cain & Abel, Noah and the flood, the Tower of Babylon, and then the big 3 patriarchs of the Jewish nation.  They are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.  The book is a fun read.  It is not history, but speculation and tribal myth. 

Date: contemporary scholarship thinks that the work was composed either before or during the B.C., the all important Babylonian Captivity. Why?  Give the Jewish people a sense of historical identity and tribal cohesion.  

The "A" Team, complete with lights.

Today’s selection: all about Abraham, the first of the 3 Great Patriarchs.  Abraham is crying and lamenting the fact that he has no children.  Why?  Sarah was childless and Abraham was 99 years old.  A “we have a problem, Houston” situation.  The Lord hears Abraham and uses a beautiful metaphor to show Abraham what is going to happen. 

Because the editor of this reading has so taken the fun out of it, I want to read a bit more.  Sit back and enjoy the story of how Abraham and Sarah had a baby.   I'm including parts of three other chapters between chapters 15 and 21.

Ben, our Candle Lighter of The Week, in action.

David Vanderpool

This morning, the last of the year 2017, I have a New Years story for you. Actually, it comes from the front page of last Sunday’s Dallas Morning News.  Mike Carrell saw it and gave me a heads up.

There is a guy named David Vanderpool.  His dad was a surgeon and David attended St. Mark’s Boys’ School.  When David was 15, he made a trip to Israel.  In the town of Nazareth he happened to get into a conversation with another 15 year old, a girl from Nazareth and a Christian. 

Cheryl reading The Blessing of the Candles.

At some point the girl asked David what he planned to do when he grew up.  David had not thought a lot about it, but assumed he would become a doctor like his dad.  David was impressed by the girl.  She had taught herself English.  He asked her what she would do.

“I will carry water and have babies,” she responded.  There were no other options.  David was stunned and embarrassed by his affluent and free life.

Even after the spectacular Christmas Eve (200 plus), Shonda, Ben, and David sing and play on.  

So, David did go to college at TX Tech and became a surgeon, but the girl’s response stayed with him.  He married Lauri and they had two sons and a daughter.  During this time two things took place. 

First, they made a number of medical relief trips to countries in Africa and South America where there were crises.  Secondly, David and Laurie made a promise to themselves that when their last child, Jacklyn went off to college, they would move to a third world country in need.

So, all went well for some probably 15 years, until 2013.  Jacklyn was going off to college.  Decision time.

John & Alison bringing up the Offertory of Bread (baked by Alison) and Wine.   What??  No wine, not even grape juice for everybody?   Too cold, slippery, and dangerous to have Jan bring the communion cups.  Thanks, Jan for staying home.

What did they do?  Yep, they sold their house and all their belongs, including a $20,000 pet guitar, set up a foundation called LiveBeyond, and moved to Haiti.  Haiti was chosen because they had already spent some time there after the 2010 earthquake.  They had to go back.

In the four years since their move to Haiti, the couple have set up a 60 acre complex with a hospital and school.  There was no clean water, no sewage process, no electricity in the village they chose because of its poverty, a town called Thomazeau.

The Great Father & Son Team, Cody & Ben.

A special joy came this year in the person of Jacklyn.  She finished college at A&M and decided she wants to live and work with her parents.

How are you going to emulate the Vanderpools in your village and in your neighborhood this New Year of 2018?    

Happy New Year.

Who wears these light up shoes?    Hint: he's an altar server.

Readings:  Proverbs 31, 10-31; Psalm 128; 1 Thessalonians 5, 1-6; Matthew 25, 14-30

Proverbs:

Date of Composition: ca. 300 B.C.

Content: a collection of moral & religious teachings which were mostly dealing with practical matters.

The Talented Person

Nineteen years ago today an event happened in the Jesuit order that still boggles my mind.  The year was 1989.  I had been back in the States about 3 years.  Reagan was coming to the end of his 8 years as president. 

There was a group of 6 Jesuits who lived in a Jesuit community connected to a university.  Some of the men worked in the university, others worked in other activities in the area.  The school went by the initials UCA, University of Central America.  It was located in the city of San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador. 

Times had been tough in El Salvador over the past 6-8 years.  Some Maryknoll nuns & an Ursuline nun had been stopped one night on the road to the airport and killed. 

On this night nineteen years ago the Jesuits had all gone to bed.  Behind their community house was a house where the housekeeper & cook lived with her daughter.  At some time in the middle of the night a special brigade of the military arrived at the door.  They awoke everyone and herded them into an inner patio.  They made them all, the six Jesuits and the housekeeper & her daughter, lie face down on the ground.  Then they shot each one. 

We celebrate today the nineteenth anniversary of their martyrdom.

My thoughts go to these people when I read the parable about the man going on a journey and giving various talents to his servants.  I do not know how many times over the years I have read this and thought that I do not like this man.  Why is he so hard on the poor man with only one talent?  Why do the rich get richer?  Being a parable, what is the symbolism?  Is the man a metaphor or symbol of Yahweh?  Three observation that help me.

1.  First, we all have our talent.  A talent in the days of Matthew was 34 kilos of gold, i.e., 70 pounds of gold.  To grow into a complete person, physically, spiritually, and psychologically I got to use my talent.  What keeps me from using it, like the man in the parable, is often fear.  Despite the psalm's statement that "Blessed are those who fear the Lord," I would propose that more blessed and more spiritually healthy are those that love the Lord.  No fear. 

Even though on the surface of the parable this does not seem to be the message, I think it may.  The insight comes to me from the Carmelite website.

2.  This is the second point: the clue to the parable is that Jesus and especially Matthew is talking to and admonishing the Pharisees, not so much us.   Remember the pharisees obsessively observed every law & dictate so that they could attain justification and superiority.  Could it be that they had a fear based spirituality?  They get chastised for hiding their talent.  Yahweh from Matthew's perspective is irritated with them.

3.  Thirdly, another clue to understanding the parable: image and attitude.  The pharisees have the same image of Yahweh that the one talent man has.  Demanding.  Therefore, his attitude and the attitude of the pharisees is, 'don't risk, don't love, hide behind strict observance of the law.'  This results in a sterile spirituality, it kills joy and spontaneity, and impoverishes life.  This pathetic life is chastised in the parable.

 Yes, the man symbolizes Yahweh.  The three servants are the people, we the people.  I grant, the master really does come across pretty harshly.  Maybe this is more Matthew speaking his feelings. Who knows what contributed to the fear of the one talent man.  I see this fear in people who have received a lot of negativity in their life, especially as children, being maybe abused or mistreated.  My read is that a compassionate master & God would take this into consideration and be more accepting than Matthew's parable suggests. 

When I read this parable about talents, I am reminded of my former Jesuit confreres.  They used their talents, for others. They faced their fears.  In fact, they had frequently been harassed by the government which did not like the Jesuits' criticism.  They gave it all. 

What is your talent & how are you using It?

Picture 1:  Choir Wendy, Ray, & Celeste

Picture 2:  Birthdays–Mary Ellen Munzell, Penny Morrow, Blake & Blair Reyes (19)

Picture 3:  Beth Robinson presenting Christmas family project

AUDIO:  http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2008-11-16.mp3

Readings:

2 Samuel 7, 1-16,  Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me. (A good read)

 Psalm 89,    Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord.

Romans 16, 25-27,  To him who can strengthen you.

Luke 1, 26-28,   The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a virgin.

The Beautiful Harper says, "Hi, Everybody, Welcome."

Samuel observations:

Who :  there are 4 books, 1 & 2 Samuel, 1 & 2 Kings.  And there are 4 rulers of Israel, namely, Samuel, who was the last judge of the people, Saul, David, and Solomon, who were kings.  These 4 books are some of the best reading in the Bible.

Samuel was called by God himself in a series of dreams Samuel had one night when he was in the service of the priest Eli.  He was the last of the peoples' judges and he anointed Saul the first king.   

That pretty girl in Purple also says, "Come in Everybody, It's fun," Zoe.

Date: Bible scholars consider the 4 books to be a compilation of a bunch of sources, beginning around 800 before Christ and finally coming together as a whole, guess when, yes, the Babylonian Captivity, 555 before Christ.

Today's selection:  2 characters, King David and Nathan, the prophet.  David is now king and wants to build a temple for God.  Nathan says that God does not want a temple, but that God, nevertheless,  will bless him, his family, and the people.  The temple will be built eventually by David's son, Solomon.  This is chapter 7 today.  Chapter 6 is good, but 11 is one of my most favorite chapters in the bible.  In our homily today, I want to tell you the story of how Solomon came to be David's son, which is described in chapter 11.

And Leo says, "Hi, Folks, if you are really good you just might get a cupcakes." He must have been good, he got one.

King David

 This morning I would like to talk about King David.  He is our story of the week.  In fact, there are numerous good stories about David.  For instance, he is the David who as a youth kills Goliath with his sling shot after Goliath has scared half to death the Israelite army. 

As with all human events, there was a down side to this achievement.  Saul, the king becomes jealous of David’s popularity and will spend much of his later years trying to kill David.

Jackie and Rick.

 A second marvelous story takes place in chapter 6, right before our chapter.  David is bringing into Jerusalem the arc of the covenant, which was housed in a tent or portable house.  As the procession enters Jerusalem, David strips down to his shorts and dances for joy as he leads the procession.

His wife Mical is watching from her second floor window and she is disgusted.  She tells David this when he comes into their home and he responds that he will always dance before the Lord.  Guess what.  God is not pleased with Mical’s disgust and because of that she never has any children.  The lesson: don’t mock me when I dance.

 The most amazing story is this.  You won't find this excellent reading in any of the 3 cycles of the Lectionary.

Who is that pretty girl with the glasses? Why, that's Georgie.

 One day David is strolling around the roof of his house.  He looks over to his neighbors’ house and sees a beautiful woman bathing.  He enquires into who she is and invites her over for a neighborly dinner.  Guess what happens.  Yes, he falls madly in love with her and they get together. 

The trouble is, the woman, the famous Bathsheba, is married to Uriah, a soldier in David’s army.  The army is away on maneuvers. 

 So David has Uriah brought back to Jerusalem.  He invites him to dinner, gets him totally drunk, and sends him home to spend the night with Bathsheba.  Unfortunately, Uriah, a man of honor, will not sleep under his roof while his soldier comrades are out sleeping on the ground.  Uriah sleeps on his door step.  A complication for David. 

The pretty Megan says, " Georgie? We're buddies."

 So David sends Uriah back to the army, but sends with him a note which tells the commander that he is to place Uriah at the front of the troops in the next battle.   At the peak of the battle, pull the soldiers back and leave Uriah alone. 

 So, Uriah gets killed.  David marries Bathsheba.  End of story, happy ending?  No.

Zaile and Mabel.

The prophet Nathan is still around.  God sends Nathan to tell David a parable about a rich guy who steals the favorite lamb of a poor man.  Nathan asks what should be done to that rich man?  David is angry and says he deserves a severe punishment.  Nathan says, “You are that rich man.”   David repents and does penance.

 Meanwhile, Bathsheba has a baby, a little boy, their little love child.  The name of this little boy?  Solomon.  

Cowboy Cole explaining the meaning of life.

 Why I find this story fascinating and consoling?  God has accepted the child of David and Bathsheba, even though conceived in less than positive circumstances.  Moreover, David continues to be favored and blessed with enormous success by God despite being less than saintly. 

 We, too, are often less than saintly.  How do you know that you are still favored and blessed by God?

Thanks, Hue, for being our special sound man every week.

Readings:  Isaiah 61, 1-11 (beautiful); Psalm is Luke 1, 46-54 (The Magnificat, beautiful); 1 Thessalonians 5, 16-24; John 1, 6-8, 19-28 .

Isaiah:This is Third Isaiah.  One Isaiah goes to Chap. 39; Two Isaiah, chapters 40-55.  From 40 on we have what is called the Book of Comfort, as I mentioned last week.  Our selection today is all about comfort.  The writer is consoling the Hebrews during the Babylonian captivity, which took place about 580 BCE, in other words about a century after One Isaiah wrote. 

The first marvelous couple of verses are repeated more or less in Isaiah 42, i.e., Two Isaiah.  Also, Luke puts these words into Jesus' mouth in chapter 4 of his gospel.  I will have all of chapter 61 read because it is so good.  For the reading, google The Bible at Your Fingertips.

Advent Wreaths: This little liturgical practice came to the Catholic liturgy, believe it or not, from the German Lutherans in the 1500's, the time of Martin Luther.  It was more than just decoration.  The circle symbolized eternity.  The greens, Christian life in a dead time of the year.  The candles represent each of the 4 weeks of Advent, each candle symbolizing the greater light brought by Christ.  Their color purple symbolized penance and purification for the Coming.  The Rose  candle says, 'We are almost there!'

Chosen Me to Bring Good News to the Poor

Last Sunday 15 of you donated blood.  Many of you chipped in to help with our adopted family.  Beth, who herself has donated a lot of time to this family, says we are close to having everything we need.  Others of you brought food.  And all of you brought food for the Anniversary Brunch, a feast, as usual.

A month or so ago I was honored to help bless the Habitat house that many of you helped to build.  

Every month you help to contribute $2,000 to our Collin County Adult Clinic, where everyone on the staff, doctors, nurses, technicians, and helpers, all work pro bono, gratis, without pay.  That is $24,000 you have donated to support this marvelous service this year.

The generosity of our little community, of you people often blows me away and always humbles me. 

Isaiah is talking about this.  He says Yahweh has chosen me and sent me.  He is obviously talking about himself, and the temptation is to leave it at that.  That's his job.  I would propose, however, that Yahweh is calling each of us.  We are chosen and we are sent to bring good news to the poor, to heal and to comfort.  The poor, the broken hearted, and the imprisoned are all around us.  If we don't bring them good news and comfort, perhaps nobody will.

When I lived in Tanzania & Kenya occasionally I would ask myself, "What on earth am I doing over here?"  This passage about bringing good news to the poor often gave me consolation and motivation.  I can remember reflecting upon the idea when I was traveling 4-6 lonely hours over dirt roads on my motorcycle to get to a center where I was going to conduct a week long or month long seminar for nuns and priests. 

In John's Gospel the writer is setting the scene, similar to Mark's reading last week.  He is using John the Baptist to make way for The Good News, the Jesus event that let's us know that Our God is accepting us, not condemning us.

The writer of this gospel is likewise crafting his work.  In a short space he identifies John the Baptist and prepares the reader for something greater.  Why is this important?  Because John the Baptist was popular, had his own group of followers, and could have been mistaken for the Messiah.  The gospel writer takes 4 steps.

Step 1.  John the Baptist's place in the drama: give witness to The Light, e.g., Jesus, The Good News.

Step 2.  A negative witness about who he is: not The Light, not the Messiah.

Step 3.  A positive witness about who he is: preparing a way & making straight the way.

Step 4.  Why is John the Baptist baptizing: preparing the people for One greater, The Light. 

The Light, The Lord, The Messiah that John's gospel talks about is the one who brings good news and comfort to the poor, the broken hearted, and the imprisoned.  He, however, cannot do it alone. 

This year each of you in our little community has helped out.  How are you bringing Good News and Comfort to the Poor today?

AUDIO:  http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2008-12-14.mp3

Picture 1:  Serving, Lisa (Mom), & daughters Lorynne & Lacee

Picture 2:  Frank & Laura Reyes celebrating 26th

Picture 3:  Frank & Mary Esparza watched by Audry.

Readings:  Ezekiel 18, 25-28; Psalm 25; Philippians 2, 1-11; Matthew 21, 28-32

Ezekiel: One of the Big 3, along with Isaiah & Jeremiah.   This is mostly due to the fact that these three books are bigger than the other, smaller books.

• Time: ca. 585, the time of the Babylonian captivity.

• Place: probably composed in Babylon

• Most famous story: the valley of the dry bones that take on life because of Ezekiel, chapter 37.

• Today's message: the wicked will perish, the good will have life.  Is the life metaphorical?

Working the Vineyard

Last Friday I was back in the grocery story again.  This time it was the Kroger's on the corner of Maple Ave. & Douglas in the Oaklawn area near downtown Dallas.  Fridays I visit a lady in her 90's who is finding it more difficult to get around.  Many of you know her, Elizabeth.  Because of her limited mobility, I buy groceries for the week for her.

On this particular trip in the late morning, I was pushing a cart from the parking lot and entered the store through an initial area where the carts are stored.  A small, middle aged Hispanic lady was sweeping up in the middle of the space.  I stopped while she finished where I wanted to pass.  When she realized that she had been responsible for my waiting, she humbly apologized.  I responded, "No problem, thanks for what you are doing."   Her smile in return was touching.

The day before Rosemary was walking in the neighborhood in the evening.  She has a favorite house because it has a beautiful flower display.  This particular evening she sees the lady from the house and compliments her on her work.  The lady is delighted and thanks her for her compliment.

I think of these simple small events when I hear the story of the two brothers.  Of course, you have heard me talk for years about either or spirituality, namely one brother or the other.  But in fact, there is no either or spirituality.  We are both.

What I would like to explore today, however, is the vineyard.  Obviously, this parable is metaphorical, that is, symbolic of something bigger than two boys, a father, and a vineyard.  The boys symbolize you and me and all people, the father is God, and the vineyard–what is it?  I would suggest that the vineyard is a labor with at least at least three parts. 

The first part is the world, beginning with our local world.  The job is to make it better because of my presence.  When I was a kid and we used to go camping as Boy Scouts, my dad and others used to teach us, 'Always leave your campsite better than you found it.'  An equally popular teaching is, 'Bloom where you are planted. 

This may involve nothing more complicated than picking up trash in the street or park.  Inspiration from these teachings was what got me started planting trees in Dallas back in '88, and even before that in Tanzania & Kenya.  About a year ago when Ron Kovatis was in charge of the Great Trinity Forest, we had a big crowd of the community tackle the litter & trash in the forest.  One of our community, my bicycle partner, Bill Hammond, even works on the Richardson Beautification Committee.

There is a second labor in the vineyard: people.  Helping others to get through this life.  Teachers do it professionally, coaches & scout leaders do it often freely and with great influence.  Parents obviously.   I am grateful to Tom & Lynda Fleming for inviting us and challenging us to help with local Habitat houses.  Julia and Al Grenier's astounding work in setting up the Collin Co. Adult Clinic.  How many totally poor people get medical help on Thursday evenings!  It is a privilege to help the clinic with our outreach contributions.   

The third labor in the vineyard: myself.  To treasure the gift of myself.  This may take work.  I both treasure the gift and improve it.  Planting trees at middle schools and high schools is often pretty daunting because of vandalism.  How many times watering the trees at Plano Senior do we see a tree whacked off or pulled out.  I know so well that the kids doing this are certainly not seeing themselves as a treasure.  They are usually angry and underneath are hurting.  Consequently, I don't get wigged out about the vandalism.  If the tree is gone, I give it a year, hoping the kid grows beyond the anger and hurt.  Or graduates!  Then I replant.

The vineyard is there, folks, all three parts, all needing attention.

How is the work going in your vineyard?

AUDIO: http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2008-09-28.mp3

Readings: Genesis 9, 8-15; Psalm 25; 1 Peter 3, 18-22; Mark 1, 12-15

Genesis:  First book of the Bible, starts with creation, goes through Adam & Eve, Cain & Abel, Noah & the flood, the Tower of Babel, & ends with the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, & Jacob (Israel).

Author: Not Moses as was thought for centuries before people began to study the work.  At least 3 sources: 

• a Y (or J) source for the group that addressed God as Yahweh;

• an E for the group who addressed God as Elohim (Like two historians calling NYC The Big Apple or New York City, or Denver by its name or Mile High City);

• and a P group that focused on the priestly class, activities, & customs.

Time: compiled and put together from 1000 to 500 BCE.

Today's Selection: the flood has just receded and Noah is receiving a promise (called covenant) from Yahweh that never again will people be wiped out by a flood.  Guess what the sign of the promise is.

40 Days

I want to talk about Genesis.  Picture this.  It is night.  Moon & stars.  Sitting around a little campfire are 3 or 4 families, parents and a half dozen kids.  It is Maybe 1000 years before Christ.  It  is perfectly quiet except for the howl of a few animals out in the complete darkness.

A little girl says to her parents, "Where did that moon come from?  The stars?  Where did we come from?"  The parents tell her about the stories they heard from their elders.

They say: Before people were here the earth was all desolate.  It was dark & cold & waters were raging.  God came along one day and decided to put some order into this mess.  So he got up the next morning and divided up the daylight and the dark.

The next day he got up and created the dome of the sky.  The third day he created the earth and starts plants growing.  The day after that he sets up the sun, the moon, and the stars.  On the fifth day he puts together fish and birds and tell them to multiply.  The sixth day he really has to work hard: animals and especially man & woman.  By now he is tired, so he takes the seventh day off and enjoys his work.  This is the first account of creation in Genesis.

Now at another campfire many miles away a little boy is asking his family the same question.  He is told another story.  One day, say, Elohim is walking on a dirt path (like everyone did.  No pavement).  He leans down grabs a handful, wets it, and molds it into a new form, something with two legs, two arms, and a head.  A man. 

This man is given life and gets put into a marvelous garden with only one command.  Don't eat from that tree.  Time goes on and animals are created which the man names.  However, the man is lonely, so God takes a rib out of his side and molds it into another human  form.  This one, however, is female and becomes man's partner.  The man names her Eve, the mother of all.  This is the second creation story.

At this point in time all is copasetic.  One day, however, while Eve is strolling around the Garden of Eden, a snake begins to talk with her.  Eventually the snake convinces her to try the fruit of the tree.  Uh, oh.  Then she shares it with the Man, now called Adam.  Later, God comes strolling along in the evening and has to call out for Adam & Eve, who are hiding.  He knows what they have done.  They confess and he tells them they will be forever punished with difficult living.  So they get kicked out of Eden.

Adam & Eve have kids.  Cain first, Abel second.  One day both boys make an offering to God.  Unfortunately for some reason, Cain's offering is rejected by God.  He is hurt and gets mad because his brother is accepted.  He kills Abel.  Then he, too, gets punished by God. 

Time passes and apparently many more of Adam & Eve's kids turn out like Cain.  In fact, God becomes so mad, so disappointed in his new creature man, that he regrets what he has done and decides to wipe everyone off the face of the earth–except one guy, Noah.  At this time, Noah is 500 years old.  He builds a boat and it rains 40 days.  Which takes us up to today's reading, where the water has receded and God promises he will never kill everyone with a flood again, signing his name with a rainbow. 

I tell these mythological stories for four reasons.

First, we seldom hear or read these marvels.

Secondly, though it is not in the Genesis reading we have, there is a thread between this part of Genesis 9 and Mark and today: the 40 days.  Forty is a special number in the old times meaning a sufficient number.  It rained 40 days.  Jesus is in the desert 40 days.  And we are spending 40 days of Lent.

Thirdly, when Jesus came out of the desert he really throws himself into his message, which contains 4 points in Mark:

• The Time is now.

• The Kingdom is here.

• Repent.

• Believe the Good News

Fourthly, for centuries up until Vatican 2, the 40 days of Lent focused on fasting and abstinence to imitate Jesus and to do penance for our bad ways.  It was supposed to be a cleansing before Holy Week and Easter and a test of character. 

Fasting usually meant giving up meals.  Abstinence meant giving up a particular item, like Blue Bell or chocolate chip cookies.  I found one amusing note:Thomas Aquinas, one of the great doctors of the Catholic Church who lived ca. 1250, suggested that the faithful abstain from meat, eggs, and dairy.  Why?  Because they were aphrodisiacs and generated lust.  Food, alcohol, tobacco, and sex were all targets of the Church.

Today Mormons fast 1 day per month.  Muslims fast dawn to dusk the month of Ramadan which is August 22-September 20 this year.  This fast often includes liquids. 

Last week I suggested for a positive Lent we might practice sensitivity and service.  This week we might fast, since this has been the hot topic.  Maybe a fast from guilt and stress.

How is Lent going for you?

AUDIO:  http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2009-03-01.mp3

Sources:  Wikipedia on Lent & Fasting; Dominican Website; Creighton U. Spiritual Seminar; St. Raymond Church, Dublin, CA.

Picture 1:  Mass with Reed (3 weeks new)

Picture 2:  Reed with his momma Nikki & granny Jackie

Picture 3: Stacie McKinley, Reed with Jackie & Nikki, Ryan (Nikki's brother & Jackie's son); Rosemary, & Margie Duggan

Picture 4:  Mass with Noah helping