Dear friends,

Before I turn back next week toward the more mundane, I want to continue a little bit longer on last week’s themes.

I ended my column last week with these words.  “I have an image of Jesus weeping over creation (as He did over Jerusalem), a world His father created out of love.  Only we can dry His tears by the goodness we bring to this world and by our Christian commitment to make it a better place, not just here in the U.S., but everywhere.  Will you dedicate yourself to that?  Will you teach your children and grandchildren to be dedicated to that?”

One of my closest friends (the father of two of my godchildren and a friend for 37 years) had a birthday last week and we were trying to find a time to go out to dinner.  Between his schedule and mine we were into early March (until something broke at the last minute and we were able to get it in on the “spur of the moment.”  In one of our email exchanges, I commented “stop the world, I want to get off.”  His response – LOL (lots of luck). 

As I look at my own calendar and the parish calendar, I wonder why we do all these things, Cornerstone and the 8th Grade Summit and celebrations for 1st Reconciliation and Parent Meetings for 1st Eucharist and 4 different models for Religious Education and GIFT and Little Rock Scripture Study and on, and on, and on.  Why? Why?  When it would be so much easier just to do Mass and leave it at that.

Again and again, I find the answer to that question in that second paragraph.  Because as Christians we are called to participate in Jesus’ mission to announce to the world the source and means of its salvation.  “For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life.” (John 3:16 – look for it in the end zone at today’s championship games).  In the simpler society of bygone days, “going to Mass” was probably enough to not only remind people of that, but to help them grow in that role, sometimes reinforced through the Holy Name or Rosary Societies.  But today our complicated, noisy, crowded, over-scheduled world makes that message harder to hear and follow.  With so much going on in our family lives, so many temptations, so many distractions, as church leaders, we need to offer opportunities and occasions where the fundamental message of the Christian Gospel can be stated, re-stated and re-stated again and again.  God loves you and created you to love Him in return and to love the world He created and pass that love on to others.  Everything else pales in comparison to that message. 

So, when you see all the “stuff” that’s happening, it all has only one purpose – bringing the message home, in whatever way possible, so that it may take root in as many minds and hearts as possible, in as many minds and hearts that are open to Him Who is, ultimately, the only One Who can make this world better.

God Bless
Fr. Ron

PS.  Good luck to “Gang Green” today.  I may be a diehard for “Big Blue” but I’m a local guy and would rather see them in it than Indy (our QB’s relationship notwithstanding).  Congrats to “Gang Green’s” fans as well, for their accomplishments so far.