Dear Church Family,
All week long I’ve been praying for healing especially, for all those whom we anointed. It was such a sign of hope and courage, especially for my friend Fr. Bob Bousaubin, who was associate pastor at St. Rose and then pastor at St. Engelbert’s He was so very much around our North side. Bob has had so much sickness with his latest he fell and broke his neck. He had bad knees, bad legs, bad heart, just so much illness, I saw him in the intensive care unit barely making it and now here he is mending again. He came with a wonderful spirit of wanting to just be here. I went over and put a throw over him and told him to “start anointing people” and he didn’t know the prayer because he had been away from ministry for quite a while. We proclaimed the prayer for the anointing and he was able to anoint. I just felt so good! I also felt good that Fr. Ed Mundwiller who was mugged and the robber seriously broke his leg, was able to come back to the ministry. So, the wounded healers were powerful in praying for all of us who are broken and have struggles and problems. Overall this was so uplifting to me and probably to you also. This week I have been praying for everybody’s healing over and over again. Hopefully, you are doing the same. We are all getting closer to that deep union with Jesus.
Here we come into the fifth Sunday of Lent and there are so many positive uplifting themes. There is so much hope from the “Dry Bones will rise again” of Ezekiel and that song Dry Bones, touched us all as children and even as adults with the theme of New Life and Resurrection hinted at in the Old Testament. Then Jesus says to Paul, “His Spirit is in us meaning He is within us, He dwells within us.” Our natural bodies will be raised through His Spirit dwelling within us. So, we are alive in the Spirit! Such a hopeful message!
Then we hear of hope and deep faith. Hope that all will be well for Lazarus who had died and Jesus raised him to life. The deep faith of Martha and Mary saying, “I know Jesus, I know You can do it.” We claim that all is well for us today, that we will rise.
We go into Holy Week with lots of encouragement. Also, today let me know what you think of the Mass Fast. All we are trying to do today is to start off in profound awareness of the Sacrament of Reconciliation being all the more meaningful to us and know that just like Holy Communion this sacramental sign is so powerful allowing us to be in union with the Lord. We are asking you to fast from talking just this week before and after Mass. The only time it’s allowed is to enjoy the Sign of Peace as usual. You will probably enjoy it more because you have made such a concerted effort to really ask the Lord to forgive you of your sins. We have even asked you to sit at different places in the church from your family and friends. Sometimes there are people around you who talk a lot so it that distracts you. There is way too much moving around in our church when we are trying to be so attentively intense to really be aware of the awesomeness of what happens at our Mass when Jesus becomes present in His Body and Blood. So, Church, enjoy this challenge and reflect on whether you were able to move somewhere else in church and really prepare for the sacrament of spiritual healing. God, bless you all, good people of hope and faith.
Fr. Bob
Father Bob:
Thank you for all of your prayers and encouragement that you provide to others, the church community and the physical community. You are a blessing to us all. Your dedication to your ministry resonates with people who love you, know you, and hear about the needed work you have done for others. You represent what God wants in all of us.
I pray for those priests who are in the process of healing and that God will keep them in his loving arms and care. I thank you for your continuous giving of yourself while you continue to help the community, congregation and others.