Dear Church Family,
The Gospel has the leper coming to Jesus and Jesus is filled with compassion. I emphasis that word compassion because our God is so merciful and so loving. Here I am coming back from a wonderful vacation with family, friends and priest buddies. It is just so good that I am here and ready to celebrate the long hazardous, crazy, ugly, terrible days of winter. I would much rather have the hazy, crazy days of summer but any way let’s do this together. I brought back a little container of glitter for my sister-n-law. I pasted a note on it that says, “You are God’s glitter to me” with my smiley face as my signature. Then I thought not only is Annie, my glitter, but all of you and all the people I am so privileged to minister with, to and around. Everybody is God’s glitter to me. You light up my life! The best way you light up my life is through love, loving me, so I can be empowered to love others.
So, you truly are glitter. That’s a good symbol for Mardi Gras and Valentine’s Day. Our church will celebrate Mardi Gras and Valentine’s Day on the day before Ash Wednesday which is Valentine’s Day itself. Even through Valentine’s Day is about love, we traditionally, through the centuries, try to gather together and start making smart efforts in various practices of fasting, prayer and almsgiving and every other Lenten practice we are open to. Maybe you can be a little extra glitter to lots of other people. So celebrate that as you hear the Lord say, “He loves us and has compassion on us and He is ready to help us”. Amen and Alleluia!
Again thanks, thanks, thanks to everyone who has come to help us celebrate the sharing of Christmas Blessings with probably over 4,000 to 5,000 families, if we count all the people we helped here at St. Augustine, St. Augustine Wellston and the 3,000+ food baskets at the old Blessed Sacrament Church.
Also, be glitter to these people and let them be invited into your spiritual life by bringing them to church, especially those that don’t have a church home. Say, “I have found something really worthwhile,” so let’s do it. Maybe the people you gave Christmas baskets to would be wonderful people to invite and celebrate in thanksgiving for all those who shared their time, talent and treasures. Alleluia!
Love, Fr. Bob
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