“the antonian” january 6, 2019stanthonytemperance.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/...jan 06, 2019...

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ST. ANTHONY’S DIRECTORY PARISH ADMINISTRATOR Father Robert Slaton……….734-854-1143 [email protected] Rectory……...…………………734-854-1143 4605 St. Anthony Road, Temperance, MI 48182 Fax……………………………..734-854-4622 Parish E-mail……...….…....[email protected] Web site: stanthonytemperance.org ************************************** OFFICE STAFF: Michelle Lindsey, Parish Secretary: 734-854-1143 [email protected] Office Hours: Monday - Thursday: 9:00am - 4:30pm; Friday: 9am - 1:00pm Linda Moeltner, Business Office: 734-854-8445 [email protected] Office Hours: Tuesday: 9:00am - 3:00pm ************************* DIRECTOR OF LITURGY & MUSIC Eric Hite……419-266-0571…..[email protected] R ELIGIOUS E DUCATION (RE) Ginny Stout, RE Coordinator……...734-854-1160 [email protected] Office Hours: Monday - 10:30am - 5:00pm ************************* Weekend Mass Schedule Saturday (Sunday Vigil): 5:00pm (OF-MC) Sunday: 8:00am & 10:00am (OF-MC); 12:00pm (EF-MC) Holy Days: Check Bulletin & Website Sacrament of Penance Saturday: 3:30-4:30pm; Thursday: 6:00 - 6:30pm Devotions First Friday: 9:00am & 7:00pm Mass (OF-LM) First Saturday: 9:00am Mass (EF-MC) O. L. of Perpetual Help & Prayer - Wednesday @ 6:15pm Prayer Blankets Prayer Chain Sandy Maenle……734-847-7813 Miriam Dressel….…734-888-1192 Our Sacramental Policy Six-month Parish registration and participation are required for Baptism, Confirmation and Marriage. Baptisms : Arrangements must be made in advance and parents must attend a baptism class. The Church requires that at least one of the parents be a practicing Catholic, and the Godparents must be active, practicing, fully initiated Catholics at least 16 years of age. If two Godparents: must be 1 male & 1 female; if one Godparent: may be male or female. Marriage : Arrangements must be made at least nine months in advance. Please call the rectory office. Officiate at the ceremony must be St. Anthony Parish Pastor or a family member. Funerals : Officiate must be St. Anthony Parish Pastor or a family member. Please note: The services of the Parish Organist are used for all sacramental liturgies. For more details regarding our Sacramental policies and procedures, please refer to the Sacrament link on our Parish web-site. K of C Breakfast Buffet NEXT SUNDAY January 13, 2019 8:30am -12:00pm in Kenna Hall All are Welcome! Traveling Vocation Chalice January 6 **Host Family Needed January 13 **Host Family Needed January 20 The Hajdu Family January 27 **Host Family Needed ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA CATHOLIC CHURCH TEMPERANCE, MICHIGAN THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD “The Antonian” January 6, 2019 The Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord The Monthly Prayer Request for Priests Would You Pray for a Priest each Day? Before each Holy Mass, parishioners pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and the Rosary. We include the names of the priests for the day, with our intentions. Please join us. The new list for January - June 2019 is now available in the Narthex.

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Page 1: “The Antonian” January 6, 2019stanthonytemperance.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/01/...Jan 06, 2019  · Page two St. Anthony Catholic Church, Temperance MASS Readings for the WeekSCHEDULE

ST. ANTHONY’S DIRECTORY PARISH ADMINISTRATOR

Father Robert Slaton……….734-854-1143

[email protected]

Rectory……...…………………734-854-1143 4605 St. Anthony Road, Temperance, MI 48182

Fax……………………………..734-854-4622

Parish E-mail……...….…[email protected]

Web site: stanthonytemperance.org

**************************************

OFFICE STAFF: Michelle Lindsey, Parish Secretary: 734-854-1143 [email protected]

Office Hours: Monday - Thursday: 9:00am - 4:30pm; Friday: 9am - 1:00pm

Linda Moeltner, Business Office: 734-854-8445 [email protected]

Office Hours: Tuesday: 9:00am - 3:00pm

*************************

DIRECTOR OF LITURGY & MUSIC Eric Hite……419-266-0571…[email protected]

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION (RE) Ginny Stout, RE Coordinator……...734-854-1160 [email protected]

Office Hours: Monday - 10:30am - 5:00pm

*************************

Weekend Mass Schedule Saturday (Sunday Vigil): 5:00pm (OF-MC)

Sunday: 8:00am & 10:00am (OF-MC); 12:00pm (EF-MC)

Holy Days: Check Bulletin & Website

Sacrament of Penance Saturday: 3:30-4:30pm;

Thursday: 6:00 - 6:30pm

Devotions First Friday: 9:00am & 7:00pm Mass (OF-LM)

First Saturday: 9:00am Mass (EF-MC)

O. L. of Perpetual Help & Prayer - Wednesday @ 6:15pm

Prayer Blankets Prayer Chain

Sandy Maenle……734-847-7813 Miriam Dressel….…734-888-1192

Our Sacramental Policy Six-month Parish registration and participation are required for Baptism, Confirmation and

Marriage.

Baptisms: Arrangements must be made in advance and parents must attend a baptism class. The

Church requires that at least one of the parents be a practicing Catholic, and the Godparents must

be active, practicing, fully initiated Catholics at least 16 years of age. If two Godparents: must be 1

male & 1 female; if one Godparent: may be male or female.

Marriage: Arrangements must be made at least nine months in advance. Please call the rectory

office. Officiate at the ceremony must be St. Anthony Parish Pastor or a family member.

Funerals: Officiate must be St. Anthony Parish Pastor or a family member.

Please note: The services of the Parish Organist are used for all sacramental liturgies.

For more details regarding our Sacramental policies and procedures,

please refer to the Sacrament link on our Parish web-site.

K of C Breakfast Buffet NEXT SUNDAY

January 13, 2019 8:30am -12:00pm in Kenna Hall

All are Welcome!

Traveling Vocation Chalice January 6 **Host Family Needed January 13 **Host Family Needed January 20 The Hajdu Family January 27 **Host Family Needed

ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA CATHOLIC CHURCH TEMPERANCE, MICHIGAN

THE EPIPHANY OF THE LORD

“The Antonian” January 6, 2019

The Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord

The Monthly Prayer Request for Priests

Would You Pray for a Priest each Day? Before each Holy Mass, parishioners pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy and the Rosary. We include the names of the priests for the day, with our intentions. Please join us. The new list for January - June 2019 is now available in the Narthex.

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Page two St. Anthony Catholic Church, Temperance

MASS SCHEDULE Key to Abbreviations:

EF - Extra-ordinary Form (Trad. Latin Mass)

OF - Ordinary Form (New Rite; Novus Ordo)

LM - Low Mass; MC - Missa Cantata (Sung)

Monday, January 7, 2019 8:30am Christopher Estrel (OF-LM) by John & Colleen Clark

St. Raymond of Penafort (1275), Pr., R., Pt. of canon

lawyers (New)

St. Lucian of Antioch (312), Pr., M. (Hist.)

Tuesday, January 8, 2019 8:30am Fr. Timothy Moran (OF-mc) Br. Mark Moran

by John & Colleen Clark

St. Apollinaris the Apologist (175), B. (Hist.)

St. Severin of Noricum (480), Hermit, Ap. Of Austria

(Hist.)

Wednesday, January 9, 2019 8:30am Frank Parker; and the Living (OF-mc) and Deceased Memebers

of the Parker Family by Ted & Annette Overmann

St. Adrian of Canterbury (710), Ab. (Hist.)

Sts. Julian, M., & Basilissa (304), husband & wife

(Hist.)

Thursday, January 10, 2019

8:30am Rose Moran (OF-mc) by John & Colleen Clark

7:00pm Holy Souls in Purgatory (EF-LM) by Marta Toma

St. William of Bourges (1209), B. (Hist.)

St. Nicanor (76), Dcn. (Hist.)

St. John Camillus Bonus, “the Good” (660), B.

(Hist.)

Friday, January 11, 2019

St. Hyginus (142), P., M. (Trad.)

St. Paulinus (804), B., Patriarch of Aquileia (Hist.)

St. Theodosius (529), Ab. (Hist.)

**************************** Saturday, January 12, 2019

St. Marguerite Bourgeoys (1700), V., F. (New/some

places)

St. Arcadius (304), M. (Hist.)

St. Benedict Biscup (690), Ab. (Hist.)

*************************************

Sunday Vigil Mass 5:00pm Lorraine & Kevin Noelke (OF-MC) by Mary McIver

Sunday, January 13, 2018 The Baptism of the Lord (New)

Feast of the Holy Family (Trad.)

8:00am The People of St. Anthony (OF-MC)

10:00am Don Sloan (OF-MC) by John & Priscilla Waidelich

12:00pm Michelle Lindsey (EF-MC) by Deacon Mike & Sue Hammond

St. Hilary of Poitiers (368), B., D. (New)

Commemoration of the Baptism of Our Lord (Trad.)

Bl. Veronica of Binasco (1497), V., R. (Hist.)

Readings for the Week

Monday, January 7: 1John 3:22-4:6; Mark 4:12-17,23-35

Tuesday, January 8: 1John 4:7-10; Mark 6:34-44

Wednesday, January 9: 1John 4:11-18; Mark 6:45-52

Thursday, January 10:

1John 4:19-5:4; Luke 4:14-22

Friday, January 11:

1John 5:5-13; Luke 5:12-16

Saturday, January 12:

1John 5:14-21; John 3:22-30

Sunday, January 13:

Isaiah 40:1-5,9-11

Titus 2:11-14;3:4-7

Luke 3:15-16,21-22

This Week’s Calendar Monday, January 7, 2019 8:30am - Mass 5-6:15pm - RE Classes Resume Grades 1-8

Tuesday, January 8, 2019 8:30am - Mass 10am - 12pm - Rosary Makers - Padua Hall 10:30am-12pm - Prayer Blankets - Narthex 6pm - Finance Council 7pm - Pastoral Council

Wednesday, January 9, 2019 8:30am - Mass 9am - 4pm - Lifeline Health Screening

- Kenna Hall 6:15 - 7pm- Perpetual Help & Prayers

Thursday, January 10, 2019 8:30am - Mass 6-6:30 - Confessions 7:00pm - Mass

Friday, January 11, 2019 10am - 2pm - HFS - Kenna Hall

Saturday, January 12, 2019 9am - K of C Breakfast Set-up - Kenna Hall 3:30-4:30pm - Confessions 5:00pm - Sunday Vigil Mass

Sunday, January 13, 2019

8:00am; 10:00am; 12:00pm - Mass 8:30am - 12pm - K of C Breakfast

- Kenna Hall

Pray without ceasing

Directory Update The photography phase of our 2018

Parish Directory has been completed.

If you were not able to make one of

our photo sessions, submitted photos will

be accepted. We will need either an

original photo (not a copy), preferred

size: wallet or 4”x6”; or a digital image:

jpg, pdf, or tif files; resolution 600x900

minimum.

All submitted photos

must be received in the Parish Office

by

Tuesday, January 8, 2019

Please contact the Parish Office with

any questions.

Christ Our Light

has Come! The Mass with Jubilarians

for 2019 will be Sunday, February 10, 2019

at the 10:00am Mass. Parishioners who will be celebrating a milestone anniversary (25, 30, 35, 40, 45, 50,+) in 2019, please call the Parish Office 734-854-1143. Papal Blessings are ordered for 25th & 50th Anniversaries. Following the 10am Mass, all Jubilarian couples who attended the Mass are invited to a complimentary breakfast at the K of C Breakfast Buffet in Kenna Hall.

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Julia Nusbaum Tim O’Brien

Tyler & Jen Oehlers Austin Oehlers

Jenny Pam Elwyn Perry Bob Quinell Judy Raabe

Rakebrand Family Harriet Rochowiak

Carol Romero Rick Schneider Jean Schroeder Margaret Scott Robert Shute

Alexander, Andrew & Tanner Skeldon

Linda Slaton Mary Lou Steiger

Randy Stowell Tom Townsend

Carole VanBrandt Virginia VanKirk

Aaron Vyse David Wahr

Devin Watkins Rebecca Williams

Casie Yeager Judy Zimmerman

All the Recipients of the Prayer Blankets and

Prayer Squares

Maria Baer Sherry Bailey

Jennifer Bellamy John Bordine Fred Borowski

Nancy Brancheau Toni Breininger Jan Brissette Jack Burns

James Callahan Michael Callahan

Bob Carey Karen Cornwell

Dcn. George Cousino Lowell Cousino Prudy Cousino Sara Cousino Elaine Esper

Jeanne Fenton Scott Ferguson

Ed Fish Jordon Frye Jim Fuelling

Joe Gouin, Jr. Ken Grycza Olivia Haley

Check out

Our Web site!

There are many features to browse through, as well as links to the

Archdiocese of Detroit and Monroe Vicariate websites and to our St. Anthony Facebook page.

Also included are weekly bulletins, monthly liturgical assignments,

and current events. The Latest News feature gives the most current information, including the current weekday Mass schedule.

Check it out!

Page threeSt. Anthony Catholic Church, Temperance

….Let us Pray for…. Eric Hall

Janet Harrell Gloria Hartman

Fr. John Hedges Barbara Hite

Nicholas Hochrein JoAnn Huntwork

Bill Hurley Heather Hyden

Rosemary Jacobs Gloria Knaggs

Wayne Langscheid Audrey Lawrence

Jim Lemble Judy & Gary Lowen

Sister Bernard Lynch Dick MacAdams

John Maenle Sandy Maenle Barbara Mata

Hudson Joseph Mata Tim Miller

Cameron Minney Diane Miscannon Robert Moeltner Eugene Molnar Steve Murzynski

Sue Meyers Josh Nolan

Natural Family Planning

Learn how freeing it is to know and understand how your body works

rather than being enslaved to artificial hormones. Look into Natural Family Planning (NFP). Online classes begin almost every

week. To learn more, call (313) 451-4NFP;

or visit www.live-the-love.org

Our monthly Food

Collection is the second

Sunday of each month. Please

bring non-perishable food,

personal care items, or paper products

next weekend for the less fortunate.

Please keep in your prayers all our service men and women,

especially:

AB Aaron Ford, USAF

Charlie Gunterman, USMC

Kenneth Lee Ziegler, Jr., Army

Liturgical Assignments for January 12 & 13, 2019

Mass Priest Lector Altar Servers

Saturday, 5:00pm Mass

Fr. Slaton N. Holup S. Holup

Sunday, 8:00am Mass

Fr. Slaton M. Faunt T. Dietrich; C. Oswald

Sunday, 10:00am Mass

Fr. Slaton M. Lindsey J. & T. Dollison

Sunday, 12:00pm (EF-LM)

Fr. Slaton -- R. Oehlers; T. Peterson; T. Walker

Rummage Sale pick-ups Our Rummage Sales continue to be

great successes. Much of our income is

from pick-ups from estate sales. We can

always use a few more volunteers for

these pick-ups through the year.

Please call Carol Fuelling (419) 350-

5900 if you are interested in helping or

if you have questions.

Visitation Monastery 1745 Parkside Blvd., Toledo Ohio

Holy Hour

Sunday, January 6 at 4:00pm

All are welcome!

Evening prayers (Vespers), the Rosary,

Homily and Benediction

The devotions are held each month on the

Sunday following the First Friday.

Protect your health by registering today for the 6 for Life Health Assessment for $79. Call 1-888-653-6441 or visit www.lifelinescreening.com/communitycircle or text the word circle to 797979 to schedule your appointment. Take control of your health, knowledge is empowering.

St. Anthony’s Kenna Hall

January 9, 2019

Upcoming Parish Events:

Lifeline Health Screening - January 9

K of C Breakfast - January 13

Blood Drive - February 2

LIFE LINE HEALTH SCREENING

Baptism of the Lord

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St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church Temperance, Michigan

Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,

The great feast of the Epiphany—the realization, the appearance, or the manifestation of the Lord is the source of our joy during this sacred season. As the prophet Isaiah had foretold, the light of the world has shined into the darkness and those veiled in the darkness have seen this great light. Liturgically and in pious practice, the western Church has associated this feast with the visitation of the Magi to the young Messiah. Magi, men of a mysterious and esoteric origin, people of gentile origin without any historic or ethnic claim to the revelation and salvation of God, traveled from the distant “East” to witness this light. The gentiles have come to adore the Messiah of humanity, and symbolically they present the fulfillment of the prophecy. In these mysterious figures, we see the totality of the nations being given a glimpse at the new born king who will be for all people “the Way, the Truth, and the Life.” But what say we of those who were not given the insight of the Magi? What of the legions of humanity that did not see the star that rose in the sky announcing the promised king? Moreover, what of those who saw the star and decided not to pursue the path? These are questions without easy answers. Such concerns can become haunting when they are taken out of the realm of historical speculation and become all too real and present in our family lives. Such stories have become sadly common: “Father, I raised my three boys in the faith. I sent them to Catholic school. Now all of them have left the faith.” “Father, my daughter came back from college and now she refuses to go to church with us.” “Father, we did everything we were supposed to do, and now they tell us that they don’t plan to have our grandchildren baptized.” There is no greater tragedy then when one who has seen the light turns their back on the source of light. I truly believe that such a loss is sufficient to bring the angels to tears. There has developed a common theory among some clergy that our role in such circumstance is to bring comfort. That we should speak of mercy and assure people that their love and concern for their family pales in comparison to the love of the Almighty for such misguided souls. All of this is true…until we come to the ‘therefore’. “Therefore, you need not worry. Your loved ones are following their perception of right and wrong and are fine.” Since truth and love are inseparable, I’m afraid I cannot offer such empty and deceptive consolation. Dare we hope in the mercy of God in such situations? Of course we do. We are never called to despair for the eternal destiny of others. Nevertheless, to surrender our loved ones into a state of irreligion, or find contentment in their lapsed faith is never a loving act. Yet, we also know the pain and discord that often comes when we attempt to call our loved ones back to the faith. I have often reflected upon the fact that I have never met the person who was argued into the faith. So then what path is left to us? I would begin with a simple suggestion: do not argue. I know this is asking a lot. However, we will fail to provoke any real soul searching if we drive people into defensive postures. That being said, we should also never give the impression that we are comfortable with their lack of faithfulness. We should be willing to discuss their perspectives and this does require us to listen to them and ask questions. I have found that the vast majority of people who disengage from their faith do not do so from any intellectual difficulty. Yes, they justify and defend such decisions with tactics of intellectual objections, but the problem is almost always a moral struggle. We will never be able to overcome such an obstacle with logic and rational arguments. Second: I would be sure that, whatever might come out of any such conversation, we ought to leave the exchange expressing our love for them (both to them and to ourselves). The love of Christ is not effectively spread by force or compulsion, and we must never leave the impression that our love is contingent upon their acceptance of belief. We are called to embrace and love the sinner, yet never to have an acceptance of sin.

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Third: realizing that without the grace of God the transformation of the heart is impossible; we are called to engage in spiritual combat for our loved ones. What does this look like? Well, it can take various forms. We ought to ask the Holy Spirit to guide us in our conversations with these wayward souls (even as the conversation is taking place) begging that we might become instruments of His grace. We ought to commit ourselves to regular devotional practices for the return of our loved ones to the faith, a daily rosary, the chaplet of Divine Mercy, a weekly period of prayer before our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, perhaps attending a weekday Mass once or twice a week for this intention. Making use of sacramentals is also a powerful way of obtaining the graces of conversion of heart (I hear wonderful stories about the ‘Green Scapular’). Also, we should not forget the power of personal sacrifice. Committing ourselves to offering a light fast on Fridays is an excellent practice as well as offering the sacrifice of some legitimate pleasure such as electronic entertainment or sugar. Regardless of the method we choose, we must realize that we are struggling against powerful and dark forces and that we are fighting for the souls of our loved ones. This realization should bring us to seek our own sanctification even more diligently. The more we draw close to our blessed Lord the more effective we become as an instrument of His grace. Finally, I must encourage you to patience. We all wish to see grace in action. We all have a desire to see the fruits of our efforts ripen before us. The Almighty, however, is far more aware of the nature of the human heart and when grace will be the most effective. Are we able to find contentment in the providence of God even if this means that we may not be blessed to see the workings of grace with our human eyes? Will we be satisfied if our loved ones come to faith only in the final days of their earthly lives? If such circumstances unite us with them in eternity, then I believe that we will find this reality to be more than sufficient. Keep close to your heart that we are not alone in this struggle, our Lord and our Lady are with us and in this we can have confidence. “This is good and pleasing to God our Savior, who wills everyone to be saved and come to knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:3). He does not give up on His beloved children and neither should we. However, we must also realize, in humility, that we can only cooperate with the grace of the Spirit in such circumstances. We cannot elevate the star above to point out the way to our loved ones. Nor are we capable of forcing them to see the light that beckons them to return to faith and piety. What we can do is devote ourselves to becoming a witness of the light, always willing to engage the darkness that threatens our loved ones. We can become spiritual warriors who stand ready to offer our prayers, our sacrifices, our fears, and our sufferings upon the altar of our hearts. We can assault the kingdom of Heaven with love for the salvation of those dear to us. God love you, Fr. Slaton

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Knightly News January 2019

Dedicated to keeping you informed on the activities of the Fr. John A. Kenna Knights of Columbus Council 11430

Happy New Year to you all! As we conclude the celebration of our Lord’s birth at Christmas-time I hope that

we too experienced a new birth in our relationship with Him. Unlike many of our New Year resolutions which

get tossed aside, we need to persevere in our efforts to keep us on the path to the Lord. As I get older, that

becomes the most important focus in my life. Perhaps it is the realization of our mortality that brings that into

view. Am sure that plays a major role. In reality, that should always be the primary focus of our life. For some

of us, like myself, it just takes a little longer to realize it.

Thanks for coming to our December Breakfast Buffet. A total of 142 folks enjoyed the fare. Quite a

few of those attendees were able to visit with our special guest to share their Christmas wishes. Thanks to

Kirk Shade for arranging for our special visitor. We will continue to extend the serving hours until noon for

another month to accommodate those folks attending the 10 AM Mass. If that proves not to be necessary, we will

cut back to 11:30 but for now, we will be there till noon. We look forward to seeing you all at the January

Breakfast Buffet.

We are celebrating our annual Appreciation Dinner this Saturday evening with our K of C family in

Padua Hall. This is our way of thanking our family for supporting us in our various activities.

Unfortunately for Fr. Slaton, he arrived about 10 minutes too late to claim his winnings at the January

meeting’s Attendance Game.

If you have been considering becoming a fellow Knight, this is the best time to do it. We only ask for the time

that you can give so don’t think that we will force you into more than you can spare. It is a good group of guys!!

Don’t forget to check out the kiosk in the Narthex. The booklets are all free. Why not join with your brother

Knights at this upcoming meeting? We are now meeting at 7:00 PM every first Wednesday of each month.

Ron Dressel, Past Grand Knight (734-856-2331)

The officers for 2018/2019

Grand Knight: Tim Speer Deputy Grand Knight: Michael Scott Fincl. Secretary: Brian Bischoff

Chancellor: John Gabriel Treasurer: Ron Dressel Recorder: Kirk Shade

Warden: Tom Szuba Inside Guard: Robt. Glinski Outside Guard: Mike Dressel

Advocate: Glenn Ingersoll Lecturer: Ken Dressel 3-Yr trustee: Mike Holup

2-Yr Trustee: Bob Kapela 1-Yr Trustee: Randy Shields Historian: ??

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All We Own by Joe Sixpack

I must admit, like most Americans I've been living most of my life on the materialistic side. There's nothing wrong with possessing “things” or having lots of money. In fact, I've been rich and now I'm poor, but I know which one I prefer. (HINT: It ain’t the latter.) After all, if we didn’t have fruits from our labors, there would be no way the Church could acquire what she needs to fulfill the mission given her by her Founder. Somebody has to pay the electric bill, among other things. But materialism is sort of like emotions; both will lie to you every time. When we rely on and trust in our emotions more than relying on and trusting objective realities (and God is the Great Reality), we end up devastatingly disappointed, and often times we get ourselves into trouble. Likewise, when we place trust, dependence and pride in the material things our labors have provided, we end up buying into a great big lie that causes us to fail to put God first—and rest assured that God must be first in our lives, or we’ll pay for it in the next life. Chances are that I don’t know you, but that doesn’t mean I can’t tell you a little bit about yourself. What I can tell you about yourself is, after all, just human nature, and I understand human nature. Contrary to the opinion of some, I am a human, so I can relate to human nature. What I can tell you about yourself—whether you’re a top 2% earner or living in abject poverty— is that you possess something material you wouldn’t dream of departing with. Maybe it’s a book, or a family heirloom, or a certain car, or a piece of jewelry, or a… You get the picture. You probably also dream of owning a certain thing(s) or having a set sum of money. There's nothing wrong with that under normal circumstances. It just means you’re human. And you’ve been given that ability to enjoy your possessions or dream about having other things from God. It’s His way of “wiring” us to think about the great things in store for us that Jesus promised us in the next life. But where we go awry is when “things” or money begin to be valued by us more than a relationship to our Creator. I’m merely speculating, mind you, as I can’t read what’s in anyone’s heart, but I suspect a relationship to God is way down the list of priorities for many more people than we care to admit. While I can’t read hearts, actions and words and attitudes are pretty good yardsticks to measure where hearts are at. Are you one of those folks who receive Communion then dart out the door before Father even finishes putting the sacred vessels away? Maybe you grumble about having to get ready for Sunday Mass. How many times have you skipped out on Mass altogether to do something else © Sixpack Productions #122

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or go somewhere? Do you attend Mass when you’re traveling? Of the 128 hours in your week, how many of them do you spend keeping Jesus company in the tabernacle? Hmm. Lots of interesting yardsticks, and these are just a few of the thousands we could use. A meager perusal of the Church’s teachings on the Ten Commandments provides lots of yardsticks! “You’re being judgmental again, Joe!” No, I’m not. Jesus said not to judge others (Matthew 7:1), true enough. But He also said we’ll know where hearts are by people’s fruits (Matthew 7:20). I'm just being a fruit inspector. You know, it’s been said God is a jealous God, and I believe it’s true. After all, the Church very plainly teaches the reason God created us is to know, love and serve Him in this life so we can be happy with Him in the next. Not only is He jealous, but He’s also a perfect parent. If your child is not focusing on the priorities you’ve set for him/her because there are huge distractions in the child’s life (and this is especially true of teenagers), what good parent among you wouldn’t remove that distraction for the benefit of the child you love? You get that sense of parenting as a reflection of the Perfect Parent. And rest assured, He will remove the distraction that keeps you from focusing on Him as your end-all-be-all of human existence one way or another—whether it be through loss of money or possession or… death and subsequent judgement. I know; the former happened to me. At the end of the day, you don’t possess nearly what you think you do. When it comes down to the finish line in the race of life, you really only own your soul and the virtues & vices you’ve acquired along the way. Actually, your soul isn’t a possession, but rather who you are. Virtues and vices? We’re quick to admit ownership of our virtues, but vices not so much. But believe you me, God will see to it that we all admit ownership of our vices when He calls us for our particular judgement. I don’t know about you, but that scares the daylights out of me! So it behooves us all to focus on acquiring more virtues and doing away with our vices. Believe it; individual judgement comes much quicker than we’d like to believe. I've got good news, though. This little story called Salvation History is told in a best selling book. I've read it all the way through and know how it ends. Guess what? If we persevere in making Him the focus of our lives, we win in the end. Then we can have all we desire. There'll be no more fears, no more worries, no more tears, no more pain or suffering. Even if you live in a mansion now, it will seem like a shack compared to what Jesus has prepared for those who love Him above all else. So renounce your “things” and money as your priorities and focus on ridding yourself of your vices—even the little bitty ones—and let’s all work toward living in eternity together. Once again, that’s What We Believe… Why We Believe It.

If you have questions on this or anything else about the Catholic faith, go to JoeSixpackAnswers.com to get your questions answered. If you can’t find the answers you need,

go to the “Ask Joe” page to ask me directly. I'm always available to you.

© Sixpack Productions #122