Very nice article, Mary Jane.
Mary Jane is a classmate from the Chant Institute last summer.
Back in my music days I used all sort of music from many styles. I am a composer and I composed music in many forms and genres. But I always used the psalms and the scriptures. I am curious as to when everthing turned around and the texts became so self-centered. It was not Vatican II that geve us permission for these texts.
"everything in the liturgy on Friday has been reviewed and blessed by the Bishop's office."
It's official. I was sent the plans for the opening and closing liturgies for the ICM. The opening hymn for the Opening Liturgy is a Haugen Classic that is all about us. It might be about the effect that God has on the Almighty US, but it is not about God or addressed to God.
The Closing Liturgy begins with some outright heresy. I am not trying to judge Hanh or Buddhists. They have a certain dignity and right to their beliefs. This, however has no place in the Liturgy.
From the writings of Thick Nhat Hanh:
“Our true home is in the present moment,
To live in the present moment is a miracle.
The miracle is not to walk on water.
The miracle is to walk on the green earth in the present moment,
To appreciate the peace and beauty that are available now.
Peace is all around us-
In the world and in nature-
And within us-
In our bodies and our spirits.
Once we learn to touch this peace,
We will be healed and transformed.”
Just for beginners, our true home is in heaven. And the walking on water was a significant moment revealing that Jesus is God. In this liturgy, however, we are invited to find truth within, and so are invited to deny or ignore the revealed living Word that is Jesus the Christ, the living Son of God.
Oh, that's right, it is is Sunday liturgy. I will have to go look and see if they included the Creed.
[UPDATE] The Creed is part of the liturgy plan, and the Hanh quote has just been added to my homily.
When he interviewed me I thought it might end up on one of those Sunday features hidden among the comments. I was suprised to find it in the Local section during this morning's coffee break.
The article is here.
We have a new website at the parish, thanks very much to the hard work of Gerardo. There are still a few bugs but I think it is beautiful. We will slowly begin to build some of the pages.
Check it out here.
I will be a way for a few days at the Incernational Council Meeting for Retrouvaille.
I may get an opportunity to blog from the Hotel, but it will be very busy. Pray for me as I have to endure (must be time for penance) a modern liturgy prepared by some expert liturgists. These have been pretty delightful conventions but I have always found the liturgy dreadful, especially the ones where I am the presider.
First, I want to thank everyone for taking the time to be here this evening. I am grateful that so many wish to focus on the parish and on its future. We have a rich history and it is because so many dedicated priests and laity worked together to make this a vibrant center for worship and for service.
Catholics have a right and duty to express their opinion on what pertains to the good of the Church. The Pastoral Council exists so that the parishioners have a place to make their voice heard for the good of their parish. I have a great hope for this council because I know that there is a storehouse of wisdom in the experience of the parishioners who worship here, and I want to give the parishioners a sense of responsibility for their parish that will endure long after I have moved on to my next assignment.
The purpose of the parish pastoral council is to investigate pastoral matters, to consider them thoroughly, and to propose practical conclusions about them. The council's task is, first of all, to study those matters brought to its attention and shed light on them. Its second task is to reflect on them thoroughly, to discern their true nature, to evaluate and to ponder them. Its final task is to draw sound conclusions. The council presents these conclusions to the pastor and the pastoral team in the form of recommendations. This threefold task of the council-investigating, considering, and recommending conclusions-is called pastoral planning. After the Pastor and the Pastoral Team have accepted the recommendations of the council, they direct their implementation. Council members may assist the Pastor and Team, but strictly speaking, implementation is the responsibility of the pastor and the Pastoral Team, not the council. The cooperation between the Council and the Team can become the heart of a large parish directed toward the worship of God and the building up of the reign of God.
The Council will meet once a month. They may decide among themselves to meet more often or less often. The will have homework, where they seek to gain a greater knowledge of the parish and its people, and its needs. They will be visible in the parish, both on Sundays and during other significant parish events. Tonight we shall choose through a discernment process 12 members for the new Pastoral Council. This is not a popularity contest and there will be no losers tonight. The parish certainly is the biggest winner when generous people choose to offer their gifts for the common good. We have future plans for a building committee, development committee and a liturgy Commission. Certainly people with the gifts we need are going to find a home on those teams and certainly may be available for the next discernment in three years.
We are a very large parish with many groups. There is always something going on here. There is such a great diversity here as many of our parishioners have come from other lands. Sometimes our diversity can bring a chuckle to those of us who work here. Just last Saturday I heard the complaint that the church was too cold, that was just five minutes after hearing it was too hot. And certainly we know that the Organ was too fast and too slow at the same liturgy. All of this difference can sometimes make us narrow. This was certainly the case with the couple getting married who wanted nothing else to happen on the parish plant during the wedding. It is important that we hear from everyone, and that we have a council who has what is best for the parish in their heart.
The Holy Eucharist is at the heart of our parish. The Sacred Liturgy is our principal gathering place, and our attention to the living Word of God forms us as a community. Our new Council will be called to listen to the Universal Church and to the desire of our people as they articulate a vision for our Liturgical Celebrations and our Music program.
Our children and young people are not the future of the Church, they are the present, and they are an important part of the church today. This new Council will provide the vision and the recommendations that will maximize their participation in the Liturgy and in the life of the parish.
Our parish is larger than we know. Many of those who bring their children here for Faith formation do not attend St. Edward because they find a Sunday Mass in Spanish elsewhere. The New Council will help us examine our programs so that we find a place and a way to offer Mass in Spanish on Sunday. This may stretch the boundaries of hospitality for all of us, but that is why this council is so important, so that we are able to listen to many voices.
This need points out the inadequacies of our parish plant. We need to chart our path into the future and make sure that the needs of the people are considered. This council will be given the task of advising the Team in the best way to begin and will help us present the needs as possible solutions to the parish.
Financially we are in the same place we were last year at this time when I arrived. We have severe cash flow shortages and we are unable to pay all our bills. Expenses increase every year with inflation, but the collection does not do the same. We will study many ways to trim expenses without further cutting services. At the same time I have separated the capital campaign from the parish income so that we begin to do some saving for the future. We have almost $40,000 saved now, but it is going to take much more to build for the future.
This new Council is chosen for three years. Each September the council will sponsor a parish assembly in order to report on their progress and hear your suggestions. Three years from now we will hold this four session Assembly again to hear from the Council their report on the completion of their work, set new goals and choose a new council to carry this work into the future.
As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. We shall do this as a Parish of generous hospitality, universal participation, and faithful devotion. We are confident that with the generous gifts of so many volunteers, and especially the New Pastoral Council, we will be able to work together in the service of the Lord, his Church and all his people, called to be deeply participative, non-aggressive or confrontational, but in sincere cooperation, deeply loving one another so that we are the Body of Christ with many different gifts, and so effective in charity that we will be a message to ourselves and to the world the Christianity still works.
...is Tori's first birthday. The Staff is holding a BBQ in her honor.
After shaving it took nearly an hour to stop the flow of blood, finally got it done so I could go celebrate 6:45am mass, Team photo shoot happened on time but photographer was not ready for us and the photo looks ridiculous, discovered a local rap group used an image of the church for their album cover(a caution, violent lyrics, parental advisory but the link is here.) and the dog is acting strange. It is a aproaching noon and I am still trying to get breakfast. Plus, I have a charismatic funeral this afternoon. I thought the full moon was last week.
I came to this community impressed with its spirituality of Covenant. Well, now in the church the covenant is being undermined by a great deal of ignorance. To ask for the ordination of women is as unsuitable, inappropriate and unseemly as a bride at the wedding feast insisting on being the bridegroom.
I am in a quandary. Apparently the recent Precious Blood Congress set as one of its goals that the PBLC draft a letter appealing to U.S. bishops to address the “grave issue within our church of millions deprived of the Eucharist.” Sounds like code language for women's ordination to me.
We have six deacons here. They generally do a fine job. One of them preaches every Friday. Today he preached in favor of women's ordination. He will not be preaching again any time soon.
You are St Brigid's Cross: St. Brigid is an Irish
saint who hand-wove a cross,out of rushes she
found by the river. She made the cross while
explaining the passion of our Lord to a pagan
man.
What Kind of Cross are You?
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Mom's 80th Birthday
