![]() Dear Parish Family, As I was reading over our readings, I could not help but notice how appropriate and relevant the readings are for what is happening in our world today. With our political climate and so much division, fighting over what is right (legally) and what is just (humanely)! Though it may seem that it is the same thing, it is not always the case. In Jesus’ times social codes and boundaries were strict, many people were excluded and seen as having lesser value or dignity; women and children were among the most vulnerable and unprotected. Still today, we see this mistreatment and exclusion of our fellow man, especially with our immigrant brothers and sisters at our southern border. Though the laws and society may have their rules of what is acceptable in the treatment of others, as followers of Christ, this is where we listen to his words, his example, and follow in his steps, so that we will do what is right and just. In our Gospel, Martha is conditioned by the existing social codes and boundaries of her society, woman’s place was to take care of the household, be servants to the need of the men and family. This is why Martha complains and asks Jesus to intervene. To Martha’s surprise Jesus defends Mary, “Mary has chosen the better part and it will not be taken from her.” Mary breaks through that boundary and becomes a disciple of Jesus. To love God with all one’s heart and one’s neighbor at times requires breaking some of society’s rules. The Kingdom of God is a society without distinctions and boundaries between its members. It is a society that requires times for seeing and doing and also times for listening and learning at the feet of a teacher. Our Psalm today clearly reminds us we should live our lives with truth, justice, harm not our fellow man, accept no bribe against the innocent. “He who does justice will live in the presence of the Lord.” Don’t get me wrong, I am not saying we should not follow the laws. Many of our laws, rules and limitations are good for us; they keep us safe and healthy. However, at times we must question if the laws are fair and just. Are these boundaries used to unfairly exclude and separate and dehumanize the children of God? Are we following the commandment, “Love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself”? May we always seek to live in the presence of the Lord. Siempre Adelante, Tere Delgado Faith Formation Minister 7/12/2019 Youth Ministry Appeal![]() Dear Faith Family, Our peer leaders in Youth and Young Adult ministry do so much for our programs. The dedication level of these leaders is so tremendous; here is a sample schedule of the weekly commitment that they give to our parishioners in the winter.
Some of you may be asking, why would they be willing to commit so much time? The answer is quite simple: They are disciples. The servant leadership that our leaders show far exceeds any example that I can give in my talks in Confirmation and Youth Group. Our leaders are the ones who sit down and share real life examples of how to live their faith. These leaders also pay out of their own pocket to help at and to attend retreats. It’s not just their time they are sacrificing. It is also sad to say that some leaders cannot attend some of our events, simply because they can’t afford it. These events can be costly, typically hundreds of dollars for a weekend. We also are excited to have our first service project in Louisiana this year, which as you can imagine, is also quite costly. If you are feeling generous, we would love your support in sponsoring our leaders and Confirmation candidates in a scholarship fund. It is through your generosity that a lot of leaders may be able to go. If you are interested in contributing to this fund I know they would be eternally grateful. I talk about our leaders quite a bit and I believe that it is justified. The leaders have not only helped hundreds of teens on their faith journeys, but they have helped me to understand what the love of God is personally. Thank you so much for your time and generosity. God Bless, Brett Becker Youth and Young Adult Minister 7/6/2019 Sending Out![]() Dear friends on the journey, Today’s gospel message is about sending out. Jesus has been preparing the Twelve and many others to witness to himself and his ministry. The seventy-two are being sent out to evangelize, by sharing the good news of Jesus. He describes the conditions to which they’re going, gives them specific instructions on what to bring (or not), and tasks them with a mission: bring peace and cure the sick. The mission involves sacrifice, trust, patience, and faith. Jesus also tasks us his modern day disciples with a mission that can be summed up a few verses later in chapter 10. When Jesus is asked what is required to inherit eternal life, he responds with the simple and yet complex commandment: You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your being, with all your strength, and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself (Lk 10:27). “And your neighbor as yourself.” How do we do that today, individually and as a community? So many ways! Individually we are called to bring Jesus and be Jesus for our immediate family, neighbors, coworkers, friends, and strangers in our daily path. The parish community is another way to live out our missionary call individually and especially collectively. Our parish is rich with many opportunities to bring the mission of love to others. The Holy Spirit has called forth many individuals to engage in ministry and even start a ministry. I love watching the development of grass roots ministry. Someone sees a need then does something. This happened with our caregiver, cancer and divorce support groups, Career Transitions, Seeds of Faith, PAX Christi, Social Spanish, and so many more. I am excited to share that today we launch another such ministry of love … our new Military Family Ministry (MFM). In recent years we recognized the growing number of military families attending our parish, rather quietly, and their unique life. Two military bases are situated in our county so we set out to learn more by meeting with the chaplains at both bases, sharing our experience thus far, and learned more about military life in general and the spiritual care in place at both bases. The Holy Spirit then got to work bringing together a small group of Catholic military persons under the leadership of Dave Gutierrez and Victor Maxion to brainstorm and vision what more we could do as a parish family to love these military families for the time they are here. When I think about how military members are sent out around the world with a mission, a task and often times with great sacrifice for themselves and their families, I am even more convinced that our parish has now been called and sent to minister in a special way to the men, women, spouses and children of the military, right here in our own mission territory of Ventura County. If you’re an active or reserve member of the military, we’d love to meet you after Mass today. Stop by the courtyard table to meet Dave, Victor and the team. We love you and thank you! Siempre Adelante, Teresa Runyon Faith Life Minister 6/28/2019 Standing on Others’ Shoulders![]() Some years ago, one of the computer technicians assisting the parish shared that his family had been Mormon for almost 200 years. It stopped me in my tracks. For the first time, I considered just how long my own family had been Catholic. There is no way to fill in the historical gaps over the millennia involved. I can only guess that I have a long line of alternately spiritually devout and apathetic ancestors, both saints and sinners, and probably many that were both saintly and sinners. The fact remains that both family lines, three quarters Irish and one quarter Italian, are from areas that have had a consistently Catholic tenor to them. The Sicilian part of the family could have come to faith as early as the 2nd or 3rd Century. It’s hard to know as my family might also have participated in one of the many invasions of Sicily that happened later. Most of Ireland came to the faith by the 6th Century. I responded to the technician that, to the best of my knowledge, most of my family had probably been Catholic for between 1,500 and 1,700 years. Those numbers caused both of us to pause for a moment. We all have our own history, and a greater or lesser openness to influence from ancestors, parents and peers. As far back as I know anything of my grandparents and great-grandparents, that I am the product of a short line of loving and good predecessors…and a physically abusive alcoholic grandfather. That’s the human story, isn’t it? This July 1st, we’re celebrating the fourth year since the canonization of Junipero Serra. He was himself, a richly gifted and heroically good figure, with a shadow side. His mission system both shared the faith with, and dominated the lives of, the native peoples of California that he came to serve. His missions have influenced the architecture of our buildings and the names of our cities, counties and streets. Our visions of “old California” are colored by memories of Spanish rodeos and tri-tip barbacoa. Our farms still grow produce and wines first introduced by his confreres. We stand, sometimes awkwardly, on his shoulders. Our past should inform our present. Serra came to a world that had not heard of the faith; we live in a world where people question faith’s utility in their lives. Like Serra, we have to find ways to proclaim the beauty and goodness of what we believe for others’ benefit. Like him, too, we will probably stumble in living out consistently all the best values of our beliefs. At our weakest moments, our own lives may get in the way of what we want the world to know of the Lord, our heart’s desire. ![]() Our inability to do things perfectly should not get in the way of our willingness to try, even with enthusiasm, to accomplish the good we can do. God preserve us from our own worst instincts. God grant us the insight to know our world’s deepest needs and hungers, and the generosity to respond to and answer them. God forgive us when we err. God give us the courage to pick ourselves right back up and keep on trying. Lord knows, until this world’s end, that there are, perhaps, generations waiting to stand on our shoulders to accomplish their own great deeds (and errors). On this weekend, closest to our patron’s feast, I wish you every joy! Siempre adelante! Fr. Patrick ![]() This Sunday we celebrate The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. The three readings today are threaded together through food and drink with words we hear from the Last Supper. The first reading from Genesis has Melchizedek offering “bread and wine.” In the second reading St. Paul references the Eucharistic Prayer and in Luke’s Gospel Christ takes five loaves and two fish “and looking up to heaven, said the blessing over them, broke them and gave them to the disciples.” In the ancient Greek world before Christ, the Greek mother god Demeter was reverenced for giving the gift of grain to the world through sacrifice. Grain was considered a power for salvation while the Greek god of wine Dionysus identified death by the blood of the grape to make wine to give new life. The history of God’s journey of love for his children winds through the imagery of God creating the grain and the grape. When we bring the gifts of bread and wine to the altar, we are bringing the toils and stories of our lives to Christ to become Christ, as an offering for us, for our salvation. Jesus is the incarnational indwelling sent by God to feed us eternal life. It is all part of the continued love story of God given for our transformation. Fr. Richard Rohr in his book The Universal Christ writes, “Jesus did not come to change God’s mind about us. Jesus came to change our minds about God.” God loves us relentlessly. In the breaking of the bread Christ’s love is multiplied over and over again. It is in the sharing of the broken bread that we are a part of the Body of Christ sharing our own brokenness to open our hearts to God and each other. We are all in communion with the truth of Christ’s rising in the bread and wine to heal our own sorrows and brokenness to live forever with the Father. When we hear today in the Eucharistic prayer “this is my body and this is my blood” we are to hear Christ inviting us to take him in……all of him. It has been said when we taste a sip of the ocean all of the ocean is now inside of us. So too with Christ in Holy Communion……we take all of him inside of us. We are then a tabernacle for Christ inside of us. Do we know that? Do we live that? Deacon Jack Redmond |
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