Dear Friends,
We are going to celebrate the feast of Our Mother of Perpetual Help tomorrow, Thursday at the 6.00pm Mass. The mass will be preceded by a Biblical Rosary starting at 5.30pm.
When the pandemic began, we priests started our devotion to Our Mother of Perpetual Help, praying for her intercession every day, dedicating our parish communities of CTK and St. Stephen to her maternal intercession, asking for protection from Covid 19 and other hardships that come from this pandemic.
I am happy to report that our community has been blessed during this time. I have done many funerals for folks who died from Covid 19, but I am not aware of anyone from CTK or St. Stephen community who contracted the disease and died. Some of our parishioners with underlying medical conditions who contracted the disease had a very mild version of the disease. I would like to invite you to join us in our festivities tomorrow in honor of Our Mother of Perpetual Help. “There is no one, however wicked, whom Mary does not save by her intercession when she wishes. He who has recourse to Mary shall be saved.” - St. Alphonsus Maria Liguori
I would like to turn our attention to another dis-ease plaguing our church at this time - disunity and polarization.
Over the past many days, I have received letters, emails and text messages that expressed anger, disagreement and in some cases, wanting nothing more to do with the bishops or even the church over the current issues regarding communion to persons perceived at odds with our doctrines.
Someone called the office wanting to know how our own bishop has voted with regard to denying communion to people in public office. Personally, it is the most difficult time of my own personal calling as a priest, as I see myself more and more confronting ideologies and issues that emerge from peoples’ political beliefs rather than the teachings and example of the historical Jesus, who lived in our midst and exhibited nothing but compassion. I am always encouraged and shaped by the Jesus of the Gospels who chose to eat more with sinners than with saints. His own actions demonstrated that inclusion was one of the most efficacious vehicles of conversion and unity.
I have tried always to go back into the Upper Room for my own understanding of the Eucharist, as instituted by Jesus. The Upper Room reminds us of service, fraternity, sharing, harmony, peace, promise, but also of pettiness, curiosity, and betrayal.
The Upper Room represents the most beautiful part of being a Christian and, especially, of being a priest: becoming a friend of the Lord Jesus. Pope Francis would describe the Upper Room in these terms, “How much love and goodness has flowed from the Upper Room! How much charity has gone forth from here, like a river from its source, beginning as a stream and then expanding and becoming a great torrent?”
Jesus would wash the feet of the disciples including the one who was about to betray him. And then he would take a morsel of bread, one that He has declared as His own body, and dip it in his own cup filled with wine, the one He had declared His own blood and give it to Judas.
It was the ultimate act of affection without judgment. Again and again, Jesus would appeal to Judas’ dark heart, and again and again, Judas remained unmoved.
The fact is that our Lord and Savior would not deny Judas His own body and blood. That is truly love. Eucharist is all about love. I hope and pray that our bishops will come to the right decision about the Eucharist without negating love and causing division.
I want to be very clear that I absolutely support life from conception to natural death. I believe that abortion is intrinsically evil. I also believe that declaring the abortion issue as a pre-eminent issue does not condone other evils in our society or for that matter even what we consider insignificant. To be a Christian means to be holy, and nothing is outside the purview of perfection.
Remember that love transcends all. I am hoping that our church will send a consistent message of holiness or perfection.
More than 73% of the U.S. bishops casting ballots at a virtual conference this week supported tasking the USCCB's doctrine committee to draft language on maintaining consistency with the Eucharist. A section of the document is expected to include a specific admonition to Catholic politicians and other public figures who disobey church teaching on abortion and other core doctrinal issues.
Approval of a final document would need the support of two-thirds of bishops. Whatever the outcome of the final decision, it would still be up to the individual bishop to decide how to implement it in his own diocese. Right now, all we have is what we read and hear from the media. I would ask you to be patient and wait for the document before making any personal decision.
Catholics, in general, are divided on party lines over whether President Biden should receive communion: 55% of Catholic Republicans think he should be denied communion, and 87% of Catholic Democrats think he should be able to receive communion, according to Pew Research.
Let us continue our fervent prayers for our bishops in the meanwhile, and for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit during these months leading up to November. Remember, our faith is a person, Jesus Christ and His Word and His example.
Blessings,
Fr. Paulson