<TW>Weekend of 22 and 23 May 2010
- From: "Fr. Pat Umberger" <frpat@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Fr. Pat Umberger" <frpat@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 15 May 2010 19:20:36 -0500
.=: T H I S W E E K E N D :=.
from Father Pat Umberger
__________________________________________________
T H I R T Y Y E A R S
Thirty years ago, on 16 May 1980 I was Ordained a priest. Some of us will
gather to celebrate today. Please keep me in your prayers, along with the
people of my Parish, Aquinas Middle School and the people of the many
parishes I've served the past 30 years. Immaculate Heart of Mary, West
Allis, WI as a Deacon, St. Mary in Burlington, St. Mary (Central) High
School/Burlington, St. James/La Crosse, St. Patrick/Mauston, St.
Jerome/Wonewoc, St. Teresa/Union Center, St. Patrick/Elroy, St.
Bronislava/Plover, Holy Family/Arcadia, St. John/Whitehall, St. Ansgar,
Blair, St. Patrick/Onalaska, Aquinas Middle School/La Crosse.
I R E L A N D 2 0 1 0
$2799 from O'Hare, $2859 from La Crosse
18-28 October 2010 - Map of trip is now at the Web Site BROCHURE & SIGN-UP
SHEET ARE NOW ONLINE! - SIGN UP NOW!
For the Itinerary for the trip. Follow the link from HYPERLINK
www.frpat.com www.frpat.com for details. Brochures are available at the
entrances of Saint Pat's Church as well. Hotels have been chosen and links
are at the Web Site. Air Space has now been reserved from La Crosse, WI and
O'Hare Airport in Chicago. It will be a non-stop flight on American Airlines
from O'Hare to Dublin. 18 or fewer seats from La Crosse are available. If
you're interested visit my Web Site and sign up for informational e-mails.
HYPERLINK www.frpat.com www.frpat.com
Become a fan of: Ireland 2010 with Fr. Pat Umberger on Facebook.
.=: V O L U M E 2 0 1 0 , Number 05-23 :=.
.=: T H I S W E E K E N D ' S S C R I P T U R E S :=.
The Feast of Pentecost, Year C.
Weekend of 22 and 23 May 2010
.=: R E F L E C T I O N Q U E S T I O N S :-.
The Scriptures for this weekend are found here:
www.nccbuscc.org/nab
"And suddenly there came from the sky a noise like a strong driving wind,
and it filled the entire house in which they were. Then there appeared to
them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them.
And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in
different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim." Take a few
minutes and simply imagine this scene. What do you think the effect was on
the disciples? What effect would it have on you?
The Holy Spirit took away the fear of the disciples. They could leave the
place where they were and fearlessly carry on. In what areas are we afraid?
How would things change in our lives if we were fearless? Can we trust that
the Holy Spirit is with us just as it was with the disciples?
"We hear them speaking in our own tongues of the mighty acts of God." Who
are the people who don't seem to speak our own tongue? Not just a different
language ... but those we find it difficult to understand. What common
"tongue" could we use? Is it possible to break through the language
barrier? How?
"As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body,
though many, are one body, so also Christ." What part do we play in the
body of Christ? What part are we called to play? How can we summon the
courage to do that?
Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so
I send you." Imagine being completely filled with peace? How would we do
things differently if we were filled with that kind of peace? What does the
Father send us to do? Will we respond to that mission this week? How?
How are these Scriptures comforting? Challenging?
.=: S P I R I T U A L R E F L E C T I O N :=.
Fear. Isn't it a nasty word? We can be afraid of many things, from noises
in the night to our own physical death. There are many things in the world
that can harm us and those we love. Sometimes we are cautious. Sometimes
we are so cautious that we do nothing at all.
In our Gospel reading this weekend, Jesus' disciples are locked in a room
for fear of the Jews. The danger was real. The Jews could easily kill them
as they killed Jesus. Jesus had ascended to the Father and they weren't
sure where to turn or what to do. There was some strength in numbers, so
they stayed together.
And all of a sudden Jesus stood in their midst. In the Pentecost account in
the first reading we hear how a strong driving wind filled the house where
they were, and how tongues of fire came to rest over their heads. They were
filled with the Holy Spirit! What an awesome experience that must have
been. It's hard to imagine the power that filled them. They were so
permeated by the Holy Spirit that there was no room for fear. They could
leave that room and continue Jesus' work. It wasn't that the danger was
gone, but there were things more important to accomplish than to huddle
together in fear.
They became aware of many things, including the fact that people were not so
very different from one another. They had the ability to hear others
speaking in their own language. Barriers fell and they began to treat those
who had earlier seemed so different from them as sisters and brothers. They
came to see that they were all part of the same body, the Body of Christ.
Each one had a part to play. There was no need to compete, simply to offer
what they had and to benefit from the gifts shared by others.
Jesus said to them, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send
you." They were filled with Christ's peace, and the good will that
energized them. They had so much to share. The barriers to doing that were
gone. They were sent to do the Father's work.
We too, are sent. Sometimes fear can hold us back from becoming what we
could be, or sharing the gifts God has blessed us with. Sometimes the
differences we perceive in others can stop us from getting to know them.
Sometimes our hardness of heart and anger can take from us the peace God
wants us to have. We are called to open our hands and our hearts and
receive those same gifts God gave Jesus' disciples. We are called to do the
Father's work.
This week we can take a look at our fears and pray for the willingness to
let go of them, and to let God fill that place within us with God's peace
and strength. We can consider those we see as different from ourselves and
try to hear them speak our language. We can invite the Lord into the areas
of our hardness of heart and anger that we might be filled with the peace
God wants us to have. That should be plenty for us to do. Lord, send out
your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth! Have a good week!
(c)MMX Fr. Pat Umberger. This Spiritual Reflection is found each week at
the Web Site www. frpat.com. Feel free to link to this page or reproduce
them for parish use as long as this credit remains.
__________________________________________________
<TW>This Weekend is free, and comes from:
Father Pat Umberger, a priest of the Diocese of La Crosse
in Wisconsin U.S.A.
Web Site: www.frpat.com
Evangelization (reaching out): www.cmonback.com
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