<TW>Weekend of 29 and 30 September 2007
- From: "Fr. Pat Umberger" <frpat@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Fr. Pat Umberger" <frpat@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 22 Sep 2007 10:05:20 -0500
.=: T H I S W E E K E N D :=.
from Father Pat Umberger
___________________________________________________
F A M I L Y A N D F R I E N D S
Encourage them to Subscribe to Morning Prayer!
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members and friends. Many seem to enjoy the new format. Some say that they
like to attend Daily Mass, but cannot always do so. Morning Prayer keeps
them in touch with the daily Scriptures and Saint of the day. Not all
priests preach on all weekdays. Morning Prayer provides a short reflection
and a concrete way to apply Scriptures to our lives. Clergy too, appreciate
the simple ideas found in both Morning Prayer and This Weekend. Family
members and friends can learn more by following the banner link from:
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F A M I L Y F U N F E S T
St. Pat's annual Fall Fun Fest is October 13th. There will be food,
entertainment and fun for people of all ages. There are also Raffle Tickets
available. If you live close to us, why not join us. Or, perhaps you'd
like to help us by purchasing some raffle tickets. You can learn more at:
www.stpatz.com
J O I N S I S T E R J O S E L D A A N D M E
A great Pilgrimage to the Holy Land - 04-15 November 2007!
Several seats are still available.
$2714 from Minneapolis or $2599 from JFK in New York!
Follow the link from:
www.frpat.com________________________________________________
.=: V O L U M E 2 0 0 7 , Number 09-30 :=.
.=: T H I S W E E K E N D ' S S C R I P T U R E S :=.
Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C.
Weekend of 29 and 30 September 2007
Follow this link for this weekend's Scriptures:
www.nccbuscc.org/nab/
.=: R E F L E C T I O N Q U E S T I O N S :=.
"Woe to the complacent in Zion! Lying upon beds of ivory, stretched
comfortably on their couches, they eat lambs taken from the flock, and
calves from the stall!" What does it mean to be complacent? When are we
the most complacent? How complacent can we afford to be?
"Therefore, now they shall be the first to go into exile, and their wanton
revelry shall be done away with." When in history has this happened? How
can we make sure it doesn't happen to us?
"Blessed he who keeps faith forever, secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets captives free." How can we secure
justice? Can there be lasting peace if people aren't treated with justice?
Who are the captives who we need to set free?
"But you, man of God, pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience,
and gentleness. Compete well for the faith." We can imagine that Paul is
speaking these things of us. How would our lives have to change for that to
be appropriate?
"And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, who
would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps that fell from the rich man's
table. Dogs even used to come and lick his sores." Who are the poor that
lie at our door? How would we be able to help? Why don't we?
"Then Abraham said, 'If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded if someone should rise from the dead.'" What
will it take to wake us up? Do we truly listen to Moses and the prophets?
Do we sometimes become more serious about our faith if we're upset or
afraid?
How are these readings challenging? Comforting?
(c)MMVII Fr. Pat Umberger. These Reflection Questions are 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.
.=: S P I R I T U A L R E F L E C T I O N :=.
"Woe to the complacent in Zion! Lying upon beds of ivory, stretched
comfortably on their couches, they eat lambs taken from the flock, and
calves from the stall!" In this weekend's readings we hear about what
happens when we are complacent. When we have what we need it's easy for us
to forget about the needs of others.
We can hear about the poor and oppressed and perhaps give a dollar or a
prayer. We can hear about people who are starving and decide that there's
not much we can do about it. We can hear about people or groups of people
who are treated unjustly. As long as it doesn't touch us and our families
we can try to insulate ourselves and try to believe that it isn't real, or
that it isn't so bad.
As we allow injustice to thrive and grow we allow great danger to come
closer and closer to ourselves and our families. We can participate too, as
we repeat jokes and stories about people or groups of people. We can
function mostly as people who look after ourselves. We can hold on to what
we "might need some day" even when we see people around me whose children
are starving.
Does those words sound like the words of a Christian? Jesus lived his life
among the poor and destitute. His best friends were those who admitted
their need for God. They were the poor, the widowed, the orphaned, the tax
collectors and prostitutes of the world. The rich were lying upon their
beds of ivory, stretched comfortably on their couches. They didn't have the
time or energy to be concerned with others. It suited them to create a
world where everything revolved around themselves.
In times of crisis in our country we have learned that it's very hard for us
to make it on our own. We have seen people come together in many ways. We
have seen heroic and selfless acts. Our country has become better because
of it. When we see how little control we have, it can be natural for us to
look around ourselves for help.
God provides that help. God has been there waiting all the while. Unlike
the rich man in our Gospel reading this weekend, we still have time. Lazarus
may be lying at our door. Injustice may reign ... even within our families,
our workplace or our community. We can wake up and follow the gentle call
of the Lord.
This week we can examine our complacence. We can consider those things that
we rely on for comfort and safety. We can uproot those stumbling blocks
from our lives. We can wake up and work more fervently for the things that
really matter. May God bless us and our leaders as we ponder the best ways
to bring about justice during this time of crisis. May we seek the will of
God as we make those important decisions. Have a good week!
(c)MMVII 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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