Weekend of 04 and 05 August 2007
- From: "Fr. Pat Umberger" <frpat@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Fr. Pat Umberger" <frpat@xxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 28 Jul 2007 11:18:20 -0500
.=: T H I S W E E K E N D :=.
from Father Pat Umberger
___________________________________________________
J O I N S I S T E R J O S E L D A A N D M E
EARLY SIGN-UP DEADLINE EXTENDED TO MONDAY!
A great Pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
04-15 November 2007
WE HAVE MET OUR GOAL OF 36 TRAVELERS!
There has been a lot of activity, with eighteen people signing up for the
Pilgrimage in the past three days!
We ran out of air space from Minneapolis to JFK in New York, but Gary has
been able to procure ten more seats temporarily, at an additional cost of
only $15. So the new price from Minneapolis is $2614.
Early Sign-Up Deadline HAS BEEN EXTENDED THROUGH MONDAY, 30 JULY!
Sign up now and save $100!
WE HAVE ROOM FOR ONLY 14 MORE TRAVELERS!
$2614 from Minneapolis or $2499 from JFK in New York!
Land only price (meet us in the Holy Land) is $1826.
It will be necessary for you to call Pentecost Tours to register: 800
713-9800 Feel free to call me if you have questions! My personal Cell Phone
number
is: 608 769-0042
Now is a great time to sign up! The brochure and full information, including
hotel links, is on-line.
Follow the link from: www.frpat.com
If you will be joining us, let me know as soon as you can so I can keep
track of the group!
___________________________________________________
.=: V O L U M E 2 0 0 7 , Number 08-06 :=.
.=: T H I S W E E K E N D ' S S C R I P T U R E S :=.
Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C.
Weekend of 05 and 06 August 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 :=.
"If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts." What does it mean to
harden our hearts to God's voice?
"Think of what is above, not of what is on earth." What are the things of
earth that are the most distracting to us? In the long run, how much can
they benefit us? What do we lose when we focus on the things of earth?
"Put to death, then, the parts of you that are earthly: immorality,
impurity, passion, evil desire, and the greed that is idolatry." What
changes does this call us to make? Can we trust that God will be with us as
we strive to make these changes?
"Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcision and uncircumcision,
barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all and in all." Our
prejudices are "earthly." Which ones are the most difficult for us to give
up? Which ones are we unwilling to give up?
"Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one's
life does not consist of possessions." What part do possessions play in our
lives? Is that part too big? If life doesn't consist of possessions, what
does it consist of? When have we found that obtaining possessions hasn't
been helpful to us?
"'You fool, this night your life will be demanded of you; and the things you
have prepared, to whom will they belong?" If our life ended this night,
what possessions would be helpful to us? What would be helpful to us?
"Thus will it be for all who store up treasure for themselves but are not
rich in what matters to God." What are the things that matter to God?
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 :=.
I once saw a cartoon that showed a house. Pianos, stereos and all kinds of
things were flying out of the windows toward the heavens. Cars and boats
were flying from the driveway as well. The caption said, "He's taking it
with him!"
Isn't it amazing, the place possessions play in our lives. We can work so
hard to have the things that we believe will make us happy. We can work
extra hours and take extra jobs so our families can have the things we'd
like them to have. Often, that's at the expense of spending time enjoying
our families. They can lose what they need the most in order to have what
they need the least.
Both our second reading and Gospel this weekend challenge us to focus on
things above rather than the things this world offers. When our earthly
lives come to an end, its unlikely that we'll take any possessions along
with us. Even accumulating wealth for our families is not necessarily
helpful. We can see families that are divided because of an inheritance, or
that stop achieving because it's not as necessary any more. It's not wrong
for us to enjoy the things of this world. It's dangerous though, when we
allow them to become too important.
Sometimes we measure our self-worth by how much we have or how many things
we own. In my experience though, those who are the happiest and most
fulfilled are those who have few material comforts. They're the ones who
make the time to enjoy their families and friends. They don't tromp
mercilessly over others in order to climb to a higher place. They make the
time to help others along the way.
How fortunate we are to have had ancestors who gave us so many good things.
They provided food, shelter and lots of love. Even in difficult times, they
seemed to be able to provide what we needed. They built churches and
schools for us and for our children. They did these things even though
times were tough. The word "money" was less important to them than the
words "kids, God and faith." We have opportunities to emulate their example.
We can sacrifice some material things in order to build our relationships
with our family members. We can be sure we pass on wonderful things to our
children, things of faith!
This week we can reflect on the things that are really important. We can
listen for the words "kids, God and faith" when we consider what is
important. We can notice too, how easy it is to speak only about "hard
times" and "money." As we hear in this weekend's Scriptures, "Take care to
guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one's life does not
consist of possessions." "You fool, this night your life will be demanded
of you; and the things you have prepared, to whom will they belong?"
We can devote ourselves to the things that will last. We can seek God's
will and do God's work without dwelling on the cost. That's what our
parents and grandparents did for us. That's the kind of legacy we can leave
for our children and grandchildren. 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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