Monday, April 5, 2010

Stewardship and the Sunday Readings

April 4th – Easter Sunday
Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and the Easter Vigil take us
through a lived experience of the Paschal Mystery –
life, death and resurrection.
The readings for Easter Sunday have the themes
of Resurrection and new life woven through all of them.
Stewardship is the way we celebrate this resurrection
and new life every day of the year in our personal and family affairs, work,
and civic involvement. It is bringing the strength of our faith into all of life.

April 11th – from the Acts of the Apostles
“Many signs and wonders were done among
the people at the hands of the apostles.”
Little things that make a difference in another’s life
are most certainly “signs and wonders.”
A smile or a comforting word can lift someone’s sagging spirit.
A few dollars given to the St. Vincent de Paul Society joins a few others
and someone has electricity for a month. Little things offered with love make for great stewardship.

April 18th – from St. John’s Gospel
“Jesus came over and took the bread and gave it to them,
and in like manner the fish. This was now the third time
Jesus was revealed to his disciples after being raised from the dead.”
Jesus continues to be revealed to us in Eucharist
and in our serving others through stewardship. The presence of Jesus is a
given. It is stewardship that opens our eyes to experience this presence.

April 25th - from the Acts of the Apostles)
“The disciples (Paul and Barnabas) were filled with joy a
nd the Holy Spirit.” Paul and Barnabas had just been expelled from Antioch.
It may be hard to believe that they were then filled with joy. It may be
even harder yet to believe that Antioch became one of the early centers of Christianity!
The promise of stewardship is that even when we struggle and our efforts seem to fail, the Holy Spirit is experienced and joy can be present.

Source: ICSC Newsletter
John Baumann, Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish
(Archdiocese of Seattle)

Oración de Corresponsabilidad

Señor Dios,
Sólo Tú eres la fuente de todos los dones que
forman nuestro inmenso universo, y el misterio de
cada vida humana. Te alabamos y te damos
gracias por tu bondadoso y fiel amor.
Todo lo que somos y todo lo que tenemos son
tus dones; y después de habernos creado, nos has
dado a tu hijo Jesucristo. Llena nuestras mentes
con Su verdad y nuestros corazones con Su amor.
Que podamos unirnos afectuosamente, en Su
espíritu, en una comunidad de fe, una familia
parroquial, y un pueblo afectuoso.
En el nombre del espíritu de Jesús, nos
comprometemos con nosotros mismos a ser
buenos corresponsables de los dones que nos han
sido confiados, a compartir nuestro tiempo,
nuestros talentos y nuestros dones materiales y
espirituales como un signo externo del tesoro que
tenemos en Jesús.
Nosotros oramos en Su santo nombre, Amén.

Stewardship Prayer

Lord God,
You alone are the source of every good gift, of
the vast array of our universe, and the mystery of
each human life. We praise you and thank you for
your great power and your tender, faithful love.
Everything we are and everything we have are
your gifts; and after having created us, you have
given us into the keeping of your son, Jesus
Christ. Fill our minds with His truth and our
hearts with His love. In His spirit, may we be
bonded together into a community of faith, a
parish family, a caring people.
In the name and spirit of Jesus, we commit
ourselves to be good stewards of the gifts
entrusted to us, to share our time, our talents, and
our material and spiritual gifts as an outward sign
of the treasure we hold in Jesus.
In His holy name we pray,
Amen.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

April Parish Bulletin Announcements

April 4 – Easter Sunday

The Lord has truly been raised…He was made known
to us in the breaking of the bread. Luke 24:13-35
The exact location of Emmaus has not been
established. Two sites northwest of Jerusalem
make strong claims. One is about seven miles
from Jerusalem, as reported in Luke’s Gospel; the
other is approximately twenty miles away, but
makes a stronger case. The disciples who
encountered Jesus would have left Jerusalem
early in the morning. Walking at a brisk pace,
they could cover twenty miles in one day. They
do not recognize Jesus, but are impressed with his
knowledge of Scripture. They urge him, “Stay
with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is
almost over.” It would be nice to know the exact
location of Emmaus, but it is much more
important to understand that the two disciples
realized, “our hearts were burning within us.”
They recognized Jesus as the Risen Lord in the
Breaking of the Bread and rushed back to
Jerusalem to tell the others. Do we recognize
Jesus as the Risen Lord in the Breaking of the
Bread? Do we rush out to tell others? This Easter
morn is a good time to start doing that!


April 11 – Second Sunday of Easter
“Blessed are those who have not seen and believed.”
John 20:19-31
John tells us that the disciples who abandoned
Jesus when He was arrested and taken to the cross
(John was one of them) were locked in a room a
week after they had seen him risen from the dead
and He had appeared to them in that same room.
Jesus had good reason to be disappointed with
them. But He says to them, “Peace be with you!”
He knew it was difficult for them to believe even
though they had seen. And He knew how difficult
it would be for us who had not seen to believe.
That is why, at our Baptism, our parents, or we
ourselves if we are old enough, promise to make
our faith “constantly grow stronger in our hearts”
and to “bring that faith unstained into heaven.”
We renewed our Baptismal Promises on Easter
Sunday. What have we done to make our faith
“grow stronger in our hearts”? What are we
doing? What will we do in the future? Are we
being good stewards of our faith?


April 18 – Third Sunday of Easter
“Lord, you know everything; you know that I love
you.” John 21:1-19
After appearing to the disciples twice behind
locked doors in a room in Jerusalem, Jesus
reveals Himself a third time to seven of His
disciples who are fishing at the northwest end of
the Sea of Tiberias (Galilee). The scene is a
reminder of His first call to them to become
fishers of men. After preparing and sharing a
breakfast of fish with them, Jesus asks Simon
Peter three times, “Do you love me?” Peter, who
had denied Jesus three times, finally says, “Lord
you know everything; you know that I love you.”
Peter reveals his great faith in Jesus. Only God
knows everything and only God could know what
was in Peter’s heart. When we encounter Jesus
He ask us, “Do you love me?” Is our faith in
Jesus such that we have no doubt that He is God
and that He knows what is in our heart? How do
we respond to Jesus?


April 25 – Fourth Sunday of Easter
“My sheep hear my voice; I know them and they
follow me.” John 10:27-30
There are very few family members or friends
that we cannot identify by their voice. Jesus tells
us that His followers hear His voice. Jesus also
says He knows us. Jesus does not need to know
our voice. He knows us! He knows what we need
before we say it. But, do we know the voice of
Jesus? And, what do we do when we hear the
voice of Jesus? Do we hear the voice of Jesus in
prayer, when we stop speaking and listen – listen
for God’s will for us? Do we hear the voice of
Jesus in our family, our friends, and strangers –
through the people and events in our lives? Jesus
challenges us to be and to do all that God created
us to be and do. When we hear ourselves saying
“No, I don’t want to love that person (or take that
risk or challenge that evil),” we probably just
heard from God. How do we respond as stewards
of our prayer life and of all that God has given
us? Our first response might be “No!” But our
final response must be “Yes, Lord!”



Abril 4 – Domingo de Pascua
El Señor ha resucitado verdaderamente…se ha
manifestado a nosotros al partir el pan.
Lucas 24:13-35
El sitio exacto de Emaús no ha sido establecido. Es
reclamado fehacientemente por dos sitios al noroeste
de Jerusalén. Uno de ellos está a siete millas de
Jerusalén, como menciona el Evangelio de San Lucas;
el otro está a aproximadamente a 20 millas, pero tiene
un caso más fuerte. Los discípulos que encontraron a
Jesús habían salido de Jerusalén por la mañana
temprano. Caminando con rapidez, pudieron cubrir 20
millas en un día. Ellos no reconocieron a Jesús, pero
se impresionaron por su conocimiento de las
Escrituras. Ellos le pidieron, “Quédate con nosotros,
es tarde y el día ya ha declinado.” Sería bueno saber la
ubicación exacta de Emaús, pero es mucho más
importante entender lo que los dos discípulos
sintieron, “nuestros corazones arden dentro de
nosotros,” Ellos reconocieron a Jesús como el Señor
Resucitado al Partir el Pan y regresaron a Jerusalén
presurosamente a decirles a los otros. ¿Nosotros
reconocemos a Jesús como el Señor resucitado al
Partir el Pan? ¿Nos apresuramos a decírselo a otros?
¡Esta Pascua es un buen momento para hacerlo!


Abril 11 – Segundo Domingo de Pascua
“Bienaventurados los que no vieron y creyeron.”
Juan 20:19-31
Juan nos dice que los discípulos que abandonaron a
Jesús cuando fue arrestado y llevado a la cruz (Juan
era uno de ellos) estaban encerrados en un lugar una
semana después que vieron al Señor resucitado y que
apareció ante ellos en ese mismo lugar. Jesús tenía
una buena razón para estar molesto con ellos. Pero Él
les dijo, “Paz a vosotros” El sabía que era difícil para
ellos creer aún cuando lo habían visto. Y sabía cuán
difícil sería para nosotros, que no hemos visto, creer.
Es por ello que en nuestro Bautismo, nuestros padres,
o nosotros si somos mayores, prometemos “hacer
crecer la fe en nuestros corazones constantemente”
“fortalecerla en nuestros corazones” y “llevar esta fe
sin mancha al cielo.” Nosotros renovamos nuestras
Promesas Bautismales el Domingo de Pascua. ¿Qué
hemos hecho para que nuestra fe crezca más fuerte en
nuestros corazones? ¿Qué estamos haciendo? ¿Qué
haremos en el futuro? ¿Somos buenos corresponsables
de nuestra fe?


Abril 18 – Tercer Domingo de Pascua
“Señor, Tú lo sabes todo; Tú sabes que te amo.”
Juan 21:1-19
Después de aparecer a sus discípulos en dos ocasiones
en Jerusalén, en un lugar con las puertas cerradas,
Jesús se manifestó una tercera vez a siete de sus
discípulos que pescaban a la orilla del mar de Tiberias
(Galilea). La escena nos recuerda su primer llamado a
convertirse en pescadores de hombres. Después de
preparar y compartir el pescado con ellos, Jesús le
preguntó a Simón Pedro tres veces, ¿me amas? Pedro,
quien negó tres veces a Jesús, finalmente le dice,
“Señor, tú lo sabes todo; tú sabes que te amo.” Pedro
revela su gran fe en Jesús. Sólo Dios lo sabe todo y
solo Dios puede saber lo que hay en su corazón.
Cuando encontramos a Jesús, Él nos pregunta, ¿me
amas? ¿Nuestra fe en Jesús es tal que no tenemos
duda de que Él es Dios y que Él sabe lo que esta en
nuestro corazón? ¿Cómo respondemos a Jesús?

Abril 25 – Cuarto Domingo de Pascua
“Mis ovejas oyen mi voz; y yo las conozco y me
siguen.” Juan 10:27-30
Hay muy pocos miembros de la familia y amigos que
no podemos identificar por su voz. Jesús nos dice que
quienes lo siguen oyen su voz. Jesús dice también que
nos conoce. Jesús no necesita conocer nuestra voz. ¡Él
nos conoce! Sabe lo que necesitamos antes de decirlo.
¿Pero, nosotros conocemos la voz de Jesús? Y ¿qué
hacemos cuando oímos la voz de Jesús? ¿Oímos la
voz de Jesús en oración, cuando nos detenemos de
hablar y escuchamos –la voluntad de Dios para
nosotros? ¿Escuchamos la voz de Dios en nuestra
familia, nuestros amigos y extraños –a través de la
gente y eventos de nuestras vidas? Jesús nos desafía a
ser y a hacer todo lo que Dios creó para que seamos y
hagamos. Cuando nos escuchamos a nosotros mismos
diciendo “No, no quiero amar a esa persona (o tomar
ese riesgo, o desafiar ese mal)”, probablemente recién
escuchamos a Dios. ¿Cómo respondemos como
corresponsables de nuestra vida de oración y de todo
lo que Dios nos ha dado? Nuestra primera respuesta
quizás sea “No” pero nuestra respuesta final debe ser
“Si, Señor.”


Source: ICSC Newsletter -
Dn. Jerry Martinez of the Archdiocese of New Orleans