Your 2023 Fall Festival Auction Team has been hard at work since January and has some exciting news to share with all of you. Mark your calendars for Friday, October 6th - the date of this year’s Fall Festival!

Jesus’ words to his disciples this Sunday, when he says, “Don’t be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” Fear, in this sense, refers to where we find our deepest identity and our highest love. That’s why Jesus says next that when we acknowledge him before others, he will acknowledge us before the Father. It doesn’t mean we’re brash or boastful. But rather we unhesitatingly and humbly embrace our identity as followers of Jesus and children of God the Father.

This week scripture tells us, “The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few.” Look again: there is spiritual fruit hanging all around us! The lonely ready to be visited. The sick ready to be healed. The forgotten ready to be remembered. So, let’s ask the Lord to send laborers to get to work. And he will. He might send you and me.

Saint Paul says of the Eucharistic bread, “Is it not a participation in the body of Christ?” For Paul, the answer is obvious. Yes, it is exactly that. Which is why he can say, “we, though many, are one body.” Jesus is truly, really, and substantially present in the Holy Eucharist.

This Sunday is Trinity Sunday. We ponder anew that God in His unity is a play of multiplicity: Lover, Beloved, and shared Love. Or, as we also proclaim, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Imagine if we spoke of the mighty deeds of God in a way that everyone could understand. That’s precisely what the Holy Spirit descends upon us to do. Ask Him to come as a tongue of fire to you once again, and He will. Then speak!

Mark your calendar and plan to attend all the things planned for June 10 & 11 here at St. Ann.

Jesus is on your side. He is aware of what you are holding at this moment. He is aware of your pain, your faith, your mission. And He’s rooting for you..

Eternal rest grant unto Monsignor Vince, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. May his soul, and all the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

This Sunday we hear Jesus say, “I will not leave you orphans.” God doesn’t leave us alone like spiritual orphans. The power that raised Jesus from the dead is the Holy Spirit, who is also called the Spirit of Adoption. He chooses us to be His children, to share God’s life forever. He gives us a future filled with hope.

To be part of a priesthood is to offer a particular sacrifice in order for the community to survive and thrive. Jesus is the great high priest because he offers the one perfect sacrifice which heals and perfects the entire human race.

The readings focus our attention to the voice of the risen Jesus Christ. Comparing his disciples to sheep and himself to a shepherd, he says, “They recognize his voice.” He speaks to us and wants us to respond. When we hear his voice, we follow.

The Risen Jesus is not too busy to spend time with you. We are members of his crucified and risen Body. He has the time to be with us. Approach him confidently in prayer and conversation this week.

St. Thomas indeed saw the wounds of Jesus and believed. But there is an even greater blessing for us who simply trust Him — and all the truths the Church proclaims — because of the trustworthiness of the Risen One who speaks. This week let’s trust Jesus without seeing him.

“When Jesus had risen, early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had driven seven demons.” (Mark 16:9) Jesus chose Mary Magdalene to be the first one who saw him risen from the dead. Do you think that you are disqualified from seeing and announcing the risen Jesus because of your past ? In the light of the Risen Jesus, all these past demons make our witness that much more believable — only if we allow ourselves to be touched by the liberating hand of Christ, just as Mary Magdalene did.

As Holy Week begins, Jesus perhaps will send people to you to ask for something valuable to you. It might be your attention, time, or energy. It’s natural to resist at first. We’ve got things to do, after all. But if the interruption is from Jesus himself, listen to that voice which calmly says, “The master has need of it.” And simply let it go. You’ll be amazed what the master will do with it.

Jesus knows our sin hurts us and can even kill us spiritually. No matter the extent of the damage, he is always ready for the miracle of making the dead fully alive.

God asks a rhetorical question to Samuel, the prophet: “How long will you grieve for Saul, whom I have rejected as king of Israel?” Like us, Samuel is depressed that the old king failed. It’s painful to admit that the old regime is done. But God won’t let us wallow our pity-party forever. “I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem,” announces the Lord, “for I have chosen my king from among his sons.”

The Holy Spirit is the living water of love which flows from the pierced side of Jesus, the new Moses. What symptoms in your life suggest you’re spiritually dehydrated? Ask God to provide his water to quench your spiritual thirst, and he will.

Jesus is transfigured before Peter, James, and John. His face shone like the sun and his clothes dazzle with heavenly light.