Letter from the Pastor

In 2015, at the Synod on the Family, Rick Warren summarized the present condition of our 21st century this way: “In today’s society, materialism is idolized; immorality is glamorized; truth is minimized; sin is normalized; divorce is rationalized; abortion is legalized.  In T.V. and movies, crime is legitimized; drug use is minimized; comedy is vulgarized; and sex is trivialized.  Again, in movies, the Bible is fictionalized; churches are satirized; God is marginalized; and Christians are demonized.  The elderly are dehumanized; the sick are euthanized; the poor are victimized; the mentally ill are ostracized; immigrants are stigmatized; our children are tranquilized.  […]

 There are some clear indications today of a decline in religious interest, or at least, a decline in active involvement in the Church.  So we ask ourselves today, “How serious is this decline? What does it mean?  How long will it last?  How deep will it go?”  I do not pretend to have all the answers.  I do know that in order to get the picture in perspective we must stand far enough back to take a broad, long look.  This kind of thing may be new to many of us, but it is not new in the life of […]

In these rather turbulent times, I think almost every one of us knows what it is to have a tranquil life interrupted by an unexpected storm.  It may begin with a spouse    saying, “I don’t love you anymore; I want out.”  Or it can be a doctor who says, “Sit down; we need to talk.  The tests do not look good.”  Or it might be from an employer who says, “We don’t need your services anymore.”  Or a terrorist, who says, “We hate you; and we will do all we can to destroy you.” In this world, the possibilities of […]

In one of the letters of St. Paul, we’re told:  “Let the word of Christ, rich as it is, dwell in you.  In wisdom made perfect, instruct and admonish one another.  Sing gratefully to God from your hearts in psalms, hymns and inspired songs.  Whatever you do, whether in speech or in action, do it in name of the Lord Jesus.” The gift of speech is to be used for praise and worship God. It is to be used to create joy and laughter and song.  It is meant to persuade us in those things that are for our good […]

Have you ever felt the frustration of wanting to say something, but not knowing how to say it?  You have loved someone very deeply, and have sought the words to express that love, but never could find them.  You have shared the sorrow of a friend and have tried to tell him or her how much you cared.  But the words that you spoke did not begin to convey the sympathy that you felt.  Those who are parents have wanted to tell your child something about life something he or she desperately needed to know.  You tried to do that.  […]