Fr. John's Blog

Happy Mother’s Day! Mother’s Day was first observed soon after the turn of the twentieth century in the Methodist Church as a memorial service for those who had lost their mothers. The observance spread to other churches, and in 1914 became a civic holiday. Chapter 55 of the Book of Blessings offers intercessions and a special prayer over the People for this day.

Hundreds of worshipers at three Christian churches in Sri Lanka were killed on Easter Sunday in a coordinated series of bombings. Three luxury hotels packed with tourists were also targeted by suicide bombers. The government of Sri Lanka has blamed the local Islamist terrorist group National Throwheed Jamath (NTJ) for the suicide bombings.

Cardinal Seán O’Malley of Boston issued a pastoral letter in 2016 entitled “God’s Mercy Runs to Meet Us” for Divine Mercy Sunday. I thought that it would be good to look at it again on this Divine Mercy Sunday. In the pastoral letter he recommends seven actions for this Jubilee Year of Mercy. The sixth recommendation is to practice each of the works of mercy at least once.

Christ is Risen, alleluia! He is risen indeed, alleluia! Happy Easter to all who are at Mass on this most glorious Easter day. I want to give a special word of welcome to our visitors who are joining us for Mass today. I hope that you feel very welcome, for indeed you are! Often on Easter when I greet people after the Masses, people stop and ask me questions. Let me mention some questions that I have been asked over the years on Easter Sunday and then answer the questions.

Archbishop Christophe Pierre, Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, publicized on April 7, 2019 the appointment of the Most Reverend Wilton Gregory as the new Archbishop of Washington by Pope Francis. The press release from the USCCB contains the following information about our Archbishop.

Every April, organizations that serve children and youth participate in National Child Abuse Prevention Month. This included Catholic dioceses, parishes, and schools. The purpose of this observance is to highlight the importance of protecting minors from abuse. Such efforts are part of the ongoing work of the Catholic Church in the United States to carry out the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People.

From March 4-21 Cyclone Idai devastated the African countries of Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe. It is an item that has barely made the news and yet over 750 people were called. Many more will probably die from malaria and cholera with the devastation caused by this storm. Our US Bishops offer prayers and solidarity for recovery after the deadly cyclone hit those countries.

On Friday, March 15, 2019 there was an armed attack on worshippers at the Noor and Linewood mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand. As of Monday, March 18, 2019, the death toll had risen to fifty with thirteen people injured in the attack still in critical condition. Pope Francis spoke to the faithful gathered in Rome for the Angelus on Sunday, March 17, 2019.

From February 21-24, 2019, over two hundred bishops representing 180 Bishops’ Conferences from all over the world met in Rome to discuss the sexual abuse of minors. Cardinal Séan O’Malley, as the President of the Pontifical Commission for the Protection of Minors, attended this meeting and reflected on his experience in attending this meeting with the Holy Father, the other bishops, and other religious leaders. He summarized the eight points of action gives by the Holy Father. Last week I gave the first four points. Today I want to give the other four points made by the Holy Father:

From February 21-24, 2019, the Vatican hosted a Meeting on the Protection of Minors in the Church. Over two hundred bishops representing 180 Bishops’ Conferences from around the world were in attendance. In addition several different bishops or patriarchs in charge of different Eastern Rites of the Catholic Church participated in this historic gathering.

Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo, Archbishop of Galveston-Houston and President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) issued a statement upon the completion of a four day meeting with the Holy Father in Rome attended by Presidents of Bishops’ Conference from all over the world. I want to present his statement in this column, as we as a parish have prayed for the success of this meeting. Now that the meeting is concluded, I hope that we shall soon have specific protocols for handling accusations against bishops, user-friendly reporting mechanisms, and a commitment to greater transparency so that the healing process might occur.

During this Black History Month, I want to present three more leaders of African descent who are on their way to sainthood. My source for this material can be located on the website for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (ww.usccb.org).