Hello everyone! This weekend, we hear from the Gospel reading that Jesus appeared to the disciples after his resurrection. They were terrified and thought they were seeing a ghost. Jesus is at pains to let them know that he is not a ghost, but he is real. He says, “Look at my hands and my feet. Touch them. You see that I have flesh and bones.” He even eats a piece of fish in front of them to prove he is real since ghosts have no bodies with which to eat. This account tells us that the resurrection was not just made up by the disciples. It wasn’t a hallucination or a narrative to keep the memory of Jesus alive. He actually rose from the dead. His resurrection in the flesh was a defeat over our worst enemy, death. The good news is that as Christians, our very flesh, the same flesh that Jesus took on, shares in his victory over death, for those who believe and remain faithful to the end. Can non-Christians be saved? Yes. If through no fault of their own, they do not know Jesus, but live according to God's law written in their hearts, they can be saved. But, Jesus wants us to proclaim him to others. How do we proclaim Jesus to others? In many, varied ways – personal testimony, bringing others to church so they can encounter Jesus, sharing some aspect of the faith that moves you, just to name a few. How do you share the good news? In what way is Jesus good news to you? If we have no desire to talk about Jesus with others, what might need to change in our spiritual lives so that we do? Just some food for thought. 

Regarding ghosts…there are evil spirits and there are ghosts. Evil spirits are demons. Ghosts are souls of people who have died and are in purgatory. There have been many accounts of people encountering ghosts of people throughout human history. Typically, the only reason why a ghost might manifest itself to others is simply to ask for prayers so that the person can finally rest in peace in heaven. Recently, a lady I visited said she had seen the ghost of the lady who lived in the apartment before her and who had died there. I told the lady to simply pray for her soul and offer up her sufferings for her. I would also offer Mass for her soul which I have done 3 times already. The Mass is the most powerful prayer! If you want to have a Mass offered on behalf of your loved one, please call the office and have it scheduled. The typical offering (not mandatory) is $10 per Mass which goes to the priest. We might be spooked by ghosts, but if it is truly a ghost and not an evil spirit, it is not there to haunt you. Think of that movie “The Sixth Sense” where (spoiler alert!) the boy realized at the end that the ghosts were not there to haunt him but were asking for help in some way. We should not have seances or try to conjure up ghosts because we might inadvertently conjure up evil spirits. So stay away from Ouiji boards and the like. If we remain faithful to God, we have nothing to fear from evil spirits. Instead, when we speak about Jesus, he will stand in our midst and say, “Peace be with you.”

This morning, I met with a roofer who looked at our gutters at ICC to see where there might be leaking. We want to make sure that there is no leakage into the church which has likely caused the interior walls to be damaged. The masonry tuckpointing in the fall likely took care of the leakage. There are some minor gutter repairs that need to be fixed, but those are not affecting the damaged walls. So, I will be scheduling the interior church walls to be repaired. Hopefully, they will look beautiful again for a long time! 

The ICC church front doors had new weatherstripping put in so now both doors close evenly. However, it still did not fix the problem of having to only go out one door. Because the weatherstripping is so tight, you can only now go out of the left door (looking outside from the inside). Unfortunately, the door company said they could do no more and said that if we do not like the door the way it is, we may have to consider getting new doors, perhaps all glass. I will look into quotes for different options of doors. 

The ICC parish festival is scheduled for Sunday, August 8^th from 12-7pm. We will be able to do most of the normal things with some modifications due to Covid. Please pray for good weather and for the success of the festival. It is good for the parish and the wider community. 

You are already seeing the Bishop’s Annual Appeal being advertised in the bulletins. The official kick-off is the weekend of May 1^st so you will hear more about it and receive materials closer to that date. However, you are welcome to already contribute online at https://www.columbuscatholicgiving.org/make-a-gift-now. Thank you for your generosity. 

The renovation committee at OLL is still meeting to hammer out the details of what we want to do and is getting pricing. Currently, we are looking at a Phase 1 of hardwood flooring, new pews, and a new (refurbished) high altar. Once we get those details in place, we will release that information and begin fundraising. We are also looking at new stained glass windows. I consider that phase 2 because I think the phase 1 items are a priority. However, if, by some miracle, we have all the funds for phase 1 and stained glass windows, we could do it all together. We think we can have the phase 1 done by end of summer. 

The Knights of Columbus Council 1597 which serves both ICC and OLL is taking applications for the 2021 Christine Stahler Memorial Scholarship. This scholarship is for graduating high school seniors and continuing ONU students. The award amount will depend on number of applicants. Please submit your application by May 5, 2021 for consideration. Applications can be picked up in the back of church or apply online at https://forms.gle/b9avXKkoVTipWXXa9 

If you are a senior in high school or attending a university or college and are a parishioner of ICC, you may apply for a scholarship made available by the Mary Dick Endowment Fund. The award amount will depend on number of applicants. Applications can be found in the back of church and must be received in the office by May 13^th. 

You will hear more about Endowment funds at the end of May. The above Endowment fund scholarship is an example of what endowments can do for the parish. Please consider what you might be able to contribute to your parish once you pass on. More on this in late May. 

Please save the date for a Diocesan-wide Eucharistic Gatheringtaking place on Friday evening, August 27, and Saturday morning, August 28.  This gathering is part of the Real Presence, Real Future initiative and seeks to provide an opportunity for encounter with our Lord, engage Catholics as they reflect upon the real presence of Jesus Christ in their lives, and encourage them to share that presence within their circles of influence.  

Someone said they liked my jokes last week, so here are some kid jokes:

Why couldn't the flower ride its bike? Because it lost its petals. 

Why did the student eat his homework? Because the teacher said it was a piece of cake!

Why did Mickey Mouse get hit with a snowball? Because Donald Ducked!

The livestream of the Mass for this Sunday, April 18th, will be from ICC at 9am.  

Attached are the bulletins and the worship aid.

Our Lady of Lourdes, pray for us!      

Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, pray for us!   

God bless!      

Fr. Ed