Bishop Robert Barron: Seven Deadly Sins
Is creating wealth a sin?
According to St. Thomas Aquinas, “the unreasonable or immoderate desire for riches” is the definition of greed and the fifth deadly sin.Catholic social teaching says we must always have the common good in mind in using our wealth. Generous charity for all is modeled and mandated by God.
Watch this short video to ponder your attitude toward wealth:
An excerpt from
CHAPTER FOUR
JOY AND A SENSE OF HUMOUR
125. Hard times may come, when the cross casts its shadow, yet nothing can destroy the supernatural joy that “adapts and changes, but always endures, even as a flicker of light born of our personal certainty that, when everything is said and done, we are infinitely loved”.[100] That joy brings deep security, serene hope and a spiritual fulfilment that the world cannot understand or appreciate.
Deacon David Rice's Homily
June 15 & 16
Solemnity of The Most Holy Trinity
Scriptures:
1.Prv 8:22-31
P.Ps 8; O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth!
2.Rom 5:1-5
G.Jn 16:12-15
Mark Twain is purported to have said that at seventeen he could scarcely endure his father, the old gentleman was so ignorant; at twenty he noticed that his father said a sensible thing occasionally; at twenty-five he was astonished at the improvement his father had made in the last eight years. How our estimates of parents change with the years!
While we may chuckle at the wit of this story, I would like us to offer a more fitting, special tribute to fathers on this Father’s Day to all those who have accepted the role of being fathers – with another quote that better summarizes their importance and giftedness. Basketball coaching great Jim Valvano said, "My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person: he believed in me." May God bless all the “fathers” in our lives.
This weekend, we celebrate the Solemnity of The Most Holy Trinity. In his Flocknotes video on Thursday, Fr. Godfrey commented that priests and deacons called upon to preach this weekend are challenged by speaking about this great mystery – One God, Three Persons. Preaching on The Most Holy Trinity is a tremendous joy; it is also daunting. But then again, any time we are called upon to speak to God’s people, we are accepting a sacred and awesome responsibility.
We remind ourselves of the Blessed Most Holy Trinity every time we make the sign of the Cross. The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us: The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them. It is the most fundamental and essential teaching in the “hierarchy of the truths of faith”.
On Trinity Sunday, we want to reflect on just what it means to worship the One God and simultaneously the Triune God by examining the Nicene Creed:
I believe in one God,
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
From the Creed that dates to 325 AD, The Father and Son are consubstantial. They are love – totally, fully, entirely. As we celebrated on Pentecost last week, the Holy Spirit sent by the Son is truly God. The Three are inseparable and yet distinct. And the Church is one because of her founder, the Word made flesh. In Christian tradition, today’s passage from Proverbs expresses the concept of the preexistent Word – Jesus Christ, the source of all wisdom and truth.
What does this mystery of the Trinitarian God mean for our lives? At times, we may feel that God is not speaking to us – at least not clearly. The reality is God is always present for us – Father, Son and Spirit – if we are open to that presence. When we experience dilemmas or problems, we are to invite God in through prayer and petition. The way we experience that presence can occur in countless ways – through the voice of a friend, something we read, even an off-chance comment.
It is amazing that when I am given the privilege of preaching at Mass, there are times when I experience the uncertainty of what to say and how to say it so that the message is meaningful. Then when I turn the responsibility for the message over to God, the Word – the truth - comes to me through the Holy Spirit. It is then that I know that what I will say is born not of my intellect but of the wisdom of God. Sometimes I just need to be more patient with God’s perfect timing. When it is Friday night before a homily to be given on Saturday, I want to say Holy Spirit come. What is taking you so long?
Summary
Jesus tells us in today’s Gospel: …when he comes, the Spirit of truth… will guide you to all truth. He will glorify me, Everything that the Father has is mine; for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
As we pursue God in our lives, seeking understanding and wisdom, attempting to deepen our faith, trying with all our might to live as God desires, it is that spirit of truth – absolute truth - for which we long. We come to that truth through the power of The Most Holy Trinity – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Coming Up...
Feast of Corpus ChristiJune 23 at the conclusion of the 10:30 AM Mass
Eucharistic Procession around the block singing hymns and offering prayers
Lunch following in the cafeteria provided by the Knights of Columbus
Religious Education, First Communion & Confirmation Registration
August 11 & 18 after the morning Masses
A copy of the child's baptismal certificate is required for registration
