+In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Reflection (By parishioner Steve Arendt)
Today we reflect on St. François Xavier. He was a student of St Ignatius of Loyola, who founded the Jesuits.
Everything I have read about the early days of the Jesuit order are amazing. These guys knew no bounds. When a member had a vision about spreading the Gospel of Christ they prayed to ensure it was the voice of God and then gained the support of their peers and simply started to work. Can you imagine being in Portugal and wanting to spread the word of God in Japan or India? Well this is the type of grand visions they had. They simply set out for the destination and figured out what God had in store for them once they got there. Today their work has impacted the world.
The last parish mission was organized in the same exact way. In hindsight most would agree that the results were amazing. Often we will not even talk to our neighbors about our faith or our parish, but those who stepped up at the mission changed that. They truly listened to what God put on their hearts, consulted their peers and leaders then did something about it.
I am curious. If there were an opportunity for you to proclaim your faith to your community, would you do it? Or perhaps, would you support fellow parishioners confident in their call to proclaim Gods word in some way?
P.S. This note is not the start of an attempt to overthrow or supersede our parish priest. We must honor the role they play in our parish and follow their guidance in this area. We must also be extremely sensitive never to impede on their duty to act as the sacramental bridges between God and ourselves. Yet, we must not get so complacent in our own faith that we simply wait for our priest to spoon feed us our daily spirituality.
+In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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