Dear Parish Family,

In his memoir, Gift and Mystery: On the Fiftieth Anniversary of My Priestly Ordination, St. John Paul II wrote, "There can be no Eucharist without the priesthood, just as there can be no priesthood without the Eucharist." We may think more about the first part of the quote in relation to the need for more priestly vocations to bring us the Eucharist, but the second part of the quote reveals more fundamentally that we would have no priests at all without the priesthood of Jesus Christ and His Eucharistic offering of Himself. Indeed, the Sacramental power of the priesthood comes from Christ who instituted the priesthood with His own authority to bestow grace upon His Church. 

In today's Gospel, Jesus shares His authority with Peter to be the rock of the Church entrusted with the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. He prompts this offering by asking His disciples, "Who do you say that I am?" Peter replies, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." When we understand who Jesus is, the purpose of our own life comes into focus, and we open ourselves to receive the power and authority of Christ in the measure our vocation requires. Without this proper ordering of authority, we can fall into the trap of assuming that our power, authority, knowledge, and strengths come from ourselves and not from the Lord, which is always a devastating move for us and those affected by our choices. 

Staying rooted in the authority of Christ ensures that our life's mission mirrors the life of Christ. Tragically, the Church and her families have been wounded over the centuries by the actions of priests, spouses, religious, and laity who have chosen to use their power and authority for themselves rather than as a gift of self for the good of others. This, in part, explains why our modern culture has an inherent distrust of people in authority. Our first reading from Isaiah speaks of this kind of abuse of power with the Lord stripping Shebna of his office and authority and giving it to Eliakim. Nonetheless, authority that finds its proper subordination under God, like the authority given to Peter and the Church, has the power of Christ to heal and transform a wounded world. This is why our Church needs priests, religious, spouses, and laity who are faithful to their vocation and responsibilities handed over to them by the Lord!

Seminarian Benjamin Baratian will begin his internship at St. Mary's and St. Patrick's starting this Friday! He will introduce himself at Mass next weekend at St. Mary's and the following weekend at St. Patrick's. Ben will live at the St. Mary's rectory with us and be involved in a number of different ministries and parish and school events throughout the year. Please welcome Ben when you see him!

I am yours in Christ,

Fr. Scott Goodfellow