Dear Parish Family,

Jesus addresses His parable today "to those who are convinced of their own righteousness and despise everyone else." If you or I received a letter in the mail addressed to us in this way, I wonder how that might set us up to read what comes next (or rip up the letter right away)! Of course, no reasonable person likes to admit they are self-righteous or that they despise others, and yet each of us needs to be honest with ourselves to root out unhealthy self-love that interferes with our love of God and our neighbor. Imagine for a moment that this person addressed in the parable is you (and I will do the same for myself!), and that you and I can learn something valuable from our Lord to actually move us forward in our love of God and neighbor instead of staying stuck in our complacency.

 

Now that we are ready to listen to Jesus speak to us, hear how the Lord says that the Pharisee "took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself." His "position" is one of moral and spiritual superiority over others. He prides himself on following the rules better than anyone else rather than humbly thanking God for His grace to be a moral and spiritual person and offering to use his strengths to lift others up. Moreover, the Pharisee "spoke this prayer to himself." In essence, he isn't praying to God but to himself. He is his own lord and savior, a god in his own mind. True prayer is a dialogue and union with God, a humble recognition that God is Lord and we are not.

 

Then we hear a very different kind of prayer from the tax collector who "stood off at a distance" and prayed "O God, be merciful to me a sinner." The "distance" is an honest recognition of our fallen condition and struggle against sin which distances us from God. God hears the prayer of the sinful and poor for mercy. Our prayer should model this plea for mercy. We should also use our "position" God has given us not for self-exaltation, but in all purity of heart to recognize how we can serve those less fortunate than us and lift up the lowly just as God has mercifully done with us. When we pray and serve in this way, we allow Jesus to address us in a different way: "To those who are convinced of God's righteousness working through them and make their lives a gift of love unto others." Now that's a letter  from our Lord I'd like to read! Let's make our prayer and lives reflect this reality into which Jesus invites us!

 

This coming week, we celebrate All Saints Day on Saturday, November 1. It is NOT a holy day of obligation this year, but due to the solemnity of the celebration, we will celebrate an All Saints Mass at 9:00 am at St. Mary's this Saturday and have time for veneration of relics of the saints after Mass.

 

Please note that the Vigil Mass on November 1 and  Sunday Masses on November 2 are for All Souls Day. The Vigil and Sunday Masses are part of our Sunday Mass obligation and are being celebrated at our regular weekend Mass times. We will celebrate our Mass of Remembrance for all of our beloved dead at the 4:30 pm St. Mary's Vigil Mass and the 9:30 am St. Patrick's Sunday Mass next weekend.

 

We are hosting a Prayer Vigil for peace and unity in our country this Tuesday, October 28 at 6:30 pm at St. Mary Parish in the church. This prayer vigil is open to people of all faith backgrounds in our community to pray for our beloved nation. With the rise of political violence (think of Melissa Hortman and Charlie Kirk just in the past few months), we want to come together to praise and petition the Lord for the blessings of freedom, truth, peace, and unity, and to pray for victims of political violence. Let's fill the church as faith-filled Americans and honor our country and those we have lost. 

 

Last weekend we had the Ohio State Coordinator from Her PLAN, Allie Frazier, speak at Masses at St. Mary's. Her PLAN stands for "Her Pregnancy and Life Assistance Network" which facilitates collaboration between assistance providers and their communities to empower women and families through comprehensive medical, social, and material support. Allie shared that 60% of women who have chosen abortion would have chosen life if they had the support and resources they needed to carry their child to term. 

 

Her PLAN works nationwide as a Pro-Life safety network to fill provision gaps in care. I often hear false information that the Church only cares about moms and their children before they are born. Nothing could be further from the truth. You and I have a role in dismantling that lie and get involved in life-saving care. We are proud to work with Her PLAN to develop a strong local Pro-Life safety network for women, children, and families. If there's a gap in care, let's fill it. 

 

Allie spoke of ways to get involved, and I want to distill that into two action items for you. 

• First, if you come across a family member, friend, neighbor, coworker or any young women or family in a crisis pregnancy or struggling with young children, refer them to https://herplan.org. Their team will work to connect them with local resources to get them the care they need to support their decision for life.

• Second, consider enrolling as a care provider with Her PLAN with your trade or profession. Whether you work as a sole proprietor, own your own business, or work for a business, talk to the responsible person in your organization to see how you and your organization can get involved. Some examples include: legal, medical, and social services, any work in the trades as a plumber, electrician, mechanic, roofing, etc. This is a great way for someone to put their trade or professional skills to work for the vision of the Gospel. Visit https://directory.herplan.org/directory-enroll to complete the enrollment. 
  
  

I am yours in Christ,

Fr. Scott Goodfellow