WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – March 28th – Fr. Thomas.
Among the various restaurants where I worked as a server between college and seminary, was a summer at the Lexington Country Club. I remember an incident where a father and his young son had just come in from the golf course for lunch. The father ordered a Rueben sandwich and the son ordered a cheeseburger. When I went back into the kitchen to collect the sandwiches, the chef noticed that the hamburger was done before the salad chef had produced the Rueben. The chef had the bun already prepped with the lettuce, pickles, and tomato slice, so he put the burger back in the oven to keep it warm. Meanwhile, a few minutes later, upon my return to the kitchen, I grabbed the Rueben on top of the salad counter, and the burger platter off the grill countertop. I rushed out to the dining room and placed the plates on the table. A minute later, the father calls me over and says, “There’s no burger on the bun!” (Alas, I had grabbed the burger plate not realizing that the chef had not put the burger back on the bun!) The father said, “Is this a phantom burger? Where’s the beef?”
Moral of the story – as we approach the most holy week of the Christian year; the week that changed the world, one rightly asks, “Where’s the beef?” In other words, “What’s the point?” If our lives are not changed by the events of Jesus’ passion and resurrection, then where are we placing our priorities, our energy, our passion? Easter is not simply one day, it’s a way of life. The Bread of Life which Jesus gives is not a mere “symbol,” it’s a Person. The celebration of Easter is more than an annual holiday observance; it’s a way of life; the eternal life promised to us who follow in His steps through His passion, resurrection, and entry into that place where there shall be no mourning, nor crying, but the unending joy that comes from knowing His Son as Our Lord and Savior.
NOTICES:
Video Viewing Options for Sunday’s mass – there are three different ways to view our videos: 1) our church website; 2) our Facebook page; and 3) our YouTube channel.
The Holy Triduum:
Maundy Thursday – April 1st – 7:00 pm, followed by one hour Adoration in the church.
Good Friday – April 2nd – 12:00 noon-1:00pm – Stations of the Cross.
Holy Saturday – Vigil Mass – April 3rd – 7:00 pm, followed by a festive reception.
Easter Sunday – April 4th – 8:00 am & 10:00 am.
Easter Egg Hunt – April 4th – after 10:00 am mass – 11:15 am.
Opportunities for Giving – there are several options that safely and efficiently expedite your generous donations: electronic bank transfers or automatic bank transfers via personal accounts or credit/debit cards; personal checks delivered by USPS; and our favorite through joining our giving family online through our website or at https://www.myEoffering.com with our secure vendor Church Envelope Budget Company, who provides you with yearly offering envelopes. Please do NOT leave any envelopes with checks/cash unattended at church mailboxes.
ECW Meeting: A lunch meeting is scheduled on April 9 at 11:00 am in the church.
Cleaning and Decorating: We need volunteers to help clean and decorate the church for Easter on Saturday, April 3 at 8:00 am.
Easter Flowers: We are collecting donations for Easter Lilies. Cost of flowers is $25. Please fill in a form and place it in the plate, or mail it to the office.
No Sunday School on Easter Sunday. Join the Easter Egg Hunt after the 10am mass.
Tuesdays: Holy Eucharist 8:30 am.
Wednesday: Eucharistic Adoration 6:00 pm.
Wednesdays: Holy Eucharist and Rosary 6:30 pm.
PLEASE PRAY – For the sick: Alfredo, Andi, Barbara, Beth, Calvin, Cindy, Donna, Francis, Irene, Jeanne, Joaquin, Kip, Max, Patricia. For birthday celebrations: Eric Cohen, Laurette Bagley, Samuel Kalphat, Joe Mee, Lorna Lawrence, Lucas Webber. For anniversary celebration: Baldwin and Violet Henry. For expectant mother: Andi.
WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – March 21st – Fr. Thomas.
I heard recently that the 21 Club, the famous “Jockey Club,” in New York City had closed down. Even though other restaurants have been forced to close during the Pandemic, it was a little surprising that this iconic venue in NYC had been affected as well. It’s been over a dozen years since my wife and I have been to New York City. Prior to that visit, when my two oldest daughters were in their early teens, we went to New York for a short trip after Christmas and went to the 21 Club for lunch. The children asked me what “Steak Tartar” was on the menu. I explained that this was a mound of raw hamburger with a raw egg on top. Wouldn’t you know it; as soon as I spoke the words, the server brought out an order of Steak Tartar for a well-dressed elderly gentleman at a corner table, who was likely a regular diner there for the past fifty years! Anyway, I saved the menu as a souvenir, and have always been amused by the footnote under the Steak Tartar entry which alleges to have the dish “prepared discreetly tableside.”
How quickly we forget that before anything is served on the table, there is a price and a process: either it had to be ripped from the soil, carved out of the side of a once-living animal, or pulled from the waters off our coasts. The Bread which endures to Eternal Life came with a price as well: before Easter, there had to be Good Friday. Do we know Christ only in His sacramental food, or are we willing to walk with Him daily, in the fullness of His humanity, even unto death?
With only two weeks left before the conclusion of this holiest time of year, let us clear out the leaven of “malice and wickedness”, put away the old life of sin, and go the distance through all fourteen Stations of the Cross; because “It’s not what they take from you that counts; it’s what you do with what you have left.”
NOTICES:
Video Viewing Options for Sunday’s mass – there are three different ways to view our videos: 1) our church website; 2) our Facebook page; and 3) our YouTube channel.
Opportunities for Giving – there are several options that safely and efficiently expedite your generous donations: electronic bank transfers or automatic bank transfers via personal accounts or credit/debit cards; personal checks delivered by USPS; and our favorite through joining our giving family online through our website or at https://www.myEoffering.com with our secure vendor Church Envelope Budget Company, who provides you with yearly offering envelopes. Please do NOT leave any envelopes with checks/cash unattended at church mailboxes.
Sandwiches for St. George’s: Please bring your sandwiches to St. David’s west side parking lot each Thursday morning from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.
Lay Weeders: A landscaping workday is planned for Saturday, March 27 at 9 am until finished. Please bring a shovel and/or rake if you have one. We are in need of monetary donations for the landscaping. Please make check payable to the church, but put “Landscaping” in the memo section. Thanks. Linda
Cleaning and Decorating: We need volunteers to help clean and decorate the church for Easter on Saturday, April 3 at 8:00 am.
Easter Flowers: We are collecting donations for Easter Lilies. Cost of flowers is $25. Please fill in a form and place it in the plate, or mail it to the office.
Sunday School is still in operation with the necessary protocols in place.
Tuesdays: Holy Eucharist 8:30 am
Wednesdays: Holy Eucharist and Rosary 6:30 pm
Fridays during Lent: Stations of the Cross 6:30 pm. Dates: 3/26.
The Holy Triduum:
Maundy Thursday – April 1st – 7 pm, followed by one hour Adoration in the church.
Good Friday – April 2nd – 12:00 noon-1:00pm & 7 pm – Stations of the Cross.
Holy Saturday – Vigil Mass – April 3rd – 7 pm, followed by a festive reception.
Easter Sunday – April 4th – 8 am & 10 am.
Easter Egg Hunt – April 4th – after 10 am mass – 11:15 am.
PLEASE PRAY – For the sick: Andi, Barbara, Beth, Calvin, Donna, Francis, Irene, Jeanne, Joaquin, Max. For birthday celebrations: Alred Dyce, Matthew Hogan, Richard James, Nancy Schroeder, Meghan Schubert, Dexter Beresford, Austin LaBorde, Inara Elmquist, Ann Chambers, Faubert Pierre-Paul. For anniversary celebration: Chris and Kati Erickson. For expectant mothers: Andi, Bronwyn.
WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – March 14th – Fr. Thomas.
A story is told about the late evangelist, Billy Graham, while on a plane, was sitting behind a man who was drinking to excess. The man became rather loud and abusive. Finally, the attendant said to him, “Sir; do you know Billy Graham is sitting behind you? The man turned around and said, “Dr. Graham, I’m so glad to meet you. I went to one of your crusades and it changed my life.” (Well, apparently, but not for long!)
Lent is an annual reminder that our conversion experiences – daily, monthly, annually, or for all time are not momentary, but should have a lasting effect. It’s not easy, though, making the changes which will conform our lives to that of Our Blessed Lord. It’s like the occasional messages I receive on my computer which advise me: “You need some updates.” Yes, we ALL need updates from time to time. No one is perfect, but true humility doesn’t mean thinking less of yourself – it means thinking of yourself less.
Even though there are only three more weeks of Lent, remember: Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending, because The Lord doesn’t choose us for who we are, but for what we can become.
This Sunday is the beginning of Day Light Savings Time; so remember to set your clocks ahead one hour Saturday night/Sunday morning.
NOTICES:
Video Viewing Options for Sunday’s mass – there are three different ways to view our videos: 1) our church website; 2) our Facebook page; and 3) our YouTube channel.
Opportunities for Giving – there are several options that safely and efficiently expedite your generous donations: electronic bank transfers or automatic bank transfers via personal accounts or credit/debit cards; personal checks delivered by USPS; and our favorite through joining our giving family online through our website or at https://www.myEoffering.com with our secure vendor Church Envelope Budget Company, who provides you with yearly offering envelopes. Please do NOT leave any envelopes with checks/cash unattended at church mailboxes.
Sandwiches for St. George’s: Please bring your sandwiches to St. David’s west side parking lot each Thursday morning from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.
Pipe Laying: We need volunteers on Saturday, March 20th at 9:00 a.m. to help dig some trenches and lay pipes out to the church signs. Please bring a shovel if you have one. We need as many workers as possible for at least a couple of hours. Thanks. Linda McKeown
Sunday School is still in operation with the necessary protocols in place.
Tuesdays: Holy Eucharist 8:30am
Wednesdays: Holy Eucharist and Rosary 6:30pm
Fridays during Lent: Stations of the Cross 6:30pm. Dates: 3/19, 3/26
PLEASE PRAY – For the sick: Barbara, Beth, Calvin, Cynthia, Donna, Efim, Fiona, Francis, Irene, Jeanne, Joaquin, Mike. For birthday celebrations: Mark Veckman, Lincoln Elliott, Leroy Williams, Evelyn Medcalf, Brenda Barreca, Daniel Melton, Stuart Cohen. For anniversary celebrations: Jerry and Sally Frenz, David and Jackie Whiting. For expectant mother: Bronwyn.
WEEKLY RECTOR’S MESSAGE – March 7th – Fr. Thomas.
On my day off I like to spend time outside – weeding, planting, landscaping. Some of the new plants and hedges I recently purchased however are already dropping dead leaves, but for a good reason – to make room for the new ones to grow. Lent reminds us that for new life and its “foliage” to grow, the old life of sin has to be removed. Perhaps that’s why we call it “Spring Cleaning:” when we clean out that which is old.
We’re now two weeks into Lent (which, by the way, derives its name from “Lengthen,” when the daylight becomes longer and the temperature rises.) So how’s it going so far? Will this Lenten season be like all the others; or will our repentant spirit and reformed life reflect the converted life for which Jesus died on the cross?
Hans Urs Von Balthasar, a popular German theologian of the 20th c., wrote, ”Man is led into the open realm in which he can love by the love he believes in because he has understood its sign. If the Prodigal Son had not already believed in his father’s love, he would have never set out on his homeward Journey–even though the love that received him back was beyond his dreams.”
In other words, it’s never too late to confess, forgive, and convert – for what awaits us is beyond our imagination. Everyone thinks of changing humanity, but no one thinks of changing himself. God wants to “fertilize” us with His sacramental grace, remove the old debris, and fill us with His holy and life giving spirit – now, and in every season of the year. Just as Adam “broke the fast” and was exiled from Paradise by eating the “forbidden fruit,” so Christ overcame temptation in the wilderness and opened the door for us into the eternal Paradise.
NOTICES:
Video Viewing Options for Sunday’s mass – there are three different ways to view our videos: 1) our church website; 2) our Facebook page; and 3) our YouTube channel.
Opportunities for Giving – there are several options that safely and efficiently expedite your generous donations: electronic bank transfers or automatic bank transfers via personal accounts or credit/debit cards; personal checks delivered by USPS; and our favorite through joining our giving family online through our website or at https://www.myEoffering.com with our secure vendor Church Envelope Budget Company, who provides you with yearly offering envelopes. Please do NOT leave any envelopes with checks/cash unattended at church mailboxes.
Sandwiches for St. George’s: Please bring your sandwiches to St. David’s west side parking lot each Thursday morning from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m.
Lay Weeders: landscaping workday is planned for Saturday, March 13 at 9 a.m. until finished. We will be planting and mulching the area by the dumpster as well as finishing the area in the right side of the church. Please bring a shovel and/or rake if you have one. We are in need of two rocks for our landscaping. The cost is approximately $100 each. If anyone is interested in donating a rock, please contact Kenneth Barrett at 561-204-2509. We are also in need of monetary donations for the landscaping. Please make check payable to the church, but put “Landscaping” in the memo section. Thanks. Linda.
Sunday School is still in operation with the necessary protocols in place.
Tuesdays: Holy Eucharist 8:30am
Wednesdays: Holy Eucharist and Rosary 6:30pm
Fridays during Lent: Stations of the Cross 6:30pm. Dates: 3/5, 3/12, 3/19, 3/26
PLEASE PRAY – For the sick: Barbara, Beth, Cynthia, Diana, Donna, Efim, Fiona, Francis, Irene, Jeanne, Jim, Joaquin, Leo, Tayvin. For the departed: Richard Elliott. For birthday celebrations: Pat Bernard, Jackson Falco, Joyce Smith. For expectant mother : Bronwyn.