The 6th Sunday of Easter
From The Font
“Jesus said: ‘If you love me, you will keep my commandments.’”
Obedience is a complex subject! Jesus is THE Way, THE Truth, and THE Life. Basic logic says that if we believe He is who He says He is, then we should obey each and every one of His teachings and commands.
Of course, He’s had some sketchy followers! As Brennan Manning put it: “the greatest single cause of atheism... is Christians.” And so one has to carefully draw a line between what the truth of Jesus Christ and this or that self-serving Christian - be they a layman, a priest or a pope. Brennan Manning left the priesthood, after all...
We also have the modern problem of “what does the Church actually teach?” The 1993 Catechism of the Catholic Church is AMAZING and remarkably clear if you really read it. But many modern Churchmen have the bad habit of speaking without precision and the world around us is full of smart-sounding charlatans who are quick to use all the power of psychology in their self-serving pursuits.
So the real question of obedience isn’t so much “should we obey?” as it is “what should we actually do?”
Thankfully, Catholicism is remarkably simple. We should go to Mass on Sundays and Holy Day. We should go to Confession monthly. We should obey the moral law (which isn’t that complicated) and when we’re confronted with something unclear - we should do some research. Read the Catechism and ask a few priests. Our attitude has to be truth seeking, not loop-hole seeking, though!
Beyond that, we should pray, fast, and do works of mercy. We should read scripture and try to be virtuous.
There are deeply complex questions out there, but most of us aren’t really going to have to face them head on. And so, for most of us, if we love Jesus, we need to receive the Sacraments, be faithful to a personal spiritual life, and live the moral life with honest intention to love the Lord in our deeds.
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
Happy Mothers’ Day!
I want to show some special love to our moms today. None of us would be here without them. Moms (and in a different way, Dads) co-create with God. That’s an incredible privilege! Stop and consider it for a moment. I, as a priest, participate in the sanctifying work of the Lord. It’s rad! But moms participate in the creative work of the Lord. Moms’s participation is a lot more visceral... but it’s no less important. And so we don’t want to miss just how big a deal being a mom is!
I also want to take a moment to show some very special love to those women who want or desire or would intend to be moms, but who are unable. In many ways, these women are like the martyred disciples who love Jesus and desire to be united to Him in Baptism, but the messiness of the world gets in the way. We describe those martyrs as having a “baptism of desire” or, less commonly, “baptized by intent.” Since the rise of the birth control pill and the massive over-medication of Americans in the past century, many, many women desire to conceive a child, but are unable to do so. It’s an incredibly painful situation to be in! The Lord tends to comfort those women by giving them spiritual children by means of ministry or by means of nieces and nephews. We should really pay attention to the importance of the motherly role that these incredible women play in the world and in the Church! Wise people have always understood why some nuns are called “mother.” In our own community, we have several women who are without their own natural children and who are, yet, as much mothers as anyone! I really don’t say this to condescend! It’s important that we realize that every human being is called to be a brother or sister to their peers and to be a father or mother to the young. In some cases, a grandmotherly bop on the head is the best way to get a child to quiet down in Church!! In others, a child may find comfort in sitting in the pew with a mother-figure even when his own natural mother is in the pew across the way with his or her siblings. This is the richness of the idea of motherhood.
As with all things, there is a blessing in the natural reality and a further blessing in the supernatural reality. For some of us, the natural blessing is united to the supernatural. For some of us, the natural is wasted in our youth and the supernatural is discovered with maturity later in life. For some of us, the natural is forgone by choice and for some, the natural is medically impossible. Whatever our circumstances in the natural order, all men are called to be fathers and all women are called to be mothers.
I want to highlight one more essential group: widows. In the modern world, we never hear about the incredible gift to the Church that widows are! In the 60s, several saints who were widows were removed from the calendar. What a shame! Those who have suffered loss have a wisdom that can’t be easily shared and which is yet going to be something we all face. To have the cross of Christ thrust upon us is hard! Let’s not overlook those incredible moms and grandmoms who feel alone. Let’s make sure they know that they aren’t alone!
Mass Intentions for the Coming Week
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Mary Ernst/Gustafson
- Sun 9:00a Pro Populo for the Living & Deceased Members of our Parish
- Mon No Mass
- Tues 9:00a In memory of Dale Magoun/family
- Wed 9:00a In memory of Kathleen Mills/ Magoun
- Thu 9:00a In memory of Rosa Gremshell
- Fri 5:30p In memory of Becky Lancaster/family
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Patrick Thomas/Bullard
- Sun 9:00a Pro Populo for the Living Deceased Members of our Parish
ALTAR CANDLES this week are burning for the special intentions of Kathleen Mills as requested by Angel Farlow
Assistants at Holy Mass
| Date | Servers | Lector(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 5/13 5:30p | None Scheduled | P Wilks |
| 5/14 9:00a | Cooper & Maura | Seniors |
| 5/20 5:30p | None Scheduled | M K Book |
| 5/21 9:00a | Kathleen & Evelyn | A Oliver |
| 5/27 5:30p | None Scheduled | L Bullard |
| 5/28 9:00a | Chandler and Annie | B Sullivan |
Upcoming Events
- Confessions every Friday & Saturday from 5p until Mass at 5:30p
- Sunday Morning Catechism in the Hall after the 9:00a Mass unless otherwise indicated
Pastoral Council meeting monthly on the third Tuesday at 6p unless otherwise indicated
May 14 Recognition of our high school graduates - 9 a.m. Mass - reception following
- May 16 Pastoral Council Meeting - 6 p.m., Church Hall
- May 21 Second quarter social - Potluck Brunch - following 9 a.m. Mass
For Your Information:
ROSARY GROUP… a group of parishioners is meeting on Monday at 5:30 p.m. to pray the Rosary. Everyone is invited to join the group. If you need additional information, please contact the Coordinator, Louise Magoun, at 318-341-2403.
FORMED.ORG… FORMED has a collection of videos for Easter season that are worth checking out at https://watch.formed.org/easter. Remember to sign in using our parish’s zip code (71282) at http://signup.formed.org
SENIOR MASS… honoring TA seniors, Preston Collins and Henry Ellerbee, will be on Sunday, May 14 during the 9 a.m. Mass. Please join us in celebrating the achievements of these outstanding young people of our faith family!!!
CONGRATULATIONS …. to Aidan Collins who will graduate from LSU on Friday, May 19, 2023 with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology with a minor in Biology from the College of Human Sciences and Education. Aidan, the daughter of Dave and Kendra Collins, plans to pursue medical school.
POTLUCK BRUNCH …. May 21 following 9 a.m. Mass. All faith family members are encouraged to participate.
Setting up the Hall and providing cleanup afterwards will the the Second Quarter (April, May, June) Social Committee consisting of Libby Bullard, Angel Farlow, Margaret and Pat Gilfoil, MaryAnne Gilfoil, Terry and Andy Hall, Isabell Hernandez, Cindy and Jamie Howington, Ann Keene, Alyce and C.W. Keene, Frances Kennedy, Elizabeth and Paul Naya, Bobby Reynolds, Delia Trichell, and Cathy VanderVieren.
Stewardship Those who obey the commandments, Jesus says in today’s Gospel, are the ones who really love Him. Does my stewardship reveal my love for Jesus?
Our Return to the Lord
| Weekly Budget FY 2022-23 | $ 2,111 |
| April Budget | $ 8,444 |
| April Income | $ 19,642 |
| April Expenses | $ 10,737 |
| May Budget | $ 8,444 |
| May 6-7 Collection | $ 3,117 |
| May Income To Date | $ 3,117 |
Let us Rejoice in the Lord!
Happy Birthday Mary Anne Gilfoil (May 13), Eddie Mills (May 14)
Happy Anniversary Father Ryan Humphries (Ordination) (May 21)
In Our Daily Prayers…
Please let us know of anyone who is ill or hospitalized and would like to receive a visit from Father. Also, help us keep our prayer list up to date by advising us of those who should be added or removed.
Our Holy Father Pope Francis; Bishop Robert Marshall, and our Diocesan leaders, our President, Governor, Mayor and national, state and local elected representatives
Our parishioners who are sick, shut-in, or otherwise in need of our prayers: Connie and Dan Copes, Elizabeth Crothers, Leslye Ellerbee, Susan and Johnny Gilfoil, MaryJane Johnson, Bill Kennedy, Ed Mills, Terry and Susie Murphy, Sue & Mike Rome
Those under full-time care: Frances Kennedy, Carol Dunning
Our friends and relatives who need our prayers: Lee Adams (Smith), Ashley Alexander (Regan), Graham Allen (S Gilfoil), Kathryn Wood Allsopp (D Wood), Pam Amacker (Gilfoil), James and Carolyn Arceneaux (Book), Marie Farlow Bellard, Tommy Bickham (C Copes), Chris Breard (Gilfoil), Sarah Cannon (Gilfoil), Ruthie Coenen (Wilks), Jami Cook (Wilks), Marla Evans Cummings, Susan Ward Daigle (Gilfoil & Keene), Don Deweese, Mac Donaldson (Ellerbee), Joe Farlow, Mike Farlow, Patty Farlow, Monique Florence, Judy Fortenberry, April Franklin (Wilks), Thom Gilfoil, Wyly Gilfoil (Gilfoil), Charlotte Green, Rita Hargrave, Arlice Evans Headley, Evie Hilburn (Lancaster), Charles Howington, Dee Jones (Keene), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Caroline Marcello (Watts), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Mona Martin (MA Gilfoil), Boyce Miller, John Neill, Caryn Oliver, Wayne Pitre (Gilfoil), Levi and Kristin Reagan and their infant twins, Mary Anne and Adam Todd (Gilfoil/Ginn), Frances Robinson (Wilks), Janie Saxon (Lancaster), Bailey, Scott and Tiffney Rome, Dianne W. Roper (Murphy),Tuleta Sasser (Wilks), Albert Thom (Rome), Barbara Thomas (Gilfoil), Tommy Trichell, LeeAnn Rome Tranchina (Rome), Joe Yerger,
Our collegiates: Aidan Collins, Callie Ezell, Lilly Falgout, Chris Hall (USMC), Nick Hall, Bruen Johnson, Caroline Marsh, Emmy Lu Marsh, Blake Sullivan, Carter Sullivan, Walker Sullivan, Marsh Wood
