Hello Everybody,
Updates:
1. I offered Mass today for all of your, the parishioners, and for all those who die with a funeral Mass.
2. The work around the rectory in Bethel has begun! The basement had begun to get moldy, so the plan is to put in crushed rock and a drainage pipe around the rectory. Step one was finished today: the driveway on the west side was pulled up and hauled away.
3. If you do have to come to St. Anthony's / the rectory for some reason, please use the driveway on the east side, at least for now.
Reflection:
http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/042020.cfm
The first reading continues the narrative of the book of Acts. St. Peter and St. John return from their run-in with the Jewish leaders, and report the encounter to the others. Then they reflect together on the experience.
The first part of their reflection is to recall the sovereignty of God. God is almighty. He made the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them. Everything is subject to him; everything belongs to him. Their next thought is a surprising one. They do not turn to their own situation; that will come later. Instead they notice that the kings and powerful ones of the earth have constantly set themselves against God and the his anointed, the messiah. Instead of yielding to almighty God, the earthly powers have resisted and withstood him. The Apostles excitedly see that all this was prophesied in the Old Testament; they cite a psalm foretelling of the resistance against God. They see that the biblical passages apply to the events that they have witnessed: the death of Jesus, the Messiah.
After remembering God's power, but also the resistance to it, the Apostles then make their prayer: Now, Lord, look upon their threats, and grant to your servants to speak your word with all boldness. What a courageous and confident line! I love that the Apostles show no sign of discouragement, concern, or perplexity. They do not wonder how to balance their duties or strike a compromise agreeable to all parties. Far from it. They ask for the vigor to speak the word with all boldness. They know what they must do; they ask only for the strength to do it. Their prayer is for the strength to follow the right path, not to find it.
The very next line is amazing. The Apostles ask for boldness while you stretch out your hand to heal ... It is the perfect reminder, even as they gear up for battle, that the goal is the healing of humanity. They are not looking to crush, they're aiming to heal. The announcement of the healing name of Jesus may require courage, but the battle and the courage needed to face it are not the main point, but only an obstacle in the path.
Finally, there is a mini-Pentecost! We all remember Pentecost, with the descent of the Holy Spirit in flames of fire, the mighty wind, and then the preaching of the Apostles in various languages. But here, not too long after Pentecost, there is a "mini-Pentecost." We read, And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken; and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God with all boldness. The building shakes with the Holy Spirit. How awesome is that? What a heritage is ours!
May we imitate the example of the Apostles, and not retreat into perplexity before the conflicting voices of the world, but ask rather for boldness to proclaim the saving name of Jesus to this world, that so badly needs the healing of God.
God bless!
Fr. Rensch