True Christian Community
Beloved, warm and friendly greetings to you on behalf of myself and Fr. William Ruther. More than one hundred young people received the Sacrament of Confirmation by the imposition of the hands of Bishop Salazar this past Saturday. We hope that our beloved young people and the youth ministry continue to bring their vitality to the 4:00pm Mass on Sundays.
This Sunday the Gospel reading from John says:
“I give you a new commandment: Love one another. As I have loved you, love one another. This is how all will know that you are my disciples: if you love one another.” ~ John 13:35
United in the prayer of the Our Father, your brothers and friends,
Fr. Walter Paredes and Fr. William Ruther
Fifth Sunday of Easter
Can you imagine a world such as the one put before us in today’s scripture readings? Communities of believers everywhere would support and encourage one another and be identified as Christians by the way they love each other. It would be a world with no tears, no death and mourning, no crying out in pain. “Behold, I make all things new,” we hear the Son of God say in the second reading from the book of Reve-
lation (21:5).
Is this world of John’s vision only imaginary? Are these faithful followers for whom Jesus prayed only a savior’s dream? Today they are put before us as a worthy goal. How much closer can we come to this vision of a true Christian community in our lives today?
Readings for the Week
Monday: 1 Pt 5:5b-14; Ps 89:2-3, 6-7, 16-17; Mk 16:15-20
Tuesday: Acts 14:19-28; Ps 145:10-13ab, 21; Jn 14:27-31a
Wednesday: Acts 15:1-6; Ps 122:1-5; Jn 15:1-8
Thursday: Acts 15:7-21; Ps 96:1-3, 10; Jn 15:9-11
Friday: Acts 15:22-31; Ps 57:8-10, 12; Jn 15:12-17
Saturday: Acts 16:1-10; Ps 100:1b-3, 5; Jn 15:18-21
Sunday: Acts 15:1-2, 22-29; Ps 67:2-3, 5-6, 8; Rv 21:10-14, 22-23; Jn 14:23-29
Saints & Special Observances
Sunday: Fifth Sunday of Easter
Monday: St. Mark
Wednesday: Administrative Professionals Day
Thursday: St. Peter Chanel; St. Louis Grignion de Montfort
Friday: St. Catherine of Siena; Arbor Day
Saturday: St. Pius V
Treasures from Our Tradition
The French Revolution swept the church in France away in an astonishing way, stripping the nation of every possible vestige of the faith, not merely shuttering churches, but using them as staging areas for pagan raves and romps. While millions of faithful simply went underground and hung on for the ride, even the seven-day week was demolished along with the names of the months. What emerged from the chaos was the Napoleonic Code of 1792 governing church life, and therefore marriage law in France, French Canada, and elsewhere. The code makes civil marriage mandatory for all citizens. In practice, when the faithful marry, they go first to the City Hall. There, the mayor performs the civil marriage, usually accompanied by a patriotic speech about the duties of the citizen, particularly in the rearing of children. Then, typically after a lunch, everyone goes off to change into more festive attire for the wedding liturgy, featuring consent, the exchange of rings, and the nuptial blessing. Sadly, only a minority of citizens today celebrate even the civil form of the rite, and a fraction of those continue on to the church. For those who do celebrate the liturgy of marriage, however, there is near certainty that the spouses are active worshipers, and that they will later present their children for baptism.