Waking Up the Church
Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
One of the most common questions I ask myself, and I am sure some you do too, is why do young people, especially in their teen age years, stop coming to church? What is it that when you ask your children to come to church, they frowned their face as if you were asking them to do the most difficult thing in the world? So what is it that as they grow up, they feel less attracted to church and more attracted to the secular world. Recently, bishop Robert Barron, the auxiliary bishop of Santa Babara, conducted a study on why young people are leaving the practice of Christianity and he found out that the reasons for it are not very compelling. According to bishop Barron, it is true that secularism is actively attempting to debunk our Christian beliefs; but he blames teachers, catechists, and evangelists, and academics within the Christian churches for not doing enough to keep our young people engaged and then he mentions some of the main reasons for young people walking away from Christianity. But, wait a minute, what about parents? Mom and dad are the first teachers and catechists for their children. They are the first to teach by word and example the values of Christian life.
That’s what they promised when they brought their children to be baptized. But sadly, sometimes I don’t see that commitment, that zeal, that passion in parents to keep their children not only engaged but to remain engaged as they grow up. It is so sad to see moms coming alone to church because her husband does not want to come and of course, the children will take this as an excuse for not coming either. It is so sad when I hear parents saying their children don’t want to come to church anymore. Yes, it is sad but we all can change that! Mom, dad, wake up! It is interesting that some parents will open a bank account for their newly born baby to invest on his or her future. Don’t should we do the same to invest on their spiritual journey? Today is the day, now is the time! Start praying together, coming to church together, reading and studying the bible together. Mom, dad, for the sake of your children’s Christian life, please wake up! May God Bless You!
Readings for the Week
Monday: Prv 3:27-34; Ps 15:2-5; Lk 8:16-18
Tuesday: Prv 21:1-6, 10-13; Ps 119:1, 27, 30, 34, 35, 44; Lk 8:19-21
Wednesday: Eph 4:1-7, 11-13; Ps 19:2-5; Mt 9:9-13
Thursday: Eccl 1:2-11; Ps 90:3-6, 12-14, 17bc; Lk 9:7-9
Friday: Eccl 3:1-11; Ps 144:1b, 2abc, 3-4; Lk 9:18-22
Saturday: Eccl 11:9 — 12:8; Ps 90:3-6, 12-14, 17; Lk 9:43b-45
Sunday: Am 6:1a, 4-7; Ps 146:7-10; 1 Tm 6:11-16; Lk 16:19-31
Saints & Special Observances
Sunday: Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time; Catechetical Sunday
Monday: St. Januarius
Tuesday: Ss. Andrew Kim Tae-gŏn and Paul Chŏng Ha-sang and Companions
Wednesday: St. Matthew
Thursday: Autumn begins
Friday: St. Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio)
Saturday: Blessed Virgin Mary
Our Responsability for Others
The Second Vatican Council has called us to envision the Church as the people of God. As a community of believers we are responsible for our brothers and sisters, their salvation, their journey of faith, their physical well-being. Many of the documents of Vatican II and volumes of work since the mid-1960s give us advice, guidelines, and encouragement to take care of one another: the poor, the elderly, the unborn, the broken, the infirm.
Because Vatican II is part of our recent history—indeed many of us were already born—this may strike us as a new and revolutionary idea. But today’s readings show us the agelessness of the issue of social justice. Eight hundred years before Christ was born, Amos warned the wealthy not to cheat the poor. In Paul’s first letter to Timothy, he encourages all prayers to be for all people; and finally, the Gospel urges the wise use of money.