To make your ministry as easy and as effective as possible, some training is required. Keeping everyone on the "same page" makes life a wee-bit easier. Please attend the training session for: Lectors on Saturday, October 3rd, from 9 a.m.–1 p.m....To make your ministry as easy and as effective as possible, some training is required. Keeping everyone on the "same page" makes life a wee-bit easier.

Today's first reading from the Book of Numbers (11:25-29) highlights Catholic teaching in the depth and breath of God's gifts of the Holy Spirit--One God giving His Spirit to all; that is, the Same Spirit giving different gifts to all-- and that God expects us to use His Spirit freely for the benefit of all. We hear in this reading that Moses asked God for help in carrying out his ministry as he finds caring for the people by himself too burdensome...

As I read and prayed over the gospel and Sunday readings and heard Jesus proclaim in the Gospel, "If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all, I cannot but help think of Eucharistic Prayer II in the Anamnesis, or memorial, after we just proclaimed the Mystery of Faith and then call to mind the memorial action of the Church—that we are more than mere spectators in the Mass; but rather play an active part—and offer ourselves for the growth of the Kingdom of God

As things begin to rev-up for the school year our parish also begins to rev-up—from religious education and youth ministry to parish picnics, events, and our many, many ministry outreach programs, parish council and the finance council. And while they "begin" seemingly all at once, that doesn’t mean that they have been dormant all summer long.

This weekend we hear in Mark’s gospel (8:27-35) the question posed by Jesus to His disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” There has been much debate and conversation on just to whom is Jesus posing this question? There are three current interpretations of this question and how it should be applied. The first presents this question being asked to Jesus’ disciples—have they come to know who He truly is, His real identity? The second poses that in fact Jesus is wrestling with His own identity and is seeking input. The third poses that we ask ourselves the following question: “What role does Jesus play in my life?”

In this weekend’s Sacred Scripture we hear from the Letter of Saint James again, and in this section of the Letter we continue to hear of the moral code that a Christian disciple of Christ must follow. St. James calls us not to create differences among peoples when God made them equal in dignity. The sin of partiality brings us to see people differently— the homeless or the drug user, the mentally ill, the poor, the sick and vulnerable; even those of color, perhaps, or those who possess power.