At the closing Mass for the Synod of Bishops last month, Pope Francis told the bishops to "listen, to be a neighbor, and to bear witness." The Gospel reading was from Mark about the blind man encountering Jesus. "Faith has to do with encounter, not theory." Francis said, "In encounter, Jesus passes by; in encounter, the heart of the Church beats. Then, not our preaching, but our witness of life will prove effective." He's talking about being radical in our thoughts and actions. Not just thinking about something, but being moved into action; this is the Christian life.
The Pope pointed out it isn't Christian to expect that those who are seeking the Lord should have to knock on our doors, but that we should also be going out to meet them. When we do this we need to remember we bring not ourselves, he said, but Jesus. It's Jesus who sends us to "encourage others and to raise them up in his name."
Our 7th grader knows this and encourages us reach out, to help others to long to encounter our Lord. She shows us how to put our Christian life into action.
Radical Community Care
by Julia Wallace
Caring for our community is important. But how can we do that in an extreme way? Caring for our community is part of our civic duty. We need to be more aware of people's needs in our community. Caring is part of being good people.
We could host food drives. We could hold a special day where we ask people in the parish to come and help by bringing food supplies and then help fill bags with these things. We could make care packages with Bibles, toothbrushes, and water bottles. When we do this we help care for God's creation. We could also donate to other organizations that help people in need. We are all part of our community, so make a difference and help people in need.
As part of celebrating our 40th anniversary as a diocese all of our parishes have had a lantern near the altar this past year. Thinking of this light of Christ that each church has had, and with the Mass to celebrate our 40th year coming up last Saturday, last week I showed the 7th graders a video from the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. Light the City was a one night event of evangelizing by inviting passersby into the Cathedral to pray and light a candle for their intentions. In doing this the folks in D.C. sought out others and provided a means for them to encounter Jesus. Listen to what 7th grade thought about this: "That video was super inspiring and made me want to go out and light the city. It is so amazing how people can come together like that."; "I like what the last person said. He said, 'We can't just wait for people to come, we need to invite.'"; "Watching this makes me think deeper about prayer and how it is such a vital role in our daily lives."; "I felt very connected to Christ. It also helped me to know a way that I can get others to pray for peace."; "I saw faith in this video because these people took the time to go invite people to come into the church to pray. And, these people took the time to stop and pray even for just a moment."; "They all look so very happy, chatting with people, and praying. I would love to be a part of that if they ever do it again. They all look so happy and peaceful."
Click here to watch the video Light the City: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mr_g-8SOzw
A journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step, and one journey of 500 miles began with the first push. When a quadriplegic man wants to make a pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago in Spain but wonders how he do this, his life-long friend's response is, "I'll push you." Come watch Cinema for the Soul's offering this month,I'll Push You, a documentary not only of two friends on a pilgrimage but also a journey of faith, endurance, hardships, and perseverance. Come Thursday, November 15th at 7:00 pm in the basement of the Olive Ave hall.
Thank you,
Mrs. Alhadef
Campus Minister