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Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 21, 2024

SJE Admin • July 23, 2024

Dear Friends,

I ask for your prayers for our country. Please implore the Holy Spirit to pour out His power for peace, civil concord, and hope at this time of shock, horror, and sadness as a result of the assassination attempt on our former president, Donald Trump, on Saturday, 13 July 2024. What happened is absolutely appalling and to be soundly condemned. We offer our prayers for his speedy recovery, for the needs of those injured, and for those who were killed. We pray for protection for everyone. We know that every life is precious and that it is our duty to safeguard every life from inception to natural death. Therefore, let us continue to pray for an end to every kind of violence everywhere and for the healing of all divisions in our land.

Congratulations to Tiffany and Anthony Moran and Tiffany’s parents, Terri and Tom Wieckowski, who were honored with the Family of the Month Award for July 2024. We are truly blessed by their faithfulness to our parish, travelling from Orlando and Merritt Island to join us in worship and to serve in our community. I thank them for all that they do to help our parish be an outstanding source of spiritual growth and good fellowship.

The Scamsters are at it again! They will never stop doing trying to get you to fall into their devilish traps. Once again, I request you to be very cautious and watchful. They have only sharpened their skills at scamming people with requests that seem very real. They are able to imitate my email, phone messages, and text messages, seeking to make you believe it is me. Please! before you take any action, call me if you have any doubts about the authenticity of a request that appears to come from me. Learn what the tell-tales are for fraudulent messages, and even if these are not present, check with me if you are not certain.

The much anticipated “10th National Eucharistic Congress” is coming to an end. It has been a huge blessing for all Catholics in the United States. Its goal has been to restore/enkindle belief in Jesus’ Real Presence in the Eucharist and to stir up the faith of those who already believe so it bursts into flames. May this be achieved first of all in our parish.

It was heartwarming to see so many thousands gathered at the Congress on 17-21 July 2024 in Indianapolis. We pray that it truly rekindles, reaffirms and restores the proper understanding of who Jesus is and how his undying love for us is beautifully and visibly expressed through the gift of Himself in the Eucharist.

I am grateful to our own parishioners who made the sacrifice to personally attend the Congress. I am sure many of us accompanied the Congress very closely through social media as well. Obviously, this Congress is not the end of the story. All of us are now called to set out as missionaries of the Eucharist, to become the Eucharist to each and every one we meet.

On the 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, the Scripture readings invite us to know how God looks after us. The image of the Good Shepherd is one of the most powerful images in the Scriptures in of the Father’s deep and personal care for us. This image, so beautifully portrayed in Psalm 24 and in Jesus’s parable of the shepherd and the lost sheep, has sustained the faith of people for millennia. Just as we rest in the assurance that our God in Jesus cares for us, we are called to imitate him and to be a good shepherd to all around us.

Have a Blessed Week! With love,

Fr. John

March 9, 2025
Dear friends, The holy season of Lent has begun with a glorious Ash Wednesday. It was heartwarming to see our children at the 7 a.m. Mass that day. They wore the cross-shaped ashes on their foreheads to school, proud to show their faith and be silent evangelizers. We are very proud of them! Now that it is Lent, we will offer Stations of the Cross at the Grotto each day of the week except Sunday, including the traditional Stations on Fridays. I urge you to look at the bulletin for all the details about special Masses and other spiritual activities that have been created to support you on your lenten journey. I ask that you take the Lenten Schedule on page 8 and post it where you will remember to look at it. In particular, note the information about the Lenten Mission on March 16-18, the special programing for the Tuesdays of Lent, and the many spiritual activities on Fridays. We can approach Lent as the opportunity to do a spiritual “spring cleaning.” As one good priest reminded me: “Lent is a time to re-read the ‘owner’s manual,’ to tune our ‘engines,’ and to refurbish our ‘vehicles’ – not only for the journey of 40 days but also for the journey of life, the right life–and the right eternity.” God has given us an inexhaustible capacity for the transformation needed for becoming holy. Lent is also that special time of year when we walk with our catechumens and candidates as they prepare to become full members of the Catholic faith during the Easter Vigil. We are called to support them through our prayers and examples of faith. Remember to pray for their sponsors and their families as well. During the Vigil Mass on 8 March, the St. John’s family will join with our catechumens in celebration of the ritual called the Rite of Sending. In this rite, they will be recognized for the progress they have made in their spiritual formation. Then we will send them on to the Rite of Election which will be celebrated by Bishop Noonan the next day, 9 March, at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe. We are very proud of the perseverance and dedication of our sisters and brothers . In this Jubilee Year 2025 themed, “Pilgrims of Hope,” it is good to reflect on the words of St. Teresa of Avila about hope and what it accomplishes: “Hope, O my soul, hope. You know neither the day nor the hour. Watch carefully, for everything passes quickly, even though your impatience makes doubtful what is certain, and turns a very short time into a long one. Dream that the more you struggle, the more you prove the love that you bear your God, and the more you will rejoice one day with your Beloved, in a happiness and rapture that can never end.” On the First Sunday of Lent, we always revisit the scene of the temptation of Jesus in the desert where he spent 40 days fasting and praying. We also recall our ancestors in faith, the ancient Israelites, who for 40 years trudged their way through the desert to the promised land. Jesus, through his patient acceptance of suffering and his rejection of the allurements of the devil, models the correct response in times of adversity and testing. This is in contrast with the ancient Israelites who murmured and complained bitterly about their ordeal. Jesus never swerved from being obedient to his Father; he completely and utterly depended on Him. Let us, too, place complete confidence in the Father during our times of trial, of which there will be many.  Our Holy Father, Pope Francis, continues to need our prayers. Let us continue to pray for his healing: “O God, shepherd and ruler of all the faithful, look favorably on your servant Francis, whom you have set at the head of your Church as her shepherd; grant, we pray, that by word and example he may be of service to those over whom he presides so that, together with the flock entrusted to his care, he may come to everlasting life. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.” I take this opportunity to announce that Beth Lowry has joined our parish staff as the new Business Manager. She held the position of bookkeeper in our office some years ago. Beth is well known to many at St. John’s. She and her devoted husband Steve have long been involved in many of our ministries. Beth brings a rich variety of work experience and abilities to her new position, and we wish her a positive and pleasant experience as she takes on this leadership role at St. John’s. Welcome, Beth! Have an inspiring and enriching LENT! With love, Fr. John
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