Dear Friends,
Our celebration of Pentecost this weekend brings to a close our fifty-day celebration of Easter. During these days we have meditated upon the significance of the Resurrection of the Lord, what it means for us as we live our lives here and now and well as what it holds out to us in hope as we look forward to eternal life after passing through death itself. During the weeks of the Easter season, we read through the Acts of the Apostles as well as much of the Gospel of John, significant passages that are meant to assure us of the truth of the Resurrection and the truth of the Risen Lord’s abiding presence among us, which we experience when we read the Scriptures and celebrate the sacraments, most importantly the Eucharist. We have been reminded of the Lord’s wish for us to have peace and his command that we love one another as he has loved us. While this was the focus of the Easter Season, it has much to bring to bear on our lives throughout the year.
With the horror of the massacre at Sandy Hook almost ten years ago still with us, we heard of yet another senseless school shooting at Uvalde, Texas that cost nineteen children and two adults their lives. In the days since the massacre, we have all read and heard from those in political office with their opinions on gun control, for it or against it, as is typically the case. In all honesty, however, there are other issues that come to bear on these terrible events, issues such as the state of mental health in this nation and how we deal with the mentally ill, the state of family life, broken marriages, the absence of fathers in the lives of their children, especially their sons. There is the problem of drug abuse, the increasing polarization taking place in our society, the lack of civility in public discourse, even the fixation on violence that is wrought by video games. To that we can add the decline in religious faith and practice, the outward hostility toward religious faith, the rise of secularism, the pushing of God and the moral law to the fringes of societal discourse if not out of the picture altogether. All of these are certainly contributing factors to the decline of morality, civility and good order in our society. There is a sickness of the heart, a sickness of the soul in so many that cries out for healing, and that healing can come only from God. That healing is readily available, if we would but turn again to God, asking for his blessing, asking him to be part of our lives, asking him to help us live as he wants us to live. That, and only that, in the end will lead to true happiness and lasting peace. That is something for which to pray every day.
I congratulate the twenty-three young men and women who graduated from St. Mary School this Friday evening, as well as all those who have received their college degrees or high school diplomas this spring. We wish them all much success and every blessing in their futures.
Have a good week!