Today’s Scriptures focus on comparing God’s Word, law, commands, and will with earthly goods and riches. Psalm 119 tells us that while gold and silver are valuable, God’s wisdom is even more valuable. The relative good of precious metals pales in comparison with the good to be found in God.
In today’s gospel, Jesus identified us as: a “treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again, and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys the field,” and “fine pearls, that when a merchant finds it, he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.”
Blessings to All our Harvest Festival Sponsors and Memorial/Thanksgiving Wall Participants. We eagerly await your response to our letter and a deep gratitude to an early reply. Your generosity will benefit the Ministry Center.
This week we read three of Jesus’s most famous parables: the sower and the seed, the mustard seed, and the yeast in the three measures of flour. What do all of these have in common? You might say they are stories about faith and how it grows and develops. This is correct, but they also have something else in common: the theme of patience.
In today’ gospel, Jesus announces our identity, he said: “…the good seeds [are] the children of the kingdom [of God]…” God promises us a sacred dwelling, the Kingdom of Heaven – a life eternal! This is so, because our “life is worth saving for!”
St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Preschool is now enrolling new students for our 2017-2018 School Year. We currently have limited spaces for our Pre-K Program which meets Monday through Friday. As well as spaces for our 3-Year-Old Program, which meets Tuesdays and Thursdays. For more details, contact the Chrissy Stutzman, Preschool Director at (909) 325-8950.
I had a growing desire to teach about Jesus. Something inside my heart said, “Do it.” Then I said to myself, “I am not a teacher. I am not familiar with scripture. I don’t feel like I know enough about my Catholic faith to be a catechist. ”That was four years ago. This year will be my fifth year teaching. I have taught two of my three children and many other children who have made this journey so rewarding and exciting. So, if you are not a teacher, if you don’t know scripture too well, if you feel you need to learn the faith more, don’t worry. Say yes to being a catechist (that’s a religious education teacher) if you desire it. I believe God makes you desire what He wants to give you. As you teach, you will learn and you may see yourself hungry for more. St. Paul’s Catechetical Ministry provides you with free lessons on theology and other topics prior to the beginning of classes. They will provide you with the necessary tools, supplies and texts to guide you through your lessons. Don’t be surprised if you get hooked on Jesus and Mary, the saints or scripture. It happened to me. Becoming a catechist helped me rediscover the treasures of Catholicism. It has taken me to know Jesus and fall more deeply in love with him by understanding him and not just knowing about him. I treasure this opportunity because I didn’t have this when I was preparing for my First Communion. All I had to do was learn my prayers, and Confirmation came quickly with little preparation. The catechesis taught to our children at St. Paul builds a foundation for the Catholic faith. Becoming a teacher for young children who are preparing for their First Communion or for the teens preparing for Confirmation is very rewarding. It is a journey for both catechists and students. It is the answer to our baptismal promise of becoming His disciple and teaching His word. Don’t think about it too much. If you want it, do it! Trust in God. Let him guide you and may Our Blessed Mother Mary and the Holy Spirit help you say “Yes!”
WHO AM I? Am I the seeds that fell on the pathway? Or the seeds that fell on solid rock? Or the seeds that fell on thorns? Or the seeds that fell on rich soil?
Sometimes we are tempted to think that it would be so much easier to believe in Jesus if we were living when he was on earth. Maybe ... but maybe not. Today’s Gospel tells us that it has never been easy to understand all of Jesus’s teachings, even for those who heard him in person.
There were times that when we wake up in the morning, it would seem that our world is spinning in great speed, and we are confronted with troubles here, and troubles there; problems in our families, and problems in our workplace; and heavy stress here, and miseries there. While we are immersed in this unsettling drama of life, Jesus comes to us with these liberating words: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest!” (MT 11:28)