Dear Parishioners,
I am sure that the
movement of the celebration of Ascension Thursday to
Sunday (May 17th this year) in the state of New Jersey will continue
to be confusing for most people, and rightly so. Personally, I did not agree
with this move, then or now. People who live in the Archdiocese of
Philadelphia, right over the Delaware River and those across the Hudson River
in the Archdiocese of New York) are still
obliged to observe and attend Mass on the traditional day (Thursday, May 14th,
40 days after Easter). A bit of
confusion for all, wouldn’t you agree?
That being said, when Jesus ascended into heaven after His
time on earth, he never abandoned us. He left us His Body and Blood in the Holy
Eucharist. He remains in His words and teaching in the Sacred Scriptures. The
ordained priest acts in His very person (in
persona Christi) in the sacraments of the Church. He is present where two
or three gather in His Name—community prayer, liturgy and worship, especially
the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. And, as God-Man, He continues to
intercede for us at the right hand of the Father.
Our humanity is now elevated in Jesus’ glorious
Body and has entered Heaven. The fall and exile of Adam (original sin) is now
reversed through the saving action of Christ, the new Adam. Heaven is open to
us through Him. As He told us, no one comes to the Father except through
Him (Jn. 14:6).
This is what we celebrate.
I also wish all mothers today a happy Mother’s Day! For most
people there is a special bond between mother and child. Our
mothers carry us in their wombs for nine months. They endure the pangs of birth. They
feed us, bathe us, clean up after us, teach us, comfort us, caress
us and, most importantly, love us. How often they are willing to
sacrifice for us!
Thanks moms for your strength, patience and ability
to make things better by your calming and reassuring presence. Whenever we
take you for granted or forget what you have done for us over the years, we
apologize. You deserve better from us. We
love you!
For those (like myself) who have lost their earthly mothers,
please remember to pray for them and have Masses offered for them. Our
faith teaches us, whether they are in purgatory or in heaven, they can pray for
us! Let’s aid them in getting to heaven by offering our prayers, Masses
and sacrifices for them.
In addition to our biological (or adoptive) mothers, I think
that it is also important to remember to honor Mary, our Spiritual Mother as well, especially
in this month of May. We honor Our Lady as our Queen and Mother. She
continues to intercede for her children here on earth and we place our
confident hope and trust in her. Our Blessed Lady should play an essential role
in the lives of Catholics and indeed all Christians. She was given to us as our
mother through St. John at the foot of the cross:
When Jesus saw his mother and the
disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, ‘Woman, behold, your son.’
Then he said to the disciple, ‘Behold, your mother.’ And from that hour the
disciple took her into his home. (John 19: 26-27)
Finally, we enter into a period of preparation—originally, nine
days of prayer or a novena—for the
Holy Spirit at Pentecost (May 24th). As the
disciples prayed and awaited the promised Holy Spirit, so should we. The gift
of the Holy Spirit to the Church transformed the lives of early Christians into
true believers and bold witnesses to the risen Christ and His teaching.
One might see the obvious necessity of another outpouring of
the same Holy Spirit for our times!
Fr. Ed Namiotka
Pastor
