Fr. Greg

Christianity is unique among all of the religions in the world in that it professes Faith in a God that is both utterly transcendent and yet incarnate and closer to us than we are to ourselves. We have a God who is outside space and time and yet who took on flesh and became man for the Glory of the Father and the salvation of souls. Other religions around the world tend to pick one of the two elements. They either worship the unknowable god, or they worship the god in the forest, or the ocean, or the statue.

Today we celebrate the 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, but we also celebrate our nation’s Independence Day. Today and tomorrow, all over the world, people will be gathering together to enjoy the freedom that was declared to be ours on this day 245 years ago. There are wonderful freedoms that we are afforded as Americans, but today, let us recall the true meaning of freedom. Let us turn our eyes to our Heavenly Father who sent His only Son so that we could be set free from sin and death, and so that we might come to know the glorious freedom of the children of God.

“God did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living… For God formed man to be imperishable, the image of his own nature he made them.” All of us have a terminal illness, and that illness is sin and death. Death is a fact of life. No one escapes it. This fact can be a cause of great anxiety and distress for many of us, and especially in this last year it has been a particularly evident part of our lives. Many of us probably knew someone who passed away during the last year, and the thought weighs heavy on our hearts.

Father… this word permeates our lives as Catholics. We call our priests “Father,” our prayers are directed to the Father, in fact, Jesus came to show us the Father for “he who has seen me has seen the Father.” Our Faith is filled with fatherhood and so for a man to become a father is an incredibly daunting task, and so today we celebrate all of those men who have risen to the occasion and have been reflections of our Heavenly Father.

Virtual... Perhaps this is the best word to sum up what we have all endured during the last year and a half. Nearly every aspect of our lives has been touched by this word. We encounter each other on our phones and computers. Our work is virtual. Students go to a virtual school. Mass has been virtual. This virtual existence is a result of the restrictions placed on us by the virus, but it has also been the result of a culture that was already dominated by screens and in which real human interaction is increasingly difficult to experience. My favorite author G.K.

Happy Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi)!!! A special welcome back to anyone returning to Mass this weekend as well. As I hope you’ve heard, this is the weekend where the dispensation to the obligation to attend Mass for Catholics in the Archdiocese is lifted. So in other words, we go back to normal, and Catholics here are again required to go to Mass. However, for those who are sick, have serious health concerns, compromised immunity, or other genuinely serious concerns about risks, they are not obliged to attend Mass.

Please welcome Seminarian Colm Larkin who will be with us at Prince of Peace this summer!

Peace,
Fr. Greg

Hello everyone,

Happy Pentecost! Come Holy Spirit! Teach us to pray.

In the same way, the Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings. And the one who searches hearts knows what is the intention of the Spirit, because it intercedes for the holy ones according to God’s will. (Romans 8:26–27)

Happy Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord! The Ascension is not Jesus getting away from us or some form of distancing, but really the opposite. As long as Jesus walked the earth, he was bodily in one place at one time (although being God, he really is omnipresent). But as Jesus ascends, it becomes clear he present to us all, at all places at all times. As Jesus says at the very end of the Gospel of Mathew, “And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Mt 28:20) The Ascension is also about the enthronement of Christ and his dominion and glory.

Thank you for all you do, so often unseen and unsung, but of the utmost importance. The month of May is traditionally dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, our spiritual mother, whose humble fiat to God brought Christ into this world.

I’d highlight a couple happenings in the parish this week. We have a Mass of Healing and Remembrance for all parents who have lost a child before birth or baptism. Anyone can attend. It will be this Thursday, May 13th, at 7pm.