Un-Quiet Word for Today, Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
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But the tax collector stood off at a distance and would not even raise his eyes to heaven but beat his breast and prayed, ‘O God, be merciful to me a sinner.’ I tell you, the latter went home justified, not the former; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Luke 18:13-14
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Why the Bishop's Mass? A Letter from Fr. Mpagi
Dear brothers and sisters,
This Sunday October 23rd , Bishop Robert J. McManus will be visiting us and be the celebrant at our ‘Welcome to the New Parish Eucharistic Celebration’. Why at this time this visit?
There is a great joy of spirit, in leaving everything aside and coming together ‘as one’ from our different Church communities in Grafton to share at the Table of the Lord and his Word, led by our Shepherd and Pastor. We truly experience what it means to be ‘One Church’.
A moment of Joy and unity. The bishop is the Shepherd and Pastor of our diocesan family. His presence in our midst is a visible sign of unity and the fellowship that brings us together. He is the ‘father’ who comes home to be with his family (local church). The bishop is indeed Christ the good shepherd who gathers his sheep to lead them to nourishing pastures.
Encouragement and Mission. Exactly one year ago, this month of October, Bishop McManus gave the people of God in Grafton a new mandate and mission; the beginning of his letter read as follows:
‘Many years ago, St. Francis knelt beneath a large wooden crucifix and prayed asking, “Lord, what do you want me to do?” Jesus answered him, “Francis, go and rebuild my Church.” It took some time for Francis to realize that the Lord wasn’t asking him to repair the brick-and-mortar structure that had fallen into disrepair, but he was being called to labor for the spiritual renewal of the Church. We, like Francis, are likewise being called to participate in the work of
“rebuilding” the Church’.
This July we became a new Parish: Our Lady of Hope Parish, Grafton. The Welcome to the new parish Eucharistic celebration is a culmination of the initial stage of becoming a new parish. A lot however lies before us in this gigantic task of building a new parish. Oct 23rd is World Mission Sunday too. As we gather, we ask ourselves again: What is our mission?
A Moment of Gratitude. ‘There were Giants in those Days’, this is a title of a book found in many churches and parishes in Worcester that tells the history of the Church and those on whose shoulders we stand. How can we not be grateful for the sacrifices and great witness of faith of the clergy and lay faithful who strived and built what we now call our home parish? We gather to say ‘Thank you’ to all in the past and now in the present who do so much so that we continue to exist as a parish. By our gathering we also resolve to continue the good work the Lord has started for generations to come.
May our Mother, Our Lady of Hope, pray and intercede for us as we embark on this new journey.
Fr. Anthony Mpagi,
Pastor of Our Lady of Hope
Download Bishop McManus' Homily, reading of the Decree by Dn. Tim and installation of Fr. Mpagi HERE
Or listen below (should play in most web browsers). The Mass video is on our web page HERE. Some photos can be seen HERE.
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All About the Mass
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Readings of the Mass
LISTEN HERE to the Audio Recordings of the Readings of October 23rd, 2022, Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time.
SELECT HERE for the Readings of October 23rd, 2022, Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time.
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Symbols and Signs of the Liturgy - A Series from Fr. Mobilio
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The Inspiration of Sacred Scripture
"A reading from the Second Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy." ... "The Word of the Lord." At first glance, these statements might appear to be contradictory. But we can properly speak of both Paul and God as authors of Second Timothy because of inspiration, which means that "to compose the sacred books, God chose certain men who, all the while He employed them in this task, made full use of their own faculties and powers so that, though he acted in them and by them, it was as true authors that they consigned to writing whatever He wanted written, and no more." (Dei Verbum 11)
The liturgical custom of the Church to name both the human and Divine authors in the Mass thus corresponds with and reaffirms our belief in inspiration. We should note that we use inspiration in a more strict sense than how we might say that a great artist or musical composer "was inspired" on a natural level to complete a work. God's inspiration of the sacred author worked supernaturally in three ways: by illuminating the author's intellect and reasoning, by moving the author's will, and by guiding the author's natural faculties such as imagination, memory, and literary judgment.
- Fr. Mobilio
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