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Musings for Sunday, June 9
This Sunday, we hear St. Paul tell the Corinthians, “But just as we have the same spirit of faith that is in accordance with scripture—‘I believed, and so I spoke’—we also believe, and so we speak, because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus, and will bring us with you into his presence” (2 Corinthians 4.13-5.1). St. Paul tells the Corinthians that our words and our actions flow from what we believe.
Sometimes what we say we believe and what we do, don’t match. Every now and then it is good for us to pause and ask ourselves what we can do to bridge the gap. This is hard work and requires God’s grace. When it comes to the ‘hard work’, St. Paul tells the Corinthians not to lose heart. Sometimes when we become aware of our sin, we can lose heart and give up. Both Jesus and St. Paul remind us not to give up. God’s grace is more powerful than our sin and weakness.
When we bridge the gap between our beliefs and our actions, our faith is deepened and strengthened, and we become more and more like Christ. We are in fact building up the Body of Christ! God’s love is being made real. Building up the Body of Christ means that our world is being changed for the good!
Some things from around the Parish:
Congratulations to the following young people who received the sacrament of Confirmation on Tuesday, June 4 here at our Parish. Their Confirmation name is in brackets:
Nathaniel (Edward) Aydogdu, Sophia Elena (Theresa) Diaz Gomez, Hernan David (Peter) Diaz Gomez, Seth William (Peter) Domes, Mira Grace (Catherine) Jamali, Marcos Emilio (Juan)Tejo Monroy, Philippa Sharon (Joan) Nordick, Tate Dustin (Sebastian) Hartery Pollon, Giovanni Obidchukwudiche (Isidore) Ugbomah, Chinyenum Andrea (Catherine) Ugbomah, Beatrice Elysse (Clare) Magcawas.
Special thanks to all who made this celebration possible and especially the choir who led us in “Spirit-filled” music.
Pastoral Ministry AGM – THIS Sunday, June 9, we will gather after our 10:00 am Mass to remember the work we have done as a Parish this past year. We will recall our celebrations, our outreach, our welcoming, and our growing. We will recall our achievements and our failures, and we will set new goals for ourselves that we might continue the work of joyfully building up the Church. Please join us for this time of remembering and offer your gifts so that our community, which has been a thriving presence for over 60 years, might continue to make visible the work of Jesus in our city. Copies of the report are available in the Welcome Area.
End of year School Masses/Liturgies and Grade 8 Farewell Celebrations: This past week, Pope St. John Paul II School came to St. Philip Neri and celebrated their year-end Mass and their Grade 8 Farewell. The children were invited to reflect on how they have been taught to make God’s love visible. They were reminded of the importance of practicing forgiveness, kindness, patience and wishing the best for others.
St. Philip School will come to the church for their year-end celebration and Grade 8 Farewell on Wed. June 12. at 1 pm.
Fr. Doug and Oblate Community Days – On Thursday, June 13 and Friday, June 14, I will be away at our Oblate Community Days. On Friday, June 14, there will be a Lay-Presided Liturgy at 8:30 am, as Fr. Doug has Mass for the Oblate Community at Queen’s House. On Friday night, our Oblate Community will have a Liturgy of Thanksgiving and of farewell. This will be the last time we will gather there as a District for our Community Days as Queen’s House of Retreat and Renewal Centre will be closed effective July 31, 2024.
June is Indigenous History Month – June is set aside as an opportunity for us to delve into and explore the impact of Indigenous and Metis people on our local communities. In 1996, the Governor General proclaimed that Friday, June 21 is National Indigenous Peoples Day. It is an occasion for Canadians to come together, reflect on and celebrate the unique heritage, traditions, and knowledge of First Nations, Inuit, and Metis Peoples.
If you are looking for things to do to help honour the contributions of our Indigenous and Metis brothers and sisters, check out the events being held in Saskatoon: Annual Events | Saskatoon.ca
Our Parish Truth and Reconciliation Committee also encourages us to look beyond Saskatoon and to consider taking in the “Back to Batoche Days”, that will be held out in Batoche from July 18-21! More information to come. |
