Advent

Shout with joy. Alleluia! The Lord is coming.

Sunday, November 29, 2009 marks the first Sunday of Advent.

Read: Luke 21:28

Luke was not one of the original apostles. Did you ever wonder how he prepared himself for writing his Gospel?

Think about it.

He prepared just like ever participant in the Arise program has prepared and is preparing. Luke studied. He prayed. He opened himself up to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. He wanted to learn, to understand. He prayed for wisdom and knowledge--just like we did and do. He talked to others, learning the stories of the original apostles. He read scripture. He discussed. He questioned, and he prayed more.

You didn't know there were Arise Together in Christ Sessions back then did you?

Thanksgiving

Read Psalm 30

Read Psalm 116

Read 1Thessalonians 5:16-18

Around the Thanksgiving table each person gave one reason for being thankful. Little Sonny said, "I'm thankful I'm not a turkey."

Happy Thanksgiving.

Celebration

Breakfast with the priests. Actually they were busy; they were in and out. But it was a great success. More people came than I expected and we almost ran out of food. We had just enough.

From the conversations I overheard, everyone loved their Arise group. One group bought a cow. My group brought food every week for the food pantry. We also donated a dollar each, every week, so that at Christmas we could give the money to a family we adopted. There were other ideas that I forget. It was just so edifying to hear.

Wonderful season. Happy Thanksgiving.

A Party

You are invited to attend the celebration of the closing of another successful Arise Together in Christ Session.

Where: St. Mary's Church, Franklin, MA

When: November 22, 2009

Time: 10:30 Mass
Collation following in the Rectory Kitchen

Yes, after Mass we'll meet in the Rectory's Kitchen and Dining Room and pass in Evaluations and swap stories.

Who: All who participated in the Arise program and their families.

God is good!

The Good Samaritan

I know you're probably sick of this parable, but I saw an episode on 60 minutes that put new life in an old parable. First, read Luke 10:25-37.

The story in 60 Minutes is called The Bad Samaritan. The story is about a young man named David Cash. Back in 1997, a 7-year old girl was at a casino in Las Vegas with her father. When the little girl went into the bathroom, she was followed by 18-year-Jeremy Strohmeyer. David Cash looked around for his friend, Jeremy. The only place he could have gone was the bathroom. Since it was after midnight, there was no one around. David went into the ladies room. David stated that Jeremy and Sherrice were playing around then Jeremy snatched little Sherrice and pushed her into a stall and put his hand on her mouth. David said he stood on the toilet in the next stall, and tapped Jeremy on the head to get his attention. David said that Jeremy's eyes were dazed and so he left Jeremy in the stall with his hand over little Sherrice's mouth. Jeremy and David later met up and went to other casinos. Jeremy later confessed to David that he'd killed the girl. David never called the police.

The crime is reprehensible.

But for this posting's purposes, I'm interested in David Cash's conduct.

How is what David did, or rather not do, different from the priest who just passed by the victim who needed help?