Is this Wednesday July 1st already?! I can't believe I will have been your pastor for a year by then! Being able to say that I have missed seeing all of you these past three months or so is a sign that St. Anthony's has become home very quickly. I am happy to see people returning to church little by little. It will take some time before everyone gets back but thankfully we are moving in a good direction!
Saturday is July 4th of course, the day we celebrate the birthday of our country. At a time when we can be so focused on what divides us it is important for us to remember and celebrate what unites us as Americans. Forgetfulness and ignorance can be like poison to the body weakening our constitution. To forget our past is to lose our future. If we lose our identity as a country we lose our sense of direction. This is always at stake, not just as the United States of America but as a community of faith, as a family, and even as individuals. Digging down to our roots can help us reconnect with our identity and forge a clearer path for our future. Our common goal as written in the Declaration of Independence is our pursuit of happiness. After all, who doesn’t want to be happy? This God given, unalienable right, unites us not just with one another as Americans but with all human beings. Independence is the means for that pursuit of happiness. It came at the cost of much sacrifice. Preserving and maintaining that independence comes at the cost of great vigilance and no less sacrifice. These times of year are a great opportunity for us not only to recall but to recommit. We are able to do that in a very special way in the light of our Catholic Faith.
As Catholics, we exercise our freedom by choosing to serve God. In serving God we are not only living our Catholic Faith but also being most American. As we strive to build the Kingdom of God by imitating the example of our Lord through our worship, prayer, sacrifices, and acts of mercy, we help to strengthen and preserve our unity as a community of faith and as a country. As we defend the dignity of every human being from conception until natural death regardless of creed, color, culture, gender, or race, we uphold the American ideal grounded in Divine Law that “all men (people) are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” This freedom to live in peace and harmony as brothers and sisters, comes at great cost, namely, Christ on the cross.
This July 4th, as we celebrate with food, family, and fireworks, perhaps we can make a verse of the hymn, “Let There Be Peace on Earth,” the prayer for our country: Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me. Let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be. With God as our father, brothers and sisters all are we. Let us walk with each other in perfect harmony.
Lastly, just a reminder that next week is the first weekend of the month which means we will be giving birthday blessings at all of the Masses! If you would like special mention of a loved one who has a birthday in July at the 10 am Mass next Sunday July 5th, feel free to send us an email with the person's name and age (if appropriate!). You can use admin@sapwh.org or just click here to fill out a simple form on our website. Happy Birthday to all of our July babies!