This weekend’s Gospel is the familiar story of the Prodigal Son. In this story Jesus reveals to us the all encompassing power of God’s forgiveness to anyone who seeks it with a repentant heart.
The message of God’s forgiveness is a powerful one and in this Gospel story we are reminded to continually seek this powerful grace. But there is more to this story than a simple message of recognizing and individually accepting God’s mercy.
The parable given to us by Christ has three main characters: The Father, the prodigal younger son who seeks forgiveness, and the older son who remains steadfast to the will of the father throughout his life.
Part of our life together as church is to seek God’s forgiveness as the younger son does. But also, our life together in Christ is dependent on our ability to emulate Christ for each other and for others in this world. It is therefore, necessary for us to consider the actions of the older son. It is left to our imagination whether or not this older son is able to find it in himself to accept the invitation of the father to join in the party being thrown for his brother.
The prodigal has returned to full life with the father, but has relationship been restored with the older brother? And if the older brother is unable to extend himself in mercy and in love who is truly harmed?
For us too it is important to recognize that we are constantly challenged to see and receive each person just as God does. It is not enough to recognize a person with whom we disagree as a child of God “this son of yours”. In order to truly participate in God’s love and mercy we must recognize each person as a brother or sister to us.
Faith enrichment this week on Wednesday is a special First Eucharist preparation for Second graders and their parents. There will be no Mass on Wednesday evening. Second graders and their parents are to meet in the church at 6:30 PM.
In addition to the regular 4 PM Saturday schedule, the sacrament of reconciliation will be offered on Wednesday March 24th beginning at 6:30. There will be 6 priests on hand to assist us. Seasonal music will be played in the church to enhance our prayer experience.
On Saturday Morning, March (check date with Margaret) at 10:30 we will have a Mass with celebration of the sacrament of anointing. This sacrament is for all who seek forgiveness and healing from the church.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Sacraments of Healing and Reconciliation
While we continue to discuss the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist and prepare our second graders to receive the presence of Christ in this way for the first time, the season of lent is a continuing reminder of God’s healing Mercy.
The Sacrament of Reconciliation is our chance to be continually renewed in God’s love and is readily available to all the faithful (at Saint John’s, Saturday afternoons at 4 PM). In this sacrament, we are warmly welcomed home by God the Father, just as the prodigal is in the Gospel.
The season of Lent, the prayers, such as Stations of the Cross and benediction, the Gospel readings, our continued reflection on the passion of Christ, each of these cause us to reflect on our continued need for God’s mercy and God’s healing.
There are two special opportunities for us to experience this outpouring of God’s love in our parish.
We are scheduling a communal penance service for 6:30 PM, Wednesday March 24. This will be an opportunity to individually celebrate the sacrament as the parish gathers for quiet and reflective prayer. Six priests will be on hand to provide the sacrament to all who seek it.
Even if you cannot be here right at 6:30, you can join us at any time. There is no need to stay once you have received the sacrament and spent a sufficient time in prayer. We do ask that people try to arrive no later than 7 PM so that the visiting priests are not waiting around all evening.
This is also an opportunity for those receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time to do so. Simply tell the priest that this is your first time receiving the sacrament. He will coach you.
On Saturday March 20 (that’s next Saturday), at 10 AM we will have a “Healing Mass.” At this Mass we will offer the Sacrament of Anointing to any who seek it. We offer the sacrament especially for those who might have difficulty, for physical reasons, receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Please take advantage of these special opportunities to receive the sacraments of forgiveness and healing as we prepare to celebrate the Paschal mysteries during Holy Week.
The Sacrament of Reconciliation is our chance to be continually renewed in God’s love and is readily available to all the faithful (at Saint John’s, Saturday afternoons at 4 PM). In this sacrament, we are warmly welcomed home by God the Father, just as the prodigal is in the Gospel.
The season of Lent, the prayers, such as Stations of the Cross and benediction, the Gospel readings, our continued reflection on the passion of Christ, each of these cause us to reflect on our continued need for God’s mercy and God’s healing.
There are two special opportunities for us to experience this outpouring of God’s love in our parish.
We are scheduling a communal penance service for 6:30 PM, Wednesday March 24. This will be an opportunity to individually celebrate the sacrament as the parish gathers for quiet and reflective prayer. Six priests will be on hand to provide the sacrament to all who seek it.
Even if you cannot be here right at 6:30, you can join us at any time. There is no need to stay once you have received the sacrament and spent a sufficient time in prayer. We do ask that people try to arrive no later than 7 PM so that the visiting priests are not waiting around all evening.
This is also an opportunity for those receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation for the first time to do so. Simply tell the priest that this is your first time receiving the sacrament. He will coach you.
On Saturday March 20 (that’s next Saturday), at 10 AM we will have a “Healing Mass.” At this Mass we will offer the Sacrament of Anointing to any who seek it. We offer the sacrament especially for those who might have difficulty, for physical reasons, receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
Please take advantage of these special opportunities to receive the sacraments of forgiveness and healing as we prepare to celebrate the Paschal mysteries during Holy Week.
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Bulletin Article for Third Sunday in Lent,
The Readings this weekend invite us to reflect on our deeper relationship with God.
In the Exodus reading God first attracts Moses attention with the burning bush but he also challenges him to reverence and awareness of God’s presence, “Remove your sandals for the ground you stand on is holy.” Then God instructs Moses about the role he will play in the salvation history of the Chosen People of God.
The experience of Moses in this reading informs us of what it means to be awestruck in the presence of God. We are not paralyzed with fear. We are rather challenged to ponder the presence of God and seek out the way God works in our lives and in the lives of those we love.
In the Gospel, the gardener prunes and clips and fertilizes the fig tree so that it might bear fruit. These actions, if viewed apart from anything else, might look very violent to the casual observer. But in the loving, careful and respectful hands of the gardener, it becomes clear that the plant is being nurtured and cared for.
Too often, when we encounter a person who either cares for us or is in need of caring, we miss the reality that the encounter transcends ourselves. God gives us these opportunities to give and receive his loving care – the opportunity stand in his presence. “Remove your sandals, for the ground you stand on is holy.”
In March we continue to discuss the Sacraments of our Church with large and small group sessions focused on the Eucharist.
We will celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation on Wednesday March 17, beginning at 6:30. There will be 6 priests on hand to assist with this celebration. Priests will be available until all are heard.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Saturday, February 20, 2010
February 21- Bulletin
Saint John the Baptist prayer for Vocations in the year of the Priest
You will find in this bulletin a copy of a specially written Prayer for Vocations for out parish. We will be using this prayer at each prayer gathering in the Lenten Season and beyond.
The copy provided in the bulletin is written to be used in your homes and individually. Please keep it with you and use it frequently as we pray for our church and for ourselves that God may work in us and develop leaders for His Church.
The movement of the prayer first calls us to give thanks to God “now and forever” (the God of all ages). We ask God to send the Holy Spirit among us – to give us strength to live in the example of Christ.
Next, we ask God to bless our homes, our family and our children- (it is from our families that vocations will come). We ask God , not simply to give us leaders from some outside source- but to call leaders from our own community and families.
In the final movement of the prayer we ask for courage to respond to God’s call and that God may open our hearts to respond to him ( where ever that may lead us).
We close out our prayer Imploring Mary to pray for us.
The form we will use in church is developed as a call and respond. This prayer style allows us to reflect on the words being prayed.
It is hoped that this prayer for vocations will inspire us to grow as a community of faith in the image and likeness of Christ and to help us all strive to more fully discern God’s will for our individual lives.
Sacrament of Reconciliation-
This Wednesday evening we will gather with second graders and their parents to prepare them to receive the sacrament of reconciliation for the first time. The main focus of our time will be discussion of God’s loving nature and His capacity to forgive.
In the Gospel this weekend we here of the temptations of Christ. These temptations- food-power- and putting God to the test - are representative of a whole array of temptations that can lead us away from God’s will in our lives.
In this Holy Season of Lent, each of us is called to a greater understanding of our need for God’s mercy. We are called to reflect on the areas of our life that need change so that we can live more fully in God’s love. We are called to evaluate the temptations that distract us from lives of faith. We are called to take actions in our lives that will move us away from habits that separate us from God.
The sacrament of reconciliation is available each Saturday afternoon at 4 PM. The sacrament is also available by appointment.
Wednesday March 17 has been set aside for individual reconciliation at 6:30 PM. Several priests will be available for individual celebration of the sacrament. Saturday March 20, at 10 AM we will have Mass with the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. This sacrament for healing and for the forgiveness of sin is available to any who seek it.
You will find in this bulletin a copy of a specially written Prayer for Vocations for out parish. We will be using this prayer at each prayer gathering in the Lenten Season and beyond.
The copy provided in the bulletin is written to be used in your homes and individually. Please keep it with you and use it frequently as we pray for our church and for ourselves that God may work in us and develop leaders for His Church.
The movement of the prayer first calls us to give thanks to God “now and forever” (the God of all ages). We ask God to send the Holy Spirit among us – to give us strength to live in the example of Christ.
Next, we ask God to bless our homes, our family and our children- (it is from our families that vocations will come). We ask God , not simply to give us leaders from some outside source- but to call leaders from our own community and families.
In the final movement of the prayer we ask for courage to respond to God’s call and that God may open our hearts to respond to him ( where ever that may lead us).
We close out our prayer Imploring Mary to pray for us.
The form we will use in church is developed as a call and respond. This prayer style allows us to reflect on the words being prayed.
It is hoped that this prayer for vocations will inspire us to grow as a community of faith in the image and likeness of Christ and to help us all strive to more fully discern God’s will for our individual lives.
Sacrament of Reconciliation-
This Wednesday evening we will gather with second graders and their parents to prepare them to receive the sacrament of reconciliation for the first time. The main focus of our time will be discussion of God’s loving nature and His capacity to forgive.
In the Gospel this weekend we here of the temptations of Christ. These temptations- food-power- and putting God to the test - are representative of a whole array of temptations that can lead us away from God’s will in our lives.
In this Holy Season of Lent, each of us is called to a greater understanding of our need for God’s mercy. We are called to reflect on the areas of our life that need change so that we can live more fully in God’s love. We are called to evaluate the temptations that distract us from lives of faith. We are called to take actions in our lives that will move us away from habits that separate us from God.
The sacrament of reconciliation is available each Saturday afternoon at 4 PM. The sacrament is also available by appointment.
Wednesday March 17 has been set aside for individual reconciliation at 6:30 PM. Several priests will be available for individual celebration of the sacrament. Saturday March 20, at 10 AM we will have Mass with the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. This sacrament for healing and for the forgiveness of sin is available to any who seek it.
Tuesday, February 9, 2010
Bulletin articles for February 14, 2010
Bulletin article for February 14, 2010
Today we Luke’s version of the lessons frequently referred to as “The Sermon on the Mount” or the Beatitudes. But both of those descriptions come from the way these lessons are given to us in the Gospel of Matthew. The ‘beatitudes’ are a recipe for spiritual happiness in Matthew and stand alone as an uplifting message for the poor and suffering.
While in Matthew Jesus is pronouncing from on high (the mount) a message of hope for the poor, Luke places Jesus in the valley- with the poor and suffering. His words, while offering comfort, offer a challenge to those who might otherwise be considered powerful. The teaching of Jesus includes not just the ‘blessings; but also the ‘woes’ or curses. Each lesson of encouragement for the poor and suffering has a corresponding warning for those who find their comfort in material things or earthly power.
Blessed are you who are poor, But woe to you who are rich,
Blessed are you who are now hungry, Woe to you who are filled now,
Blessed are you who are now weeping, Woe to you who laugh
Blessed are you when people hate you,
and when they exclude and insult you,
and denounce your name as evil
on account of the Son of Man. Woe to you when all speak well of you.
Saint Francis of Assisi taught us by his example how to seek a kind of spiritual poverty that allows us to seek a spirituality that starves for Christ- as if we were poor, or hungry, or weeping. The theology of Luke however reminds us that we must actively avoid the contentment and comfort that comes from being rich, filled or laughing. It is not that we cannot experience any of these things in our lives. The challenge is to resist the numbness that can so often accompany these realities in the human condition.
This is a great reading on which to end our experience of ordered time and begin together our Lenten Journey. Lent can be a time of profound experience of the cross of Christ.
Jesus himself taught us what it means to share the suffering of the human experience- including his passion and death. Compassion- ‘to suffer with’ is the experience of the life Christ lived with us. Lent challenges us to profoundly experience human suffering in all its forms just as Jesus did.
Lent does not need to be a terribly somber experience. But lent should focus our attention on how we can shape our lives and our spirituality is a way that reflects the love that can be known through Jesus Christ. Celebration of the Stations of the Cross invite us to reflection of Christ’s suffering. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament reminds us Of Christ’s presence with us now. And continued reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation restores us in God’s grace and renews us in the healing and forgiving love of God
The Holy Season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday and offers the opportunity to experience each of these prayer forms. Together, let us seek that healing and growth that Jesus so freely gives.
Faith Enrichment-
In the month of February we continue to examine the healing sacraments of our church. The sacrament of anointing and the Sacrament of reconciliation share similar origins in that they both restore the grace filled nature of the individual to ready him or her for reception into heaven. They are both a way of restoring the relationship of God and believer and the relationship between the believer and the Community of Faith, the Church.
Lent also finds its origins in the same desire of individuals to restore themselves in relationship with God. By uniting ourselves to the experience of Christ in the His suffering and in His Cross we hope to unite ourselves also to Christ in His Glorious resurrection.
Our Lenten focus this coming season will be two-fold. We will continue to focus on the Cross at the center of our prayer and penance. The Cross was a cause of scandal. It was an instrument of embarrassing death. But in the resurrection it becomes a symbol of the Victory of Christ and the Glory of God himself. Our penitential rite at the beginning of our Lenten celebrations will focus us intently on the cross as an instrument of our salvation.
The other focal point will be a more personal reminder of our need for God’s mercy.
As a tangible and visible sign to remind us daily of Christ’s suffering each member of our community will be given a nail, symbolic of the nails that pierced Christ’s hands and feet.
Each member of our community will be asked to carry this nail with them throughout the Lenten season, preferably in their pocket or in another obvious location that will help them to continually focus on the suffering and the love of Christ.
This constant reminder of God’s love will be a common call to prayer for every member of our community. When you touch it, hold it, see it- pray for yourself and for others in our community- by name (including me, please)- that we may all experience a profound conversion in this up-coming holy season.
Ash Wednesday Masses, with distribution of Ashes will be held at 8 AM and 6:30 PM.
New Daily Mass schedule will be 8 AM Mass on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.
Stations of the Cross and Benediction will be held each Friday at 6:30 PM
Sacrament of Reconciliation is scheduled at 4 PM each Saturday afternoon and by appointment. Simply call Father Jon to arrange this.
Please utilize these many prayer opportunities to grow in your personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Today we Luke’s version of the lessons frequently referred to as “The Sermon on the Mount” or the Beatitudes. But both of those descriptions come from the way these lessons are given to us in the Gospel of Matthew. The ‘beatitudes’ are a recipe for spiritual happiness in Matthew and stand alone as an uplifting message for the poor and suffering.
While in Matthew Jesus is pronouncing from on high (the mount) a message of hope for the poor, Luke places Jesus in the valley- with the poor and suffering. His words, while offering comfort, offer a challenge to those who might otherwise be considered powerful. The teaching of Jesus includes not just the ‘blessings; but also the ‘woes’ or curses. Each lesson of encouragement for the poor and suffering has a corresponding warning for those who find their comfort in material things or earthly power.
Blessed are you who are poor, But woe to you who are rich,
Blessed are you who are now hungry, Woe to you who are filled now,
Blessed are you who are now weeping, Woe to you who laugh
Blessed are you when people hate you,
and when they exclude and insult you,
and denounce your name as evil
on account of the Son of Man. Woe to you when all speak well of you.
Saint Francis of Assisi taught us by his example how to seek a kind of spiritual poverty that allows us to seek a spirituality that starves for Christ- as if we were poor, or hungry, or weeping. The theology of Luke however reminds us that we must actively avoid the contentment and comfort that comes from being rich, filled or laughing. It is not that we cannot experience any of these things in our lives. The challenge is to resist the numbness that can so often accompany these realities in the human condition.
This is a great reading on which to end our experience of ordered time and begin together our Lenten Journey. Lent can be a time of profound experience of the cross of Christ.
Jesus himself taught us what it means to share the suffering of the human experience- including his passion and death. Compassion- ‘to suffer with’ is the experience of the life Christ lived with us. Lent challenges us to profoundly experience human suffering in all its forms just as Jesus did.
Lent does not need to be a terribly somber experience. But lent should focus our attention on how we can shape our lives and our spirituality is a way that reflects the love that can be known through Jesus Christ. Celebration of the Stations of the Cross invite us to reflection of Christ’s suffering. Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament reminds us Of Christ’s presence with us now. And continued reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation restores us in God’s grace and renews us in the healing and forgiving love of God
The Holy Season of Lent begins with Ash Wednesday and offers the opportunity to experience each of these prayer forms. Together, let us seek that healing and growth that Jesus so freely gives.
Faith Enrichment-
In the month of February we continue to examine the healing sacraments of our church. The sacrament of anointing and the Sacrament of reconciliation share similar origins in that they both restore the grace filled nature of the individual to ready him or her for reception into heaven. They are both a way of restoring the relationship of God and believer and the relationship between the believer and the Community of Faith, the Church.
Lent also finds its origins in the same desire of individuals to restore themselves in relationship with God. By uniting ourselves to the experience of Christ in the His suffering and in His Cross we hope to unite ourselves also to Christ in His Glorious resurrection.
Our Lenten focus this coming season will be two-fold. We will continue to focus on the Cross at the center of our prayer and penance. The Cross was a cause of scandal. It was an instrument of embarrassing death. But in the resurrection it becomes a symbol of the Victory of Christ and the Glory of God himself. Our penitential rite at the beginning of our Lenten celebrations will focus us intently on the cross as an instrument of our salvation.
The other focal point will be a more personal reminder of our need for God’s mercy.
As a tangible and visible sign to remind us daily of Christ’s suffering each member of our community will be given a nail, symbolic of the nails that pierced Christ’s hands and feet.
Each member of our community will be asked to carry this nail with them throughout the Lenten season, preferably in their pocket or in another obvious location that will help them to continually focus on the suffering and the love of Christ.
This constant reminder of God’s love will be a common call to prayer for every member of our community. When you touch it, hold it, see it- pray for yourself and for others in our community- by name (including me, please)- that we may all experience a profound conversion in this up-coming holy season.
Ash Wednesday Masses, with distribution of Ashes will be held at 8 AM and 6:30 PM.
New Daily Mass schedule will be 8 AM Mass on Tuesday and Thursday mornings.
Stations of the Cross and Benediction will be held each Friday at 6:30 PM
Sacrament of Reconciliation is scheduled at 4 PM each Saturday afternoon and by appointment. Simply call Father Jon to arrange this.
Please utilize these many prayer opportunities to grow in your personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
The Sacrament of Reconciliation
Historically, the Sacrament of Reconciliation evolves from the sacrament of “Last Rites” or anointing of the sick. Each or these sacraments offer the prayers of the church, forgiveness of sins and restoration of grace and the relationship between God and the faithful.
The Sacrament which is now known as “Anointing of the Sick” was established as a renewal of the grace received in baptism, and the forgiveness of sins. It was almost exclusively offered at the time of death. This ‘second chance’ helped to move the faithful from the practice of waiting until they were near death to receive baptism. They wanted to have the fullness of grace so that they could go to heaven.
Reconciliation looks very different from its original practice. Following in the pattern established for receiving adults into the church at Easter- and the penance and sacrifice of lent- faithful seeking renewal in grace could enter into a Lenten season of sacrifice and penance, including public declaration of the sin they hoped to overcome. Then at Easter they could return to the sacrament of the Eucharist.
Most are probably grateful that the sacrament has evolved from this earliest stage. The sacrament is no longer seen as a lengthy public recanting of sinful behavior. Our understanding has grown to see the sacrament as an opportunity for grace and healing. It has also developed so that the faithful are encouraged to make frequent use of the sacrament to remain in a constant relationship of Grace with God.
Just as with the Sacrament of Anointing, it is helpful for us to think of the Sacrament of Reconciliation as an opportunity for healing. At the center is the power of Christ to provide healing and forgiveness of sins.
The penitent prayerfully reflects on their need for God’s mercy, humbles themselves before God and the church, makes an examination of conscience and an accounting of their sins. The confessor offers spiritual council and offers a penance.
Penance is a chance to enter into prayer and to seek God’s assistance in avoiding sin in the future. I sometimes prefer the word reparation- the chance to set things right with God and the Church (the living community of the faithful- the Body of Christ).
In the recent history of the Church, many have moved away from frequent individual celebration of the sacrament. This is an unfortunate reality. I believe it has contributed to a lack of understanding of the nature of sin and its presence in our lives.
While in Seminary, I was given a great image for the Sacrament – from the perspective of the priest/confessor- that I continue to think about to this day. The priest thinks about their role in the Sacrament of Reconciliation as ‘having a front row seat as the Holy Spirit works in the penitent’s life and draws them closer to God’s grace.’
The image is by no means perfect but it reflects the humbling experience of bringing others to the grace and forgiveness God so freely gives in Jesus Christ.
The Sacrament which is now known as “Anointing of the Sick” was established as a renewal of the grace received in baptism, and the forgiveness of sins. It was almost exclusively offered at the time of death. This ‘second chance’ helped to move the faithful from the practice of waiting until they were near death to receive baptism. They wanted to have the fullness of grace so that they could go to heaven.
Reconciliation looks very different from its original practice. Following in the pattern established for receiving adults into the church at Easter- and the penance and sacrifice of lent- faithful seeking renewal in grace could enter into a Lenten season of sacrifice and penance, including public declaration of the sin they hoped to overcome. Then at Easter they could return to the sacrament of the Eucharist.
Most are probably grateful that the sacrament has evolved from this earliest stage. The sacrament is no longer seen as a lengthy public recanting of sinful behavior. Our understanding has grown to see the sacrament as an opportunity for grace and healing. It has also developed so that the faithful are encouraged to make frequent use of the sacrament to remain in a constant relationship of Grace with God.
Just as with the Sacrament of Anointing, it is helpful for us to think of the Sacrament of Reconciliation as an opportunity for healing. At the center is the power of Christ to provide healing and forgiveness of sins.
The penitent prayerfully reflects on their need for God’s mercy, humbles themselves before God and the church, makes an examination of conscience and an accounting of their sins. The confessor offers spiritual council and offers a penance.
Penance is a chance to enter into prayer and to seek God’s assistance in avoiding sin in the future. I sometimes prefer the word reparation- the chance to set things right with God and the Church (the living community of the faithful- the Body of Christ).
In the recent history of the Church, many have moved away from frequent individual celebration of the sacrament. This is an unfortunate reality. I believe it has contributed to a lack of understanding of the nature of sin and its presence in our lives.
While in Seminary, I was given a great image for the Sacrament – from the perspective of the priest/confessor- that I continue to think about to this day. The priest thinks about their role in the Sacrament of Reconciliation as ‘having a front row seat as the Holy Spirit works in the penitent’s life and draws them closer to God’s grace.’
The image is by no means perfect but it reflects the humbling experience of bringing others to the grace and forgiveness God so freely gives in Jesus Christ.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Beyond Baptism-
In January we talked about baptism. It is in Baptism where we are all united in the mission of Christ as priest, prophet and King. But it is also in baptism where each of us is cleansed of all sin.
In the earliest days of the church Baptism was a one-time deal. The cleansing of sin was meant to be a life-long purification that prepares the baptized for eternal life. But it only took a few hundred years for them to discover what each of us knows from our daily lives. The freedom from sin that comes from baptism needs constant renewal of commitment on the part of the individual Christian.
This renewal comes to us in the sacraments of ‘Reconciliation’ and ‘Anointing of the Sick.’
The first of these historically was the anointing of the sick, or what came to be known as ‘last rites.’ Members of the early Christian community would often put off Baptism so that they could enter heaven in a pure state. Often these people- while believing in the message of Christ- would wait until moments before impending death to be baptized in order to achieve this perfection.
Anointing was developed so that a believer could be baptized and receive the fullness of the sacraments and life in the church. Once baptized, the repentant sinner could receive a one-time anointing some time prior to death. This association with death gave the sacrament its original name and context.
Over time, the church came to recognize that this one-time solution did not meet the needs of most people. This created an historical context for the development of the Sacrament of Reconciliation (confession). This will be the topic of my next article.
In the earliest days of the church Baptism was a one-time deal. The cleansing of sin was meant to be a life-long purification that prepares the baptized for eternal life. But it only took a few hundred years for them to discover what each of us knows from our daily lives. The freedom from sin that comes from baptism needs constant renewal of commitment on the part of the individual Christian.
This renewal comes to us in the sacraments of ‘Reconciliation’ and ‘Anointing of the Sick.’
The first of these historically was the anointing of the sick, or what came to be known as ‘last rites.’ Members of the early Christian community would often put off Baptism so that they could enter heaven in a pure state. Often these people- while believing in the message of Christ- would wait until moments before impending death to be baptized in order to achieve this perfection.
Anointing was developed so that a believer could be baptized and receive the fullness of the sacraments and life in the church. Once baptized, the repentant sinner could receive a one-time anointing some time prior to death. This association with death gave the sacrament its original name and context.
Over time, the church came to recognize that this one-time solution did not meet the needs of most people. This created an historical context for the development of the Sacrament of Reconciliation (confession). This will be the topic of my next article.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
First Post-
Following in the directives of Pope Benedict XVI, I have created this blog to post my weekly bulletin articles. Once this site is up and running, it is my hope that many will find the posts enlightening.
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