"The Deacon's Door"
May 31, 2020
“When the time for
Pentecost was fulfilled, they were all in one place together. And suddenly there came from the sky a noise
like a strong driving wind, and it filled the entire house in which they
were. Then there appeared to them
tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy
Spirit…” (Acts 2: 1-4)
Pentecost is the Greek name for the
spring harvest festival of the Israelites, which was going on when the Holy Spirit came. The disciples were
together in Jerusalem after the Resurrection of Jesus. They were fearful because He was no longer
with them. On that morning, however,
there appeared tongues like of fire, that sat upon each of them. “And they were
all filled with the Holy Spirit…”
Because of the festival,
there were large crowds of visitors in Jerusalem. They had come from many places for the
festival and were speaking many different languages. When the disciples of Jesus came among them
and spoke to them, every one could understand what was being said. They spoke about the wonderful works of Jesus
and the Good News of the Gospel. It was
then that Peter made a moving speech to the crowds and many
were baptized as new followers of Jesus.
The Third Glorious Mystery of the Rosary is the Descent of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost Sunday. Today, we are much like the disciples that gathered in the Upper Room in isolation. We too are confused and in some cases in a state of loneliness, fear and despair. We have been denied the opportunity to celebrate the Eucharist with our family and friends. The elderly that are homebound, or in hospitals and nursing homes, are not allowed contact with loved ones due to the fear of transmitting this deadly virus to each other.
We cry for the support
and gifts of the Holy Spirit to help us during these trying times, and yet, we
may have neglected to realize that when we were baptized, we were given the
gifts of the Spirit, and then we were sealed by those same spirit in Confirmation. The Holy Spirit lives in our parishes, our
family and friends and in our homes and nursing centers. Jesus gave all of us the Holy Spirit to be
with us in our daily lives, let us allow ourselves to be guided and comforted
by the Spirit, whose disciples we are.
The window of light and
spiritual well being in our lives comes from the faith and knowledge that we are
not alone. Our Lord is with us during
these challenging times and His Holy Spirit is there to provide us the comfort,
love and compassion we are crying for.
YOUR LIGHT SHINES:
No matter how high the trees,
no matter how close the branches,
no matter how dense the foliage:
your light shines through, O Lord...
No matter how gray the sky,
no matter how thick the clouds,
no matter how heavy the rain
your light shines through, O Lord...
No matter how black the night,
no matter how few the twinkling stars,
no matter how think the silvery moon:
your light sines through, O Lord...
No matter how dark my path,
no matter how gray my thoughts,
no matter the tears that dim my sight,
your light shines through, O Lord...
No matter how bad the news,
no matter how grim the numbers,
no matter how long the wait,
your light shines through, O Lord...
No matter the shadows of fear,
no matter the dusk of doubt;
lift my eyes and my heart to see, O Lord,
how your light shines through on me... AMEN
- Austin Flemming
YOUR LIGHT SHINES:
No matter how high the trees,
no matter how close the branches,
no matter how dense the foliage:
your light shines through, O Lord...
No matter how gray the sky,
no matter how thick the clouds,
no matter how heavy the rain
your light shines through, O Lord...
No matter how black the night,
no matter how few the twinkling stars,
no matter how think the silvery moon:
your light sines through, O Lord...
No matter how dark my path,
no matter how gray my thoughts,
no matter the tears that dim my sight,
your light shines through, O Lord...
No matter how bad the news,
no matter how grim the numbers,
no matter how long the wait,
your light shines through, O Lord...
No matter the shadows of fear,
no matter the dusk of doubt;
lift my eyes and my heart to see, O Lord,
how your light shines through on me... AMEN
- Austin Flemming
We love all of you and include each of you in our daily prayers. My greatest joy is in serving you at SH and
IC as your deacon. I continue to look
for ways to connect with you and to be the servant of Christ that God has called
me to be. Please pray for me as I
continue to pray for you, that one day, we will return to a time of health and
prosperity and that when it is God’s plan to call us home, we will all be able
to join together as a Family of Faith in the eternal glory of heaven.
“Pax et bonum”
(Peace and Goodness)
Deacon Jim Patera 319-509-1210
deacon.jim.patera@gmail.com
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