Pastor's Corner

There is a natural longing in the human heart for peace, friendship, love, and happiness—for a life that is meaningful and worthwhile. Beneath these desires is an even deeper longing: to know God, to share in his love, and to discover a destiny beyond death. As St. Augustine wrote, “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”

The Christian understanding of death is inseparable from our understanding of life. How we think about death shapes how we choose to live. The readings for the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time offer us two essential truths: because Jesus has risen, we do not grieve without hope; and because we do not know when the Lord will call us, we must be ready to meet him.

In his First Letter to the Thessalonians, St. Paul writes: “We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, about those who have fallen asleep, so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose, so too will God, through Jesus, bring with him those who have fallen asleep” (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14).

Paul does not tell us that Christians should never grieve. Losing someone we love is painful, and even Jesus wept at the tomb of Lazarus. But our sorrow is accompanied by hope. Death does not have the final word. Through his Cross and Resurrection, Jesus has conquered death and opened the way to eternal life.

Death remains a mystery, and we rightly approach it with humility. We will stand before God and see the truth of our lives. Yet we need not live in fear. Christ has promised that those who belong to him may share in his victory. As Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6).

This hope is not simply meant to comfort us when someone dies. It also calls us to consider how we are living today.

In the Gospel, Jesus tells of ten virgins waiting for the bridegroom. Five are wise and bring extra oil for their lamps; five are foolish and unprepared. When the bridegroom finally arrives, the wise are ready to welcome him and enter the wedding feast. Jesus concludes: “Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour” (Matthew 25:13).

The bridegroom represents Christ, and the wedding feast points to the Kingdom of Heaven. The oil reminds us that we must cultivate our own life of faith. We cannot rely only on the faith of our parents, spouse, children, friends, or parish community. Each of us must build a personal relationship with Christ through prayer, the Sacraments, charity, forgiveness, and faithful living.

The Church also teaches us to pray for the faithful departed. Those who die in God's grace and friendship are assured of salvation, though some must first be purified in purgatory before entering the fullness of heaven. We entrust them to God's mercy and support them with our prayers. At the same time, we remember that God desires everyone to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4).Our hope does not end with the survival of the soul. At the end of time, Christ will raise our bodies, restoring the fullness of our human nature. Those who are saved will live forever in the presence of God. This is the promise at the heart of our faith: Christ has conquered death, and he calls us to share in his risen life.

As we approach the end of life, the Sacraments of Penance, Anointing of the Sick, and the Eucharist strengthen us with God's mercy and grace. They help prepare us to meet the Lord reconciled with him and at peace with others. Our hope is to finish life faithfully, to die in God's friendship and, one day, to see him face-to-face with all the angels and saints. We also remain united in prayer with those who have died, asking the saints to pray for us and remembering the holy souls in purgatory.

We should not spend our lives fearing death, but neither should we live as though it will never come. Instead, let us keep the lamps of faith burning through prayer, the Sacraments, and love for one another.This is our Christian hope: Christ has conquered death, heaven is our true home, and the Lord invites us to the eternal wedding feast. May we live each day so that, when he comes, we will be ready to meet him.

Please join us for the presentation “Finishing life Faithfully” on Wednesday evening November 11th at 6:30 in the church.           

- Fr. Jerry

On this Feast of All Saints, the Church celebrates all those who now share the fullness of life with God in heaven. The Gospel for this feast gives us the Beatitudes from the Gospel of Matthew, showing us the path they followed toward holiness.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church describes beatitude as “happiness or blessedness, especially the eternal happiness of heaven, which is described as the vision of God, or entering into God’s rest by those whom He makes ‘partakers of the divine nature’” (CCC 1024, 1721). The saints enjoy this happiness now, and their example reminds us that God calls each of us to the same eternal joy.

The Beatitudes are more than beautiful words. They are a portrait of Jesus and an invitation to become like Him. We live them when we recognize our need for God, comfort those who suffer, respond to others with gentleness, seek what is right, forgive those who hurt us, put God first, and work to bring peace. The saints were not people who never struggled; they were people who kept turning toward Christ in the ordinary circumstances of life.

Holiness is not a private journey. God calls us to help one another reach heaven—in our families, our classrooms, and our parish. A patient response, a generous sacrifice, a word of encouragement, or a faithful example can help another person grow closer to Christ.  We all have a very important role in our Church to bring people to Christ as we live the life of a disciple. 

This has special meaning as we celebrate Nativity’s 40th anniversary and continue our “Building on the Heart of Nativity” capital campaign. We are investing in our school and the formation of our young people, but our purpose is greater than expanding a building. We want to form hearts that know Jesus, love His Church, and carry His light into the world. Our sacrificial support helps pass on our faith to the next generation.

As we celebrate All Saints, may their example inspire us to seek holiness in the choices we make each day. May our homes, school, workplaces and parish be places where the Beatitudes are lived and where people are helped along the road to heaven. The greatest thing we can build together is a community shaped by Christ—one that helps form saints.

Throughout the month of November, the Catholic community prays for the “Holy Souls” in purgatory and honor the connection between the living and the dead.   We would invite you to write down the names of deceased relatives and friends in our book of remembrance which will be enthroned by the baptismal font.  This practice is inspired by the early Christian tradition of necrologies – public registries or books where the dates and names of the dead were recorded so local communities could regularly remember and pray for them.

-Fr. Jerry