Fr. Lara's Lines
4th Sunday of Easter
Good Shepherd Sunday
The fourth Sunday of Easter is also known as the Good Shepherd
Sunday. The Church wants us to reflect on what it means to have
Jesus as the Good Shepherd. In this Sunday’s gospel, John
presents the image of the Good Shepherd, the one who guides,
protects, and feeds His flock. In today’s culture, we might not be
familiar with the image of a shepherd, but it was very common at
the time of Jesus. A good shepherd loved his flock and was
dedicated to each and every one of the sheep. The Church has
Jesus as the Good Shepherd. We are to listen, obey, and follow
where He is leading us, which is eternal life: “My sheep hear my
voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life,
and they shall never perish” (John 10:27).
On this Sunday, the Church also encourages us to pray for
vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life. “The harvest is
abundant but the laborers are few.” The Good News of the
gospel and the celebration of the sacraments is possible because
of those who dedicate their lives for the good of the Church. We
need to pray for men and women called by God to be servants
in the Church.
Mother's Day
Mother’s Day allows us to celebrate in a special way all mothers
and mother figures in our lives. The unconditional love of a
mother means the world to us. Mothers love us in the same way
Mary loved Jesus. Their love is unconditional because no matter
the mistakes we make, they are always there for us. Their love is
pure because all they want is happiness for us. We want to thank
all mothers and mother figures for all they do for us day in and
day out. Their dedication to their families is always noticed and
appreciated. They are such a blessing. We appreciate their
care and love for us.
Many mothers have gone already to the next life. They might
have passed at some time this year or years ago, but their
spiritual presence is always in our hearts. I am sure you still have
vivid memories; you can almost still see her face or hear her
voice. That is because no matter how long it has been, we always
carry them in our hearts. I would like to invite you to say a
prayer for your mother or mother figures living or deceased.
They are a blessing to all of us. May God bless them all now and
forever.
Prayer for Mothers
Heavenly Father,
from the beginning you have chosen to entrust
the human person to mothers in a special way.
We thank and praise you for the gift of mothers;
for their tenderness, care, and compassion,
for their intuition and encouragement,
for commitment and sacrifice.
Bless all mothers this day.
Keep, strengthen, and refresh them
in your loving care.
May they be blessed by our open-hearted
love and gratitude.
Amen.
Sabbatical
The goal during my sabbatical was ongoing human, intellectual,
and spiritual formation. This has been a time to renew my sense
of vocation to the priesthood and service to the Church. This time
has strengthened my spiritual life and my zeal for the gospel of
Jesus Christ. Although this time has been a blessing, I have missed
everyone at St. Catherine’s. I prayed daily for all of you and
your intentions while I was away. I am looking forward to
continuing our mission of spreading God’s word at SCL.
There are many experiences and lessons I will share with you in
due time. The time I spent in Rome at the ICTE program was
transformative. From January to June a group of 24 priests from
the U.S., Australia, Canada, and Ireland, got to embark on an
intensive program of intellectual, human, and spiritual growth.
We were blessed to participate in the papal audience and
concelebrate the papal Mass; we were immersed into the holy
cities of Rome and other important places in our Christian
tradition; we learned more about the offices of the Vatican and
their mission in the universal Church. We also had time for
personal reflection, group sharing, and spiritual retreats. All in
all, it was a wonderful sabbatical. I am looking forward to being
back to continue the work at St. Catherine’s community.
During my time away, the office of Catholic schools and our
school community, under the direction of the school and parish
administration, continued the work to achieve benchmarks
established to have a vital and sustainable school. Based on all
the data provided to the archdiocese, Cardinal Cupich made the
difficult decision to close our parish school late March. I know the
last few weeks have been difficult for our school community. The
reason I am coming back from my sabbatical now is to work on
this transition. As advised by the Cardinal, the last part of my
sabbatical can wait for some time in the future. I finished the
program at the Institute of Continuing Theological Education in
Rome, and I am now looking forward to being back at SCL.
Deacon Rod
I want to thank Deacon Rod for stepping up these past months to
be the administrator. I’ve heard from many people of their
appreciation for his leadership. He has shown his love for the
parish in a very tangible way. As he continues his ministry at SCL,
please thank him for being the administrator. Not many deacons
in the archdiocese get to do that, in fact very few, but the
archdiocese had great confidence in him to do the job.
Mr. Blumenshine
I want to acknowledge everything Mr. Blumenshine and the school
staff have done for our school children and families during this
time. The school leadership is important in ensuring we provide
the best education and care for our students until the end of the
school year. The school teachers at SCL are amazing. They have
been always so loving for the children. I know it will be hard to
go through this transition, but we know that God in His great
providence will lead us to other ways for us to share His love to
others. We will use this time to celebrate our achievements, and
to give thanks to God for bringing us together. God has many
plans for each and every one of us, either here or elsewhere.
We will always shine His light to the world.
I am happy to be back to continue working together towards a
more intimate relationship with God. I appreciate all your
prayers and support during my sabbatical. I am blessed to be
part of this sharing, caring and loving community.
Peace
Fr. Lara
Recognize God in Your Oridinary Moments - By Colleen Jurkiewicz Dorman
Mini Reflection: I don’t have all the answers to the
questions I would love to ask Christ. “Why is this
happening? Where are you taking me? What comes
next?” But the beautiful thing is, I don’t actually need
those answers. I know him. He’s got my hand.
Wherever we’re going is where I want to be.
We Don’t Follow Strangers
I get a little crazy when it comes to my kids’ safety.
We’ve probably had a few too many conversations
that could be entitled “What to Do If Mommy Loses
You At the State Fair” or “Don’t Trust People Just
Because They Smile At You.” Am I making them
paranoid? Possibly. But that’s something they can sort
out later with their therapists.
Because here’s the bottom line of it all — I don’t want
to instill a fear of strangers into my kids, but I do want
them to understand that you can’t always trust people
you don’t know (heck, you can’t always trust the
people you do know, but that’s another
therapy-provoking conversation we can have when
they’re older).
If someone says, “Hey, follow me,” and we don’t know
them, it’s not always a great idea to comply. First, we
have to ask questions. “Where are you taking me?
Why are we going? Who else will be there?”
But if someone we know and love and trust says, “Hey,
follow me,” we don’t even think twice, and we don’t
need to ask any questions. We know wherever we’re
going is a safe place for us because we have a
relationship with the person doing the leading. We
feel comfortable putting ourselves in their care.
That’s why it’s so important to Christ that we know him.
That we have a relationship with him. That we trust
him.
Because we don’t follow strangers, do we?
I don’t have all the answers to the questions I would
love to ask Christ. “Why is this happening? Where are
you taking me?” But the beautiful thing is, I don’t
actually need those answers. I know him. He’s got my
hand. Wherever we’re going is where I want to be.
©LPi
Honor Our Military
Please take time to give thanks for those who have served and
are serving in our military and to pray for the safety of those who
may currently be in harm’s way. In a special way, we thank and
pray for these parishioners and relatives of parishioners.
Dear God,
We pray in gratitude for all of those who have defended
peace, virtue, and justice with honor. We pray especially
for those who have suffered in mind and body from the
ravages of war. May Your peace reign in our hearts
and in our world. Amen.
He Who Sacrificed His Life
†JOHN A. STONIS, Grandson of John & Dorthy Stonis
†CHRISTOPHER ZIMNY
Those Still Serving
JAY MARTIN, Nephew of Becky and Tom Brennan
JESSICA CAMERON, Niece of the Cameron Family
JOHN PODCZASKI, Grandson of Genevieve Podczaski
STEVEN TUMBARELLO, Son of Sylvia & Vince Tumbarello
CRAIG BEHRENDT, Grand-nephew of Sister Mary Helen
DANIEL BELZER, Nephew of Dave & Bev Belzer
MICHAEL KELLY, Nephew of Kevin and Kathy Kelly
MATTHEW NEUBAUER, Nephew of Dan & Judy Neubauer
EUGENE WALL, Nephew of Suzanne Lessner
NAILL SWIDER, Grand-nephew of Alice Swider
BRYAN DUFF, Son of Julie Duff
RYAN BLOCHBERGER, Nephew of Mae Grady
TIMOTHY DWORKIN, Grandson of Barbara Bouska
ALEXIS GONZALES, Great-niece of Eden & Lyle Gonzales-Nemzin
JACK MAHON, JR., Son of Jack, Sr. & Eileen Mahon
MICHAEL FOLEY
JOHN FOLEY
PETER MULLER
DANIEL FRAYNA
JOSEPH GULLO
SANG HOON LEE
ANTHONY PALMERO
MORRIS COREY MCMAHON, Son of Chris & Julie McMahon
RYAN FONTILLAS
MICHAEL T. HEHN, Grandson of John & Dorthy Stonis
To add or remove someone, please send the person’s name and relationship (optional) to bulletin@stcatherinelaboure.com
Please Pray for Ukraine
For our sisters and brothers involved in or
affected by the war and devastation in Ukraine--
the deceased, the injured, the frightened, the
displaced, the fighters, the protesters, the leaders.
May God give them solace, healing, comfort, and
hearts and minds directed toward peace.
Donations can be made here:
Knights of Columbus: https://www.kofc.org/secure/en/donate/ukraine.html
Caritas: https://www.caritas.org/
Ukrainian Catholic Archdiocese of Philidelphia: https://ukrarcheparchy.us
"May the Queen of Peace preserve the world from the madness of war" - Pope Francis
Neighbors of other Faiths
The Golden Rule
Excerpted from charterforcompassion.org/the-golden-rule-in-seven-major-religions
We may speak of great differences in
religious beliefs and forms of worship
around the world. Called by an endless
number of names, all, however, recognize and worship a Supreme
Being. And all religions, somewhere in their sacred literature,
expound the fundamental philosophy of the Golden Rule.
Buddhism: Hurt not others with that which pains yourself.
~ Buddha, Undanavarga 5:18
Christianity: Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that all men
should do to you, do ye even so to them.
~ Matthew 7:12
Confucianism: What you do not want done to yourself, do not do
to others.
~ Confucius, Analects 15:23
Hinduism: Good people proceed while considering what is best
for others is best for themselves.
~ Hitopadesa
Islamism: No one of you is a believer until he loves for his brother
what he loves for himself.
~ Mohammed, Traditions
Judaism: And thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
~ Leviticus 19:18
Zoroastrianism: Whatever is disagreeable to yourself do not do
unto others.
~ Shayast-na-Shayast 13:29