The 13th Sunday of Ordinary Time
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
Next weekend is the 250th anniversary of Independence Day. Our nation is really quite unique in world history.
What we might call the ancient world cultures (Greece, China, the Middle East, India) had their roots in polytheistic, pagan- adjacent nature worship, except, notably, for the Jews who were monotheistic and rejected nature worship.
The cultures which date their birth to the few centuries before Christ (Europe via the Roman Empire, the Hellenic East, the Steppe/Slvaic peoples of Russia) based their cultures on distinctly religious, but non-blood-sacrificing religious traditions. They prioritized intellect and mysticism over anything akin to nature-magic and as they were wealthier, they prioritized victory in war over asking their gods for agricultural blessings.
Modern (with a capital M) cultures dating their foundation to between 1450-1800, tended to embrace a more humanistic, less religious sense of cultural identity. Still, the people who formed those cultures came from one of the older groups I’ve already described and so they brought with them fundamental attitudes that we can easily trace.
The United States, though, is genuinely unique. The founders were quite consciously of Christian heritage, but they actively did not want that faith to play any conscious role in their society. That theological branch of Christianity is Deism and it traces to European Freemasonry. The United States is the only national culture in world history fully founded on the principles of freemasonry.
Most of us think of freemasons and we think of parades with tiny cars, odd fez hats, and charitable giving… Just as the freemason founders of our nation neutered their Christianity by robbing it of any public or evangelical role in society, so the European freemasonry that was the driving force behind the French Revolution, the destruction of the Catholic monarchies, and the assassination of many great Catholic priests, nuns, and rich laypeople has been replaced with a broadly sterile fraternity.
The founders were men shaped by Christian heritage, but they consciously limited public Christianity. Many drew from Deism and Masonic ideals that treated religion as a private matter and viewed all spiritual paths as ultimately interchangeable. This syncretism is what really makes the American experiment unique in world history. We’re founded on a non-religion wrapped up in religious vocabulary.
(The intense danger of belonging to the free- masons, in Europe or in the US is a topic for another article. Note that Catholics are strictly forbidden from maintaining membership in any freemason lodge for any reason.)
This Masonic vision produced a system of religious liberty understood as absolute freedom for any and all beliefs - religious and otherwise. From time to time, this protected Catholics and others from persecution by majority establishments, it also eroded the humanity from our society. Winston Churchill famously said, “the greatest threat to our national security is the loss of a shared morality.” “No one can serve two masters.” (Mt 6:24).
This intellectual mess means that Catholics who have been trained in our intellectually consistent, non-masonic philosophical tradition are wildly disproportionately represented in government, especially in the judiciary. It’s a fascinating intellectual rabbit hole to go down!
I say all of this to provide us with important context about where we are and how we got here… America is a great experiment shaped both by our foundations and also by our aspirations. It’s the only place in the world, probably in world history, that offers the real possibility of free, peaceful economic improvement entirely as a function of ambition, daring, and intelligence. But it’s also a place with real structural problems at the deepest intellectual level.
Of course, that mirrors pretty closely our own humanity! All of us are trying to take advantage of opportunities God offers us while managing our own limitations and human nature… What we see easily as the American dream can be harder to see internally as the spiritual ambition of becoming a saint. But they’re not that different. Similar ambitions, different contexts…
Upcoming Events
- Confessions every Friday & Saturday from 5p until Mass and Sunday from 9a until Mass
- July 3 First Friday devotions
- July 4-5 First Sunday Benediction
- July 4-5 Blessing of Flags and Military Honors for 250th US Independence Day
For Your Information:
FIRST FRIDAY is JULY 3. Father will offer Devotions and Eucharistic Benediction at the end of Mass. Make a special devotion to the Sacred Heart and attend first Friday devotions for nine consecutive months.
FIRST SUNDAY BENEDICTION for the weekend of JULY 4-5 will conclude Masses as part of our larger program of Eucharistic Devotion.
HOLY COMMUNION FROM THE CHALICE will only be offered at Masses on Wednesdays and Fridays beginning on July 1. Holy Communion from the Chalice will not be offered on Tuesdays and Saturdays and we are not accustomed to doing so at Masses offered at the Legacy Nursing Home on Thursdays. I want to balance the right and devotion of those who would like to receive Holy Communion from the Chalice with proper reverence and the inherent challenges in offering Holy Communion from the Chalice to groups of people. THANK YOU to all who have served as Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion on Saturday evenings! I may well call on some of you for help at Christmas, on Lenten Fridays, and at other times as needed in the future. Any questions or concerns can be addressed to me at any time. – Fr Ryan
BULLETIN ADVERTISERS As you may have noticed, I’ve been preparing for a change in our bulletin costs structure for a while now. We changed the bulletin layout a while back and I worked the names of the advertisers who have supported us for years into the flow of the bulletin. The whole point of the ads was to subsidize the purchase of misallettes and of bulletins. Our misallettes cost about $1000 per year total. By doing away with the advertising subsidy and using this newer model for printing our bulletins, we’re actually saving a little each year. Moving forward we won’t have ads in the bulletin, but i want to say a grand word of THANKS to all who have subsidized our bulletins and missallettes, YOU ARE APPRECIATED!!
- Delta Bank, deltabk.com
- GB Farm Partnership, Ginny & Billy Marsh
- May & Company, Alyssa Oliver, CPA 318-574-6254
- Robert Charles Brown
- S&B Drugs. K. Scott Nunnalee, R.Ph., 318-574-6363
- Tensas State Bank, Kate Copes, 318-574-9898
ROSARY GROUP meets on Monday at 5:30p for prayer and supper. Everyone is welcome. Contact Louise Magoun (318-341-2403), coordinator for more information.
FORMED.ORG has weekly features at https://watch.formed.org/this-week-on-formed. Remember to sign in using our parish’s zip code (71282) at https://signup.formed.org
MAUSOLEUM Construction will begin in the coming months. Our sales representative, Garth Daniels, can be reached at (318) 295-4409. If you have any questions or you know of anyone else interested in making a purchase, please encourage them to speak with Garth or to call the church office.
Prayer for Hurricane Season Our Father in Heaven through the intercession of our Lady of Prompt Succor, spare us during the Hurricane Season from all harm. Protect us and our homes from all disasters of nature. Our Lady of Prompt Succor, hastened to help us. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Novena to St Jude • O Holy Saint Jude, Apostle and Martyr, great in virtue and rich in miracles, near kinsman of Jesus Christ, faithful intercessor for all who invoke you, special patron in time of need; to you I have recourse from the depth of my heart, and humbly beg you, to whom God has given such great power, to come to my assistance; help me now in my urgent need and grant my earnest petition. I will never forget thy graces and favors you obtain for me and I will do my utmost to spread devotion to you. Amen! St Jude, pray for us and all who honor Thee and invoke thy aid. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be three times.
Mass Intentions for the Coming Week
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Russell Petersen (anni birth)/Rome
- Sun 8:00a (Traditional Latin Mass) PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Sun 9:30a For deceased members of the Bolton and Howington families
- Mon NO MASS
- Tue 9:00a For a special intention of the Guizerix family
- Wed 9:00a In memory of Dan Fordice/Rome
- Thu 9:00a (Legacy Nursing Home) In memory of Bryan Stamey/family
- Fri 5:30p In memory of C L Keene (death anni)/ family
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Carroll Regan (birth anni)/ family
- Sun 8:00a (Traditional Latin Mass) PRO POPULO for the living & deceased members of our parish
- Sun 9:30a In memory of Marion Roy (birth anni)/Johnson
ALTAR CANDLES this week are burning for the special intentions of Margo Corulla
Assistants at Holy Mass
| Date | Servers | Lector(s) | EMHC(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6/27 5:30p | - | M Rome | M Ernst |
| 6/28 9:30a | Kathleen, Evelyn, & Daniel | D Hamilton | - |
| 7/4 5:30p | - | C VanderVieren | - |
| 7/5 9:30a | Mary Katherine, Maura, & Elizabeth | C Guizerix | - |
Our Return to the Lord
| Weekly Budget FY 2022-23 | $ 2,500 |
| May Budget | $ 10,000 |
| May Collections | $ 18,461 |
| May Expenses | $ 14,557 |
| June Budget | $ 10,000 |
| June 21 Collection | $ 3,261 |
| June to Date | $ 7,826 |
Stewardship Both the first reading and the Gospel today speak of hospitality and welcome. Our ministers of hospitality are a most visible example of using one’s time and talents to welcome the people of God. But the Gospel assures us that all who give even just “a cup of cold water” to one of His lowliest ones will be rewarded.
SECOND COLLECTION this weekend is called Peter’s Pence and supports the charitable works of Pope Leo XIV and the operations of the Vatican City-State.
Community Celebrations
Happy Birthday to Anna Guizerix (Jun 29), Susan Cagnolatti (Jun 30), Candler Hamilton (Jul 5)
In Our Daily Prayers…
Please let us know of anyone who is ill or hospitalized and would like to receive a visit from Father. Also, help us keep our prayer list up to date by advising us of those who should be added or removed.
For our Pope, Leo XIV, our Bishop, Robert Marshall; and our Diocesan leaders, our President, Governor, Mayor and national, state and local elected representatives
Our parishioners who are sick, shut-in, under full-time care and for those who care for them, and for those otherwise in need of our prayers: MaryKathryn & Nap Book, Chris, Susan, and David Cagnolatti, Connie & Dan Copes, Elizabeth Crothers, Leslye Ellerbee, Ann Claire Fordice and her children, Susan & Johnny Gilfoil, Margaret & Pat Gilfoil,Terry Farlow Hall, Sidney & Mary Jane Johnson, Frances & Bill Kennedy, Ed Mills, Susie Murphy, Bobby Reynolds, Phillip and Peggy Scurria, Mike & Sue Rome, Lori Sullivan, Mary Trichell
Our friends and relatives who need our prayers: Ashley Alexander (Regan), Graham Allen (S Gilfoil), Danny Beard, Marie Farlow Bellard, Martha Book, Kay Boolos (S Gilfoil), Chris Breard (Gilfoil), Gayle Brown (Dukes and Oliver), Albert Christman, Jeannie & Donald Collins, Jami Cook (Wilks), Gene Cox, Carol Dipert (Rome), Mac Donaldson (Ellerbee), Mike Farlow, Patty Farlow, Judy Fortenberry, Donna Fulton (Ellerbee), Fred and Cathy Fulton, Morgan, Alex, and Palmer Gilfoil, Thom Gilfoil, Wyly Gilfoil (Gilfoil), LaVonne Givens, Charlotte Green, Steve Green, Rita Hargrave, Evie Hilburn (Lancaster), Patricia Lively (Wilks), Charles Howington, Callie Halbach Hyams, Jimmy Hopson(Wilks), Will Irby (P Gilfoil), Diane Johnson, Andrew and Chelsea Keene-Lewis, Carla Leese (S Gilfoil), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Caroline Marcello (Watts), Mona Martin (MA Gilfoil), Jessica McCoy (Reynolds), Lee McCoy (Reynolds), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Kiely McKellar (S Gilfoil), Boyce Miller, Mike Morelli, Randy Parker, Betty Petersen, David Peterson, Quintin Purvis, John Neill, Curt and Brianne Rome, Bailey, Scott, and Tiffney Rome, Debbie Kedrick Sims, LeeAnn Rome Tranchina (Rome), Randy Watts, Jr.
Our collegiates: Aidan Collins, Preston Collins, Henry Ellerbee, Lilly Falgout, Jag Gilfoil, Matilda Johnson, Caroline Marsh, EmmyLu Marsh, Charlize Richardson, Chandler Wood
