The Ascension of the Lord
From The Font
“These signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages. They will pick up serpents with their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not harm them. They will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
The modern mind tends to think in a mode that might be described as “encyclopedic.” Our culture believes, because of technology, that we have most everything figured out. As such, when we read a sentence like the one highlighted above from the Acts of the Apostles, we tend to read it absolutely. So we might well think, these signs, ALL these signs, and ONLY these signs will accompany those who believe. Hence, there are snake-handling Pentecostals in North Carolina who believe that Christianity makes people immune to Rattlesnake bites… Sadly, they’re wrong.
The Bible isn’t a product of our modern ideas about knowledge and understanding. It’s not even a product of the thinking of Jews at the time of Jesus. The Bible is wonderful in that it is spread out across more than a thousand years and a dozen very distinct traditions of thought and wisdom and understanding. It’s got poetry and hymns and legal texts and sermons and stories and fables and proverbs and good examples and bad examples and even some myth and legend.
One of the incredible truths of Christianity is that the Faith comes from the creator of our Humanity and the religion is designed with our design in mind! As such, our Holy Book, the Bible, can’t be some kind of technical manual because we Human Beings are not machines. We are organic and messy and complicated and different and changing while staying the same and all sorts of other things. Just so, our Bible is a mishmash of ideas and styles - all inspired by the same Holy Spirit - but each speaking to our humanity in a slightly different way. That’s why we need to have a spiritual life that includes not just one way of praying but many. It needs to include good works and penance. It needs to include study and meditation. It needs to include all of us: body, soul, mind, and all the other stuff. Of course, this is what we would expect if our Faith came from the one who created us as we are.
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
The Ascension of the Lord is meant to be celebrated forty days after Easter on a Thursday. Ascension Thursday mirrors Holy Thursday (AKA ‘Maundy’ Thursday) on which the Last Supper was celebrated. At the Last Supper, Jesus commanded us to offer the Holy Eucharist in His memory. At the Ascension, the Lord tells us that He will remain with us always, even until the end of the Age. As He says this, He ascends to Heaven and visibly disappears.
These two Thursday feasts are connected in that the Eucharist is the mode in which Jesus remains physically with us even until the end of the Age. St. Thomas Aquinas, in the “Tantum Ergo” (perhaps the most famous hymn ever written), says “Praestet fides supplementum Sensuum defectui” which comes into English as something like “Faith provides for all our defects, where our feeble senses fail.” The visible loss of Jesus at the Ascension is actually, then, an aid for our Faith to perceive Him present in the Holy Eucharist.
Perhaps more than any idea of Christianity, this notion that “it is better to have not seen and yet believed” is hard to get our heads around. Common sense tells us that if Jesus had just set up a regular old kingdom with a headquarters and a PR team, there would be a whole lot more Christians… If you add to that the not-patented JesusCuresYou™ health care plan and the super cool miracles that come with it, it would seem that everyone would want to sign up to be a Christian.
But our Human common sense tends to fail us more often than we usually realize. Even today, the best place to look for folks taking their faith seriously is among the poor and the oppressed. The worst possible place to be if you want to grow in holiness is among the rich and the idle. That seems to be totally backward. There’s also a certain paradox in study. One would think that the more someone looks into the sordid history of the Church with Her bad popes and sketchy priests and questionable monks and nuns, the more someone would want to keep their distance from Catholicism and instead lean toward the Baptists or the Methodists. But the opposite is true. The more a Christian studies history, the more likely he is to want to become Catholic. Common sense would say an easy sermon would be more popular than a hard one, but the opposite is generally true. Common Sense would say that Mass in English with folk hymnody would be preferable to incomprehensible Latin prayers and chants, but the data shows that to be a faulty assumption as well.
So it is that we return to the idea that the departure of Jesus from the visible part of our world is actually an aid to our Faith. The celebration of the Ascension, then, is a genuine time for rejoicing, even if it seems to be something of a setback or an extra burden. Whatever our common sense may tell us, we should be thankful to God today for His choice to ascend and to leave us relying upon the Holy Spirit and one another for strength and courage.
Mass Intentions for the Coming Week
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Dale Magoun/family
- Sun 9:00a Pro Populo for the Living & Deceased Members of our Parish
- Mon No Mass
- Tue 9:00a In memory of Rosa Gremshell
- Wed 9:00a For the special intentions of A.P. and Pat Guizenix/family
- Thu 9:00a In memory of Josephine Hodge/G Cox
- Fri 5:30p In memory of Thomas Trichell/Tommy
- Sat 9:00a Private Intentions of Father Ryan (Traditional Latin Mass)
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Michael Mills/Mills-Thompson
- Sun 9:00a Pro Populo for the Living & Deceased Members of our Parish
ALTAR CANDLES this week are burning for the special intentions of Mary Anne Gilfoil
Assistants at Holy Mass
| Date | Servers | Lector(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 5/15 5:30p | None Scheduled | A Farlow |
| 5/16 9:00a | Chandler, Cooper, Mora | Carter, Walker, & Marsh |
| 5/22 5:30p | None Scheduled | C VanderVieren |
| 5/23 9:00a | Henry and MaryKatherine | A Oliver |
| 5/29 5:30p | None Scheduled | P Wilks |
| 5/30 9:00a | Chandler, Kathleen and Mora | D Ellerbee |
Upcoming Events
- Confessions every Friday & Saturday from 5p until Mass at 5:30p
- Sunday Morning Catechism in the Hall after the 9:00a Mass unless otherwise indicated
- Pastoral Council meeting monthly on the third Tuesday at 6p unless otherwise indicated
- May 16 Youth Mass honoring Seniors, Carter Sullivan, Walker Sullivan, and Marsh Wood. Reception following Mass in the Church Hall to celebrate!
- May 18 Pastoral Council Meeting – Parish Hall – 6 p.m.
- May 19 Wednesday Evening Catechism -- Parish Hall -- 6 p.m.
- May 21 Healing Mass at 5:30 p.m.
For Your Information:
ROSARY GROUP… a group of parishioners is meeting on Monday at 5:30 p.m. to pray the Rosary. Everyone is invited to join with the group. If you need additional information, please contact the Coordinator, Louise Magoun, at 318-341-2403.
PASTORAL COUNCIL..will hold its regular meeting on TUESDAY, MAY 18 at 6:00 p.m in the Church Hall. Appointed members of the Council: MaryAnne Gilfoil, Louise Magoun, Ginny Marsh, Beth Sullivan, Levi Washington, and Blanche Wilks. Appointed as Trustees by the Bishop are Michel Lancaster and Cathy VanderVieren. Appointed by the pastor to serve as Finance Council Chair is Darryl Ellerbee. All members are requested to make a special effort to attend. Parishioners are encouraged to attend and contribute to the discussions.
WEDNESDAY EVENING CATECHISM… WEDNESDAY, MAY 19 In the Church Hall at 6 p.m. Father will answer questions after each talk. Guests are welcome!
HEALING MASS… Every few months, our usual Friday evening Daily Mass will be offered especially for the sick parishioners of our parish and Father Ryan will offer the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick for those of advanced age or those suffering serious health conditions. The next of these Healing Masses will be offered on May 21 at 5:30 p.m.
Stewardship Jesus is the perfect steward--watching carefully over all who have been entrusted to Him by the Father and then sending them all out into the World in service. May I similarly protect and wisely use the gifts entrusted to me!
Our Return to the Lord
| Weekly Budget FY 2020-21 | $ 2,111 |
| April Budget | $ 8,444 |
| April Income | $10,777 |
| April Expenses | $ 8,759 |
| May Budget | $10,555 |
| May 8/9 Collection | $ 2,490 |
| May income to Date | $ 5,343 |
Let us Rejoice in the Lord!
Happy Birthday Dave Collins (May 24), Brittany McFall (May 25)
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.
Our Holy Father Pope Francis and Pope-Emeritus Benedict XVI; 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, or otherwise in need of our prayers: Harper Bedgood, Connie and Dan Copes, Elizabeth Crothers, Mary Ernst, Monique Florence, Margaret and Pat Gilfoil, Susan and Johnny Gilfoil, C.W. and Alyce Keene, Bill Kennedy, Charlotte Marsh and Lance and Stephenie, Brittany and Brian McFall, Ed Mills, Kathleen Mills, Sue & Mike Rome, Delia Trichell, and Don Wood
Those under full-time care: Frances Kennedy, Carol Dunning, Sharon Hansen of Gonzales, Consuelo Marsh of Lake Providence
Our friends and relatives who need our prayers: Lee Adams (Smith), Ashley Alexander (Regan), Jenna Faye Allen (Florence), Pam Amacker (Gilfoil), James Arceneaux (Book), Todd Beene, Marie Farlow Bellard, Molly Corulla, Hattie Brown (Lancaster), Jerry Bullard, Sara Cannon (Gilfoil), Truman and Diane Collins, Jami Cook (Wilks), Carol Dipert (Rome), Jared and Ainslie Oliver Duff, Tommy Dunning, Joe Farlow, Mike Farlow, Thom Gilfoil, Charlotte Green, Kathy Garley Hanlon (Gilfoil), Rita Hargrave, Justin Rittenhouse and Arielle Lewis (Keene), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Katie and Cameron Murray, Wayne Pitre (Gilfoil), Frances Robinson, Lee and Tiffney Rome, Dianne W. Roper (Murphy), Linda Sanchez (Wilks), Theresa and Albert Thom (Rome), Meg Keene Thomas, Elaine and James Trimble (Rome), Teresa Vidrine (Wilks), George and Katie Magoun Williams, Joe Yerger
Our collegiates: Aidan Collins, Anna Ginn, Josh Hall, Chris Hall (USMC), Matt Hall (USArmy), Nick Hall, Emmy Lu Marsh, Maddie Oliver, Bailey Rome, Brice Wood
Those Catholics residing at Christian Acres, Louisiana Transitional Center for Women, and our local Detention Centers and for their families and loved ones.