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Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

October 10, 2021

From The Font

Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.”

Biblical Fundamentalists can be deeply unnerved by a quotation like this! Read without context, these words of Jesus are damning for anyone who believes that He, Himself, is God.

Outside of the limiting scope of bad theology, these words of Jesus are simply an example of the Lord meeting different people where they, themselves, happen to be. To an educated man, Jesus might propose a lofty thought experiment. To a grieving widow, He might tell a parable of hope. To a cocky tax collector, He might give a fiery sermon. In each case, the specific theological or religious theme draws more details into the broader picture of Christianity. BUT! Read without a broader context and misunderstood as some kind of complete instruction book for life, the Bible can become a complete mess of seemingly contradictory and confused messages.

Of course, so would Shakespeare. The whole point of my favorite of his plays - Much Ado About Nothing - is that each character in the story misunderstands what’s going on and it’s only by reading all their misunderstandings TOGETHER that the play makes any sense at all. The brilliant Victorian author Jane Austin wrote her own version of Much Ado About Nothing which she titled Pride & Prejudice. Her version makes my point even more eloquently as the reader is misdirected by not two, but three relationships all of which weave a wonderfully convoluted story.

The story of Christianity is not an amalgam of a thousand isolated “proof-texts” meant to be sorted into weaponized categories. The Bible is a record of lived experiences and we have to read the whole story as one complete, integral revelation.

And so when Jesus speaks to this apparently devout and pious little guy who claims to have kept all the commandments for his entire life, Jesus speaks to him as one would speak to a spiritual master! Jesus doesn’t hold back and doesn’t wrap His message in a parable or soft language. He tells the man to become what we would call a monk! He gave this guy a chance to be Francis of Assisi 1000 years early!

Read in context, this story makes perfect sense. Read in isolation, it’s as useless as reading only Mr. Darcy’s parts of Austin’s novel.

Thoughts from Fr. Ryan

This Wednesday is our parish Patronal Feast! St. Edward the Confessor was celebrated on October 13 from the 11th century until the 1960s.

Edward began his life in exile. England was being run by a line of Danish kings, the most famous of which was Cnut the Great. Edward and his siblings were exiles living in various European royal courts. While Edward’s brother had a chance of one day becoming king of England, Edward really didn’t. He was far enough down the list that he didn’t really have any special ambition in his youth.

His mother, though, was a brilliant tactician and managed to work some political magic to get Edward the big chair. He inherited a politically stable, economically stable, and culturally stable nation. The good side of that was that there was little for Edward to do except keep on keeping on. The bad side of that was that there was little to nothing Edward could do as king without upsetting the apple cart. Rather than indulging the worst parts of power, Edward invested in the Church and in his own spiritual life. He built churches and monasteries. He sought civil and private advice from bishops and the pope. He attended Mass almost daily. He was a deeply concerned and involved father.

Edward’s reign was all sunshine and rainbows, but he ruled in a time of peace and prosperity and built, as a legacy, Westminster Abbey which was the centerpiece of his effort to move the seat of government from the City of London (which isn’t the same as the city (small c) of London) to a nearby area on the west side of the river, hence the name “Westminster.” His innovations in that time are still in place 1000 years later. The other civil reason for which Edward is remembered so fondly in England is simply that his son was a bad king who spent less than a year on the throne before losing one of the most important and famous battles in history at Hastings in 1066.

All the civil history aside, the reason that Edward is a saint doesn’t have much to do with his investments in the Church or his earthly life at all. Edward is a saint because almost immediately after his death, people visiting the tomb began to experience miraculous healings. IF his son had been the kind while this was happening, we could chalk it up to propaganda, but most of the miracles took place under the reign of the new French kings who came from the Brittany region of France and who give us the island the name Great Brittain. The so-called British kings, as opposed to Cnut’s Danish kings, had no incentive at all to make a saint of their fallen adversary and yet the miracles were so prevalent that even the French line of English kings accepted that it was from the Lord.

Edward’s life was surely saintly, but his afterlife has been even more so. That makes him a good and worthy patron saint for us. We’re even blessed to have a few of his miraculous relics in our own Church!

We’ll celebrate the feast properly on the Weekend and we’ll have a simple Saturday Potluck after the 5:30p Mass for all who are interested.

St. Edward the Confessor, pray for us!

Mass Intentions for the Coming Week

  • Sat 5:30p In memory of Payton Trichell/Rome

  • Sun 9:00a Pro Populo for the Living & Deceased Members of our Parish

  • Mon No Mass

  • Tue 9:00a In memory of Alex “Bubba” Jumonville(birth anni)/family

  • Wed 9:00a In memory of Edgar Lancaster/family

  • Thurs 9:00a In memory of Charlie Phillips and Josephine Hodge/Weaver

  • Fri 5:30p In memory of Dorothy Neill/Gustafson

  • Sat 5:30p In memory of Pat Bullard/family

  • Sun 9:00a Pro Populo for the Living & Deceased Members of our Parish

    ALTAR CANDLES this week are burning for the special intentions of Louise Magoun

Assistants at Holy Mass

Date Servers Lector(s)
10/9 5:30p None Scheduled A Farlow
10/10 9:00a Henry and Mary Katherine B Sullivan
10/16 5:30p None Scheduled P Wilks
10/17 9:00a Chandler, Kathleen, Maura Youth
10/23 5:30p None Scheduled M K Book
10/24 9:00a Preston, Evelyn, Courtland J Howington

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
  • Oct 15 Quarterly Healing Mass - 5:30 p.m.
  • Oct 16 Potluck Supper following 5:30 p.m. Mass to celebrate the feast of our patron saint
  • Oct 16 -17 Celebration of Feast of St Edward the Confessor
  • Oct 18-22 Clergy Retreat -- no weekday Mass

For Your Information:

CONFIRMATION & FIRST HOLY COMMUNION… If you or your child is hoping to be confirmed or receive First Holy Communion this year and you haven’t gotten a text from Fr. Ryan yet, please check in with him! We’ll be starting classes soon. Thanks!

ROSARY GROUP… a group of parishioners is meeting on Monday at 5:30 p.m. to pray the Rosary. Everyone is invited to join the group. If you need additional information, please contact the Coordinator, Louise Magoun, at 318-341-2403.

HEALING MASS… Every few months, our usual Friday evening Daily Mass will be offered especially for the sick parishioners of our parish and Father 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 OCTOBER 15.

FEAST OF ST EDWARD THE CONFESSOR… The Church strongly encourages all parishes to celebrate their patronal feasts and even offers a Plenary Indulgence for members of that parish who do so. Our feast day is technically October 13, but the Church allows for us to celebrate it on an adjacent Sunday. This year, on the weekend of October 17, all parish Masses will be celebrated in Honor of St. Edward the Confessor. Everyone who attends and is a member (officially or de facto) of our parish may receive a Plenary Indulgence under the usual conditions for participating.

POTLUCK SUPPER - SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16 … There will be an informal parish potluck on Saturday, October 16 after the 5:30p Mass in celebration of the Feast of our patron saint. Check out your recipe box and bring one of your favorite Fall dishes and join others in this celebration. Our thanks, in advance, to MaryKathryn Book and MaryAnne Gilfoil who will give leadership to this project.

FLOWERS LAST WEEKEND…were given by Enrique and Maritza Paz in celebration of the Convalidation of their marriage and the Baptism of their daughter, Valerie.

CONGRATULATIONS…our parishioner, Louise Magoun, is celebrating the birth of twin grandsons on Friday, October 1, 2021 in New Orleans. John Aubrey and Thomas Dale Williams are the brothers of Trey and the sons of George and Katie Magoun Williams.

FATHER RYAN ON RETREAT: OCT 18-22… Fr. Ryan will make his required annual retreat in Alabama this year. Neighboring priests (Fr. Taylor Reynolds & Fr. Dale Meade) will be available in case of emergencies. There will be no daily Masses for that week. The Mass schedule will resume as normal on Saturday evening, October 23.

PRAYER FOR HURRICANE SEASON… Our Father in Heaven through the intercession of our Lady of Prompt Succor, spare us from all harm during this Hurricane Season. Protect us and our homes from all disasters of nature. Amen. Our Lady of Prompt Succor, hasten to our help!

Stewardship In today’s Gospel, Jesus asks the rich young man to give away all that he has in order to have treasure in heaven. But, he is unable to free himself from his possessions, and so he goes sadly away. Does what I own keep me from following Jesus?

Our Return to the Lord
Weekly Budget FY 2020-21 $ 2,111

Let us Rejoice in the Lord!

Happy Birthday Marsh Wood (Oct 11), Sidney Johnson (Oct 13), Kenny Smith (Oct 14), William Marsh (Oct 16), Kathleen Oliver (Oct 17)

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: Connie and Dan Copes, Elizabeth Crothers, Mary Ernst, Monique Florence, Susan and Johnny Gilfoil, C.W. and Alyce Keene, Bill Kennedy, Charlotte Marsh and Lance and Stephenie, Ed Mills, Kathleen Mills, Sue & Mike Rome, Delia Trichell, and Don Wood

Those under full-time care: Frances Kennedy, Carol Dunning

Our friends and relatives who need our prayers: Lee Adams (Smith), Ashley Alexander (Regan), Kathryn Wood Allsopp (D Wood), Jenna Faye Allen (Florence), Pam Amacker (Gilfoil), James Arceneaux (Book), Marie Farlow Bellard, Molly Corulla, Sara Cannon (Gilfoil), Truman and Diane Collins, Jami Cook (Wilks), Carol Dipert (Rome), Tommy Dunning, Joe Farlow, Mike Farlow, Thom Gilfoil, Charlotte Green, Kathy Garley Hanlon (Gilfoil), Rita Hargrave, Sharon Jackson (Wilks), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Mona Martin-Mills (M Gilfoil), Caryn Oliver, Sue Perrilloux (D Wood), Wayne Pitre (Gilfoil), Frances Robinson (Wilks), Lee and Tiffney Rome, Dianne W. Roper (Murphy), 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, Calli Ezell, Chris Hall (USMC), Nick Hall, Emmy Lu Marsh, Maddie Oliver, Bailey Rome, Carter Sullivan, Walker Sullivan, Brice Wood, Marsh Wood

Those Catholics residing at Christian Acres, Louisiana Transitional Center for Women, and our local Detention Centers and for their families and loved ones.