Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
From The Font
“To you who hear I say…”
Today’s Gospel is the embodiment of the style of teaching which is especially despised in our modern world. Jesus lays out a slew of moral absolutes from on high. He does so without any special argumentation or reasoning and without any exceptions for those of us who think we know better. It’s a type of teaching which irks the modern sentiment more than any other. And, honestly, if anyone other than Jesus were to employ this kind of teaching, it would be referred to as a logical error or fallacy that we call the “appeal to authority.”
As it is, Jesus IS moral authority. As the creator of us all, He and He alone can speak to that which is good or ill for us. Even more than this logical detail, the question worth investigating in our era is why this appeal to authority is so offensive to us.
The broadest answer is to refer back to the original sin of Eve which was to believe the lie of the serpent that human beings are equipped to determine for ourselves right and wrong, good and evil. Surely arguments could be made by psychology or ethics, but the simple reason we don’t like being taught from on high is that we tend to believe that we know what’s best for ourselves, even when we’re confronted with a different perspective by the One who made us. In a sense, it’s the moral equivalent of one of us choosing to inflate our tires to 5 pounds of pressure rather than 35 despite the instructions from the manufacturer and the mechanic.
How many of us, after all, are actually trying to do good to those who hate us? Are we planning out elaborate and loving birthday gifts for our enemies? Do we send Christmas cards with personal greetings to those who insult us and spread gossip about us?
Now, no one is saying this is easy or simple or intuitive… But the One who knit us together in our mother’s womb is the One who knit together that obnoxious co-worker and that pill of a woman who chairs that committee… And that One who made us both says we’re to love each other even if we don’t like each other. It doesn’t make sense, but it’s what’s best for us. It’s understandable, then, that our world today doesn’t like this kind of teaching.
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
Wednesday the 23rd is a conjunction of three seminal dates in world and religious history.
In 303 AD, the Roman emperor Diocletian began his 8 year reign of terror and persecution of Christians by destroying the Church in Nicomedia (in modern day Turkey).
In 532 AD, The Roman Emperor Justinian I, laid the foundation stone for the glorious Church we now call Hagia Sophia (“Mary, Seat of Holy Wisdom”). And in 1455, the first Gutenberg Bible was printed using movable type which dramatically lowered the cost of printing and made the Bible widely available for the first time in history.
Each of the days is bittersweet.
Diocletian’s reign of terror was horrific and destroyed so much of the early Church’s records and the social gains Christians has made. But it was also the last real persecution of Christians in the Roman world. When Diocletian retired, his power hungry successors fought amongst themselves and made the rise of Constantine the Great possible. He made Christianity legal and, indeed, the official religion of the Empire (which had both good and bad consequences).
The Basilica of Hagia Sophia remains one of the greatest architectural achievements of the Western World and the Church remains glorious even today. Sadly, though, in 1453, the Muslim Turks desecrated it and converted it into a Mosque. Even today, hideous discs with pagan Muslim symbols cover some of the most spectacular mosaics ever installed.
Finally, the Gutenberg Bible was and is a seminal moment for mankind. But while it made the text of the Bible widely available, it also instilled in man a hubris which made him believe that the technology of the printer rather than the text which it printed would make man more human… But for all the good that has come from the printing press, the evils far, far outweigh them. Without the printing press, the French Revolution doesn’t happen. In fact, neither do many other liberal populist revolutions of the 18th and 19th centuries. The idolization of technology is closely tied to Gutenberg’s press.
I note these three bittersweet and important events to remind us all that the course of history is rarely so simple as our modern media presents it to be. It’s manifestly false to believe that our democracy depends upon the next election. It’s manifestly false to believe that global warming global cooling climate crisis climate change is going to have any predictable effect in the next 100 years. It’s manifestly false to believe that the powerful will get their comeuppance or that the poor and marginalized can be elevated by the passage of any one law or spending package.
Everything in our world is mired in the complexity and the chaos of human nature. The evils of Diocletian made Constantine possible as the first Christian Emperor. The greatest and most beautiful Church now stands a monument to a pagan ideology. And the deadliest technology in history has proven to be not bomb or a gun or even a concentration camp, but a printing press. Nothing is ever as simple or clear cut as it seems!
Mass Intentions for the Coming Week
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Payton Trichell/D Fortenberry
- Sun 9:00a Pro Populo for the Living & Deceased Members of our Parish
- Mon NO MASS
- Tue 9:00a In memory of Teresa Thom/Rome
- Wed 9:00a In memory of Father Ferre/Mills & Thompson
- Thu 9:00a In memory of Rosa Gremshell
- Fri 5:30p In memory of James Trimble/Rome
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Sally Testa Higdon/Magoun
- Sun 9:00a Pro Populo for the Living & Deceased Members of our Parish
ALTAR CANDLES this week are burning for private special intentions
Assistants at Holy Mass
| Date | Servers | Lector(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 2/19 5:30p | None Scheduled | L Bullard |
| 2/20 9:00a | Chandler, Kathleen, Maura | Youth-Preston & Emersyn |
| 2/26 5:30p | None Scheduled | A Farlow |
| 2/27 9:00a | Preston, Courtland, Evelyn | A Oliver |
| 3/5 5:30p | None Scheduled | P Wilks |
| 3/6 9:00a | Caroline, Cooper, Maura | S Marsh |
Upcoming Events
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Confessions every Friday & Saturday from 5p until Mass at 5:30p
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Sunday Morning Catechism in the Hall after the 9:00a Mass unless otherwise indicated
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Pastoral Council meeting monthly on the third Tuesday at 6p unless otherwise indicated
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Feb 27 First Quarter Social to celebrate Mardi Gras following Sunday Mass
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March 1 Session #3 Dealing with Stress and Anxiety - 6 p.m. - Church Hall
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March 7 Town Hall Meeting for a “State of St. Edward report - 6 p.m. Church Hall. All parishioners are encouraged to attend and participate
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 the group. If you need additional information, please contact the Coordinator, Louise Magoun, at 318-341-2403.
FIRST QUARTER SOCIAL - MARDI GRAS CELEBRATION…Potluck Brunch on Sunday, February 27 following Mass. First Quarter (Jan, Feb, March) group is Margo Corulla and Darryl and Abby Ellerbee (co-chairs), Norman and Marie Ernst, Katherine Ernst Bedgood, Brian Johnson, Sidney and Mary Jane Johnson, Robbie and Tori Kivett, Ed Mills, Kathleen Mills, Billy and Courtney Nadeau, Teddy and Alyssa Oliver, Mike and Sue Rome, Jason Trichell, Mary Trichell, Levi Washington.
DEALING WITH STRESS AND ANXIETY AS A CHRISTIAN has become increasingly important to all of us. Workshop #3 is TUESDAY, MARCH 1. The workshops are open to the public and free. They will last from about 6:00 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
TOWN HALL MEETING for a “State of St. Edward” report. Monday, March 7, 2022 - 6 p.m. Church Hall. All parishioners are welcome and encouraged to attend and participate!
Our Return to the Lord
| Weekly Budget FY 2020-21 | $ 2,111 |
| January Budget | $ 10,555 |
| January Income | $ 13,438 |
| January Expenses | $ 9,811 |
| February Budget | $ 8,444 |
| February 12/13 collection | $ 2,250 |
| February Income To Date | $ 4,817 |
Stewardship Today’s Gospel has encouraging words for good stewards – “Give and it shall be given to you. For the measure you measure with will be measured back to you.” What encouragement to give generously of the resources entrusted to your care.
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 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, Leslye Ellerbee, Mary Ernst, Monique Florence, Susan and Johnny Gilfoil, C.W. and Alyce Keene, Bill Kennedy, 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), Graham Allen (S Gilfoil), Kathryn Wood Allsopp (D Wood), Jenna Faye Allen (Florence), Pam Amacker (Gilfoil), James Arceneaux (Book), Judy and Danny Beard (Keene), Marie Farlow Bellard, Ruthie Coenen (Wilks), Molly Corulla, Truman and Diane Collins, Jami Cook (Wilks), Don Deweese, Carol Dipert (Rome), Mac Donaldson (Ellerbee), Tommy Dunning, Ashley and Chuck Edwards (Keene), Joe Farlow, Mike Farlow, Patty Farlow, April Franklin (Wilks), Thom Gilfoil, Charlotte Green, Kathy Garley Hanlon (Gilfoil), Rita Hargrave, Melissa Jennings (Gilfoil & Keene), Lyn and Calvin Lisonbee (Keene), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Mona Martin (MA Gilfoil), Caryn Oliver, Sue Perrilloux (D Wood), Wayne Pitre (Gilfoil), Frances Robinson (Wilks), Bailey, Lee, and Tiffney Rome, Dianne W. Roper (Murphy), Albert Thom (Rome), Meg Keene Thomas, Lucy Thomason (gr-dau of Bentley Curry)(Book), Elaine Trimble (Rome), Joe Yerger
Our collegiates: Aidan Collins, Callie Ezell, Chris Hall (USMC), Nick Hall, Emmy Lu Marsh, Maddie Oliver Bridges, Carter Sullivan, Walker Sullivan, Brice Wood, Marsh Wood