Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
From The Font
“But a Samaritan traveler…”
Imagine the vitriol and fury that the political left has for someone who isn’t politically correct… Or imagine the disgust that a Vegan might feel at being served rare steak… Or imagine any person who perverts something that you hold dear at the center of your very self-identity…
The Samaritans took a handful of core Jewish beliefs and changed them up… Specifically, they set up their own altars and dismissed the need for making sacrifices in the Temple at Jerusalem. While that seems like a fairly minor problem for us, it was a really, really, really big deal for most of the Jews. The Samaritans were basically heretics who rubbed their error in the face of the “faithful” Jews all the time.
Obviously, Jesus chose the Samaritans for this story because they were the most despicable class of people that the Jews had. Even the Romans and the Persians weren’t so bad as the Samaritans.
Nowadays, we could easily insert into the story a class of people that we find despicable and vile. For me, that might be “Catholics for Choice” - a delusional group who blaspheme the Lord by their very existence. The point isn’t just unpleasant people, but people that evoke a personal sense of disgust - people that evoke a strong, emotional reaction.
And to be clear, this class of people that disgusts us isn’t being judged unfairly because of their ethnicity or their creed, the Samaritans were people whose CHOICES were heretical! Jesus wasn’t condemning unfair prejudge against the Samaritans, the Samaritans were heretics! His message isn’t about acceptance of others, it’s about how we are supposed to treat others…
When we think of our version of the Samaritan who evokes an emotional reaction, we’re not thinking of a loveable scamp… We’re thinking of someone who does bad things and has no intention of stopping or apologizing… Now, can I be neighbor to that person? Can I show mercy to that person? Can I accept help from that person? Can I forgive and love that person even if they don’t forgive and love me?
The Good Samaritan isn’t about overcoming prejudice at all! It’s about loving people who don’t deserve it - which is hard and Christ-like.
Thoughts from Fr. Ryan
This Monday is the feast of St Benedict of Nursia. He was the founder of the Benedictine religious order in 529AD in the little town of Subiaco in central Italy.
Benedict was a brilliant young man and his family was able to send him to Rome to study. This was about 100 years after the collapse of the Roman Empire, and the great city was already falling into disrepair. Benedict was disappointed in the city of Rome, especially its religious opportunities. Following the example of St. Basil the Great, he decided to abandon this worldly life and become a hermit. So he gassed up the donkey and rode to the small town of Subiaco where he found a top-notch cave and set about being a hermit. He devoted himself entirely to prayer. The locals brought him a bit of food as they could spare it and many of them made a habit of visiting the hermit for spiritual advice. The idea of a hermit welcoming visitors can seem odd… but it was relatively normal at the time.
As Benedict’s reputation spread, more and more people sought him out as an advisor and some asked to move into his cave or into neighboring caves so as to pursue “the life of perfection” under his instruction. Benedict allowed some and rejected others, but he began work on a “rule of life” which could be adopted by anyone.
The Rule of St. Benedict is now one of the most important religious documents in history. When it was completed, Benedict moved out of the cave and set up a monastery in which he could live alongside the spiritual “novices” who wanted to join him.
When the Subiaco Monastery grew too large, Benedict set up another one in a town called Monte Cassino. It was there that he finished his “Rule for Monks” and it was Monte Cassino that many credit with preserving the Church through the so-called “Dark Ages.”
The Benedictines were unquestionably the most important religious order in the Church from their founding until the spread of the “mendicant” orders, especially the Franciscans and the Dominicans. They preserved religious and secular writings and books. They codified music and art. They really are an amazing order.
The Benedictines were still growing and thriving until their sudden and precipitous collapse following Vatican II. In the last 60 years, the number of monasteries has fallen dramatically and the order has few religious novices. As with so many great religious orders, a few higher-up embraced liberal theology and the whole order is now dying a tragic death.
Still, I was privileged to study at a Benedictine Monastery! The monks were crazy! No joke, they were certifiable. And yet the experience of monastic prayer and the monastic life - even when it’s being led by insane people - is powerful and evangelical. There are a handful of new Monasteries using only the old Latin Mass that are thriving and I’m hopeful for the future of the Order under their prayerful leadership.
Mass Intentions for the Coming Week
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Pat Bullard/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 In honor of a special birthday/Magoun
- Thu 9:00a In memory of Father Ferre/Mills-Thompson
- Fri 5:30p In memory of Lee Rome/Lancaster
- Sat 5:30p In memory of Payton Trichell/D Fortenberry
- 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) |
|---|---|---|
| 7/9 5:30p | None Scheduled | L Bullard |
| 7/10 9:00a | Chandler, Kathleen, Maura | D Ellerbee |
| 7/16 5:30p | None Scheduled | A Farlow |
| 7/17 9:00a | Preston, Evelyn, Courtland | Youth |
| 7/23 5:30p | None Scheduled | MA Gilfoil |
| 7/24 9:00a | Cooper and Maura | C Guizerix |
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
- July 19 Pastoral Council Meeting – Parish Hall – 6 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 the group. If you need additional information, please contact the Coordinator, Louise Magoun, at 318-341-2403.
PRAYER FOR HURRICANE SEASON… O God, Master of this passing world, hear the humble voices of your children. The Sea of Galilee obeyed your order and returned to its former quietude; you are still the Master of land and sea. We live in the shadow of a danger over which we have no control. The Gulf, like a provoked and angry giant, can awake from its seeming lethargy, overstep its conventional boundaries, invade our land and spread chaos and disaster. During this hurricane season, we turn to You, O loving Father. Spare us from past tragedies whose memories are still so vivid and whose wounds seem to refuse to heal with the passing of time. O Virgin, Star of the Sea, Our Beloved Mother, we ask you to plead with your Son in our behalf so that spared from the calamities common to this area and animated with a true spirit of gratitude, we will walk in the footsteps of your Divine Son to reach the heavenly Jerusalem where a stormless eternity awaits us. Amen (Fr. Al Volpe, Cameron Parish, LA, originally dedicated to the victims of Hurricane Audrey in 1957)
Our Return to the Lord
| Weekly Budget FY 2020-21 | $ 2,111 |
| June Budget | $ 8,444 |
| June Income | $ 8,978 |
| June Expenses | TBD |
| July Budget | $ 8,444 |
| July 2/3 Collection | $ 1,925 |
| June Income To Date | $ 1,925 |
Stewardship The good Samaritan was also a good steward, giving his time and his treasure to meet his neighbor’s need. At the end of this familiar story, Jesus urges his hearers–and us–to go and do the same!
Let us Rejoice in the Lord!
Happy Birthday Chip Sullivan (July 11), Aidan Collins (July 12), Sue Rome (July 16)
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: Libby Bullard, Connie and Dan Copes, Elizabeth Crothers, Leslye Ellerbee, Mary Ernst, Monique Florence, Susan and Johnny Gilfoil, Jamie and Cindy Howingston, C.W. and Alyce Keene, Bill Kennedy, Ed Mills, Kathleen Mills, Terry and Susie Murphy, Sug Regan, 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, Sarah Cannon (Gilfoil), Ruthie Coenen (Wilks), Kevin and AnnaBeth Collins (Book), Truman and Diane Collins, Jami Cook (Wilks), Molly Corulla, Don Deweese, Carol Dipert (Rome), Mac Donaldson (Ellerbee), Ashley and Chuck Edwards (Keene), Joe Farlow, Mike Farlow, Patty Farlow, April Franklin (Wilks), Thom Gilfoil, Charlotte Green, Rita Hargrave, Evie Hilburn (Lancaster), John and Carlyle Ashly Hoogland, Melissa Jennings (Gilfoil & Keene), Dee Jones (Keene), Lyn and Calvin Lisonbee (Keene), LaLa Lopez (Hernandez), Caroline Marcello (Watts), Michelle McGuire(Gilfoil), Mona Martin (MA Gilfoil), Caryn Oliver, Sue Perrilloux (D Wood), Wayne Pitre (Gilfoil), Frances Robinson (Wilks), Bailey, Scott and Tiffney Rome, Dianne W. Roper (Murphy), Albert Thom (Rome), Meg Keene Thomas, Lucy Thomason (gr-dau of Bentley Curry)(Book), Paul Wayne and LeeAnn Rome Tranchina (Rome), Elaine Trimble (Rome), Joe Yerger
Our collegiates: Aidan Collins, Callie Ezell, Lilly Falgout, Chris Hall (USMC), Nick Hall, Bruen Johnson, Caroline Marsh, Emmy Lu Marsh, Maddie Oliver Bridges, Blake Sullivan, Carter Sullivan, Walker Sullivan, Brice Wood, Marsh Wood.