--- Parish Life

Things you should know about if there is openness, transparency and accountability in your parish. For example: you should know who the members of your parish Board of directors and members of your parish councils are. How they were selected. If, as lay members, do they have an official vote. You should have received periodic reports from them so that you are aware of what's going on in your parish. you should be informed as to how much money is collected weekly in your parish. You should know if your parish has put into place the security measures received from your diocese regarding the protection of your Sunday collections. ( it should be noted that the security procedures provided your parish by the diocese is not mandatory) You should know if your parish has to set aside money for a diocesan fund regarding the financial settlements of abusive crimes and just how much.

VOX DEI, VOX MUNDI: God's Voice is Earth's
VOX MUNDI, VOX TERRAE: the Earth's Voice is the Land's
VOX TERRAE, VOX POPULI: the Land's Voice is the People's
VOX POPULI, VOX DEI: the People's Voice is God's

In the beginning was the WORD … God said, “Let there be LIGHT”
WORD and LIGHT are expressive of all other, bonded in LOVE’s Purpose, in reciprocal Self-expression.

The Pascal Mysteries celebrate WORD/LIGHT/LOVE in the mutual purposes of self and other — what Eucharist is, what Cosmic Evolution is about.

On listening to Tom Fox's interview with Brother Rodemman the thought occurred to me that many suburban parishes could benefit from having a small vegetable or flower garden on the parish grounds. Would it be a great way for people to play in the dirt? understand growth and the gift of the environent? People could appreciate the weather [and the farmer]. The food would be organic and could enhance both the food pantry and the gift to the poor might be real instead of canned [no pun].

At Voice of the Faithful meetings, the quality of leaders and speakers varies widely. In a few instances, there are leaders who know how to run meetings well. Too often, the presider neglects to introduce himself or herself. Those making reports presume that the attendees know who they are, or they refer to others by first name only. This gives the impression of rule by an inside group. Perhaps a year ago, I attended a presentation for which a speaker from the national office was unprepared. She rambled, and at one point she exhibited a poor grasp of the history of Vatican II. In other instances, local meetings will make a guest speaker endure an hour of meandering reports and housekeeping before giving that speaker the podium.

The topic of competency in ordering the female role in Church (ordaining) came up in another strand, but it seems right to consider female "priesthood" as a matter deserving undistracted attention in a strand of its own.

While we may look upon the life of Mother Theresa of Calcutta — tortured throughout with doubt — with sadness and compassion, she is for all her agony a more powerfully redemptive exemplar. Like men, women must personally develop and follow their personal consciences.

Can anyone explain to me this discussion on the Jewish upset over the intercessions on Good Friday in the 1962 missal, when the moto proprio of Benedict XVI expressly forbids the 1962 missal being used during the Easter Triduum?

"Vanity of vanities!"

From the prophet to Psalmist to Paul all the readings for this Sunday
revolve around the worthlessness of the riches of this world. The prophet
accounts worldly gain as vanity, foolishness. The Psalmist, meanwhile asks
for blessings on the work of our hands, though they as well as ourselves
shall pass like the grass. Jesus does not rebuke gain, but greed and
placing this material world ahead of the eternal world to come. Paul

"Lord, teach us how to pray."

As we all know, the time immediately following brought vast and varied changes to the Church, and none of these changes was of greater import to the faithful than the vital changes in the Mass. The prayer life of
the parish was disrupted, as never before in the history of the Church.

We are guardedly taking the first steps of a wholly new liturgical movement, a movement whose principles are found in the past, but the application must meet a unique challenge of repairing a severed foundation, as well as building

From times immemorial, social/religious sense motivated people, men and women, to serve communities in the capacity of “priests”. The “religious” service of priests is in matters of deep consciousness, of the mysteries of life, spirituality, of “ultimate realities”, all of which are matters “that pertain to God”.

The Latin word for priest is “sacerdos”, meaning “holy giver”, a person who does sacred things for and on behalf of the people, the community. Priestly work and priests have historically been respected and valued. However, in the course of time, cultural ideologies have subverted the priestly role and sidetracked religion to serve ideological pretexts and purposes.