It has been said that if you want to make God laugh, tell Him your plans for the day. I thought of that the other day as I looked at the calendar. With summer winding down, I find myself in the familiar situation of not having accomplished anywhere near all of the things on my “to do” list back in May. But it doesn’t mean those things are forgotten…
· Both parishes’ DLA projects are still in the pipeline. We got an estimate earlier in the summer to do the work on the fire alarm system at Holy Family and I have been in contact with a company to get an estimate to do the work on the entry doors at St. John. With the assistance of the Diocesan Facilities Office, I look forward to moving forward in the coming months.
· I keep getting asked, “Father, when are you moving to the rectory at St. John?” I had hoped to have completed the move by now but the repair work from last winter’s “flood” has gotten bogged down. As I write this column, I am looking forward to meeting with our insurance representative from the facilities office to get an update and, hopefully, a target date for the work to be completed and the move scheduled.
· I have discussed with the finance councils of both parishes my intention to create a joint Buildings & Grounds Committee. Some names have been recommended to me; I look forward to asking a few parishioners from each parish to come together for an organizational meeting sometime next month.
· Many of the groups and ministries at our parishes that have been less active or on hiatus through the summer will be getting back to a more active schedule after Labor Day. I encourage everyone to watch for more details in the weeks ahead and to pray about where the Lord may be calling you to minister in our community.
As I mentioned in my last column, St. John’s long-time organist, Lawrence Demangone, retired after years of faithful ministry to the parish. I am happy to announce that two of the “new faces” that have been helping out over the summer will taking more permanent roles: Dennis Bell will be playing at Saturday evening Masses. Dennis is currently the Director of Music at Caritas Christi for the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill. He earned a Bachelor of Music degree in both Sacred Music and Music Education from Seton Hill. He has served a number of parishes, including serving as Director of Music at St. Paul Church in Butler for 14 years. On a personal note, I first met Dennis during one of my summer assignments as a seminarian at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral. I look forward to working with him again. The face you see at the organ on Sunday morning isn’t exactly new to St. John parishioners. Terry Krivacsy was first hired to play at the 7:30AM Mass by Father Tom Lukac. She has helped out at St. John off-and-on over the years since earning a certificate in sacred music in the early 1990’s. She earned a bachelor of arts degree at Seton Hill in 1984 and lives on her farm in Slickville with her sister and her menagerie of beef steers, chickens, lambs, and cats. In addition to playing on Sunday morning at St. John, Terry also plays at St. Matthew Church in Saltsburg.
Sandy Sutton, Holy Family’s long-time parish secretary, retired on Thursday after serving the parish for 28 years. We have hired a new secretary but it will be a few weeks before she begins working for us, after she gives notice at her present job and obtains all of her necessary clearances for employment. I hope to introduce her to you in this space in two weeks.
And finally on this late summer weekend, a little modern-day parable written by a modern-day Greek Orthodox saint. Saint Paisios (1924-1994) was a well-known ascetic monk of the Greek Orthodox Church who was greatly respected for his spiritual insights. Be the Bee and Not the Fly was specifically directed toward those who were completely focused on the scandals and shortcomings they saw in the life of the Church but his analogy is applicable to the larger state of affairs in our society today:
Some people tell me that they are scandalized because they see many things wrong in the Church. I tell them that if you ask a fly, “Are there any flowers in this area?” it will say, “I don’t know about flowers, but over there in that heap of rubbish you can find all the filth you want.” And it will go on to list all the unclean things it has been to. Now, if you ask a honeybee, “Have you seen any unclean things in this area?” it will reply, “Unclean things? No, I have not seen any; the place here is full of the most fragrant flowers.” And it will go on to name all the flowers of the garden or the meadow. You see, the fly only knows where the unclean things are, while the honeybee knows where the beautiful iris or hyacinth is.
As I have come to understand, some people resemble the honeybee and some resemble the fly. Those who resemble the fly seek to find evil in every circumstance and are preoccupied with it; they see no good anywhere. But those who resemble the honeybee only see the good in everything they see. The stupid person thinks stupidly and takes everything in the wrong way, whereas the person who has good thoughts, no matter what he sees, no matter what you tell him, maintains a positive and good thought.
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