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Pastor's Page 2022-02-13

Dear St. Gabriel Parishioners:

Happy World Marriage Day
Sunday February 13

Happy Valentine Day
Monday, February 14 

There will be a second collection for PREPARES program this weekend, February 12 & 13.  Here is some information in case you are not familiar with this program.

A statewide initiative of the Catholic Bishops of Washington State, Pregnancy and Parenting Support (PREPARES) program, PREPARES is a nurturing response of the Catholic community in Washington state, open to all, to provide meaningful, local, and sustainable support to mothers, fathers, and families from pregnancy through early childhood.  Volunteers at the PREPARES program offer support through a variety of activities for families from pregnancy to a child’s fifth birthday.  In 2020, 172 parishes and 428 volunteers were involved with the PREPARES program statewide.  This resulted in 8,869 families being served around our state.  You can find out more about the PREPARES program here: https://preparesforlife.org/

The sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time this week Luke’s Gospel reminds us that the basic of our faith in God is happiness.  In learning and keeping the commandments of God, we’re choosing the ways of God who show us in Jesus Christ for our destiny.  Like knowing that we’re in the Winter Season will help us to be safe, survived and perhaps enjoy the winter as well.

The Beatitudes in Luke’s Gospel this weekend reveals God's ultimate justice.  They outline Jesus' prophetic outreach to those who live on the fringes of society.  In this awesome Gospel scene overlooking the Sea, Jesus puts biblical justice into practice by proclaiming the Beatitudes.  Authentic justice is a bonding of one's self with the sick, the disabled, the poor and the hungry.

The Beatitudes are not an abstract code of behavior.  Jesus is the poor in spirit, the meek, the persecuted, and the peacemaker.  He is the new “code of holiness” that must be imprinted on hearts, and that must be contemplated through the action of the Holy Spirit. His Passion and Death are the crowning of his holiness.

We must hold up the Beatitudes as a mirror in which we examine our own lives and consciences.  Looking at Jesus, we see what it means to be poor in spirit, gentle and merciful, to mourn, to care for what is right, to be pure in heart, to make peace, to be persecuted.  How can we be disciples of Jesus and put into practice Christ’s teaching of the Beatitudes? This week, let us ask ourselves some tough questions about Jesus’ powerful lesson on a Galilean hillside.

  • Does the difference in the Beatitudes in Matthew and in Luke provide any special insights for me? 
  • Which of the Beatitudes speaks most powerfully to me?  Why? 
  • What is my understanding of biblical justice?   How do I practice it in my life?

The Lenten Season will be in 17 days; while we are mindful of this coming special Season soon, let’s pray for the following three groups of people making an extra journey.

Please, keep the Catechumens and Candidates for Full Communion (RCIA) in your prayer as they are preparing for the Rite of Election for our Olympic Deanery with our Archbishop Itienne on Saturday, March 5 at Holy Trinity Parish.

Please, keep our high-school Candidates for Confirmation in your prayer as they’re preparing for being “Fully Initiated in the Catholic Church” through the Sacrament of Confirmation in the coming Easter Season. 

Last, but not least, please keep our second-graders are also preparing for their First Holy Communion in the coming Easter Season.

 

Christ’s Peace,

Fr. Phuong Hoang

 

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