It goes without saying that we must be cautious, and not irresponsible: we must take precautions that are reasonable. Nevertheless, we must go on living by building peace and mutual trust. So I would say that the Jubilee of Mercy shows itself even more necessary. A message of mercy, that love of God which leads to mutual love and reconciliation. This is precisely the answer we must give in times of temptation to mistrust. – Father Federico Lombardi
The events in Paris and now in Brussels have evoked a tremendous swell of emotions across the world. Some of us that were directly changed on 9/11 will carry that fear, that disbelief, and those wounds for the rest of our lives. Our empathy and understanding for those families and individuals in Paris and around the world living with the threat of terrorism should never turn into hatred or bigotry. If anything, it should drive us to create lasting healing and inclusiveness, and show terrorists that their efforts to change us or make us scared will never work.
This moment in time is too important. Instead of focusing on all the positive programs we are developing at St. John as part of our Capital Campaign this week, we need to address why we are Building Our Future and Serving our Past. We are actively creating God’s Kingdom. We are evangelizing the love, joy, and mercy that is at the heart of the Catholic faith through friendship and healing. That is what a field hospital does. It takes in all that are hurting and does not ask for their insurance card or cholesterol numbers. It just saves lives:
We are one Church, one home, one family. The Church must embody the redemptive mission of God… [L]et us recognize our own wounds. Facing our own wounds will enable us to be compassionate and understanding to the wounded… [W]e must accept that the Church is a field hospital. We should be ready to respond in emergency cases. We should be prompt with creative solutions. We should be agile and flexible… [W]e should be infuse the field hospital with hope. We cannot be healers if we look desperate. I don’t know how those glum looking people could even generate trust and healing. Smile please. – Cardinal Luis Tagle 9/24/2015
As we develop and start the programs associated with our Build Our Future, Serve Our Past campaign for all members of our Parish Family, like the Catholic Adult Organization and CYO, we need our entire Parish Family to give in order to reach our additional goals. If you have any questions, please contact Joe Lichwalla, the Campaign Coordinator at 239-495-2001 or email: [email protected].
You can also learn more information about the Campaign at: www.sjecc.com/future