Dear St. Martin’s Parishioners,
I leave on Saturday, September 21 for a two-week pilgrimage to Fatima and Spain. Know that I bring all of you and your intentions to the holy sites that I will be visiting. Please pray for our pilgrimage group that it may be a time of spiritual renewal.
In this Sunday’s gospel, the disciples find themselves arguing about who among them is the greatest. (Having three older brothers and two younger ones, this was an everyday occurrence in our house!) They’re ashamed when Jesus calls them out, and, as he places a child before them, he says, “Whoever receives one child such as this in my name, receives me; and whoever receives me, receives not me but the one who sent me.”
How might we receive a child in the sense that Jesus is talking about? Certainly, as children we all needed love, acceptance, affirmation and approval from our parents and adults in our life. As a priest, it pains me to see how many people did not receive that as children. These “adult children” may now reject themselves, try to be perfect, act out immaturely, find themselves mired in addictions, etc., in a desperate attempt to soothe their wounds they suffered early in life. Unfortunately, none of those dysfunctional behaviors actually work. What does work, though, is to recognize the child within us that may feel hurt, rejected, abandoned, diminished, or humiliated. Can we allow Christ to present that child to us and love and accept him or her in a way that is transforming? If we receive this (inner) child in the name of Jesus, we find that we receive Jesus, and our relationship with our Heavenly Father comes alive.
Thank you for your continued support of our parish pantry, which currently serves more than twice the amount of people that we have in previous years. Without your monetary and food/vital goods donations, this work would not be possible.
In Christ,
Fr. Dave
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