HOLY FAMILY PARISH312 Tazewell Avenue, Tazewell, VA 24651 (276) 988-4626 • www.holyfamilyva.com

email: theword1875@verizon.net

ST. THERESA’S312 Tazewell Ave. Tazewell,VA 24651

ST. ELIZABETH’S 160 Merrick Lane

Pocahontas, VA 24635

ST. MARY’S 1122 Farmer Street

Richlands, VA 24641

ST. JOSEPH’S 1007 Independence Rd.

Grundy, VA 24614

APRIL 12, 2020 | EASTER SUNDAY

pastor’s notes

Visiting a graveyard is not usually an attractive exercise because it presents an eerie and unsettling atmosphere that reminds one of the realities of death and dying. It could only be someone who is out of touch with mental and spiritual sanity that would like to loiter and lounge around the tombs (Mark 5:1-5). People go to the graveyard to pray and bury the dead. Today, the Gospel narrative presents one of the most unusual reasons for a visit to the cemetery: just to see the tomb very early in the morning when one could scarcely see one’s palms.The Gospel Reading (Matt. 28:1-10) tells us about Mary Magdalene who came to the tomb very early in the morning with the other Mary (it is probable that she is the mother of Cleopas) to see the grave. Could it be that they forgot what it looked like? We can’t say from the narrative.Furthermore, coming very early in the morning to the tomb gives a sign of urgency. We could infer from the story that the early morn-

ing tomb visitors slept briefly or did not sleep at all through the night. However, we need to make it clear here that they were not interested in the tomb but the one inside the tomb. Moreover, there was no better day for them to come but at the wee hours of the THIRD DAY.Here we could identify the duo as women of faith. They came early on the third day because they believed in the words of our Lord:

“Destroy this temple, and on the third day I will raise it up (John 2:19)”. They trusted and accepted the word of our Lord Jesus in the Gospel of Luke (9:22):

“The Son of Man must suffer many things,” He said. “He must be rejected by the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and He must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.”Leaving their families very early that morning to visit the tomb reminds us of the call to disciple-ship which involves “leaving every-thing and following him” (Luke 5:11, 28). We need to leave everything and follow the Lord if we are to find meaning in life. Those who follow the Lord never miss their way.These two women came to witness the live resurrection of our Lord Jesus; though they came a few min-utes after the actual rising. They did believe that the tomb cannot hold the Lord. They believed that the darkness of Good Friday would give way to the light of Easter. They trusted in the power of the resur-rection.

Coming to the site of our Lord’s burial they saw an empty tomb. What does this disclose to us? The Lord has risen from the dead, and our faith is meaningful; we have something to preach and believe (1 Cor.15:14-18). The tomb is empty because the risen Lord has set us free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2). The tomb is empty because God has delivered us from darkness and translated us into the kingdom of His beloved son.

The tomb is empty because we are now a chosen race, a royal priest-hood, a holy nation, a people set apart to declare the mighty acts of him who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9). The tomb could not stop him. The empty tomb declares that our lives have been redeemed and purified from the works of darkness and sin (Titus 2:14). The empty tomb reminds us of our Lord’s self-emp-tying (Phil. 2:7) which brought about our in-filling with good things (Psalm 107:9).

The empty tomb demonstrates the empty works of the devil and his promises. The empty tomb shows that without God in our lives we are cut off and can do nothing (John 15:5). The empty tomb shows that the words of our Lord on the Cross are real: “It is finished” (John 19:30). That means he has paid our debts and we do not owe anymore. So, as he said to the women (Matt. 28:10), the Lord is telling us today “do not be afraid.”

Fr. Eric Anokye

LESSONS FROM THE EMPTY TOMB AND THE INVITATION TO GALILEE

A critical mind would wonder why the angel at the graveyard and our Lord Jesus Christ himself could send the women to inform the disciples to meet him up in Galilee.

“Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee and there they will see me.” Why Galilee as a location for meeting the risen Lord?Galilee is very central in the min-istry of our Lord Jesus Christ. The visit of the angel Gabriel to Mary announcing the coming of the Savior through the Virgin birth took place in Nazareth, the most insignificant town in Galilee from

“where no good thing could come” (John 1:43-46). Most of the apostles got their vocation around the Gali-lee region, including the fishermen

that became fishers of men (Matt. 4:18-22). Most of the outstanding teachings and miracles of our Lord took place in Galilee. In fact, Gali-lee could be said to be the maternal home of the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ. Hence, the need to anchor the resurrection narrative where the story began.Going to Galilee has to do with going back to the roots to bear witness and testify to the fact and power of the resurrection. This wit-nessing is what we see Peter doing in the First Reading today. In his testimony, he began by tracing the ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ back to Galilee where he went about doing good, healing those oppressed by the devil, and God was with him.In Galilee, it will become evident that the one whom they knew very

well and who eventually died on the cross and was buried has risen. In Galilee, it will become very lucid that the one who changed water into wine (John 2:1-11) has come back from the dead to life.

Today we are invited to enter our own Galilee of testimony. We should be able to bear witness to the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, not just by words but also by our actions. We are challenged by this invitation to Galilee to live a resurrected life.

We are all called today to head to Galilee to celebrate the resur-rection of our Lord Jesus not just by physical feasting but by our spiritual communion with the Lord.

For this reason, St. Paul enjoins us in the Second Reading (Col. 3:1-4) that if we are raised with Christ, we should seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.May the resurrection of our Lord bring about the emptying of our physical and spiritual burdens. May the resurrection of our Lord open the doorway to our Galilee of wit-nessing by our words and actions.Happy Easter and may the days ahead become steps towards your elevation.

PASTORFr. Eric Anokye eanokye@richmonddiocese.org (276) 385-7312

ADMINISTRATIONDebi Cox

BOOKKEEPER Lydia St. Peter

OFFICE HOURSMon–Fri 9:30am – 2:30pm

Please call the parish office to make arrangements for the Sacraments of Baptism, Annointing of the Sick or Holy Matrimony as well as funerals. Reconciliation is available from 30 minutes before a scheduled Mass.

MASS TIMES (When allowed to resume)

SUNDAY 9am – St. Elizabeth’s 11:30am – St. Theresa’s

WEDNESDAY 8am – St. Theresa’s 5pm – St. Elizabeth’s

THURSDAY 12NooN – St. Mary’s

FRIDAY 8am – St. Theresa’s

SATURDAY 4pm – St. Joseph’s 6pm – St. Mary’s

Cover image: Carl Bloch, The Resurrection, 1875

“Today we are invited to enter our own Galilee of testimony.”

Louise Serreno (homebound)Margie Stutso (homebound) Lois WhiteLucas OaklandJane JonesGlenn HarrisonJohn BenishMosie & Rosalie RocchettiChristel Repp Melody DillingJim Shumate Darlene BlakewoodMary McCoy Shirley Hylton Madelyn Palzer April Robinette Rayburn Minton II Grace Bolling Francine Horn Ruth Woodall Helen Shumate Barbara Shumate Patrick WardSandy Hampton Mary Jane FullerRicky Clifton

Diana Campbell Michelle Woodward Nancy Wiss Margaret Shawver Billy Akers Scotty McBride Gerry Hankins Eric Pellerin Terri Farley Clarence Moore Lexi Cox Sarah WallParis Whisher Tammy Bennett Margaret Wasilewski Teresa HornNic Ulate Elizabeth GregoryFrannie Minton Sue Bailey

stewardship of treasure

Donations Received as of April 5 (Week 41)

CHURCH ATTENDANCE RECEIVED

St. Joseph’s $32

St. Elizabeth’s $580

St. Mary’s $600

St. Theresa’s $365

Total Offertory $1,577

Outside Donations $5,775

Year to Date Received $90,009

Goal $104,-76

Ahead/Behind Goal - $14,068

other financial news

council membersPARISH COUNCIL: Tonya Hylton, Frannie Minton, Ralph Shawver, Cindy Deskins, Barbara Jones, Donna Lambert

FINANCE COUNCIL:Kathy & Bob Buchanan, Randy Bolling, Doug Vance, Anne Danko, Jim Talbert, Jackie Shawver, Janet McDonagh

Date Intention By

WEEK OF 4/12Pete Frame U by St. Theresa’s parishioners

Fr. Eric will offer Mass intentions during his daily Masses at home.

mass intentions please pray for

OUTSIDE DONATIONSSt. Michael ATM, Glen Allen, VA: $5,000 Donation from New York: $25 Donation from Hampton, VA: $150 Donation from Hampton, VA: $100 Donation from Tazewell, VA: $500We sincerely thank these donors for their generosity. Their help has been invaluable during this difficult time!

Our Annual Diocesan Appeal total is now $8,210—118% of our goal. Thank you to everyone who has contributed!

NEW HOLY FAMILY FACEBOOK PAGE!We have established a parish Facebook page: Holy-Family-SWVA. This will be our official parish page and will be used to transmit news and parish-wide information, as well as to live stream Mass during the COVID-19 crisis. At this time, Fr. Eric is live streaming Mass daily at 10am. Please go your Facebook feed and search for Holy Family SWVA, then “like” the page so that our posts will show up in your feed. We’ll post Fr. Eric’s daily Cast Into the Deep reflections there as well. Fr. Eric is overjoyed at the response daily Mass has received and thanks everyone who has been so faithfully tuning in!

parish news and events

birthdays & anniversaries: APRIL6: LANH PHAM 9: NICOLE CRAWFORD 10: HELEN MARTA, ABIGAIL MARTA 13: WILLIAM FISHER 14: NERISSA CARPIO, MICHAEL BEAVERS

AN IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM HOLY FAMILY PARISH FINANCE COUNCILAs an outcome of the financial difficulties we are facing due to the inability to have Mass, we (Finance Council) have had to make some difficult decisions and want to keep you informed as to what is happening in our parish family. Following recommendations from the diocese, our parish office is closed. This is for the health and safety of all of our staff. Because of the office closure, Debi Cox, our parish secretary, has been laid off, at least through June 10th, per the stay at home order of our governor. Lydia St. Peter’s (our parish bookkeeper) hours have been reduced. Our financial database is web-based and she is able to access it at home in order to keep our financial records up-to-date. Father Eric is able to check our mail box and to check the voice-mail. Lydia will come to the office a couple of times per week to deposit any donations received in the mail and to pay bills. We are working to reduce costs as much as possible. Thermostats have been turned down in order to reduce electric bills. Travel expenses are lower because Father Eric is not driving to the various churches; we are not ordering supplies, and salaries have been reduced. The diocese has also decreased some of their assessments and priests’ salaries have been de-creased by 10% from the middle of April to July. However, we still have bills to pay: electric, water, telephone, Internet, insurance, wages and taxes, just to name a few. For example, the electric bills for all four churches and the rectory were paid last week and totaled $1360. The phone, Internet and cable bills for both the office and rectory were also paid and totaled $298.We are very grateful for the financial support we have received from you the last couple of weeks. Without that support we would not have been able to pay our current bills. We also want to let you know that we have received a very generous donation from St. Michael’s ATM of $5,000 to help support us through this difficult time. Please let them know how much we appreciate their help.The amount of donations received in the mail will continue to be shown in the bulletin and the Finance Council will pro-vide financial updates on a regular basis during this difficult time. Once again, we thank you for your past financial support and ask those of you that are able to continue your support.