Praying for our Priests: First Responders for our Souls · priest is committed to doing all he can...
2
Saint Paul the Apostle Parish Pastoral Council UPDATE July 2018 Your Parish Pastoral Council [PPC] works for and with Father Szatkowski to foster pastoral activity in the parish. Y July Devotion: The Precious Blood of Jesus National Holiday: Independence Day Pope’s Intention: Priests and their Pastoral Ministry That priests, who experience fatigue and loneliness in their pastoral work, may find help and comfort in their intimacy with the Lord and in their friendship with their brother priests. Jesus said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat. … When [Jesus] disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. —Mark 6:31,34 As Fr. John Szatkowski and Fr. Benito Tamez will tell you, there is a lot of joy in being a priest. And yet, it’s not an easy life. In addition to running the day-to-day operations of a parish and celebrating Masses constantly, priests make themselves available for parishioners facing a spiritual or emo- tional crisis, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.Their role has some similarities to a first responder, except that their chance to get the weekend off is even more rare. While they may not put their lives on the line like firefighters or police officers, a priest is committed to doing all he can to defend and save our souls for all eternity. As Jesus said in Matthew 10 verse 28: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.” Also, many first responders are married and have children. In their vocation priests choose a path that focuses on an intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus. And their duties often require them to sacrifice the time they would like to spend on other personal relationships so that they can appropriately care for the family entrusted to them: their congregation. According to CARA, the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, there are just over 37,000 priests serving the 68 million Catholics in the U.S., or one priest for every 1,838 people. This month Pope Francis has asked that we pray for our priests with an understanding of all the obligations they have and the solitude they sometimes face. Let us invoke God’s blessings on our priests with this prayer from the U.S. Catholic Council of Bishops (USCCB): Gracious and loving God, we thankYou for the gift of our priests. Through them, we experience Your presence in the sacraments. Help our priests to be strong in their vocation. Set their souls on fire with love for your people. Grant them the wisdom, understanding, and strength they need to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. Inspire them with the vision of Your Kingdom. Give them the words they need to spread the Gospel. Allow them to experience joy in their ministry. Help them to become instruments of Your Divine Grace.We ask this through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns as our Eternal Priest. Amen. —Deacon Bob Bonomi Praying for our Priests: First Responders for our Souls
Transcript of Praying for our Priests: First Responders for our Souls · priest is committed to doing all he can...
Saint Paul the Apostle Parish Pastoral Council UPDATE
July 2018Your Parish Pastoral
Council [PPC] works for and with Father Szatkowski
to foster pastoral activity in the parish.Y
July Devotion: The Precious Blood of Jesus National Holiday: Independence Day Pope’s Intention: Priests and their Pastoral Ministry That priests, who experience fatigue and loneliness in their pastoral work,mayfindhelpandcomfortintheirintimacywiththeLordand in their friendship with their brother priests.
Jesus said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” People were coming and going in great numbers, and they had no opportunity even to eat. … When [Jesus] disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. —Mark 6:31,34
As Fr. John Szatkowski and Fr. Benito Tamez will tell you, there is a lot of joy in being a priest. And yet, it’s not an easy life.
In addition to running the day-to-day operations of a parish and celebrating Masses constantly, priests make themselves available for parishioners facing a spiritual or emo-tional crisis, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Their role has some similarities to a first responder, except that their chance to get the weekend off is even more rare.
While they may not put their lives on the line like firefighters or police officers, a priest is committed to doing all he can to defend and save our souls for all eternity. As Jesus said in Matthew 10 verse 28: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather, be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in Gehenna.”
Also, many first responders are married and have children. In their vocation priests choose a path that focuses on an intimate relationship with the Lord Jesus. And their duties often require them to sacrifice the time they would like to spend on other personal relationships so that they can appropriately care for the family entrusted to them: their congregation. According to CARA, the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate, there are just over 37,000 priests serving the 68 million Catholics in the U.S., or one priest for every 1,838 people.
This month Pope Francis has asked that we pray for our priests with an understanding of all the obligations they have and the solitude they sometimes face. Let us invoke God’s blessings on our priests with this prayer from the U.S. Catholic Council of Bishops (USCCB):
Gracious and loving God, we thank You for the gift of our priests. Through them, we experience Your presence in the sacraments. Help our priests to be strong in their vocation. Set their souls on fire with love for your people. Grant them the wisdom, understanding, and strength they need to follow in the footsteps of Jesus. Inspire them with the vision of Your Kingdom. Give them the words they need to spread the Gospel. Allow them to experience joy in their ministry. Help them to become instruments of Your Divine Grace. We ask this through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns as our Eternal Priest. Amen.
—Deacon Bob Bonomi
Praying for our Priests: First Responders for our Souls
is produced by Communication Ministry members: Jane Koenecke editor, Liz ConradGöedecke designer, Marilyn Carruthers and Tim Lyons contributors Alexes Buchanan, photographer
Send content suggestions to [email protected]
12 Saint Paul teens help rebuild Houston during 2018 Mission Possible week
The first Saint Paul Spanish ACTS Retreats for men and women were met with great enthusi-asm. Participants are feeling filled with the Holy Spirit and look forward to planning more retreats ahead!
Heartfelt welcomeWe welcome Seminarian Jimmy Rians of the Notre Dame Seminary in New Orleans who will help us whenever he can at Saint Paul the Apostle. Jimmy grew up nearby in Allen at Saint Jude Parish. He began taking steps toward the priesthood when he was a student at Texas A&M College Station. Please pray for Jimmy and help him know we support him on his journey. We appreci-ate Jimmy being here with us!
Fr. Szatkowski blessed our Saint Paul high schoolers before they departed for Mission Possible in June. Youth Director Ryan Buchanan (far right) and his crew traveled to Houston where they worked in a food pantry and helped a family rebuild the home lost to Harvey. These teens provided countless hours of service for those in need.
This year’s Vacation Bible School was themed Discovery Mission: God is Calling You! The 43 participants, 37 volunteers and 17 adults spent time learning about different vocations and how God is calling each of us to serve Him in our life.
