Labor Day weekend reminds us all of the importance of work in human life. We live now in times when many people are out of work due to the changes in the structure of society and the fluctuations of the economy. In centuries past, people lived “hand to mouth” because they depended on the weather and the success of crops to feed family and to supply needs. Now we find that many are one paycheck away from disaster or in debt beyond their means on account of their situation of employment or the unavailability of jobs in their areas of training where they live.
Another major difficulty for our time is the fact that we have been taught to identify with our work field so closely that we have hardly discovered any identity beyond our job. The first question we ask after “What’s your name?” is “What do you do?” expecting the answer to give us information to know who a person is. When someone is out of work or when retirement comes, many go through a great struggle of identity.
The Church has some rich teachings concerning human labor. Many documents of the Church in the area of Social Justice address this aspect of our lives. Pope John Paul II in particular called upon his own experience as one who worked at a stone quarry and offered many reflections on the value of work. Pope Paul VI also spoke with real concern for those who work for a living as he made his pilgrimage to Nazareth and considered the life of Joseph with Jesus and Mary. St. Paul speaks of his experience of working with his hands as a tentmaker. May 1 is observed as the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker in order to emphasize the importance of labor.
The central approach made by the Church is to point to the dignity of the human person. Work is meant to be an expression of human creativity and involvement in the enterprise of building up a world of peace and harmony. If we look at things from this perspective, we see that we are not what we do, but rather what we do is a reflection of who we are. Our work, whatever the field may be, is intended to flow from our person. This is not simply a matter of likes and dislikes or even of skills. It is something deeper. You can be who you are no matter what you happen to do. The challenge is to find a kind of work that allows you to cultivate who you are at the deepest level.
For those who are “between jobs,” you may consider this time as an unplanned “retreat” allowed by God so you may renew your awareness of your personal dignity and worth. I invite you while you are doing your search to take the opportunity to deepen your spiritual life and your connection with the Lord. Come to daily Mass (9 a.m. Monday through Friday at St. Timothy Church). Stop in for an hour of adoration on Wednesdays. Read your Bible. Take up some spiritual reading or develop a daily devotion such as the Rosary or the Divine Mercy Chaplet. Volunteer with an organization that assists other in some way.
For those who find your present job unsatisfying, take a chance and reflect on a kind of work that allows you to put more of yourself and your Faith into it. Discover whether the Lord has another kind of work for you right where you are. Do you realize that your real “work” is to serve as a witness to the Gospel? Are there hearts and souls open to you among your co-workers? Can you invite others to learn more about the Catholic Faith by what you say and do where you are working?
Countdown to our Golden Jubilee: Getting to know Saint Timothy.
Stop drinking only water, but have a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent illnesses.
Some people's sins are public, preceding them to judgment; but other people are followed by their sins. Similarly, good works are also public; and even those that are not cannot remain hidden. (I Timothy 5:23-25)
Many people tend to think of the Bible as a book of rules and regulations that have little to do with the real world. Inevitably, these are folks who have not read much Scripture for themselves. On the contrary, the Scriptures show that God knows the full truth concerning His People, and God’s ministers also know the people they serve. In the present text, we see that St. Paul knows his friend Timothy well. The advice to have a little wine is a reminder to Timothy that the good health of the minister is something that benefits his people. A bit of wine in moderation is helpful to health. This text gives us the reason why our Patron Timothy is the patron saint for stomach disorders and illnesses.
Sin is the lot of every human being except Christ Himself and His Blessed Mother. Paul knows that sin is part of the human condition. Public sins and private sins alike take their toll on us and have an effect on our approach to Eternity. But leave it to Paul to point out at the same time that good works, both public and hidden, are worthy of our attention because they will make a difference in our approach to the Kingdom. “Blessed are those who die in the Lord, for their good works go with them.” (Revelation 14:13)
Reflections on the Liturgy:
The document that guides the Church in the Latin Rite in the celebration of the Liturgy is called “Institutio Generalis Missalis Romani,” the General Instruction of the Roman Missal. This has been published in three editions. The new Roman Missal which will be promulgated in English this November finds its norms in this Instruction. It will be helpful to offer a few notes on the principles guiding the celebration of the Liturgy as they are given in the G.I.R.M.
The G.I.R.M. is available online on the US Bishops’ website.
http://old.usccb.org/liturgy/current/revmissalisromanien.shtml
A Witness to Unbroken Tradition (continued)
8. Today, on the other hand, countless learned studies have shed light on the "norm of the holy Fathers" which the revisers of the Missal of Saint Pius V followed. For following the publication first of the Sacramentary known as the Gregorian in 1571, critical editions of other ancient Roman and Ambrosian Sacramentaries were published, often in book form, as were ancient Hispanic and Gallican liturgical books which brought to light numerous prayers of no slight spiritual excellence that had previously been unknown.
In a similar fashion, traditions dating back to the first centuries, before the formation of the rites of East and West, are better known today because of the discovery of so many liturgical documents.
Moreover, continuing progress in the study of the holy Fathers has also shed light upon the theology of the mystery of the Eucharist through the teachings of such illustrious Fathers of Christian antiquity as Saint Irenaeus, Saint Ambrose, Saint Cyril of Jerusalem, and Saint John Chrysostom.
9. For this reason, the "norm of the holy Fathers" requires not only the preservation of what our immediate forebears have passed on to us, but also an understanding and a more profound study of the Church's entire past and of all the ways in which her one and only faith has been set forth in the quite diverse human and social forms prevailing in the Semitic, Greek, and Latin areas. Moreover, this broader view allows us to see how the Holy Spirit endows the People of God with a marvelous fidelity in preserving the unalterable deposit of faith, even amid a very great variety of prayers and rites.
The Church is the Church of all ages. At times, we can become rather narrow in our vision, seeing only what is in our own experience. The Liturgy we have is meant to encompass the richness of human response to our relationship with God, and the Church consciously appropriates all that is helpful in opening hearts to worship. Saints and liturgies of the past offer us a treasury of resources that lead us to a deeper understanding of the Mystery we celebrate. The human cultures that thrive today also have something to contribute to our “dialogue” with God, Who is the Creator of all and the source of all that is to be found in human nature. Body, mind and spirit, heart and soul, we are called to offer ourselves to God in union with the Sacrifice of Jesus Christ. The “great variety of prayers and rites” come from the One Spirit and the “unalterable deposit of Faith” is expressed through them under the guidance of the Church and her Liturgy.
ROSARY PRAYER GARDEN
The garden work is complete with the mosaic installation having been finished last Monday afternoon. All are invited to visit the garden and to enjoy a quiet moment after Mass and/or say to a prayer at other times.
The Garden Club thanks all those who contributed to building the prayer garden. Without their generous and enthusiastic support, both large and small, it would not have been possible to build the structure which we were able accomplish. A long-awaited dream has been fulfilled and thanks to Our Lady of the Rosary.
Many folks have been asking to buy bricks for the garden. There will be an announcement board display in the vestibule with an application form within the next few weeks. If you would like to have your memorial brick installed before the dedication of the garden by Bishop Campbell in November please complete and send in the request by the deadline indicated.
Our thanks are extended to Tony Kanakkanatt for his hard work and for his diligence and zeal for this project. It will be a sign to generations yet to come of the Faith of our first half century as a parish.
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