FROM THE PASTOR’S DESK
Dear St. Mary’s Parishioners:
Last Thursday, I had the great pleasure of visiting the students at Notre Dame School at St. Joseph. Mrs. Bauer, the principal, invited me to spend time with the kids as part of the activities of Catholic Schools Week. I happily accepted. The vast majority of my interaction with you and the students happens on a weekend during Sunday Mass. As we know, it’s not the ideal time to have meaningful conversations. There are simply too many people. At the school, we separated the 300 kids into two manageable groups. I shared with them my upbringing in Elk Grove, how I knew when God was calling me into the priesthood during my junior year of college at UC Davis, my favorite food (fried chicken!) etc. The fun part of the day was the question and answer session. When you give a child the freedom to ask anything, it reveals the curiosity of their little minds and hearts. One little girl, probably in the third grade, gently raised her hand. “Father,” she said slowly, “How do we know the Scriptures are true?” I was stunned. What a brilliant question! It showed me her inquisitive and critical mind. How do we know indeed, that what we believe is true? The great beauty of our rich and ancient Catholic faith is that smarter and more brilliant people than you and I, have wondered about these same questions. Over the centuries, the Church has outlined and developed the rationale of the reasons “why” we believe what we wholeheartedly teach. Never, absolutely, never has the Church simply relied on, “Because we said so.”
I am excited to officially announce an amazing opportunity for our parish. This November, we are embarking upon a pilgrimage to the very places where the Church began – the Holy Land. In the bulletin this Sunday, you will see a detailed itinerary of the amazing sites we will pray and visit. To see and touch the very places where Jesus walked will change how you read the Bible. It will open up the biblical world in fresh new ways. Christ will come alive. For the past few Sundays, we've been hearing in the Gospel readings the famous account of Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, which one Scripture scholar called, “the greatest sermon ever preached.” (Cf. Matthew 5). Imagine now reading that very sermon on the exact mountain he said it. The glistening sunlight reflecting off the surface of the Sea of Galilee will be in the background. The same green, soft grass will be beneath your feet. You will hear the words of Jesus like never before: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” (Cf. Matthew 5:17)
If you have ever wanted to go to the Holy Land, I invite you to consider this opportunity. The company I contracted with to lead the pilgrimage is the industry standard. They use some of the best guides and hotels in Israel. I know for many, it’s simply a burden to take that much time and resources away from our work and family, as much as we’d like to go. The great beauty of our faith is that we don’t have to travel across the world to encounter the Risen Jesus. A pilgrimage helps, but is it not a necessity to encounter his love. Christ in the Gospel today is revealing his divine authority in that Sermon on the Mount. He is saying to them, I am God in the flesh. I have come to fulfill the Jewish law in the Old Covenant. For us Catholics, all we have to do is come to Mass to see Jesus in all his Eucharist glory.
A Slave of Jesus Christ,
Fr. Brian J. Solive
