From the Pastor – 5th Sunday of Easter
From the Pastor – 5th Sunday of Easter
Stewardship Reflection —Today’s readings on this fifth Sunday of Easter contain inspiring but challenging messages for us as Christian stewards.
The Gospel from John includes this well-known verse: “My children… I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you also should love one another.”
What a succinct description of a stewardship way of life. It sounds so simple. But simple does not necessarily mean easy.
How exactly is Jesus Calling us to love? As He Himself loved. Jesus loved (and loves) by serving us and by making a sacrifice of His very life for us. That is a tall order.
Living a life of service and self-sacrifice is not easy because it requires us to continuously fight against our selfish inclinations. But the more we empty ourselves of “self” by serving others, the more room we make in our hearts for God pour His grace into us.
As we face the hardships that come with living as Christian stewards, we can continue to rejoice in the wonder of the Resurrection this Easter season, finding great joy in following in our Lord’s own footsteps and in loving as He loves.
Pastoral Pondering —In this section of the bulletin two weeks ago (3 rd Sunday of Easter), I included information from the NCBC (ncbcenter.org) concerning infertility and highlighting morally licit and illicit reproductive technologies. In the information that was listed a section was included entitled Morally Unresolved Technologies for Addressing Fertility Problems within Marriage. The document appears to indicate that artificial insemination is morally unresolved. This is incorrect. Gamete intrafallopian transfer (GIFT) is still debated among some theologians, but, strictly speaking, the Catechism is clear on the immorality of AI. This bulletin includes a fuller explanation of the Church teaching. I am sorry for any confusion, and I want to thank Robert Bassett for bringing it to my attention.