You are the vine
Beginning on January 1, 2011
there were a few changes implemented to the structure of this parish. From an onlooker’s point of view, not much
appeared to change, except a slight modification to the times of weekend Masses. Some might still be wondering what
changed. The easiest way to explain it
is that four parishes in this city became two parishes with four places of
worship. Practically, this means that
while the onlooker still sees four buildings and four places of prayer and
worship located on Mary Street, Brennan Street, Burton Avenue and Beech Street,
the administration of these four buildings is now combined to function as if
there were only two.
For the past year and a half,
there have been three priests present in these four places of prayer to tend to
the pastoral needs of the people who enter these doors, but as of Tuesday, this
is about to change. Father Sam Ukeje,
who has been on loan to our diocese is returning to his home, so now Father
Larry Rymes and I will have to continue the task of responding to the needs of
these communities. As pastors we have
the responsibility to exercise the pastoral care of our respective communities
under the authority of the Diocesan Bishop, whose ministry of Christ we are
called to share. On behalf of the
Bishop, pastors carry out the offices of teaching, sanctifying and ruling, with
the cooperation of other priests and deacons (wherever possible) and with the
assistance of Christ’s faithful.
While Father Larry and I have
roles of leadership to play, each person who is part of these parishes has a
part to play. Whether we enter the doors
here at the Beech Street location or at any of the other places of worship,
each one of us is part of the vine spoken of in the gospel today. Grape vines are plentiful throughout the Holy
Land. Even here, many people have them
growing in our yards, so the image conjured by Jesus is not lost on us. We abide in Jesus who is the vine as long as
we are willing to live our lives as people of faith. Just as leaves and grapes themselves draw
life from the nutrients provided by the vine, we too draw sustenance for our
life in faith from our connection to Christ and to our Church, and the life of
the Church also draws its strength from the willingness to each one of us to do
our part.
As I said a moment ago, Father
Sam is leaving us this week. This means
that there will be a slight change implemented beginning next week so that I
will be able to celebrate Mass in both our Beech Street and our Burton Street
locations. It’s important that each
person who enters our doors has an opportunity to draw life from this vine, so
in addition to the three weekend Masses celebrated in this location, beginning
next weekend, I will also celebrate a Mass at our Burton Street location on
Saturday evenings at 7:00pm.
I find it intriguing to think
that in the first centuries after Christ, the believers had difficulty
accepting the fact that even Saul could have become one of them. Saul was the one who had been persecuting
them, so how could it be that he now wanted to join them. Of course they
were all afraid of him, and had difficulty believing that he could be a
disciple. In the end though, thanks to
the reassurance they received from Barnabas, they came to believe that he had
indeed experienced a conversion.
With this most recent change,
I suppose I have to become like Barnabas.
Mine is the task of explaining the scriptures, so that we can all draw
nourishment from them. Mine is the task
of leading this community so that we can be ever-more aware of our own calling
to be people of faith, responding to the needs of our brothers and sisters both
in the downtown core and in the Donovan.
The words spoken in the letter of John challenge each one of us to love, not in word or speech, although
these too are important, but more so in
truth and action. Dear friends, if
the faith we profess is real, if it draws life from the vine that is Christ, we
must all be willing to live it by being people of conviction and action for the
sake of all those who live in this part of the city. I for one am glad that I don’t have to do it
on my own. In fact, Jesus is the one who
accomplishes this good work, but he needs our eyes to look compassionately on
the world, our feet to walk the road, and our hands to respond in faith.
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