Share your master’s joy! Make more of your talents! As I have reflected on this week’s Gospel passage from Matthew, I believe that this succinct statement sums up the message Jesus gives us in the parable of the talents. The ending of the passage leaves us with that negative statement of consequence when the person who does not keep with the spirit of building the kingdom will be thrown out where there will be “…wailing and grinding of teeth.” So I guided myself to another aspect of the parable, namely, JOY.
How do we share God’s (the master’s) joy like the two people who developed their talents? The answer is simple, but may take a lifetime to do. Jesus cautions us NOT to be afraid and bury our talent. Burying our talent leads us to wailing and grinding of teeth, not to joy. What leads the first two people, and us, to joy is making more of the talent that God has given us.
So how do we do this? As is the case with all important matters, it starts with prayer. We must take time to listen to God speaking to us in the events of life and the stirrings in our souls. We must first discern the talent that we have. Thinking, praying and reflecting on what God has given us is the foundation for making more of it.
Once we have identified what gives us life and what leads us to serve others and what we find meaningful in life—once we find a path, career, calling, pursuit, activity, ministry, job, relationship, cause or purpose, we must make more of it. That is what Jesus is constantly calling us to; more forgiveness, more compassion, more work, more sensitivity. He constantly calls us to more.
This concept is not confined to talent or skill. It can also apply to something as common and essential as respect. I believe that we are in a time in our history when God is calling us to have more respect for each other. As I listen and read and absorb news, I am overwhelmed with the need for the human family to respect each other more. From world tensions over religion, to American tensions over politics, to church tensions over basic life and faith issues, let’s share God’s Joy more. Let’s make more of our talent. Let’s work together to make the world a better place. Let’s have more respect for each other.
Throughout the history of Holy Family Catholic Community we have tried to emphasize our own desire to be a holy family as well as the inspiration of THE Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph. Families are holy in many ways, and families continue to grow and change and become more diverse. We will gather this weekend for a special Mass celebrating the diverse ways that our community celebrates family. Our 4:00pm Mass will invite us to reflect on the unique way you live family life and will “Celebrate the Diversity of Families” in general. It will be hosted by our One in Love Ministry and our Human Concerns Ministering Community. If you can’t attend, please look for upcoming events and gatherings hosted by our One in Love Ministry.
On Sunday our Parish Council will participate in a retreat as we welcome new members and thank those leaving the council after three years of service. The new members we welcome are Bob Keller, Luis Gutierrez, Bill Leece, Anthony Piasecki and Rick Zanardo. The departing members we thank are Tracey Cantarutti, Robin Hanrahan, Tony Mathias, Thomas Morel and Heidi Trocha. I would also like to recognize those who will continue to serve their terms: Chad Archer, Pauline Carlson, Karina Chavez, Joe Ferlita, Barb Knuth, Andrew Konopka, Mike Myers, Alexandra Posey, Jack Shedd and Cattie Tenzillo.
In the wake of the mass shooting at the church in Texas recently, our staff asked Chief Bob Haas and Officer Mike Hish to help us update our emergency plan. They offered very good advice and their input helped us to revise some of our procedures during our all staff meeting last week. In addition, we have created an Emergency Operations Plan Committee that has been reviewing our emergency procedures for the past three years and will now meet every Wednesday to update training for staff, parishioners, ushers, Mass Coordinators and Catechists. We will share the details of these updates with you in the coming weeks so that we may all be clear on what to do in case of any one of a variety of disasters or emergencies. You can all start by simply identifying the exit in church that is closest to you as you take your seat. More to follow.