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Dear Visitation Family, Shalom ( Peace )! This Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time is the third of the five weeks that we will be reflecting on the sixth chapter of the gospel according to St. John which is a beautiful theological discourse on the Eucharist! Today we are looking at the Eucharist as THE food that is whole and holy! (Jn 6: 41-51). Some friends of mine have been bragging lately about ' whole 30', a program that has been helping a good number of people to live healthily by eating right in just thirty days! Some even showed me their lab results as an evidence to how this program produces good results. Yes! It's all about the right kind of food, in right measure. Malnutrition is today's bane. It is rampant in our world. There are two kinds of ways a person can suffer from malnutrition. One is from not having enough food, which many in the poor countries suffer from. The other is from eating the wrong kind of food, which is the problem in wealthy countries. Either one can lead to physical deterioration, emotional problems, depression and death. All of us, regardless of our social or economic status, suffer from spiritual malnutrition which is as real and as deadly as the physical one. Sometimes our material prosperity can mask our spiritual deprivation to our peril, just as an overweight person can suffer mortally from vitamin deficiency. When starving spiritually one may grab anything from the "spiritual market place" especially half truths or the phony prosperity gospel that satiates one's emotions and feelings rather than seek the eternal truth which may be challenging and demanding, just as we try to satisfy our appetite with some junk food which may be pleasing to our taste buds but in all probability causes serious harm to our well-being. This approach can create an illusion of being nourished when in reality can only make things worse. In a world that suffers from spiritual malnutrition from one way or another, Jesus offers Himself in the Eucharist as the wholesome, healthy, and holy food that can act both as an antidote to the deadly consequences inherited through the sinful bite of our first parents, and also as a pledge of immortal life and bliss. Why then, should we suffer from or die of malnutrition when the Lord is providing us with the Bread of Angels ("Panis Angelicum") ? Remember how Prophet Elijah was ultimately able to reach Mount Sinai nourished by the food that the angel brought to him! (1Kg 19:4-8). Let us come to the feast of heaven and earth, to the table of plenty where God will provide for all of our needs. In this our life's long and arduous journey we need no power bar but the strength of Jesus, our Eucharist, THE food we cannot afford to miss! God bless you and yours! I am blessed to be your father in Christ! Fr. Edwin Kagoo THY WILL, LORD! Feast of the Assumption Today, Catholics around the world mark the Feast of the Assumption of Mary, commemorating the end of her earthly life and assumption into Heaven. But while the feast day is a relatively new one, the history of the holiday – and the mystery behind it – has its roots in the earliest centuries of Christian belief. The culmination of Mary’s life – her Assumption – helps us to understand more fully not just her life, but it helps us to always focus our gaze to Eternity. The dogma of the Assumption of Mary – also called the “Dormition of Mary” in the Eastern Churches – has its roots in the early centuries of the Church. The Catholic Church teaches that when Mary ended her earthly life, God assumed her, body and soul into heaven. This belief traces its roots back to the earliest years of the Church. While a site outside of Jerusalem was recognized as the tomb of Mary, the earliest Christians maintained that “no one was there”. According to St. John of Damascus, in the 5th century, at the Council of Chalcedon in 451, Roman Emperor Marcian requested the body of Mary, Mother of God. St. Juvenal, who was Bishop of Jerusalem replied “that Mary died in the presence of all the Apostles, but that her tomb, when opened upon the request of St. Thomas, was found empty; wherefrom the Apostles concluded that the body was taken up to heaven,” the saint recorded. By the 8th century, around the time of Pope Adrian, the Church began to change its terminology, renaming the feast day of the Memorial of Mary to the Assumption of Mary. The belief in the Assumption of Mary was a widely-held tradition, and a frequent meditation in the writings of saints throughout the centuries. However it was not defined officially until the past century. In 1950, Pope Pius XII made an infallible, ex-cathedra statement in the Apostolic Constitution Munificentissimus Deus officially defining the dogma of the Assumption. “By the authority of our Lord Jesus Christ, of the Blessed Apostles Peter and Paul, and by our own authority, we pronounce, declare, and define it to be a divinely revealed dogma: that the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory,” the Pope wrote. Within the decree, which was passed beforehand to dioceses around the world, Pope Pius XII surveys centuries of Christian thought and the writings of a number of saints on the Assumption of Mary. Throughout the history of the Church there’s an almost universal attestation of the Christian tradition’s testimony to Mary’s Assumption. It’s significant because it supports the tradition of the Church, but it also supports a coming to a deeper understanding of the teachings of the Church of how we rely upon the reflections of some of the greatest minds of our Church. What’s also notable about the dogma, is that it “uses the passive tense,” emphasizing that Mary did not ascend into heaven on her own power, as Christ did, but was raised into heaven by God’s grace. Today, the Feast of the Assumption is marked as a major feast day and a public holiday in many countries. In most countries, including the United States, it is a Holy Day of Obligation, and Catholics are required to attend Mass. On important feast days such as this, it’s important to mark the significance of the feast as especially vital by emphasizing the necessity of focusing on her son and celebrating the Eucharist that day. Saint of the Week – Saint Clare of Assisi Though 10 years younger than her townsman, Francis of Assisi, Clare was drawn to his radical message of serving God in abject poverty. Despite objections from her aristocratic family who wanted her to marry, she gave up the world with Francis' help and founded the Second Order of St. Francis, known worldwide as the Poor Clares. For 40 years, she guided the San Damiano community, whose nuns included her sister and widowed mother. She served the other nuns who went out to beg, was often sick because of her hard life, and was proclaimed a saint just two years after she died. Encountering Christ Campaign Update – Some of our parishioners have met with our campaign representative to understand the process the diocese will use to ensure our parish is successful in reaching our goal. Introductory cards will be sent, personal contact will be made, and each of us will be encouraged to make a pledge to achieve our parish goal. Our next meeting will be 6:30pm on August 23 rd – you are all invited to attend, ask questions, and help with the campaign.
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