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Gospel: John 6:60-69
Many of Jesus’ disciples who were listening said,
“This saying is hard; who can accept it?”
Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this,
he said to them, “Does this shock you?
What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending
to where he was before?
It is the spirit that gives life,
while the flesh is of no avail.
The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life.
But there are some of you who do not believe.”
Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe
and the one who would betray him.
And he said,
“For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me
unless it is granted him by my Father.”
As a result of this,
many of his disciples returned to their former way of life
and no longer accompanied him.
Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life.
We have come to believe
and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
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When you walk into our parish office, you may notice a framed icon of Saint Francis of Assisi hanging on the wall. That icon represents the story of our parish – past, present, and future.
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Some 800 years ago, Saint Francis was praying in the church of San Damiano, a tiny chapel located in the hills of Assisi, when suddenly the Lord spoke to him, saying, “Francis, rebuild my church.”
The church was in tatters, so Francis physically rebuilt it.
But, in time, the Lord spoke to him again saying the same thing: “Francis, rebuild my church.”
God wasn’t asking Francis just to rebuild the chapel of San Damiano physically; the Lord wanted Francis to restore the faith of that community.
This is a lesson that Christians are reminded of throughout the ages: the Church is not just a physical building; it’s also a community of faith that needs repair from time to time.
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Some 700 years later, Pope Saint Pius X followed in the footsteps of Francis of Assisi. Seeing that the Church – the community of faith – was in need of renewal, he instituted several reforms.
One being the age of First Communion.
Pius X believed in the power of the Eucharist – and that every Catholic should receive that grace as early as possible – so he dropped the age of First Communions from twelve to seven.
He also highlighted the beauty of Gregorian chant and required the teaching of the Catechism in every parish.
Like Francis, Pius X did his best to, “rebuild the Church,” in his time and place.
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That’s our mission, too.
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Over the last year, we’ve started rebuilding our church physically, much like Francis first did in Assisi.
After raising $70,000 for our Heritage Fund, we’ve:
Planted twenty-one trees on campus; fixed our outdoor sprinkler system; upgraded our livestreaming capabilities; created a family chapel with a live-feed into church; mounted two 65-inch flat-screens in the narthex; refurnished our office; and created a parish app.
I cannot tell you what a difference your generosity and support have made in my priesthood and leadership. I am deeply grateful.
Through your continued generosity and support, our momentum will continue.
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In addition to the physical renovations, we’ve also started digging deeper, creating our first parish pastoral council in twenty years.
Last week we spent an hour discussing our vision statement.
We considered questions like: Would it matter if our parish didn’t exist? What makes us different? If every parish in the area is offering a good liturgy and ministry opportunities, why should anyone come here? What does it mean to be a parishioner of St. Pius X?
Like Saints Francis of Assisi and Pius X, we must discern our vision together.
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Meanwhile, we’ve also started a welcome and hospitality ministry, sending letters and cookies to new parishioners who’ve registered and to returning parishioners who’ve re-registered.
We’re rebuilding our youth and adult choirs; forming our middle and high school youth groups; and on September 12th, we’ll officially begin our “Nametag Sundays,” giving us an opportunity to create a culture of welcome.
All of these initiatives will help us to rebuild St. Pius X both physically and spiritually.
But everyone should be involved.
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When laying on his deathbed some 800 years ago, Francis of Assisi said to his brothers: “I have done what is mine to do. Now you must do what is yours to do.”
Each of us must consider: What is mine to do? How can I help rebuild our community of faith?
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Our time is now.
Together, we can become a case study of parish renewal in the 21st century.
Saint Pius X and Saint Francis of Assisi, who did what was theirs to do, pray for us.
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Image credits: (1) St. Pius X, Dave Janosz, Dynamic Elements (2) America Magazine (3) St. Pius X, Dave Janosz, Dynamic Elements