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Gospel: John 21: 15-17
After Jesus had revealed himself to his disciples and
eaten breakfast with them,
he said to Simon Peter,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.”
He then said to Simon Peter a second time,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”
He said to him, “Tend my sheep.”
He said to him the third time,
“Simon, son of John, do you love me?”
Peter was distressed that he had said to him a third time,
“Do you love me?” and he said to him,
“Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.”
[Jesus] said to him, “Feed my sheep.”
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 call of every Christian – past, present, and future.
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800 years ago, as Francis was praying in the church of San Damiano, a tiny chapel located in the hills of Assisi, the Lord spoke to him, saying, “Rebuild my Church.”
That chapel was physically in tatters, so Francis rebuilt it. But the Lord spoke to him again, saying: “Rebuild my Church.”
God wasn’t asking Francis to rebuild a chapel; rather, to restore faith in the Church. So, Francis started a religious order, the Franciscans, whose mission it was to share the Gospel in word and deed.
On his deathbed, Francis looked at his brothers and said, “I have done what was mine to do. Now you must do what is yours to do.”
Renew the faith of the Church, a call that summons us throughout the ages.
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700 years later, Pope Saint Pius X, whose feast day we celebrate today, answered that call, instituting several reforms.
First, he dropped the age of First Communion from twelve to seven. He believed in the power of the Eucharist – and that every Catholic should receive that grace as early as possible. As Jesus says in today’s Gospel, “Feed my sheep.”
Pius X also required the teaching of the Catechism in every parish, another effort to “rebuild” the faith of the Church.
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This is our mission, too. Each of us must consider: What is mine to do? How do I hand on the faith?
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May the Saints who’ve answered this call, Pius X and Francis included, pray for us.
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Image credits: (1) Slide Player (2) Indian Catholic Matters (3) RoadLife