"THE TIMES THEY ARE A'CHANGIN'"

 

FAMILY FRICTION: "OH, TELL ME HOW YOU REALLY FEEL!"

 

REMEMBER SEPTEMBER

 

Josh Groban Lyrics

"Try To Remember"

(from "The Fantasticks" musical)

Try to remember the kind of September
when life was slow and oh, so mellow.
Try to remember the kind of September
when grass was green and grain so yellow.
Try to remember the kind of September
when you were a young and callow fellow,
Try to remember and if you remember then follow.

Try to remember when life was so tender
that no one wept except the willow.
Try to remember when life was so tender
That dreams were kept beside your pillow.
Try to remember when life was so tender
That love was an ember about to billow.
Try to remember and if you remember then follow.

Deep in December it's nice to remember
although you know the snow will follow.
Deep in December it's nice to remember
without the hurt the heart is hollow.
Deep in December it's nice to remember
the fire of September that made you mellow.
Deep in December our hearts should remember then follow.

JESUS LOVED THE HELL OUT OF SINNERS

 

GIVEN AT ST. FRANCES OF ROME CHURCH AND ST. LEONARD CHURCH

Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to listen to Jesus,

but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,

“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”

Luke 15:1-32

In the religious establishment of his day, Jesus had a terrible reputation!  He talked so much about eating and drinking and accepted so many dinner invitations, even from public sinners and religious outcasts, that he earned the nicknames of “glutton,” “drunkard” and “friend of sinners!” As the gospels put it, the religious leaders were so shocked by the huge number of rejects and sinners who were hanging around Jesus that they “murmured” out loud, “This man welcomes sinners and even eats with them!”

 

In the scriptures, heaven is compared more to a fabulous banquet than anything else! How better to describe an idea like “heaven” to a bunch of people who were always on the edge of starvation than an “all you can eat buffet!” Not just a Denny’s buffet, but a “gourmet, all you can eat, cordon bleu buffet!”  Isaiah compares heaven to a “feast of rich food and choice wines,” then he adds, “juicy rich food and  pure choice wines!”

 

Jesus started his ministry talking about this feast that awaits us in heaven! The very first miracle that Jesus worked, at the marriage feast of Cana, was not the multiplication of bread, the basics of life, but the multiplication of wine, the celebratory part of life! Then the last thing Jesus did was to establish the Eucharist so that we could dine, not only with him, but on him, as often as we want,  until he comes again to take us to his table in heaven!

 

By dining with so-called “sinners” and “outcasts,” Jesus sent the message that all of us, (all of us, all of us), no matter how flawed we are, are created in the image and likeness of God and are loved by him! Because Jesus accepted them, enough to eat with them, the message these “sinners” and “outcasts” received from Jesus was that they too were acceptable to God!  One of my favorite parables puts it very clearly, the parable of the wedding feast.  In that parable, Jesus compares heaven to a royal wedding feast to which “the good and bad alike” are invited!  Being invited is not about our goodness, but about God’s generosity and forgiveness! Let me repeat that for emphasis! Being invited to the great feast of heaven is not about our goodness, but God's generosity and forgiveness!

 

Nowhere in the gospel is this idea driven home more, than in today's parables! (1) In one parable, God is compared to a shepherd who is so eaten up with love for his sheep that he does something remarkable. Instead of being happy with 99 out of 100, he leaves the 99 obedient sheep out in the wasteland to go looking for the one who was lost! Finding it, he calls in his friends and neighbors and holds a party! (2) In another parable, God is compared to a woman. You heard me! God is compared to a woman! This woman has a headpiece made of 10 silver coins. It was probably her dowry for marriage! She loses one in the dust of her dimly-lit mud-floored house! In a panic, she lights a lamp and scours the floor until she finds it! Finding it, she calls in her friends and neighbors and has a party! (3) In another parable, God is compared to a father with two sons. One son gets lost, leaves homes and gets down with the pigs. The other son stays home, follows all the rules and does all that is expected of him. Even before the lost son comes home, even before he has time to give his well-rehearsed apology, the father runs down the road to met him, puts a gold ring and a fabulous robe on him and throws a party. The point of all these parables is this: God loves us no matter what we do or fail to do  and God has a special place in his heart for the hurting! This message caused rejects, sinners and outcasts to flock to Jesus likes bees to flowers on one hand and angered the religious establishment to the point of frenzy on the other!  Because they believed God’s love was conditional, these religious authorities plotted and finally put Jesus to death for this revolutionary and dangerous new message!

 

If it is preached with clarity and conviction, this “good news” of God’s unconditional love for all people, especially the lost and hurting, is just as powerful today as it was back then! When I was pastor of the Cathedral of the Assumption, I preached this message to the outcasts and rejects of our day: street people, divorcees, gays, minorities of all kinds and people who had been judged, hurt and condemned by the church and society!  This message caused great numbers to flock there in great numbers to hear it!   

 

I could not have preached that message if I had not needed to hear it myself.  I preached it because I needed to hear it!  I have learned one thing in my almost fifty-two years as a priest: no matter how smart, materially blessed, talented, religiously orthodox or well-connected we are, there is a wounded part of all of us that needs to be healed and needs to be loved. That is just as true of the Pope as it is of the saddest street person!  

This fact reminds me of the movie, ON GOLDEN POND.  In that movie, Henry Fonda is an old man, frustrated with getting old and dependent. Filled with anger about his situation, he is demanding, hard-headed and mean-spirited. One day, after attacking his daughter, Jane Fonda, and leaving her in tears, her mother played by Catherine Hepburn, tries to console her by asking her to put it in perspective. She makes this beautiful insight into humanity, “My dear, if you care enough, you can look deeply and closely at him and behind all that, you will realize that he is doing the best he can!” 

 

My, friends, if God can see beyond our sins and weaknesses and see that person created in the image and likeness of God, then surely we can do the same for each other! The real monsters make the news every night, but most of us, I believe, are simply doing the best we can! We see externals. God sees into the heart.  The good news today is this! We don’t have to be perfect to be good enough for God!  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

REMEMBERING QUEEN ELIZABETH II

MAY SHE REST IN PEACE 

Queen Elizabeth II Quotes

1. “While we may have more still to endure, better days will return: we will be with our friends again; we will be with our families again; we will meet again.”

2. "It’s worth remembering that it is often the small steps, not the giant leaps, that bring about the most lasting change." 

3. “When peace comes, remember it will be for us, the children of today, to make the world of tomorrow a better and happier place.”

4. "It has always been easy to hate and destroy. To build and to cherish is much more difficult." 

5. “I cannot lead you into battle, I do not give you laws or administer justice but I can do something else, I can give you my heart and my devotion to these old islands and to all the peoples of our brotherhood of nations.”

6. “The wartime generation—my generation—is resilient.”

7. “You've all seen pictures of the earth taken from space. Unlike all the other planets in the solar system, earth shimmers green and blue in the sunlight and looks a very pleasant place to live.”

8. “Often a child's helplessness and vulnerability bring out the best in us.”

9. “Right around the world, people gather to compete under standard rules and, in most cases, in a spirit of friendly rivalry. Competitors know that, to succeed, they must respect their opponents; very often, they like each other too.”

10. “Religion and culture are much in the news these days, usually as sources of difference and conflict, rather than for bringing people together. But the irony is that every religion has something to say about tolerance and respecting others.”

11. “Everyone is our neighbor, no matter what race, creed or color.”

12. “The birth of a baby brings great happiness--but then the business of growing up begins.”

13. “I am reminded of a lady of about my age who was asked by an earnest, little granddaughter the other day 'Granny, can you remember the Stone Age?' Whilst that may be going a bit far, the older generation are able to give a sense of context as well as the wisdom of experience which can be invaluable.”

14. “People are touched by events which have their roots far across the world.”

15. “When life seems hard, the courageous do not lie down and accept defeat; instead, they are all the more determined to struggle for a better future.”

16. “Over the years, those who have seemed to me to be the most happy, contented and fulfilled have always been the people who have lived the most outgoing and unselfish lives.”

17. “For every poppy a life; and a reminder of the grief of loved ones left behind.”

18. “Sport has a wonderful way of bringing together people and nations.”

19. “It is through this lens of history that we should view the conflicts of today, and so give us hope for tomorrow.”

20. “The importance of family has, of course, come home to Prince Philip and me personally this year with the marriages of two of our grandchildren, each in their own way a celebration of the God-given love that binds a family together.”

21. “Although we are capable of great acts of kindness, history teaches us that we sometimes need saving from ourselves–from our recklessness or our greed.”

22. “In times of doubt and anxiety the attitudes people show in their daily lives, in their homes, and in their work, are of supreme importance.”

23. “We may hold different points of view but it is in times of stress and difficulty that we most need to remember that we have much more in common than there is dividing us.”

24. “Perhaps we make too much of what is wrong and too little of what is right. The trouble with gloom is that it feeds upon itself and depression causes more depression.”

25. “Our modern world places such heavy demands on our time and attention that the need to remember our responsibilities to others is greater than ever.”

26. “Each day is a new beginning, I know that the only way to live my life is to try to do what is right, to take the long view, to give of my best in all that the day brings, and to put my trust in God.”

27. “I know just how much I rely on my own faith to guide me through the good times and the bad.”

28. “I believe that, young or old, we have as much to look forward to with confidence and hope as we have to look back on with pride.”

29. “If we resolve to be considerate and to help our neighbors; to make friends with people of different races and religions; and, as our Lord said, to look to our own faults before we criticize others, we will be keeping faith with those who landed in Normandy and fought so doggedly for their belief in freedom, peace and human decency.”

30. “Though we each lead different lives, the experience of growing older, and the joys and emotions which it brings, are familiar to us all.”

31. "By being willing to put past differences behind us and move forward together, we honor the freedom and democracy once won for us at so great a cost."

32. “With age does come experience and that can be a virtue if it is sensibly used.”

33. "The path, of course, is not always smooth, and may at times this year have felt quite bumpy, but small steps can make a world of difference."

34. “No age group has a monopoly of wisdom, and indeed I think the young can sometimes be wiser than us. But the older I get, the more conscious I become of the difficulties young people have to face as they learn to live in the modern world.”

35. “We know the reward is peace on earth, goodwill toward men, but we cannot win it without determination and concerted effort.”

36. “Such a blend of traditions serves to make us stronger, individually and collectively, by providing the ingredients needed for social, political and economic resilience.”

37. "Inevitably, a long life can pass by many milestones; my own is no exception."

38. "Giant leaps often start with small steps."

39. "I know of no single formula for success, but over the years I have observed that some attributes of leadership are universal, and are often about finding ways of encouraging people to combine their efforts, their talents, their insights, their enthusiasm and their inspiration, to work together."

40. "At the heart of our faith stand not a preoccupation with our own welfare and comfort but the concepts of service and of sacrifice as shown in the life and teachings of the one who made himself nothing, taking the very form of a servant."

41. "It has perhaps always been the case that the waging of peace is the hardest form of leadership of all."

42. "The upward course of a nation's history is due, in the long run, to the soundness of heart of its average men and women."

43. "Even when your life seems most monotonous, what you do is always of real value and importance to your fellow men."

44. "Whatever life throws at us, our individual responses will be all the stronger for working together and sharing the load."

45. "I can never wear beige because nobody will know who I am."

46. "I have to be seen to be believed."

FERGAL'S SECOND KENTUCKY VISIT

MY FELLOW VOLUNTEER IN THE CARIBBEAN MISSIONS

Pays a Second Visit to Kentucky on His Way Home to Ireland
August 28 - September 7

 2022

FERGAL REDMOND

Galway, Ireland

ON MY UPSTAIRS PATIO

AFTER MASS AT ST. LEONARD CHURCH 

8/28/2022

BRUNCH WITH DR. PAUL KELTY AT RIVERHOUSE

STANDING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SCN SISTERS' CEMETERY AT NAZARETH

COFFEE ON FRIEND JIM'S PORCH IN BEAUTIFUL BARDSTOWN

LUNCH WITH FR. TOM CLARK IN DOWNTOWN BARDSTOWN

DINNER WITH MY GOOD FRIENDS TOM AND REA CLARK

IN FRONT OF MY NEW PROJECT - ST. THERESA FAMILY LIFE CENTER

A DROP-IN VISIT WITH MY SISTER, BRENDA, IN BRANDENBURG

IN FRONT OF ST. THERESA CHURCH - OPENED ITS DOORS IN 1856

ST. THERESA CHURCH - PRECEEDED BY TWO LOG CABIN CHURCHES 1818-1856

A CHINESE LUNCH WITH PAT PATTERSON

ANOTHER FINE DINNER AT THE HOME OF TIM SCHOENBACHLER

ISLAND VOLUNTEER REUNION DINNER AT DR. PAUL AND SUSAN SHERMAN'S

MASS AT THE LITTLE SISTERS OF THE POOR HOME FOR THE ELDERLY

Sister Rose Marie (standing - first generation Irish) Sister Irene (seated - second generation Irish)

AFTER MASS AT ST. FRANCES OF ROME - LUNCH WITH JOHN AND SUE HAMILTON

GARY AND RITA MARVIN STOPPED BY FOR PASTRIES AND COFFEE

BREAKFAST WITH GREG BURCH WITH A PHONE CALL TO TERI BURCH

LUNCH WITH GEORGE AND CAROLYN RITSERT

FERGAL'S TEN-DAY VISIT COMES TO AN END - HEADED TO THE AIRPORT

Louisville KY to Charlotte NC to Dublin, Ireland

Hi Fr Ron,

I am writing these few lines at Charlotte airport as I await my flight to Dublin - many thanks again for arranging to have me flown (via your Frequent Flyer Miles) 1st class since departing from St Vincent. The extra benefits will considerably help shorten this last and longest leg of my journey.

Looking back on my extended stay with you, I scarcely believe it lasted all of 10 days. The time just flew. The amount of engagements you had lined up were way beyond my expectations and I did not expect that so many people would go out of there way to meet up with me. On the other hand, knowing these friends who have supported you down through the years, it was obvious that they would not disappoint you in your hour of need as you went out of your way to entertain an Irishman who took up so much of your time.

Having collaborated with you on your many productive projects in the Caribbean, I was particularly keen to visit Rhodelia and see your current undertaking in your home parish. In a nut shell, the project yet again revealed an imaginative can-do mind that underpins the dynamic motivation with which you have been gifted.

Before I left Louisville, I did manage to thank some of those with whom I met  (those whose contact details I had). It is extremely easy for me to recall the engagements in sequence as they occurred so please pass on my sincere gratitude and good wishes to each and everyone as you meet them again….. Tom and Rea Clarke, Dr Paul Kelty and Pat Paterson; Fr Tom Clark, Jim who lives in Bardstown; Deacon Greg and his wife Shirley. What a bonus it was to meet your sister Brenda on our visit to St Theresa’s; Tim, the backroom brain, who is so meticulous in his planning and advice; the evening spent with the stalwarts who visited St Vincent in 2019 – Dr. Paul and Susan, Beth and Bill; Karen and Tim (the tall one!) was also very special as we recalled pre volcano times on the islands; another family member was Fr Bob Ray who spoke so approvingly of the Irish Curragh! Sue and John, as well as Gary and Rita like all the others left an impression of what friendship is all about. Last but not least was Greg whose wife Teri was unfortunately unable to travel with him – incidentally, Greg, if you recall, was the first friend I met on my initial visit to Louisville. Despite various ups and downs experienced by some, everyone was looking great. The jokes, yarn exchanges, tall tales, conversations about the good old days went down as a treat. Finally it was special to have visited the two convents and met some of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth and the Little Sisters of the Poor. How did so many Irish ladies end up in Louisville convents – we have an acute shortage back home?

It is wonderful to be heading home with so many happy memories and soon be able to relate many of my encounters to my daughter Mary and her family. I know you are more than half way to being persuaded to come east and visit your friends in Europe. No matter what, a welcome is extended there. You can be sure it will fade in relation to what you can expect when you arrive in Ireland.

Sincere thanks again for your hospitality – Kentuckian style.

Fergal