From the Pastor's Desk | May 4, 2025

Pope Francis 

Due to Easter bulletin deadlines, this is the first bulletin that I have written per the normal schedule. I was unable to have anything written about our Holy Father Pope Francis who died unexpectedly on Easter Monday. Last week, we prayed a requiem Mass for the intention of the repose of the soul of Pope Francis. 

I offer these two takeaways from Pope Francis’ life. 

• First, Pope Francis showed us how to love every single person. His care for the marginalized, the poor, and those on the peripheries is something we should all aspire to. Just as Jesus came to “bring glad tidings to the poor…to proclaim liberty to captives…recovery of sight to the blind…to let the oppressed go free…and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord” (Luke 4:18-19), so Pope Francis modeled how we should do the same, not just in speech but, even more importantly, in action. I am so very grateful to our Vicentians and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul here in the parish. Our Vicentians and those who support the Society of St. Vincent de Paul truly live the spirit of Pope Francis through their acts of service, support, and care for those on the margins within Meridian Township and beyond.
• Second, Pope Francis not only preached but lived humility. Pope Francis was keenly aware that our worth as individual persons had nothing to do with our abilities or our accomplishments. Rather, our worth as individuals has everything to do with our inherent dignity as children of God made in His image and likeness. This is why Pope Francis was so uncomfortable with grandeur, pomp and circumstance. Pope Francis taught us how to live humility by living humility himself.

I am thankful for his pontificate and encourage everyone to continue to pray for the repose of his soul. 

In 2015, I had the privilege of serving as a deacon for Pope Francis during his first and only visit to the United States. More specifically, he presided over the canonization of St. Junipero Serra on September 23, 2015 at the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. Above are some pictures from that occasion and one of the blessings of my life.

First Communion

Today, we welcome our first communicants - those who are continuing their initiation into the Catholic Church through the reception, for the first time, of the Eucharist! As we pray Mass today, recall your first communion. I made my first communion on Holy Thursday (that was a thing back in the 80s and 90s) many years ago. I recall the excitement of being able, like everyone else, to receive Holy Communion. Of course, I did not appreciate the gravity of the Sacrament, but there was and is a holy innocence of those receiving their first Holy Communion. It is an innocence we pray remains as these children move through the rest of their lives. Today, please pray for our first communicants - that Jesus, in the Blessed Sacrament, will grace them with the ability to live self sacrificial love as they mature in the spiritual life and as they begin to confront the world, the flesh, and the Devil.

Confirmation

Last week, Bishop Boyea presided over the celebration of Confirmation for our candidates being confirmed. As always, it is a pleasure hosting the Bishop and a joy for the confirmandi to complete their initiation into the Catholic Church! Confirmation is not the celebration of the end of our education in the faith. Rather, it is the infusion of the Holy Spirit so that the individual can begin living a mature life in the faith, constantly availing themselves to the life of grace through prayer, frequent reception of the Sacraments of Holy Communion and Reconciliation, study of the Word of God and of the Church Fathers and saints. Let us continually pray for our confirmandi, that they continue to work toward maturity in matters of life and the faith God has given them.   

Director of Operations

I am pleased to announce that, after a robust interview process, Kimberly Keefe will be joining the staff as the new Director of Operations! Kimberly has 9 years experience working as an Audit Manager for the Diocese of Lansing. She is a Certified Public Accountant with expertise in accounting, finance, and business affairs. Kimberly is also a parishioner with three children enrolled in St. Martha School.  

I want to thank Hallie Card profusely for filling this role for the past two years since Don Morgan’s retirement! Hallie will transition as our new Director of Adult Faith Formation and Evangelization. Since I arrived, there has been a generation of folks that have gone unministered to. In my mind, this position is very important, not only to the life of the parish, but also in bringing others into the Body of Christ. Our evangelization efforts need to increase in order to answer Bishop Boyea’s call to “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord!” Hallie will be instrumental in helping me develop a ministry plan, executing that plan, and working to form disciples of Jesus of Christ.

There will be a period of transition, so your patience is requested. Both Hallie and Kimberly will need time to transition to the new roles. In addition, Hallie will have to bring Kimberly up to speed on a number of issues related to both the parish and school. Also, we will have to reorganize our office spaces. This will not happen until after school gets out so as to avoid further disruption.  

Kimberly will start June 2, 2025, so please welcome Kimberly as part of our staff!

Soon to be Deacon Ryan Ferrigan

I encourage everyone to attend the ordination of Ryan Ferrigan to the diaconate. He will be ordained a deacon on May 17, 2025 at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish (East Lansing) at 10:30 am. Please attend to pray and support Ryan in his new ministry. Dcn. Ferrigan will preach the 8 am and 10 am Masses on Sunday, May 18, 2025. A light reception will follow the 10 am Mass to congratulate him.  See more on page 15. 

Soon to be Fr. Jack Jobst

I encourage everyone to attend the ordination of Dcn. Jack Jobst to the presbyterate. He will be ordained a priest on June 14, 2025 at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish (East Lansing) at 10:30 am. Please attend to pray and support Dcn. Jack in his new ministry. Fr. Jobst will preside Masses of Thanksgiving on Sunday, June 22, 2025 at 8 am and 10 am here at St. Martha. A light reception will follow both Masses to congratulate him. 

Doug Hunter

As you are probably aware by now, I am not the smartest person in the world. In the Easter bulletin I thanked a number of people. Of course I inadvertently left people out but there is one person that I should have included. Doug Hunter does so much behind the scenes on a volunteer basis without reward and without fanfare. Before Christmas and Easter, he cleans the entire sanctuary floor (on his hands and knees). He is constantly attending to cleanliness around the building without prompting from me or the staff. He loves this parish! He loves the parishioners, the staff, the children, everyone! So, thank you Doug for everything you do and for everything you did leading up to Easter. And, my sincere apology for not including you in the list of thanks in the bulletin and after Easter Masses.

Gospel Reflection

In our Gospel today, Jesus gives Peter a chance to make things right. Recall that, at the Last Supper, Jesus prophesied that Peter would deny him three times. In our Gospel today, Jesus asks Peter three times, “Do you love me?” This Gospel is an excellent example of how things get lost in translation. Our English Bibles are translations of the sacred texts - the inspired Word - written in Hebrew and Greek. The Greek has four words for what the English translates as love. Philia is love as in a friend. Storge is love as in a family. Eros is sexual love, of course properly given in the context of marriage between a man and a woman. Agape is the highest form of love - self sacrificial love. 

In the dialogue between Jesus and Peter, Jesus asks Peter if he loves him using the word agape in the first question. Peter responds, however, with a lower form of love - philia. Again, Jesus asks Peter if he loves him using the word agape. A second time Peter responds with the lower form of love - philia. Finally, Jesus meets Peter where he is at and asks him a third time if he loves him using the word philia. A third time, Peter responds using the word philia. 

Although Jesus meets Peter where he is at by using the lower form of love in the third question, Jesus is not going to allow Peter to remain there. At the end of our Gospel today, Jesus alludes to the death that Peter will face. Jesus says, “Amen, amen, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to dress yourself and go where you wanted; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will dress you and lead you where you do not want to go.” He said this signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when he had said this, he said to him, ‘Follow me’” (John 21:18-19). 

Peter’s death is not explicitly detailed in scripture. However, in a non-canonical text known as the Acts of Peter, we get what is known as the Quo Vadis story. Quo Vadis means, “Where are you going?” In the Acts of Peter, Peter is leaving Rome along the Appian Way to flee Nero’s persecution of the Christians. However, as he is fleeing, he meets the risen Jesus on the way and asks him, “Quo Vadis?” To which Jesus replies, “Romam eo iterum crucifigī,” meaning, “I am going to Rome to be crucified again.” With this encounter with the risen Christ, Peter gains the courage to turn around, return to Rome to continue his ministry, where he is ultimately crucified upside down. Jesus raised Peter to the level of agape - self sacrificial love; his life poured out like Christ’s for the People of God and for Jesus Christ himself. 

How often do we deny knowing Christ in both word and action? Jesus is not only directing those three questions to Peter. He is directing those three questions to us. “Do we love Him?” Will we allow Jesus to raise us to the level of living agape love? Will we willingly lay down our lives on behalf of Christ and His people? In doing so, will we feed his sheep? Will we follow Jesus to Rome? Circling back to the beginning of this article, our Vicentians have a lot to teach us about agape love as they sacrifice time, talent, and treasure for the least of our brothers and sisters. Thanks be to God for them! 

Know of my prayers for you all!  

Fr. Ryan Riley