From the Pastor's Desk | December 8, 2024

Fr. Mike

Please keep Fr. Mike in your prayers as he recovers from heart surgery.  He is currently recovering in the hospital and then will recover for a period of time with his brother and sister-in-law in Grand Rapids.  

Jubilee Year

In February of 2022, our Holy Father, Pope Francis, announced a jubilee year beginning December 24, 2024 through January 6, 2026.  

“Jubilee” is the name given to a particular year; the name comes from the instrument used to mark its launch. In this case, the instrument in question is the yobel, the ram's horn, used to proclaim the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). This (Jewish) holiday occurs every year, but it takes on special significance when it marks the beginning of a Jubilee year. We can find an early indication of it in the Bible: a Jubilee year was to be marked every 50 years, since this would be an “extra” year, one which would happen every seven weeks of seven years, i.e., every 49 years (cf. Leviticus 25:8-13). Even though it wasn’t easy to organise, it was intended to be marked as a time to re-establish a proper relationship with God, with one another, and with all of creation, and involved the forgiveness of debts, the return of misappropriated land, and a fallow period for the fields.

Quoting the prophet Isaiah, the Gospel of Luke describes Jesus’ mission in this way: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and 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; cf. Isaiah 61:1-2). Jesus lives out these words in his daily life, in his encounters with others and in his relationships, all of which bring about liberation and conversion.

In 1300, Pope Boniface VIII called the first Jubilee, also known as a “Holy Year,” since it is a time in which God's holiness transforms us. The frequency of Holy Years has changed over time: at first, they were celebrated every 100 years; later, in 1343 Pope Clement VI reduced the gap between Jubilees to every 50 years, and in 1470 Pope Paul II made it every 25 years. There have also been “extraordinary” Holy Years: for example, in 1933 Pope Pius XI chose to commemorate the 1900th anniversary of the Redemption, and in 2015 Pope Francis proclaimed the Year of Mercy as an extraordinary jubilee. The way in which Jubilee Years are marked has also changed through the centuries: originally the Holy Year consisted of a pilgrimage to the Roman Basilicas of St. Peter and St. Paul, later other signs were added, such as the Holy Door. By participating in the Holy Year, one is granted a plenary indulgence (https://www.iubilaeum2025.va/en/giubileo-2025/segni-del-giubileo.html).

The theme or title for the jubilee year 2025 is Pilgrims of Hope.  The Holy Doors will be opened in Rome on December 24, 2024, and pilgrimages are encouraged.  For those who cannot travel, every diocese throughout the world will be hosting various events throughout the year.  More information will be coming as it is made available.  In the meantime, I encourage each of you to visit the Vatican’s website relating to the forthcoming Jubilee at https://www.iubilaeum2025.va/en.html.  As we continue our sojourn through the season of Advent, let’s press all the more into the virtue of hope.  

Parishioner Generosity

As I reflected over Thanksgiving, I am incredibly encouraged by the generosity of our parishioner family!  Think about how much we are able to do because of your generosity: 

• We are able to keep Catholic education accessible, available, and affordable with our low tuition model.

• Between the school and Faith Formation we are educating over 400 students this year.

• Those preparing to become Catholic through the Order of Christian Initiation for Adults has nearly doubled.

• We are able to help hundreds of individuals and families through our Thanksgiving and Christmas food drives.

• We are able to help over 800 individuals through the Advent Giving Tree.

Wait, there’s more!  Al Kearney, past president of our St. Vincent de Paul Council, reports the following: 

• 629 individuals were assisted with food, clothing, shelter, and/or utilities payments within the last year.

• Between 1,000 and 1,500 loaves of bread are distributed each week to local food banks, rest homes, charitable food kitchens, and assisted living residences.  That’s over $200,000 in bread over the entire year!

• Emergency food is distributed regularly in addition to baby supplies and diapers.  

All of this is because of you and your generosity!  This is not to brag or pat ourselves on the back; this is acknowledging the people of St. Martha being and living as Church.  I am so incredibly grateful for your generosity and your love.  I am also very encouraged by our St. Vincent de Paul team!  They are an amazing group of people who work tirelessly, quietly, and very much behind the scenes.  After the first of the year, I plan on spending a day with Soraya to really understand and comprehend the gravity and depth of her particular ministry.  I am looking forward to it!  

Capital Campaign

The Steier Group will be meeting with the Finance Council and myself in mid-December to review the final report for the Stewardship for Saints and Scholars Capital Campaign.  Once we have reviewed the final report, I will be more comfortable sharing the information with the entire parish and our next steps.  

Gospel Reflection

Luke begins chapter 3 of his Gospel similarly to how he begins chapter 2, recounting who the leaders were at the time.  In this case Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate, Herod and his brother Philip, Lysanias, and the high priests Annas and Caiaphas are all mentioned at the beginning of the chapter.  These names should be familiar to us.  These are the authorities, the powerful, the elite.  These are the movers and shakers of the time.  These are the people who lead and get things done.  

The Word of God didn’t come to any of the aforementioned men.  Rather, the Word of God came to John, son of Zechariah.  And, the Word of God didn’t come upon John in some grand palace or some great building.  Rather, it came to John in the deserted, dry, and desolate desert.  The Word of God came upon a man who wore camel’s hair and ate locusts and honey.  

By making this juxtaposition between John and powerful secular leaders, Luke is making a point.  His point is that the Holy Spirit dwells within the humble rather than the proud.  Pride blinds us to the movements of the Spirit.  Pride deafens us to hearing the Word of God.  There is no room for the Word of God among or within the proud because the proud are already filled up with themselves.  

We all can and/or are afflicted with some degree of pride in our attitudes, beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and desires.  John was different from the leaders and the powerful people of the time.  He possessed a disposition of docility to the Word of God.  As we continue our movement through the season of Advent, as we continue to prepare for Christmas and Christ’s second coming, let us strive to be like John - people who possess the spirit of humility and docility, people who actively seek to hear the voice of the Lord, people who strive to live out the will of God.  

I think the best way for us to assess whether or not we ourselves possess this spirit of humility and docility is to check our attitudes, beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and desires against the Church and her teachings.  Proverbs 27:17 teaches that “iron sharpens iron; one person sharpens another.”  We need something to press up against in order to be formed in the life of the Holy Spirit.  The Church provides the guardrails.  As Catholics, we believe the Holy Spirit is active and working within the Church and her teachings.  Let’s strive to form ourselves according to Christ and His Church. 

Know of my prayers for you all! 

Fr. Ryan