From the Pastor's Desk

Click here for Fr. Ryan's Bulletin Article for August 13th (19th Sunday in Ordinary Time)

ALICE Training August 16

Please be reminded that the entire campus will be closed August 16, 2023 for ALICE training with the Washtenaw County Sheriff’s Department.  As explained in last week’s bulletin, the entire school and parish staff will be working through active shooter training.  This is a large part of our continued efforts to ensure the safety of our children, parishioners, and staff.  Please do not be alarmed if/when you see police cars in the parking lot, but I do ask that you not come to the campus during the day on August 16, 2023.  Thank you so much for your patience and understanding.

Evening Mass, Confessions, and Adoration will continue as scheduled.     

Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord

“By his loving foresight, he allowed them to taste for a short time the contemplation of eternal joy so that they might bear persecution bravely” - Venerable St. Bede (673 a.d. - 735 a.d.). 

Recall in Exodus what happened to Moses on Mt. Sinai.  Moses took three of his close friends up the mountain where they stood in God’s presence for six days, and, on the seventh day, God’s voice called out to Moses.  While the Israelites stayed at Mt. Sinai, Moses climbed the mountain to speak with God, and, when he descended back to the encampment, his face shone as a reflection of the glory of God.  

Today, we celebrate the Feast of the Transfiguration.  Notice the parallels between the Transfiguration and Moses.  Like Moses, Jesus takes Peter, James, and John up the mountain where they become enveloped in the glory of God.  Like Moses, Jesus is transfigured - that is, transformed - before them.  He is not, however, reflecting the glory of God.  Rather, He is the glory of God.  Like Moses, the voice of God calls out, “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.”  Jesus is the new Moses, but He is not merely a lawgiver or a prophet.  Rather, He is the law and prophets themselves.  He fulfills both the law and the prophets.  He is the Son of God who comes to deliver His people.   

The Transfiguration not only recalls Moses but also foreshadows the crucifixion.  W. C. Davies and Dale Allison note in their commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, “In the one, a private epiphany, an exalted Jesus, with garments glistening, stands on a high mountain and is flanked by two religious giants from the past.  All is light.  In the other, public spectacle, a humiliated Jesus, whose clothes have been torn from him and divided, is lifted upon a cross and flanked by two common, convicted criminals.  All is darkness.  We have a pictorial antithetical parallelism, a diptych in which the two plates have similar lines but different colors.”

When in your life have you tasted, even for a short time, the contemplation of eternal joy?  When has God given you a glimpse into His love for you?  How has God given you a glimpse of His love for you and what was it like?  Take the week to sit with these questions and, when darkness befalls you or you are persecuted for the sake of Christ and His Church, return to those moments for strength - the strength of Christ Himself. 

Know of my prayers for each one of you! 

Fr. Ryan