Memo from Msgr. Raun - Tuesday, April 14th, 2020
My dear family in the Lord,
The Lord is risen. ALLELUIA !
In the weeks and months to come, for our families, friends, and that stranger we see (properly distanced) in a grocery store, pharmacy, or on the street, let’s say a prayer, share some hope, and practice common decency. For only a decency that flows from the unconquerable hope of Christ—the risen Lord—can dispel the unreal existence we find ourselves in today. We are told by Jesus Christ “In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world” (John 16:33).
Be hopeful. Be of good cheer.
Soon—very soon—we’ll be together again.
BACK TO NORMAL (so to speak) : Now that Holy Week is over, we will go back to our "normal" quarantine schedule:
9 am - Holy Mass on-line
5:30 pm Confessions in the Adoration Chapel (Monday through Saturday)
6 pm Holy Hour on-line
THE DIVINE MERCY NOVENA will be part of the 6 pm Holy Hour each day this week.
NEW ALPHA SERIES! : We are so excited that on April 21 we are going to start a new Alpha series on-line. Alpha is a series of sessions exploring the basics of the Christian faith. Typically run over eleven weeks, each session looks at a different question that people can have about faith and is designed to create conversation. It’s just an open, informal and honest space to explore and discuss life’s big questions together. We will be doing this Alpha on-line, so you have to preregister at stanm.org. Spread the word to anyone you know who is spiritually searching. This pestilence is causing a lot of people to look at the big questions of life. Alpha is just for that.
SHARE US ON-LINE on your social media. Download the parish app onto your smart phone or tablet. It the easiest way to receive everything the parish has to enrich your life.
HOLINESS TIP: Comfort yourself with Scripture, especially where God promises to deliver us from fears. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). “I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears” (Psalm 34:4).
QUARANTINE HUMOR: a little long but very funny-
Self-Isolation Quarantine Diary:
Day 1 – I Can Do This!! Got enough food and wine to last a month!
Day 2 – Opening my 8th bottle of wine. I fear wine supplies might not last!
Day 3 – Strawberries: Some have 210 seeds, some have 235 seeds.Who knew?
Day 4 – 8:00 pm: Removed my Day Pajamas and put on my Night Pajamas.
Day 5 – Today, I tried to make Hand Sanitizer. It came out as Jello Shots!
Day 6 – I get to take the garbage out. I’m so excited, I can’t decide what to wear.
Day 7 – Laughing way too much at my own jokes!
Day 8 – Put liquor bottles in every room. Tonight I’m getting all dressed up and going bar- hopping.
Day 9 – Struck up a conversation with a spider today. Seems nice. He’s a Web Designer.
Day 10 – Isolation is hard. I swear my fridge just said, “What the heck do you want now?”
Day 11 – I realized why dogs get so excited about something moving outside, going for walks or car rides. I think I just barked at a squirrel.
Day 12 – If you keep a glass of wine in each hand, you can’t accidentally touch your face.
Day 13 – Watched the birds fight over a worm. The Cardinals lead the Blue Jays 3–1.
Day 14 – Anybody else feel like they’ve cooked dinner about 395 times this month?
OUR PRAYER FOR THE DAY:
The Lord is risen. ALLELUIA !
The great French author Albert Camus’ book The Plague takes place in a town on the Algerian coast quarantined amidst the ravages of the bubonic plague. Rieux, the physician and conscience of the tale, reminds his fearful and flagging friend, “There’s one thing I must tell you: there’s no question of heroism in all this. It’s a matter of common decency. That’s an idea which may make some people smile, but the only means of fighting a plague is—common decency.”
In the weeks and months to come, for our families, friends, and that stranger we see (properly distanced) in a grocery store, pharmacy, or on the street, let’s say a prayer, share some hope, and practice common decency. For only a decency that flows from the unconquerable hope of Christ—the risen Lord—can dispel the unreal existence we find ourselves in today. We are told by Jesus Christ “In the world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world” (John 16:33).
Be hopeful. Be of good cheer.
Soon—very soon—we’ll be together again.
Dr. Tod Worner - Common Hope in a Surreal Pandemic
BACK TO NORMAL (so to speak) : Now that Holy Week is over, we will go back to our "normal" quarantine schedule:
9 am - Holy Mass on-line
5:30 pm Confessions in the Adoration Chapel (Monday through Saturday)
6 pm Holy Hour on-line
THE DIVINE MERCY NOVENA will be part of the 6 pm Holy Hour each day this week.
NEW ALPHA SERIES! : We are so excited that on April 21 we are going to start a new Alpha series on-line. Alpha is a series of sessions exploring the basics of the Christian faith. Typically run over eleven weeks, each session looks at a different question that people can have about faith and is designed to create conversation. It’s just an open, informal and honest space to explore and discuss life’s big questions together. We will be doing this Alpha on-line, so you have to preregister at stanm.org. Spread the word to anyone you know who is spiritually searching. This pestilence is causing a lot of people to look at the big questions of life. Alpha is just for that.
SHARE US ON-LINE on your social media. Download the parish app onto your smart phone or tablet. It the easiest way to receive everything the parish has to enrich your life.
HOLINESS TIP: Comfort yourself with Scripture, especially where God promises to deliver us from fears. “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28). “I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears” (Psalm 34:4).
QUARANTINE HUMOR: a little long but very funny-
Self-Isolation Quarantine Diary:
Day 1 – I Can Do This!! Got enough food and wine to last a month!
Day 2 – Opening my 8th bottle of wine. I fear wine supplies might not last!
Day 3 – Strawberries: Some have 210 seeds, some have 235 seeds.Who knew?
Day 4 – 8:00 pm: Removed my Day Pajamas and put on my Night Pajamas.
Day 5 – Today, I tried to make Hand Sanitizer. It came out as Jello Shots!
Day 6 – I get to take the garbage out. I’m so excited, I can’t decide what to wear.
Day 7 – Laughing way too much at my own jokes!
Day 8 – Put liquor bottles in every room. Tonight I’m getting all dressed up and going bar- hopping.
Day 9 – Struck up a conversation with a spider today. Seems nice. He’s a Web Designer.
Day 10 – Isolation is hard. I swear my fridge just said, “What the heck do you want now?”
Day 11 – I realized why dogs get so excited about something moving outside, going for walks or car rides. I think I just barked at a squirrel.
Day 12 – If you keep a glass of wine in each hand, you can’t accidentally touch your face.
Day 13 – Watched the birds fight over a worm. The Cardinals lead the Blue Jays 3–1.
Day 14 – Anybody else feel like they’ve cooked dinner about 395 times this month?
OUR PRAYER FOR THE DAY:
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.Where there is hatred, let me bring love.
Where there is offence, let me bring pardon.
Where there is discord, let me bring union.
Where there is error, let me bring truth.Where there is doubt, let me bring faith.
Where there is despair, let me bring hope.
Where there is darkness, let me bring your light.
Where there is sadness, let me bring joy.
O Master, let me not seek as much
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love,
for it is in giving that one receives,
it is in self-forgetting that one finds,
it is in pardoning that one is pardoned,
it is in dying that one is raised to eternal life.
I send you my fatherly blessing, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen !
Msgr. Doug Raun
Posted in Daily Memo from Msgr. Raun
2 Comments
Thank you Msgr. Raun and STA staff for keeping us filled with spiritual thoughts, Bible verses to lift our souls, and even a dash of humor to give life a little laughter. I appreciate your care and loving concern for our parish community, especially during our recent times.
God bless,
Cyndee DeBlassie
Thank you Msgr. Rain for all your uplifting messages. We are blessed to have you. God bless you and your staff for all you do for our parish. â¤