Pastor's Corner

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity. This feast proclaims our faith in the One True God, who is Three Distinct Persons; Father, Son and Holy Spirit, equal in majesty, undivided in splendor, ever to be adored. Into the Divine Life of our Triune God we were baptized + In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit!

We call the Holy Trinity a Mystery. Yet although a Mystery, our Triune God is a personal God who desires to be known! The Mystery is not one that pushes us away from understanding, but rather, one that draws us in. God wants us to know Him!

Our Gospel for today’s feast is probably the most well-known passage in the Scriptures:  John 3:16 - “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that all who believe in him might not perish but have everlasting life.” It’s a message that speaks to each of us personally:  For God so loved each of us that He gave Jesus for our Salvation! That beautiful truth is celebrated at every Mass as Jesus’ Sacrifice on Calvary is made truly present. We receive that saving love in Holy Communion, and the pledge of eternal life is renewed.

One word that most clearly describes our Triune God is love. Love is the reason why the Father created us. Love is the reason why Jesus saved us. Love is the reason why the Holy Spirit has chosen to make his Dwelling Place in us.

The month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I love the devotion the Sacred Heart.

     -Growing up, the pictures of both the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary hung in our home. Mom would remind us that Jesus promised he would bless the places (homes & families) where the image of his heart is honored.

     -I remember as a kid at Cathedral Grade School we began each day with the traditional morning offering connecting the day to the Sacred Heart…  “O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer you all my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day, together with your Sacred Heart, in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world and for the intentions of our Holy Father. Amen.”

     -Our parish and school always celebrated First Fridays with Nocturnal Adoration beginning Thursday evening, Benediction early Friday morning, followed by All School First Friday Mass and then donuts and cocoa. It was a great tradition! Thanks to our PTO who helped me bring that tradition to Nativity School. The kids love donuts after First Friday Mass.

     -My favorite Sacred Heart Prayer – “Jesus, meek and humble of Heart, make my heart like unto thine.” We can never go wrong asking the Lord to make our hearts like his.

     -I love to hear our school children sing the Song of the Sacred Heart at First Friday Mass – “Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, truly present in the Holy Eucharist. I place all my trust in you.”

     -One of my favorite prefaces to the Eucharistic Prayer is that of the Sacred Heart. “Lifted high on the cross, Jesus gave himself up for us with a wonderful love and poured out blood and water from his pierced side, the wellspring of the Church’s sacraments, so that won over to the open heart of the Savior, all might draw water joyfully from the springs of salvation.”

Through His Sacred Heart, Jesus tells us how much He loves us. It’s a reminder to tell Jesus how much we love Him, and to show that in our love for others.

Please be with us next Sunday, June 11th as we kick off the Eucharistic Revival at Nativity. After the 11am Mass, we will have a Corpus Christi Procession around the campus with the Blessed Sacrament followed by Benediction. We will then celebrate our dignity as members the Body of the Christ – the Church here at Nativity, with a BBQ lunch. Please come and celebrate!

Sacred Heart of Jesus unite each of us and our families in your love.
Have a great Week!
Fr. Mike

Happy Birthday to you! Today we celebrate Pentecost – often referred to as the “Birthday of the Church.” The 50th day following the resurrection was marked by the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the Church - empowering the Church to carry on the mission entrusted by the Lord Jesus; to proclaim the Gospel, to make disciples of all nations, to build the Kingdom of God, to be living signs of His saving power. Pentecost 2023 - and we realize and celebrate the promised Advocate, Helper and Constant Companion who has been with the Church from the beginning to this very day. Knowing and trusting that the Holy Spirit is alive, active, present, and always inviting us, today’s Feast reminds us of our continual need for renewal in the Spirit.  

In a homily for Pentecost, Pope Francis said: "Without the Spirit, Jesus remains a person from the past; with the Spirit, He is a person alive in our own time. Without the Spirit, Scripture is a dead letter; with the Spirit it is the word of life. A Christianity without the Spirit is joyless moralism; with the Spirit, it is life." The Holy Father’s reflection makes us say: Thank you, Holy Spirit, for helping us to know Jesus. Continue to remind us of all He taught us. Keep us growing in our love and friendship with Christ. Thank you, Holy Spirit, for helping us hear God’s voice in the Scripture. Continue to help us to discover the Word of God as “living and active”. Help us translate the Gospel into our lived experience. Thank You, Holy Spirit, for sealing our souls with the indelible mark of Christ at our baptism and initiating us into the Christian way of life. Strengthen us to make Jesus “the way, the truth, and the life” by which we live. Help us to live our Christian witness with joy, that we might draw others to Christ.

“Come Holy Spirit, Come. Heal our wounds, our strength renew; On our dryness pour your dew; Wash the stains of guilt away; Bend the stubborn heart and will; Melt the frozen, warm the chill; Guide the steps that go astray. Come Holy Spirit, Come!” (From the Sequence for Pentecost)

This weekend the Holy Spirit came in a beautiful way through the laying on of hands upon Transitional Deacons; Colm Larkin, George Rhodes, and Timothy Skoch, as they were ordained priests for the archdiocese. Let’s pray for the Spirit’s gift to continue to enflame them with the heart of Jesus and help them to be Good Shepherds to the people and parishes they will serve.

Please mark your calendar for June 11th as we kick off the Eucharistic Revival at Nativity. After the 11am Mass, we will have a Corpus Christi Procession around the campus with the Blessed Sacrament followed by Benediction. We will then celebrate our dignity as members the Body of the Christ – the Church here at Nativity, with a BBQ lunch. Please come and celebrate!

Good to remember that the Holy Spirit comes at every Mass to change the simple gifts of bread and wine into very Body and Blood of Christ. The special part of the Mass when the priest extends his hands over the bread and wine and calls down the Holy Spirit is called the “epiclesis” – the epiclesis of consecration. There is also another epiclesis in the Eucharistic Prayer known as the “epiclesis of communion,” calling the Holy Spirit upon the community to unite us – that we be “gathered into one by the Holy Spirit” – that we “may become one body, on spirit in Christ.”

Enjoy the Memorial Holiday, which signals the beginning of summer! I hope you have the opportunity to grill out, or have a picnic, be with family, go to the lake, work out in the yard, or just rest, relax and enjoy the holiday! There will be one Mass for Memorial Day, celebrated at 9am.  Memorial Day began as a day to honor those who died in service to our country. Let’s not forget all those who have given their lives in the name of preserving our freedom. Remember all of your deceased loved-ones in prayer.

May the gifts and fruits of the Holy Sprit be yours in abundance!
Fr. Mike