Today we begin the last week of Ordinary Time with the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe; and next weekend we will begin a new liturgical year with the First Sunday of Advent. As autumn fades into winter, the Church draws our attention to endings and new beginnings.

There are just two more weeks of Ordinary Time before we begin the season of Advent. It seems appropriate to observe the end and the beginning of the church year when autumn is fading into winter (in the northern hemisphere). This weekend’s readings focus our attention on apocalyptic images of end-time distress, the rise of Michael the Archangel, people rising from the dead to glory or disgrace, stars falling from the sky, and “the Son of Man coming on the clouds with great power and glory” (Mark 13: 26, cf. Daniel 12: 1-3). That sounds so exciting!

This weekend we observe Stewardship of Vocations. While everyone has a unique vocation, we are focusing particularly on vocations to the priesthood, the diaconate and religious life. And we are asking all our parishioners to help nurture these vocations from our parish.

“Vocation” comes from the Latin word vocare which means “to call.” In the Catholic context, God is the one who calls people into a certain lifestyle, career or ministry. One who hears the call and freely embraces it is said to have “found their vocation.” Since God is the Creator of all people, He is calling everyone in a particular way. Over the centuries, the Church has developed special esteem for some vocations because of their service to the Church. Among these are marriage, priesthood, diaconate and consecrated religious life.

So there is much evidence that Halloween has its roots in Catholic culture.

After many hours of prayerful discernment and creative experimentation, I am excited to share with you the new logo for IHM. Why a new logo? IHM has had various logos over the years, and there is nothing wrong with the most recent one of a blue Jerusalem cross with a background of blue and gray stained glass. But after our Mission Leadership Team discerned a new mission statement for our parish, I thought it would be helpful to have a new logo that expresses that mission more dynamically.

By now we have all noticed the days becoming shorter and the nights cooler. This Sunday is the autumnal equinox, when the length of day and night are equal in both the northern and southern hemispheres. It marks the end of summer and the beginning of fall, at the halfway point between the summer and winter solstice.

This weekend we celebrate the fifteenth anniversary of perpetual adoration of the Eucharist in our parish. So I share with you my prayerful meditation about our Adoration Chapel

Stewardship of Faith Weekend

The crowds challenged Jesus to show them a sign the day after he fed them and many others with five loaves and two fish. What a difference a day makes! But I won’t criticize them because I sometimes forget the Lord’s blessings and seek more miraculous signs every day to affirm my faith. Thankfully, Jesus anticipated this weakness by giving Himself to us in the Eucharist. “Do this in memory of me,” He said. So we remember Him every week, even every day. While doing so we savor His words: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst” (John 6:35).

The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not just about things that happened 2000 years ago. His wonders and signs continue to happen in our day. Case in point: the National Eucharistic Congress in Indianapolis

Last Monday I visited a dear friend from Steamboat Springs who had just taken the Flight-For-Life helicopter to Sky Ridge Medical Center in Lone Tree. Kathy had a meningioma tumor removed from her brain stem a month ago but had to quickly return because of excess fluid buildup in her cranial cavity. As she anticipated another surgery to drain the fluid, she looked at me with a peaceful smile and said, “I’m just so grateful; so grateful that the doctors can do this surgery. Jesus is with me, I know He is. He’s just so sweet.”