This week, I have several beautiful things that I want to tell you about our parish and our Church. They involve the beautiful virtues of faith, hope and charity.
The first virtue of faith is reflected this weekend in the large number of children who will be receiving their First Holy Communion at the 10:30am Mass on Sunday. Our greatest joy is when we are able to pass along our faith to others. This weekend, our parish and school parents will be privilege to see the fruit of their faith in the reception of the Body and Blood of Christ by their children. How wonderful!
Hope is the second virtue I experienced this week in New York City. Many of you have probably heard about the new Archbishop of New York, +Timothy Michael Dolan. What you might not know is that Archbishop Dolan was my seminary rector for five years. I flew up to New York for his installation this Wednesday. Talk about hope-inspiring! The Archbishop brings to his new position a noted piety, a confidence in the Church and a completely extraverted joy. At 59 years young, expect to see Archbishop Dolan on the national stage for quite some time. He’s a big gregarious Irishman, and he is self-deprecatingly funny. He’s going to make people want to be Catholic. And that is a reason for hope!
And I see charity this week in the great Sunday of Divine Mercy that we experience today. Pope Benedict XVI recently said that the greatest attribute of God is His mercy. And mercy has its deepest origin in His charity. If we approach God asking for mercy, He freely grants it to us, so much does He love us.
The signs are all around us: faith, hope and charity. We can focus on the troubles of the world, and the difficulties of our own lives (which can both be very hard), or we can choose to raise our hearts and minds to God and the beautiful promises He has made to us. God never tires of giving us His blessings. May you be immersed in the supernatural virtues of faith, hope and charity this week!
