My Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ:

I can easily imagine how passionate St. Paul was about his faith. He was defiantly consumed by his love for Jesus. In his love, Paul often reminds us of how we should always be aware of the bountiful gifts, which God gives us in this holy relationship. In that "Love", we have the opportunity to cultivate gratitude among our family and friends and to challenge them that they too should reach out in God's Love to others, especially during the upcoming summer months. Here are three ways to do this.

Be Attentive To Human Need

Jesus tells us that when we take care of the needs of others, we do so for him. Encourage your family and friends to be sensitive to each other’s needs every day. During summer, invite your family to be aware of persons in their neighborhoods that might have special needs during the hotter days of the year. Perhaps we write down their names on a paper and put it on the refrigerator to remind ourselves to call or stop by and visit with these folks for a while. Maybe bring them some ice cream in the summer.

Appreciate Daily Blessings

Encourage your family and friends to practice the habit of thanking God for those persons who have reached out to each of us in courtesy, help, and kindness. When you gather discuss how someone has been helpful to you and or how you were able to help another person. Moreover, most importantly, give thanks for the great joy God brings you in those experiences.

Work For Justice

As we recognize that our Christian Discipleship draws us out of our own concerns and challenges us to care for those in need, we also need to be vigilant to help those who are marginalized or have no one to help them during these summer days. Direct your family and friends to various justice-related websites like www.povertyusa.org and http://www.catholicrelief.org. Encourage them to explore other websites during the summer that could help them develop a respect for the dignity of all people.

Will these few items help us to like Christ? And the answer is "Yes!" In their pastoral statement, Called and Gifted for the Third Millennium, the bishops in the United States focus on four calls to help others that shed light on what it means to follow Christ’s example and make it our own. As Catholics we can use these four calls in our daily work and as a sign of our commitment to Christ centered men women and children.

The Call To Holiness

We answer the call to holiness through our daily activities and interpersonal relationships. When we provide calming, comforting care to our family, friends and yes even the stranger, we as Christian Disciples imitate the merciful love of Christ in small but essential ways.

The Call To Community

As Catholics, we have a unique opportunity to build community among our friends and family. In addition, we respond to this call when we help form a community of caring with those strangers in our midst. We are called y Christ to work together to provide a safe and loving environment within the ever growing and developing community of our Church.

The Call To Mission And Ministry

An important aspect of participating in the Church’s mission is through ministries that are formative, especially through the teaching of children. As Catholics, we form children and youth in faith through formal lessons as well as through the atmosphere we maintain throughout the parish community.. Upholding standards that call children to treat others with respect shapes them as imitators of Christ in his call for justice, mercy, and love.

The Call To Christian Maturity

The bishops acknowledge in their statement that some persons in our midst lack the stability and support of a traditional family today. While we cannot take the place of loving, caring family parents, we can and do play an important role in the formation of faith for these persons in our role as community. By reaching out to one person who might need some help through a difficult time, we also tend to our own souls, making the practice of prayer and the pursuit of deepening understanding and knowledge of our faith a priority

God calls us to be all we can be our full and active participation here in the Parish. Perhaps over these summer months we, like Paul, attempt to reach out to one extra person and allow ourselves to discover Christ love as we attempt to bring Christ to one other person.

Yours in Christ,

Fr. Mick