Dear Folks,

Thank you for praying a rosary for our school reopening. And if you don’t know what I am talking about, go back and read last week’s bulletin note…. better yet, just please pray a rosary for our parish school, staff, and students! This week is our return school under a hybrid model of alternating days and distance learning.

We had this week a day of prayer for our parish and school staffs. I was very grateful for the opportunity to spend the day in prayer with the people who serve you so generously.

Fr. Sina spoke at one point about the Thomistic principle “Quidquid recipitur ad modum recipientis recipitur.” (And no, when he put me on the spot, I could not come up with the Latin! Thank you Google!) The translation: “Whatever is received is received according to the mode of the receiver.” He applied this to the scripture about spouses loving and respecting each other. He gave context and examples to husbands’ desire to be respected and wives’ desire to be loved! Next time I preach a wedding, I’ll be thinking about the specifics of St. Paul exhorting each of the spouses to love more like Jesus in a way particular to the weakness of each.

Fr. Koehr said something that also stuck with me: going to Mass without engaging in consistent mental prayer is like going to a wedding where you don’t know the bride or the groom! Prayer is that great encounter with the living God, the bridegroom of our souls! And Mass is the wedding feast of the lamb, but we are the bride! Can you imagine going to your own wedding not knowing that it is your big day? Impossible and ridiculous! No wonder we are so easily bored at Mass!

Thanks to all who make our school and parish awesome, and may we all keep growing in mutual understanding, respect, and love.

Pax et bonum,

Fr. John Mosimann