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The 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Added Oct 09, 2017 •

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Fr. Tom Wilson, Pastor

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the common usage of the word sacred almost always in in in common language refers to two religious things that things are are set apart things are made Holy by God's connecting with it are setting them apart for for use of of worship and and and veneration and the truth is we are surrounded by sacredness in the in in the church in which we pray we've got images we got all the images we've got the ammo from which the word God is Proclaim where the altar which the Eucharist is consecrated at where the Tabernacle which contains the the consecrated presence of of Jesus Christ in in our midst we're surrounded by we're surrounded by sacredness and and is a I did a little bit of research on the on the definition of of sacred from different angles almost all of that virtually every one of them referred to to Sacred in that vein that it's something something the part for for veneration used for used for religious worship in and God but the truth is the truth is even people who aren't who wouldn't consider themselves religious by traditional definition have faith things that are sacred I think that probably goes down to to the point that every human being is a religious person whether they acknowledge it or not the difference is the religion that they are practicing and the guy that they are the shipping but as human beings we are made to we are made to worship we are made we are we are made as as religious people to offer something at 2 to be beyond our Beyond ourselves it just a matter of which God that we are doing it too and that and then the truth is in that in that sacredness and that sacredness we live in a culture that makes things sacred whether whether people are believing in God whether they consciously religious or not we have things in our own environment our own world and our own culture which we make sacred typically by our association of value with them and if we if we did the exam Nation we find we find two things in in in our culture no matter what no matter where we come from no matter no matter what we believe that are there that would be the most sacred in the in the world in which we live in those are our time money weather we have a lot of it or a little of it we understand that there's there there's limitations on it and and the truth is our relationship with those things are will will tell the world tell ourselves and tell God what are the most important things in our life they will say an awful lot about us in fact it says so much about us that several election Cycles ago people who study campaigns and and things like that figure it out just by studying the credit card usage of of people they could predict between 85 and 90% accuracy how somebody would vote just by the way they use their credit card just by the way they spent their money I could predict that that that behavior and was miles of Bingham Farm or far more elaborate since since that and they can think they know everything they know everything about us by the way we use our money by the way we you are time and therefore therefore as as people of Faith as people Faith who live in that world and breathe in that despite the fact that we don't want to be tied to material things despite the fact that we know all the things that are more important than the stuff in in our life we we understand that we still live and breathe in a world in which those things are very important I think it's a perfect set of readings today as we enter into our annual commitment of our of our the use of our of our gifts to to serve the community and tend to support the community our commitment Sunday isn't it is next week we have excellent samples of what it means for four disciples to interact with those things that God has given us and hold them in proper perspective our first rating for my Isaiah is it it's a beautiful image of of God providing a perfect Vineyard God is provided a perfect Vineyard for the people and it's not cared for the gift is not cared for so it doesn't produce anything good it produces wild grapes in the gospel we have the parable adult the landowner and in the vineyard in which it's clear it's clear that the gift actually belongs to the landowner it belongs to the landowner and the and the tenants are only there to take care of and they and yet they try to reverse it and they try to concoct these plans to somehow take it away as if it will belong to them if they can just the eliminate the landowner and and his Representatives it will belong to them those are not images those are not images of the way disciples need to react and to interact with the stuff the gifts in the blessings that God has given that there are things that define differentiate at the site Jesus Christ and how we react and interact with those things the first one and the most important one is that we acknowledge as Disciples of Jesus Christ the source of those gifts the source of all the things that we alright netsource is God and we live constantly in a spirit of gratitude is precisely why prayers of Thanksgiving need to be part of our everyday life every single day pray of Thanksgiving and gratitude for the blessings that he has given to us in our lives secondly we we we acknowledge we acknowledge that the gifts are one thing and the one who gave it to us is another and we don't mix it up the one who gives the gift is always more important than the gifts that we have been given no matter what has been given and sometimes that that can get a little bit distorted there's always a great temptation to make the gift more important than the giver right and then finally finally we acknowledge that in the generosity and the reality of of those gifts they can also be taken away and disappear in an instance we under and that every breath we take is a gift from God every second we live is a gift from God everything that we have is a gift from God and many people many people people who have prevented disasters and Eve experience is very recently in our world understand understand very very close to the to the heart that those things can be gone in an instant they can be gone in an instant and his disciples we understand that and we were knives and honor The Giver more than the stuff that we have it's in a proper perspective it's a proper perspective we also recognizes as people of faith that those gifts are given to us for a reason they're given to us for a reason they are given to us in order to bring glory to God with what we have been given in our time and our talents and our and and our stuff right there also given to us to serve other people bats they are there and yet we live in a culture that wants to hoard it in on themselves we know that we live and we breathe that every single day and in the end then they're going to Great Temptations to use our stuff in ways that are there South Center and in the hole bits and so we do we take this time every year to take to pray and and to discern not only with the blessings that God has given to us but how we will use that how are we going to use them to Glory my God and to serve other people and frankly this is probably the easiest and most efficient place in the world in the terms of a of a Parish Community to make that two to make that discernment for people of Faith course there's other places that we can be generous and we're called to be generous and places other than our own particular communities we know that all right but we do this every year to to make make a conscious conscious active of discipleship in hot water have and how are we going to use it and share it right next week is our Is our commitment Sunday we've done this a little bit differently a little bit earlier this year than we have in the recent past hopefully making it a little more efficient for some of the thing but also tell but also to to make it a more conscious Act of discipleship alright how about a month ago we had the opportunity to walk through and get a lot of information on different activities Ministries and things for our growth and faith in our ability to serve the parish and we had a number of people to 2 to sign up at those times if you did not get a chance to do that okay you would have received in the mail this little book it's okay taking root and bearing fruit right I got that right in the pronunciations okay alright and it's got the information on dozens and dozens and dozens of of things that you can that you can participate in okay alright it's all so online alright the cards okay the cards came with that that's what we will turn in next week okay important distinction from from last year to this this is not a card to sign up for anything okay this is a card that is just acknowledging alright acknowledging the commitments that you will make the commitments that we will make to our Parish Community in the in the coming year alright financially and in sharing our our our our our talents and and and gifts and serving and in the community what are we going to do to grow in faith what are we going to do to serve the community how and how we will sacrifice the financial gifts that God has given us service to the parish into the end of the community around us those are the three things okay I'll write these the actual card that you would have gotten in the in the mail alright is is there's room for two adults to put that information on alright alright if you have more than two adults in your home yet another cards very very easy alright children young you send and in children will do this in an age-appropriate way in their activities at church and school or formation you got kids that are not in those programs you can get those in the office as well but these are these are for these are for adults alright we just ask that you go and in this last week before our commitments I need to discern okay how will I how will I serve the parish through through Ministries in in the parish simply write them down there's three slots you're certainly not limited to three different things okay these are things that you may already be doing a maybe things that you're signing up for new alright and you can you can do that all right now to sign up so if you need to sign up or get more information consult the booklet go online or call the office right and then finally on the on the on the finance heart it's simply indicating what's your what's your gifts will be Financial gifts will be and the in the particular interview interval that you'll be able to do it if you are doing it electronically there is an additional form to be filled out that they came with the game with all this this this information pretty simple to to fill out we're grateful for your doing that it really does create a lot of produces a lot of paperwork and such in in in the office so where it work grateful for the many people that are able to to give electronically alright if okay if you are an advanced person and don't do things on paper you can do this all online hey can just go online just click the bearing fruit image and you can sign up online and then you'll get a follow-up email that you will we ask you to print out and bring that next week instead of filling out the date that lately actual card alright very it's it's very basic it's very straightforward it's is very simple all right it is an act of discipleship is an active discipleship to reflect on and be grateful for the gifts that we have and recognize how we are called to use them all right we live in a world that does that does with make time and money sacred it absolutely does and we tell God we tell ourselves we tell the world around is what are the most important things by how we use that alright alright and we in rssr call in in in discipleship are called to make those gifts not just to serve ourselves but to Serve the People all around us and to give glory to God that is what makes them safe rates

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The 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

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