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Dear Brothers & Sisters
Pentecost happened when the first disciples were locked down through fear. But the Spirit gave them courage and forgiveness and they learned to communicate with people of all nations. Two thousand years on our needs are still the same: courage, forgiveness and the gift of communication.
Recent funerals, have been much hedged about with restrictions causing a lot of pain for families, but we have tried to alleviate this a little by recording our early morning community mass offered for the deceased, and posting it on YouTube. Where possible we also bless the funeral procession in our car park.
Saints Days this week are a wonderful mixture:
Monday is the day for Mary Mother of the Church, celebrating her presence by the cross on Good Friday (‘Son this is your mother’) as well as her presence with the apostles on the day of Pentecost.
Wednesday sees the feast of Charles Lwanga and his companions put to death by the cruel King Mwanga II in 1885 who hated all things Christian. Several Anglicans were also executed and when Pope Paul VI canonised the Uganda martyrs in 1964 he paid fulsome tribute to these Anglican martyrs & apologized that he had no jurisdiction to declare them saints too.
Thursday is the day of Jesus Christ the eternal High Priest, a recent feast that highlights Jesus interceding for all humanity before the Father, as in the letter to the Hebrews.
Saturday has no official saint’s feast but we can use it to mark the Feast of the Visitation, normally May 31, but which was eclipsed this year by Pentecost. In 2017 our SCJ General Chapter took the Visitation as its theme: Mary went out to share good news with Elizabeth but found that God was already at work in her. So for us. When we reach out to others to share the good news we will find that God has already been at work in them.
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