There is a great need in our day and age to address the dark spiritual forces afflicting the minds and hearts of people. It was Pope St. John Paul II who challenged the bishops throughout the world to establish, within each of their dioceses, an outreach ministry to help the faithful who are spiritually afflicted by the influence of evil. The Pope stressed the importance that each diocesan bishop appoint an exorcist for his diocese.

When we have experienced the mercy of God in our lives we understand and it is easy for us to understand the story that the gospel presents to us this (24th Sunday in Ordinary Time), the image of the servant who owed a lot of money to the King is ours, The debt that each of us owes to God is enormous, and we cannot pay it (we cannot erase or pay for a single sin).

God loves us very much and that is why he sent his Son Jesus Christ to pay the debt that no one could, nor can we, pay.

Today more than ever, we believers should listen to Jesus' call to correct ourselves and help each other to be better. Jesus invites us to act patiently and without haste, getting closer in a personal and friendly way to whom is acting in a  wrong way “if your brother sins, rebuke him alone; between the two of you, if he listens to you, you will have saved your brother ”.

Greetings to you, St. Stanislaus!

The readings this weekend, especially the second reading from a letter of St. Paul to the Romans, are wonderful to help us better reflect on what we truly prioritize in our lives and the life of our family:

“I urge you, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship. Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.”

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

During this second year of the Eucharistic Revival, one of the ways that can grow in our relationship with the  Eucharistic Lord is found in experiencing Adoration and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. Within this solemn eucharistic tradition, we pray together and proclaim what is known as the: Divine Praises. As we profess these blessed praises, our attention is profoundly drawn to truths in regard to Our Lady and her blessedness:

There is no perfect family. We do not have perfect parents, we are not perfect, we do not marry a perfect person or have perfect children. We have complaints from each other. We disappoint each other. So, there is no healthy marriage or healthy family without the exercise of forgiveness.Forgiveness is vital to our emotional health and spiritual survival. Without forgiveness the family becomes an arena of conflict and a stronghold of hurt. Without forgiveness, the family becomes ill.

The 2023-24 school year is officially underway. St. Stanislaus parish and school have been entrusted with the academic and spiritual education of the children of its community. As we share our own faith journey in the classrooms and around the school and parish, we love to see the growth that happens in our students throughout the year. We are hopeful that they will learn about the love Christ has for them and we trust that we will be led by the Holy Spirit, and be blessed throughout the year. 

The voice of the Lord is unfolded to us every day through the reading of the Scriptures and the sacraments, through family and good friends; Also in conversation with the Lord in prayer and adoration.

Do we read the Word and Listen to His Voice?

Do we pray and allow the Lord to speak to us?

Do we make an effort to listen to him?

"Rejoice, full of grace, the Lord is with you." Luke 1:27

Throughout the Holy Scripture (The Holy Bible/Word of God) we meet a number of men and women who lived a profound experience of God in their lives. From each one of them we could learn a lot, the call of God, their vocation, mission, witness, his writings etc. From all of them there is a lesson for our Christian life. The young Jewish woman Mary of Nazareth stands out. Of this extraordinary woman, the following highlights:

On this parables Jesus explain: The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while people were sleeping his enemy came and sowed weed seeds among the wheat and went away, then he tells them the parable of the mustard seed. If we try to understand each one of these parables, most like we will get confused since Jesus was just explaining this comparison for us to explain the kingdom of heaven. Normally we look for God on the spectacular or in amazing moments, not in the small or insignificant. That’s why the people of that time were so difficult to see that the kingdom of God was present among them. This is not to far from the way we look now on day.

It’s not uncommon to hear people complain that we Catholics often fail in communicating our faith. Fair enough. We can and should improve there. But it’s interesting to notice that Jesus himself was implicitly accused by his disciples of a similar failure. This week in Matthew’s gospel they are perplexed that he speaks to the crowds in ambiguous parables. The Lord’s riddles leave many people more confused than before. He responds by pointing out that his parables have an intentional dual purpose: to hide (for some) and to reveal (for others) his Gospel: “Because knowledge of the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted” (Matthew 13:11). Is Jesus being unnecessarily difficult, obscurantist, or, worse, elitist?

A Blessed month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to all of you!

I just wanted to ask you to continue to pray for the major repair project of our Maze church. The construction company, Acme, has been doing a great job and so far, have not encountered any surprises - Praise God!

“Everyone who acknowledges me before others, I will acknowledge before my heavenly Father. But whoever denies me before others, I will deny before my heavenly Father.” (Mt 10:32,33) The ending words in today’s Gospel should not be taken lightly, especially considering all the transgressions against the true human values that we witness every day in these times.