Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Dear Parishioners,
Ecumenical activity has been an important focus of the Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council. Sometimes there is a misunderstanding concerning what this is all about. We might think that this just means that we are tolerant of people who have faith, but are not Catholic. That is part of the story. But ecumenism means something else as well. It means that we attempt to bring all the Christian Churches together through dialogue so that reconciliation may occur and that we all might be one as Jesus wanted (John 17:21).
One of the earliest dialogues that occurred after the council and is ongoing is the dialogue between Lutherans and Catholics. There has been a real attempt to bring our two churches back together. Many Theological agreements have come about between the two churches and documents have been written, but there is ignorance in both churches about all of this. We just have not heard about it.
Last year the Roman Catholic priests of Moline and the Lutheran Pastors of Moline came together and we began to talk about having an observance of the 500th anniversary of beginning of the Reformation. Notice I did not say celebration. This was an upsetting time in the history of Christianity for everyone. The clergy of seven churches in Moline agreed that we would work together to bring about better understanding between Catholics and Lutherans.
To that end, we will be having this observance on the weekend of October 14th and 15th. On October 14th, there will be a joint work project sponsored by Lutherans and Catholics. Homes will be repaired for the poor under the direction of Habitat for Humanity. This will involve a set number of volunteers from each congregation. We will have more information about this later.
On October 15th, there will be a joint observance of the beginning of the Reformation. It will start at St. Mary parish (The oldest Catholic Parish in Moline) at 4 p.m. Pastor Lowell Almen, who is stationed in Phoenix, Arizona, and Fr. Michael Schaab, retired pastor of St. Pius X parish in Rock Island, will make presentations concerning the Catholic and Lutheran dialogue that has happened at the national and international level the past fifty years. Pastor Almen has been intimately involved in this dialogue. Fr. Schaab is known for being very dedicated to ecumenical activities.
After these presentations, which will last about an hour, those attending will march to the First Lutheran Church in Moline (The oldest Lutheran congregation in town). There we will have a joint prayer service where we will pray for unity and then there will be light refreshments. This will also take about an hour.
This should be a wonderful and historic event in our community. Everyone is invited to attend. I encourage everyone to place the October 15th date on your calendar. Our parish council is once again implementing a part of our strategic plan. In that document, which we are implementing piece by piece, there was a desire expressed for greater interaction with other churches and the community at large. No one has to tell us how divided our country is. This event should be a sign of unity among Christians who seek mutual understanding. I encourage all people of good will to come and participate. More information will be shared as it becomes available.
Blessings,
Fr. Mark
P.P.S. Next Sunday we will be having September Fest. This will be an opportunity for our parish to get together to build community. There will be “free” food, games and fun. We will also have a display from our archives that remembers all those who have served at the altar at our parish. This will be a walk down memory lane for many of our parishioners. I hope that everyone can come after the 11 a.m. Mass and have a time of leisure. What better way to spend a beautiful Autumn afternoon. I would like to thank our social committee in advance for all their hard work preparing for this day.