Pastor's Letter

The Jesus Prayer

Building a Buildings Committee As we head into the 2020’s, and begin to realize our vision for what needs to be done to make our buildings more functional, I’ve realized how important it would be to relaunch a committee of parishioners with expertise in the building, architectural and design trades. They would share their advice, counsel and expertise about the work we know we need to do.  Our Parish Pastoral Council and Finance Council thought it was a good idea, too.   We not only are ready to begin tackling the building improvements that we outlined in the 2020 Vision campaign, but we also want to ensure we take a good look at our campus to help anticipate future maintenance.  We want to budget properly and take good care of the buildings and property that we use every day of the year to do the work of the gospel.   We already have a few parishioners who have the desire to help, but there may be someone in our community who has the background and would find sitting on this committee a meaningful way to share their talent.   We’re planning to launch the committee at a meeting on Wednesday, November 6 at 7:00 PM in the Parish Ministry Center.  If you feel this is something you’d like to participate in, I’d be blessed to talk with you more about it.  Please give me a call or email me.    Thanks for considering it!

In the parable we’ll hear today, the moral is about having the right attitude when we pray.  Every parable has a twist.  This one has to do with the people praying.  The Pharisee, a man who would have been respected as a man of faith, brags (to God!) about his holiness.  Not good.  The Tax Collector, a man who was publically known as a person who cheats people out of their earnings, simply confesses he’s a sinful man.
 
In the end, God loves the prayer of the sinful man, not the religious man.  God loves honesty.  He’d rather we go to him with a pure heart, revealing all that is good and wrong in our life, than to try to elevate our self-worth all the way to heaven. 
 
As people of faith, we’re growing to be more like Christ. We’ll never do that unless we live inside the truth.  A daily examination of conscience is a great tool in the prayer life—especially the Ignatian method where we look back at the day to recognize God’s blessings but also the ways we have sinned.  It ends with a desire to start again and to try not to repeat those things that negatively affect our relationship with God or others.
 
Another great spiritual tool is the Jesus Prayer, which is an adaptation of the tax collector’s prayer in Jesus’ parable.  For centuries, Catholics have taken the words of the tax collector and prayed them as a mantra: “Lord Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” 
 
Here’s how the prayer technique works.  Allow for some quiet time where you can relax.  Close your eyes, and begin to concentrate on your breathing.  As you breathe in, breath in the first part of the prayer: “Lord Jesus, Son of God.”  In this part of the prayer we’re breathing in Christ into our being.  As you exhale, pray the second part, “have mercy on me, a sinner.”  At that point we’re breathing out anything sinful within us.  And then simply repeat the mantra until you feel your prayer is completed.
 
It’s a simple prayer and a simple practice, but can bring great peace.  Jesus seems to love simplicity, like the simplicity that comes with the faith of little children.  The most meaningful things in life usually aren’t too complicated.
 
May God continue to strengthen us as a community of faith,
 
--Fr. Mike