stewardship
How Are You Called To Serve?
2nd Sunday Of Lent
Fr. Mark Gatto
Preached: March 5, 2023
“This is my Son, the Beloved: listen to him.” The experience of the Transfiguration gave the disciples the courage and the hope to continue the mission of Jesus in building up the Church.
St. Catherine of Siena was also someone who experienced the transfiguration in her life. Through her deep union with Jesus, her love for Jesus, she was led to be courageous and to listen to the voice of Jesus calling her to serve and build up the Church. An experience of Jesus, the Beloved Son of God, leads us to listen to him and to serve in building up the Church.
How are you called to serve? As Catholics, we are called to live within community. We are not individualistic, not just doing my own thing with no consideration of the common good. We have the best chance of being faithful and free if we remain connected to a community. For most of us one Catholic community we belong to is our parish.
This weekend we are having a Stewardship focus to reflect on ways that we live and serve within our St. Catherine of Siena Parish. It is the union of two former parishes and some time this year we will be moving in to a new church. But, a parish is not a building. It is the local body of Christ, it is the gathering of the People of God. A parish is as vibrant and alive as the members of that parish.
Today you received a Stewardship reflection sheet on the way into the church. The front has a saying called, “This is My Parish.” Let us say it together. It highlights that each of us is called to look at how we serve in building up our parish.
\We are to reflect on how we contribute to our parish financially in our Sunday offering. Each of us should review what we contribute and see if I could offer even a bit more. But, today I am not focused on financial contributions. Rather, we are looking at our various ways of serving as a member of this parish.
This includes many of our seniors who are shut-ins and unable to come to the church. I know that many of them serve our parish by their prayers. Each of us should make an effort to pray for our parish. Those shut-ins praying are a great foundation of our parish.
Young children are also a great gift to the parish. Though they may be too young to do anything in service, just by their presence among us on Sunday, they are a reminder of Jesus telling us that we need to be like children to enter the Kingdom of God.
I now encourage all of you to reflect on ways you want to serve in our parish, especially as we prepare to enter our new church building. Let us walk through this Stewardship Pamphlet together. ( Where are you called to serve?
My favourite quote from St. Catherine of Siena is the following: “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” St. Catherine is a great model for each of us. Follow God’s plan for you. If you do that you will make a real difference in the world.
Listen in your heart to Jesus calling you to serve and build up the Church. How are you called to serve?
Free To Serve
1st Sunday Of Lent
Fr. Mark Gatto
Preached: February 26, 2023
Jesus was truly free. In overcoming the temptations in the desert, Jesus was remaining free. Jesus was not a slave to the need to have power over others, not a slave to the opinions of others, not a slave to wealth, money and possessions.
St. Catherine of Siena was also someone who was truly free. Her deep union with Jesus, her love for Jesus, led her to be courageous, to be utterly free. Jesus and St. Catherine were free in the true sense of being free. Not free to do what they wanted in a selfish way. They were free to love, free from being controlled by the opinions of others and free to give their life for the sake of others. They were free to serve.
Are you free to serve? As Catholics, we are called to live within community. We are not individualistic, not just doing my own thing with no consideration of the common good. We have the best chance of being faithful and free if we remain connected to a community. For most of us one Catholic community we belong to is our parish.
This weekend we are having a Stewardship focus to reflect on ways that we live and serve within our St. Catherine of Siena Parish. It is the union of two former parishes and some time this year we will be moving in to a new church. But, a parish is not a building. It is the local body of Christ, it is the gathering of the People of God. A parish is as vibrant and alive as the members of that parish.
Today you received a Stewardship reflection sheet on the way into the church. The front has a saying called, “This is My Parish.” Let us say it together. It highlights that each of us is called to look at how we serve in building up our parish.
\We are to reflect on how we contribute to our parish financially in our Sunday offering. Each of us should review what we contribute and see if I could offer even a bit more. But, today I am not focused on financial contributions. Rather, we are looking at our various ways of serving as a member of this parish.
This includes many of our seniors who are shut-ins and unable to come to the church. I know that many of them serve our parish by their prayers. Each of us should make an effort to pray for our parish. Those
shut-ins praying are a great foundation of our parish.
Young children are also a great gift to the parish. Though they may be too young to do anything in service, just by their presence among us on Sunday, they are a reminder of Jesus telling us that we need to be like children to enter the Kingdom of God.
I now encourage all of you to reflect on ways you want to serve in our parish, especially as we prepare to enter our new church building. Let us walk through this Stewardship Pamphlet together. ( Where are you called to serve?
My favourite quote from St. Catherine of Siena is the following: “Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.” St. Catherine is a great model for each of us. Follow God’s plan for you. If you do that you will make a real difference in the world.
You will become truly free as Jesus was free. Be free like Jesus, be free like St. Catherine of Siena. Be free to serve.
Be Part Of A Great Story
23rd Sunday In Ordinary Time
Fr. Mark Gatto
Preached: September 8, 2019
Do you hate your father and mother, your spouse and children, your brothers and sisters, your life itself? Jesus speaking to potential disciples says, “Whoever comes to me and does not hate their father and mother, spouse and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and ever their life itself, cannot be my disciple.”
What is Jesus saying? When we put Jesus first, put God first, then everyone else and everything else can be loved in a right way. We do not own anything or anyone, not even our own life. Everything and everyone in our life is gift, we do not possess them. When we put God first then we can love everyone else in a way that is rooted in gratitude, in a healthy way.
We are all part of a great story. As human beings we are part of the story of creation. Beginning perhaps 14 billion years ago with what scientists speak of as the Big Bang. The beginning of the universe that is continuing to expand in our own time. About 4 billion years ago life began to form on this planet Earth gradually evolving till we human beings came to exist.
This story of creation is rooted in a passionate act of love, God creating in a mystery of love. We are all created in this mystery and continue to be part of this great story of creation. As Christians and members of the Church, we are also part of the great story of this God coming among us in Jesus.
As Jesus selected disciples and apostles, as he taught and healed, as he came to his death on the Cross and revealed the Resurrection. Two thousand years ago a Church came into existence. It has continued to be the Body of Christ throughout the ages.
Through various empires, kingdoms, governments. Facing persecution and scandal. Bringing holiness through holy people, through Saints. You and I are part of that story. We continue that long and incredible story today. Living as part of this Christian story does not happen in some abstract, private way. It is lived out in the world in a communal way.
We all live it out within community. For most of us it is within a community that we call a Parish. For most of us here today, that parish is St. Catherine of Siena Parish, with two historic parishes of Corpus Christi and Our Lady of Lourdes. Soon we hope to begin the construction of a new building to be the gathering place for this parish.
But, we are not just about putting up a church building. We are to form a living church, a community of faith, the body of Christ in this area. Such a living community of faith requires all of us to work together, to serve together, to pray together. It is expressed each weekend when we gather to celebrate the Eucharist.
At this time I want to encourage all of us to review how we serve and build up our parish. One simple basic way that you build up this parish is by your presence to pray here at the Eucharist. But, any community, like any family, requires people to serve in various ways.
This weekend at Corpus Christi and next weekend at Our Lady of Lourdes we will be asking all parishioners to review how you are called to serve this parish. There is a flyer in the bulletin and available at the entrances and it will be on our web site. I encourage each of you to review this flyer in a spirit of prayer during this coming week. Then sign up to serve in some way if possible.
Review the Stewardship Flyer HERE.