I knew you then only by hearsay; but now, having seen you with my own eyes, I retract all I have said, and in dust and ashes I repent.
I understand Abraham. He lived in a pagan world. I sometimes feel my world is pagan. And then the Lord shows me the stars of the sky and I see His Glory in His creations. I see people trying to be good. Then there are others and they sadden me.
This last weekend we had a parish picnic at the school playground. It was full of young and old talking and sharing, eating and helping each other and a church people having good food and a good time. There were children playing games and parents enjoying the warm semi-fall day. I went to church on Saturday night and got up early on Sunday to help out in the kitchen. We had an overabundance of volunteers. There in my midst were the stars of Abraham in a pagan world, but at that picnic there were no pagans. Just little Abrahams.t
How do more Abrahams show up to crowd the pagans out? The answer is community. Jesus says in today’s Gospel from Luke spoke, ‘Every kingdom divided against itself is heading for ruin, and h household divided against itself collapses. In last Sunday’s picnic the community was together, but in the bar down the road there was no community only a gathering of people interested in themselves. Jesus also says, ‘He who is not with me is against me; and he who does not gather with me scatters. When community comes together magic happens.
Now our mission is to bring the scattered into the community of the faithful. My dad was a convert. He made my sister and I promise that we would make sure that our mom got to church. We did that. What about the lost souls that we work and play with together. There are thousands of dim stars in our universe. We can encourage them to shine by offering to bring them into our church. We may not always be successful but we will never know unless we try.
Jesus says, ‘He who is not with me is against me; and he who does not gather with me scatters. Make an offer to bring them into our faith communities. Brighten a star in Abrahams’s sky.
God Love You Always
Bob Burford
PS: Please Pray for Pope Leo XIV. Please Pray for Cancer victims and their caregivers. Pray for those in Hospice. Pray for the conversion of Russia and the salvation of the Ukrainian and Russian people and their soldiers. Pray for the Holy Land. The impossible could and can happen. (Saint Rita) Never deny God! P
ray for justice for all victims of human trafficking and immigrants! Pray for justice for our President and all government officials! Pray for Peace!
