Parent Teacher Talk
October 14, 2018
The Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mark 10: 17 - 30
Wisdom is a spiritual gift which
enables one to know the purpose and plan of God;
In the first reading, the author seeks only this Wisdom,
knowing that that will make him happy will come from
knowing and living this Wisdom.
The Psalmist prays for God to share His Wisdom, placing in us a desire for it and helping us see His Wisdom in our sufferings.
St. Paul's writings are a reminder of God's Omniscience (all knowing). He knows all that has, does, and will happen with every nanosecond of every person's life and He is active in those moments. Our every success and every stumble is known, as His angels walk with us, leading, protecting, and perhaps challenging us so that we best become saints.
To become saints is the reason we were created.
Jesus reveals the difference between knowledge and wisdom. The rich young man was following the letter of the law, but missed the point of having the law- to love God above all - which means to love all of His children as well and to not value possessions over God.
It was counter-cultural idea - wealth was a sign of God's blessings.
To give that wealth away required a great mind shift!
Jesus' words call to mind the saying, "Good things come to those who wait." Consider that God's "good things" are beyond our comprehension!
October
30 minutes Before Mass Every Saturday and Sunday - Join us to pray the Rosary
...............................................................
17th.............. Monthly Rosary in Church 6:30pm - Ask for Mary's guidance and intercession
18th.............. First Reconciliation Gathering with Fr. Bill, 6:30 pm in Parish Dining Hall
19th.............. Young Adult Group Social! See details below
21st............... Donut Sunday! Feed the body, feed the soul and enjoy fellowship! Information will also
...................... be available on opportunities for faith learning.
27th.............. Trunk or Treat in the Parish Parking Lot 5:30 pm
November
1st.................All Saint's Day - Thank all the patron saints of your family for their intercession
3rd................ Catechist Day of Reflection - Parish's free gift to Catechists (Watch for details!)
4th................ All Soul's Day Reception
4th................ Daylight Savings - Set your clocks back one hour - extra sleep!
10th - 11th... Christ Renews His Parish for Women
14th.............. First Reconciliation Celebration in Church, 7:00 pm
18th.............. RCIA Rite of Acceptance
21st............... Monthly Rosary - Ask Mary to help you see all for which we should be grateful
22nd............. Thanksgiving Day
25th.............. NO PSR - Thanksgiving Break
December
1st................ 8th Grade Confirmation Retreat - Jesuit Spiritual Center in Milford 8:45 am
2nd.............. Advent Begins! How will you prepare your soul to rejoice in God taking on humanity?
..................... Baptism Preparation class for those wanting to baptize their expected or present child
18th............. STM Christmas Musical
19th............. Monthly Rosary - 6:30 pm in Church - Seek Mary's intercession to prepare the hearts of your family for the incredible event of God becoming man so that He could save our souls for heaven!
23rd & 30th No PSR - Christmas break!


NEWSY NOTES
Join your fellow parishioners for
Coffee and Donuts
after Mass
October 21, 2018!
Meditation
In this, then, we ought to be all of one mind, so that,
according to apostolic teaching, we may all say the same thing, and
that there be no divisions among us. "
― Saint Callistus
Greetings Parents,

 Happy October, an extra month of summer it seems. While we didn’t expect winter jackets, by now I think we expected the air conditioning could stay off – at least at night. The smell of fall is one of my favorite things, but the leaves on our trees remain stubbornly green. Perhaps this is all to build the anticipation of fall festivities and relief from the humidity. Nature is ever unpredictable!
 
As natural disasters happen, my children sometimes ask, “Why does God not stop that?” Any suffering is hard to reconcile with God as a loving parent. We have at times grown vegetables in our garden. During one year, circumstances led us to be “bad gardeners” and our tomato plants became diseased. I asked my boys if we should blame God. They recognized that our poor gardening habits led to the poor crop. Pondering further, we realized that other poor choices led to the circumstances that hindered our gardening goals. The children’s forgotten or ignored requests created more work for Mom and Dad that initially seemed minor. Forgetting to move laundry from the washer to the dryer required the load to be re-washed. Having this happen multiple times delayed completing chores, multiple times. More serious were roughhousing “accidents” creating the need for time-consuming home repairs. Many small arguments over minor decisions eventually ate up hours as well. 
 
These actions were initially unrelated to the garden, but their consequences affected it nonetheless. We can help our children understand that in a similar way, humanity was given stewardship, responsibility for the care, of Creation. Every good or poor act nurtures or harms Creation to some degree. God created all of Creation to be in harmony, but we broke that harmony. Natural disasters are natural consequences of choices made in the past and that we make each day – to build the Kingdom of God or to walk away from it. 
 
The Good News, though is that God is active in helping everyone during the disasters. To eliminate the disaster might be like stopping someone from feeling pain when another hits them. If a bad act's consequences are always miraculously eliminated, how do we learn to change our actions and intents? God also helps us grow in strength and wisdom, becoming better people, through our trials. He assists others through our example and aid for them. Some ask, “How can we believe in God with so much suffering in the world?” Others respond, “How can we not believe in God when we see so many people in their darkest and most painful moments stepping out of their pain to do good to others, both strangers and friends?” 

Hug your gifts from God tight and ask their Guardian Angel's help in raising them. May God bless you and your family abundantly!

- Linda Bader, CRE, St. Thomas More
Articles for Parents
While the macabre of many Halloween celebrations might be at odds with our Catholic faith, the holiday itself has Catholic roots - and can be celebrated in costume, even a scary one! - without compromising our souls. Learn the truth at the button below.
Every person is so important to God that He has assigned to each a guardian of great holiness, power, and love. They will walk with us to our judgment and console us should we spend time in Purgatory. They will share heaven with us - but must separate from us if our choices lead us to hell.

The gift of a constant, loving, holy, companion is a treasure that everyone should know about and with whom we should engage. Please share with your children!!
One can find a rising and falling of evil throughout history, noting when times seemed "worse" or "better." At our current time, evil appears to be truly on the rise, encouraged by the increasing number of people renouncing belief in God or engaging in "spiritual" activities separate from a faith, like the occult. I

On the rise are concrete experiences of supernatural activity requiring the intervention of an exorcists. Read more at the link below.