I believe it was no coincidence that while I was enjoying some fun and frivolity in Los Angeles and Orange County this past week I was also reading an article by Dominican Father Michael Sherwin on the meaning of “happiness.” Here I am trapped in this mass of humanity, amazed by the sheer amount of activity, blasted by sensory overload in a world where there is no shortage of pleasure and fun, and I am haunted by this question because of his article – “What does it mean to be happy?” Let me start with a great quote from the philosopher Immanuel Kant in Sherwin’s article: “Making a person happy is quite different from making him or her good.” A morally good person often suffers in their fidelity to the good, while the immoral person is often content in their immorality. Is happiness merely the absence of pain, then, and the seeking of pleasure? If so, why do I feel so unfulfilled standing in front of Walt and Mickey right now in this fantasy land called Disney? Happiness defined as pleasure is purely subjective – what is satisfying me now may not satisfy me later. Of course for the Christian, happiness is not merely the replacement of pain with pleasure, because we know that we can find great joy in suffering for a noble cause, or offering an act of beautiful generosity that calls forth from us some little or great sacrifice. This can bring with it pain…and yet I feel joy, in fact a greater joy than just fleeting happiness. True happiness consists in judging the things of this world correctly and in rightly ordering our desires with respect to them. There are many objectively good reasons for being unhappy in this life – like sickness and death – therefore, if ultimate happiness (joy) is possible, it must be something we can only fully attain in the next life. And that points to our need for salvation. Salvation and redemption in Christ are what make eternal happiness possible, and so the discovery of Christ as the way to fulfillment casts our natural desire for happiness in this life in a new light. In our Gospel today, four times Jesus tells us not to worry. Happiness is accepting that our Father in heaven knows what we need.

Fr. Morgan

Challenges always arise; you cannot get away from them no matter how hard you try. As soon as you put one fire out another ignites, e.g. I thought I had tackled the challenge of Fr. Morgan for the week by sending him to California (ha!), but sure enough other challenges have arisen. I am mindful of a homily given by a very old and wise priest from my seminary days; he said in his weary but fiery voice “You think it will get easy, easy! It will never get easy, not until your dead. Then it will get easy!” This wise old priest is speaking from 85 years of experience; the struggle of life is just that, lifelong. It is not over when you’re done with high school, college, raising a family/ living out your vocation, neither is it when you retire. In this life, it will never get easy. Only in heaven will we be free of all challenges. While we live we struggle. While we live we are the iron in the fire being perfected. God calls us to be perfect as He is perfect in today’s Gospel reading. He helps us grow in perfection, by either giving us challenges or just allowing challenges. The toughest challenge of all though is trying to follow God’s Laws, amidst life’s turmoil. Life’s challenges give us opportunities to choose to follow God when it is tough, anyone can choose God when it is easy. Let us not see challenges as obstacles to our perfection, but opportunities to grow in perfection. Opportunities to choose God and His commands.

In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Shaun Haggerty

P.S. The Sacraments are the powerful graces God gives to us help us choose him in pain and suffering. As I told those seeking the Sacrament of Confirmation last week, this Sacrament will help you to endure suffering with Christ. Seek the Sacraments.

As you know, I have just returned from my annual eight day silent retreat. In returning, it is with a new energy and zeal that fills me with greater love for you. I prayed for you on retreat daily that God would protect you and help you trust Him more fully. It is with great joy now that I return to you. Thank you for your prayers for me, please know they made my retreat the second best retreat of my life!

What made my retreat so special was the same thing that makes St. Valentine’s Day so special, LOVE! Love makes the world go round, sounds corny but it is true. Jesus tells us in the Gospel of John “Love one another as I have loved you”. If we are to love like Jesus, then love is to envelop our all actions, we must be motivated by love. “God shows his love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 God’s love for us is selfless. He did not die for us because we did something for him; he died because he has selfless love for us. The love of Valentine’s day is to be selfless, to offer oneself in vulnerability to one’s beloved. It is not, about what I can get, how I can feel loved, or get my fantasies fulfilled; forget yourself! Rather think of the other and how you can let the other know your love them. The best way to let them to know of your love for them is to let them know who you really are; don’t be afraid to lose yourself. For then you will find yourself and become who God has called you to be. For you will be perfected in love, that love which casts out all fear. Have courage!

This coming weekend we will have a SEARCH Retreat for our young adults, I ask that you pray for them, that they would encounter the great love of God for them, so that they can turn and love others with that same love.

In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Shaun Haggerty

Isaiah the prophet wrote that we are called to share our bread with the hungry, to shelter the homeless, and to clothe the naked. Around eight hundred years after Isaiah’s death, Christ told His disciples that we are to share our bread with the hungry, to shelter the homeless, and to clothe the naked. Two thousand years after Christ suffered, died, and rose from the dead, what God desires and what the Church teaches has not changed. When Christ returns to the Earth again, He will want to know if we have fed the hunger, sheltered the homeless, and clothed the naked. What is virtuous to do in the eyes of God has not changed and will not change because God does not change.

Christ made Peter the rock on which He would build His Church; therefore, we have an unchanging rock against which the gates of Hell will not prevail. Christ knew that we would need help and guidance to do His Father’s will and not our will. Having the humility to follow what our Catholic Church teaches will lead us to the unchanging and eternal love that is the Trinity.

Deacon Tom Bates

There is much celebration here! This is Catholic Schools week, and we just Confirmed 86 young people! In celebrating these events we honor not just the students, but also their teachers in the faith. Without Catholic teachers there would be no Catholic School. Without teachers in the faith there would be no Confirmation. Obviously, the Holy Father, Bishops, and priests are the primary educators to us all in the faith, as they are commissioned by Jesus himself to Teach, Govern, and Sanctify. However, on the micro level the primary teachers in the faith for children are not the priests, school teachers, or religious education teachers but the parents. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states, “Parents have the first responsibility for the education of their children (CCC 2223)” and “Education in the faith by the parents should begin in the child’s earliest years. This already happens when family members help one another to grow in faith by the witness of a Christian life in keeping with the Gospel. Family catechesis precedes, accompanies, and enriches other forms of instruction in the faith (CCC 2226).”

Thank you parents for raising your children in the faith.

For those parents who are surprised at their responsibility, I ask you, what are you doing to impart the Catholic faith to your children? Let me offer a few suggestions: Teach them while they are young! Teach them by your example (Go to Mass every Sunday, regular Confession, daily Prayer, acts of love and forgiveness, get your marriage validated if not already, etc.)! Teach them how to pray! Teach them there are consequences for their actions, eternal consequences!

Parents, God has entrusted to you the awesome responsibility and the privilege to raise your little ones to be children of God and have eternal life in heaven. Thank you for not failing God.

In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Shaun Haggerty

The celebrations keep piling up at this time of the year. That’s a good thing. If the Christian life is about conversion and renewal, how fitting that we celebrate all these glorious solemnities together – Christmas, the Holy Family, Mary the Mother of God, and now the Feast of the Epiphany. I want to take this opportunity to thank you, my Holy Spirit family, for all your kindness and generosity shown towards me and Fr. Haggerty this Christmas season. Your care and concern for us never ceases to amaze me. We especially appreciate all your support and prayers, for without them, we would be without direction. And that’s the real message this Epiphany…to allow ourselves to be guided by grace, as much as the Magi were guided to the Newborn King by a star. There is a great old saying attributed to St. Augustine: “Where there is Peter, there is the Church; and where there is the Church, there is Christ.” Let’s not be afraid to be open to guidance and direction in our lives from those who care about us, certainly; yet more significantly, open to the guidance and direction that comes to us from the Church with the Holy Spirit as its star. Today, we offer the Newborn King gifts…the most important is the gift of ourselves.

Happy 2011!

Fr. Morgan & Rudy

There are always images from the past that etch indelible marks on our memories. When it comes to Christmas, I am transported back in time to Holy Cross parish, kneeling at the communion rail in front of the crèche, the Nativity scene. The statues of the Holy Family and shepherds are both ancient and contemporary, the manger and crib are homemade. It wouldn’t be complete without the straw, which always made the scene so real. We would kneel down at the rail and say a prayer to Mary, the Babe and St. Joseph, and then drop a coin in the glass dish that sat on the ledge. We were children of God at that moment, brothers and sisters of the Child Jesus. As children of God we inherit some glorious spiritual DNA: creativity, goodness, holiness, love of justice and truth, and peace and unity; the desire to save and not to condemn; the urge toward life and what sustains life, not those things that destroy and kill. As children of God we are blessed with vital and hopeful possibilities. But they remain only possibilities unless we embrace, cultivate, and apply them. On this Holy Family Sunday, we are reminded as children of God, we need to always be about the business of the Lord. What made Jesus, Mary and Joseph a Holy Family is that they cooperated with God’s will all along the way. Let us dedicate our children back to God, and consecrate our families to Mary’s care, so that we might know the Father’s will for our families.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Fr. Morgan

When Amy Nightingale and I were discussing LIFETEEN, our new program for high school religious education and youth ministry starting second semester, she said it best by pointing to the real reason for ministry: “Father, we need to let our parents and kids know that faith is not just gathering information about God, but it also involves a transformation of the heart.” Indeed, that is what we hope to accomplish with LIFETEEN at Holy Spirit Parish, to “lead the person more deeply into the mystery of Christ and develop a personal relationship with Him.” LIFETEEN is authentically Catholic. It employs the two primary sources, 1. Sacred Scripture, 2. The Catechism of the Catholic Church, as its curriculum, and uses these sources to meet the young person where they are and connect them to the person of Christ. There are “vehicles” that provide a number of connecting points in the program. The first, and most obvious, is the “Eucharist” or “Holy Mass.” Without this most important liturgical act given to us by Christ Himself, everything else is moot. Parents, you need to be at Mass…and you need to bring your teens with you. The second vehicle is “people.” Teens do not connect to programs; they connect to people. And this is where we need YOU. The more adult volunteers who step forward (men too, please…we always hear from the women), the more we will help our teens grow in their faith. The most effective way to influence teens is through a significant relationship with key people in their lives. We want to help you, parent, walk the journey to Christ together with your son and/or daughter. After people, “format” becomes an important vehicle. And this is where there is a considerable change from the current model. Food, activities, large and small group presentations, sacramental preparation (for confirmation candidates) and music are at the core of the “doing” on Wednesday nights. Gone, will be the classroom atmosphere that has accompanied so much of religious education up to this point. There will still be some classes, in the case of sacramental preparation for sure, but everything begins in the large group context and flows from it. And there is more…. But the point that I want to get across in this letter is that it is you, the parishioner, who can really help us succeed at what we are trying to accomplish as a parish with regards to our youth. No one will argue with the fact that we want the best for our young people…so why wouldn’t we do everything in our power to see that they have a real, profound and lasting experience of God in their lives. It’s a matter of eternal life.

Blessings,

Fr. Morgan

Today is called “Gaudete Sunday.” It literally means “Rejoice Sunday.” We are at the halfway mark to Christmas. One thing is certain: Christians are not a people of gloom and doom. We are called to proclaim the “good news,” not the “bad news.” In a world which cannot rise above despair, we must be a people of hope and joy. Christian joy, however, is not the same thing as holiday cheer. The holiday cheer will leave us empty and unfulfilled at some point. But Christian joy is grounded in the eternal promises of God as found in the person of Jesus Christ, and we experience this joy no matter the trials or tribulations that have damaged our psyches – perhaps not outwardly we are joyful, but for sure inwardly. Sort of like the Whos in Whoville after the Grinch had stolen their Christmas. They still possessed that “internal joy” to bring in Christmas with the confidence and reassurance that there was more to it than what meets the eye. Mere happiness, on the other hand, is fleeting and temporal. It can actually lead us to despair, rather than to hope.

Does our joy ebb and flow according to the tide of earthly bene- fits? Do pleasure, possessions, prominence, prestige, reputation, comfort and fulfillment or our ambitions propel us to happiness? If they do, our joy will ebb and flow according to the shifting tides of life. But if our joy is tied to the progress of the Gospel, it will never diminish. With two weeks to go, let’s fix our hearts on the progress of the Gospel…and our joy will be con- stant.

Fr. Morgan

This Coming Wednesday, December 8th, is the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception a

HOLY DAY OF OBLIGATION!

Time to celebrate! In the seminary whenever we had a solemnity it was party time. No classes, sleep in, have good food, play games and of course, have some extra prayer. We basically lived life for a day without worrying about our daily responsibilities. What a needed break!

In celebrating the Immaculate Conception, we celebrate the fact that the blessed Virgin Mary was without sin (immaculate) from the very first moment she was conceived in the womb of her mother Anne. This was a special privilege granted her by God, because she would bear his Son Jesus. To help celebrate this great day, I bought 2,000 medals of Mary that say in Italian “O Mary Conceived without sin pray for us” (I bought them in Rome) I got these blest by Pope Benedict, and I brought them to the city of Paris where the Virgin Mary herself asked to have this medal struck. She spoke to Sr. Catherine Laboure in 1830 to have this medal struck, she told Sr. Catherine, “Have a medal struck on this model; the persons who will wear it will receive great graces, especially if they wear it around the neck. These graces will be abundant for those who wear it with confidence.” Graces have certainly been given in abundance for those who wear it, for it is now known as the “Miraculous Medal”. So many miracles have happened for those who wear it with confidence, that it is impossible to keep count. I suggest you wear one with confidence asking the Virgin Mary to pray for you in whatever struggle you have. May she assist this Advent season, as she has assisted so many. See you this Wednesday!

(Look further in the Bulletin for the exact Mass times).


In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Shaun Haggerty

P.S. One amazing miracle of the medal, is the body of Sr. Catherine now Saint Catherine. After she died, her body remained incorrupt. She still looks as beautiful as she did when she died in 1876. You can see her body in Paris at the Chapel where she first saw the Virgin Mary, amazing.

St. Paul reminds us, “It is the hour now for you to awake from sleep.” Advent is upon us, and we are to prepare ourselves for the coming of Christ. He has come to us in all humility as a little new-born child in a cave that was used as a barn to stable animals. To be humble and poor as we prepare to celebrate His birth is to imitate Him. Christ will come again not as a vulnerable little baby but in His glory as the King of Kings with all of His an- gels. He will judge all of the living and the dead.

We are called to be as humble as Christ was humble when He first came to us so that when He returns a second time that He will welcome us into the everlasting joy of singing the praises of the Most Holy Trinity with all the angels of Heaven. The way of humility is know that we were created by God to love God with all of our being and to love our neighbors as ourselves.

Deacon Tom Bates

Last week while I was home, my mother and I talked about the impact of celebrity status and how our culture disparately rewards celebrity status in comparison with persons who pursue noble professions. A stark example would be the NBA basketball player who gains fame and fortune for simply putting a ball through a hoop versus the obscure school teacher who is given the daunting task of educating our young and instilling the values that carry them into adulthood. Things seem backwards, don’t they? Who is the real celebrity here? The Gospel on this Christ the King Sunday is so appropriate: A lowly man makes the 11th-hour acquaintance of the most valuable celebrity of all, the Lord Jesus Christ, the true celebrity who doesn’t count celebrity status as something to be grasped. We are reminded this last weekend in Ordinary Time that in His Kingdom there is no disparity; all is as it should be. And so we prepare for His Coming that we may be counted among His subjects.

Blessings,
Fr. Morgan & Rudy

Fr. Morgan is Gone! Party at the Rectory! Sounds like Fun, and he will never know, but is it a good idea? Our first reading from the prophet Malachi says, “Lo, the day is coming, blazing like an oven, when all the proud and all the evildoers will be stubble, and the day that is coming to set them on fire”. If we sin we must eventually pay for it. Even if it is secret, even if Fr. Morgan does not know, God knows. Everything will be revealed on the “day of judgment” and we will have to give an account for our actions or inactions. Is it a good idea, some passing worldly pleasure, traded for eternal bliss, that which “eye has not seen nor ear heard”? Would you sell your soul for a glass of water? Of course not! As the liturgical year winds down and we approach the great Solemnity of Christ the King to conclude it, let us not forget that our time on earth will surely end as well. When it ends, we will stand before the King of all the Ages, Christ the King, and we must give an account of our life; how did we use our time, treasure and talent. Let us then live a life that is worthy of our calling. Then at the end of our days, we will not be burned up like stubble, rather we will hear those most beautiful words, “welcome my good and faithful servant enter into your master’s joy”.
In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Shaun Haggerty

P.S. Something to think about: When you die, will you wish you had watched more TV and surfed more internet, or that you had prayed more? Let’s start living like we’re dying.

We know that the gift of faith and religious belief helps us to attain life in the afterlife, but have you ever thought how much faith and religious belief helps us get through this one? Take our First Reading today from 2 Maccabees: The sons of a brave mother face death rather than relinquish their traditions. Our Psalmist calms our trepidations with the comforting words, “No matter how bleak the situation, when God appears, joy is restored in full.” And finally in our Second Reading, Paul tells the Thessalonians that “Through Jesus, God is the source of everlasting encouragement and deliverance.” Religion and faith help us to cope with adversity. For example, people who practice religion live longer on the average than those who don’t. One reason for this is that they tend to be healthier because they’re more likely to face up to addictive behaviors. Religious believers are less likely to succumb to depression or commit suicide. They recover faster from illnesses; and they get over the death of a loved one faster. Irish journalist, David Quinn, says that one reason believers can cope better with adversity is because they have a source outside themselves to which they can turn, and that helps them to accept whatever is in store for them. “When all is lost, it allows them to accept that fact, not to rage against it, and to seek forgiveness for any wrong they may have done and therefore go to God in peace.” Religious belief allows us to hope against hope when the odds are stacked against us.

Have a great week! Ps. Rudy is home at last. Now Fr. Haggerty can walk him every day.

Blessings,
Fr. Morgan

I am truly grateful and delighted by all the well wishes I received on my birthday. Sorry I wasn’t present in person to receive them. And likewise, the many offerings of condolences and prayers I have received on the passing of my uncle, my mother’s brother, have brought great peace. Priests are human too. And so we experience the same feelings and emotions that accompany the death of a family member in the same way anyone else would. Most of you know that, and that’s why I am so grateful to be at Holy Spirit. You understand that we have good days and bad days just like anybody else. So, like any natural death, I shared with my family the feelings of both joy and sadness. Uncle Ed was a man of principle and conviction. He spent a year in the minor seminary at St. John’s in Collegeville for a year. After that he entered the Marine Corp and was a part of the army of occupation in the Philippines. He married later in life, and he and his wife adopted and raised two children. Ed always had a kind heart and a helping hand. He lived down the street from us in Ipswich, and after my father died would come down almost daily to make sure my mother had what she needed. I guess it was providential, then, that I spent my 52nd birthday celebrating his funeral Mass. It was a way to say “thank you” to Uncle Ed for all that he did for us. God has a way of ensuring that everything works together for His good, and the good of those who love Him. Amen

Blessings,
Fr. Morgan

Slow down! Acknowledge the gifts that have been given to you. Say thank you to God; not because he needs to hear it, but because we need to do it!

Jesus is upset in the Gospel reading today, not so much because he wanted the other nine lepers to recognize the good thing he did, but rather because the other nine lepers did not know how to properly say thank you. We need to know how to say thank you. As I have said it before, I will say it again; “the best way to say thank you to God the Father is through Jesus in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass”.

The lepers were healed and headed to the Levitical priests to do what? To have the priests offer atonement sacrifices on their behalf to God in accordance with the law. (Leviticus 13-14) However, one leper does not go to the priests, rather he goes to the source of all priesthood, Jesus Christ. In doing so this one leper offers the best atonement for his sin of leprosy and thanksgiving for being healed. Jesus is the true High priest who is our only mediator between God and Man, for he is the God-Man.

Let us offer our sacrifice of atonement and thanksgiving with Jesus in every Mass. Let us unite ourselves with him. We are his Body; let us not just tell God thank you in our room or as we travel, which is good. Rather, let us be like the sole leper; let us go to the source of the priesthood Jesus Christ. Through him we will make our perfect atonement and thanksgiving sacrifice. Through Him, With Him, and In Him, let us offer ourselves to the Father. This is true Eucharist, true thanksgiving.

In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Shaun Haggerty

How can I repay the LORD for all the good done for me? I will raise the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD” (Psalm 116:12, 13) What a wonderful blessed pilgrimage I had! Rome, Assisi, Paris, and Lisieux! So many holy places, such a closeness to the apostles and saints! I got to pray at the tombs of six of the apostles and many different saints. Saints such as St. Phillip Neri, St. Monica, St. Agnes, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Ignatius of Loyola, St. Francis Xavier, St. Francis of Assisi, St. Clare of Assisi, St. Catherine Laboure of the Miraculous Medal, St. Louise de Marilliac, St. Vincent de Paul, and last but certainly not least, one of my favorite saints, St. Therese of Lisieux. I cannot begin to be thankful to the Lord for the goodness he has given. The best way to give thanks is through the Eucharist, to offer it on the altar. To take up the chalice of the Lord and offer thanks to the Father through Jesus. I did do this very often as I celebrated Mass in so many holy places. Please know I kept you all in mind and prayed for you in my masses. I missed you and am now very excited to celebrate the Eucharist in your company to give thanks to God for all of you that we can be together again.

I am pleased to tell you that I did acquire Miraculous Medals for each of you. Blessed by the Holy Father himself and even taken to Paris where The Blessed Mother herself instructed St. Catherine Laboure to have the medal struck. I will be giving them out on the Solemnity and Holy Day of Obligation of the Immaculate Conception, December 8th. The medals are small enough that they will be a great addition to the scapular which so many of you were enrolled in last year on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.

The only thing that pains me in my return is of the many rumors that have been spreading about like venom, by a certain someone! Namely, the pastor of Holy Spirit Parish, I don’t dare speak his name. Though I am pained, I am suddenly consoled with today’s second reading where St. Paul tells Timothy, “bear your share of hardship for the gospel with the strength that comes from God.”

After praying with all the many saints in Italy and France I have renewed hope to become one. Having now returned I see it is very possible, as I bear many hardships with rumors that fly like the four winds and the source of which only God can impart mercy. Sainthood is not as hard to find as we may think.

In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Shaun Haggerty

At this time of the year, with the commencement of so many parish activities, I like to pause and count my blessings, and thank those who deserve all the credit. First, without the front office staff this parish could not function. Cheri Limoges, Mary Jones, Kathy Davis, Kathy Treadway and Barbara Anderson go above and beyond the call of duty to ensure all the preparations and operations go smoothly.

After observing initial classes on Wednesday evening, I am more than convinced that we have the best religious education team in the diocese. Amy Nightingale and Val Whitney have put together a religious ed program at Holy Spirit Parish second to none.

Divine Collision on Sunday evening may have been the collective brainstorm of youth ministers throughout the Sioux Falls area, but I can tell you that no one worked harder to make it a success than our youth director, Mark Nelson. I treasure Mark’s ambition to connect with youth at every level and take youth ministry at Holy Spirit up a notch.

Providing beautiful, heart lifting music at our Masses, while maintaining a liturgical decorum that adheres to church documents is no easy task. Nancy Syring and Shane Wuebben need to be commended for melding these into a common initiative at my bequest, and bringing together cantors, musicians and a choir that make the celebration of the Eucharist at Holy Spirit truly sacred and reverent.

We are now the largest private school – pre-K to 6th grade – in the state of South Dakota with 411 students to care for and educate. I don’t know how our principal Carol Loeffelholz does it, but she does it well. I extend hats off to her, and her faculty and staff for making Holy Spirit School one of the top Catholic Schools in the state.

Deacon Bates teaches regularly there and in our religious ed program, he has been a valuable asset to both. His visits to shut-ins, the hospital, nursing homes and assisted living facilities have changed the lives of many. When I thank him, I also must thank his wife Lois. Deacon and wife are one flesh in the vocation of marriage.

Last but not least, Mike Foster, Mary Collins and Bob Kloos work their tails off to keep our facilities clean, attractive, and functional. They deserve a big “thank you” from each and every one of us for their hard work.

We have much to be thankful for at Holy Spirit Parish. The next time you see anyone of our staff, even those I have not mentioned, stop and take the time to tell them just how grateful you are for their dedication and commitment to our parish.

Blessings,
Fr. Morgan

Labor Day is not a day of labor but of rest from labor. “All work and no play makes Johnny a dhal boy”, so the saying goes. Man was not made to work all day every day. God made the world in six days and rested on the seventh day, we need to rest too. The third commandment states, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work”(Exodus 20:8-10).

To work all the time is not good, we need to rest. Who knows how many marriages and relationship have been destroyed due to over working. God commands rest! We need to rest from time to time as we carry our Cross with Christ else it be too much. We need to glory in the power of the Resurrection on Sunday. We need to go off into the silence of prayer. This being said I will be taking a rest from the parish life from Sept 15th-26th. I held the fort down all summer while Fr. Morgan was gone on retreat, and now I need a rest. This will be my longest time away since I came in July of 2009, and I will miss you. If you are wondering where I am going, I will be making a pilgrimage to the Holy Places of Italy (Rome) and France (Northern France). I will be keeping you in my prayers as I visit these holy sites. I hope to bring back a Miraculous Medals for each of you. These Medals will be blessed by the Holy Father and placed at the site where the Medal was first revealed by the Blessed Virgin Mary to St. Catherine Laboure in 1830. We will see what happens. Oh and make Fr. Morgan work hard while I am gone.

In the Hearts of Jesus and Mary,

Fr. Shaun Haggerty