5th Sunday of Easter (Spiritual Stones, the ACA)
Two weekends ago, Father Pat Clark came here, paying a visit to his former parish. I’ve always enjoyed talking with him. He’s always curious about how things are going on here, and over the years has told me about his time as Pastor of St. Joseph, and all that he and the people of this parish did. He and those who worked closely with him, put tremendous energy toward the work that eventually led to the renovation of this building in 2000. In our conversations, Fr. Clark has remarked on how he appreciates the ways we've continued to beautify this building.
While beauty itself can be a matter of opinion, I'm among those who believe there's meaning and importance to beautifying the church where we worship. As you've surely heard me say, one way of understanding it is that it's a statement we make about God: that He is beauty, grace and majesty. It can be understood also, as an offering we make to God, a gesture of reverence; also, that in whatever way the Garden of Eden was marked by beauty and harmony, soothing to behold, we seek to make a place that is a reflection of that. But we also acknowledge that despite this meaning and importance, our church is still just a building; there's more to what it means to be Church, the people of God.
When Fr. Clark was here recently, he reminded me of where the stained glass of Saint Peter came from, the one in our narthex. You can recognize it's Saint Peter because of a few clues: first, the keys in his hand, keys to the Kingdom, given to him by Jesus (Mt 16); second, the papal tiara, worn by popes through the centuries, reminding us that Peter was the first pope; and finally, because of the building behind him, St. Peter’s Basilica, located in Rome, over Peter’s tomb. Any of you who have ever entered Saint Peter's Basilica have likely experienced how its massive size, its graceful lines and imagery steal your breath as you take it in.
It's from the First Letter of Peter that we heard in today’s second reading. It's commonly believed to have been written either by Peter himself, as given to a scribe, or to have been written by someone who worked closely with Peter. The letter was written to five different church communities, located throughout present day Turkey, written to Christians of both Jewish and Gentile origin.
Among the themes that mark this letter, as we hear today, Peter speaks of how baptism unites us to Jesus. With Jesus, the living stone, chosen and precious in the sight of God, we also, like living stones, are built into a spiritual house. Again, this is one way we understand what it means to be Church, that it’s comprised as the body of believers. But Peter also speaks of how baptism makes us into a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ, our high priest.
All this speaks to the purpose of the Annual Catholic Appeal. It always comes at this time of year. Just as Peter was speaking to several churches, we as an archdiocese are part of something beyond just our parish. It's one of the things that is meaningful and important about being part of a diocese: that we can pool our resources to do the work of Jesus, work that no parish alone could sufficiently do. So, there are numerous ministries that the Archdiocese of Seattle coordinates on our behalf, and our task, like all parishes, is to help support them. That’s what the Annual Catholic Appeal does.
So, to remind you, each parish, proportionate to its financial income, is given an amount, an assessment that is its share in support the ministries of the archdiocese. This year, our assessment is just over $120,000, which is just about what it was last year. I'm asking for you to contribute so that we can make our assessment, reminding you that if we fall short, our parish is responsible for making up the difference. Thanks to your generosity and responsiveness, this parish has never fallen short.
As you’ll recall, any amount above our assessment comes back to us as a rebate. We plan to use 10% of whatever comes back towards our Works of Mercy initiatives. The remainder will be used to improve the upstairs bathrooms in the church, which have not been touched since the remodel, 23 years ago.
I'd ask you to consider giving what amounts to a dollar a day: $365. Having said that, I realize that it might be a tough time for any of us, financially. If you can give a little more, please do so, but please give what you can to help us make our assessment, but ultimately, to together advance the work entrusted us by Jesus.
As Peter reminds us in his letter, we are living stones, together built into a spiritual house; we are part of the priesthood of the baptized, offering our sacrifices to God through Jesus Christ. May all the ways we contribute reveal that we are a people of his own, announcing the praises of him who called us out of darkness into his wonderful light.