From Fr. McGuire:
I write this to you on yet another overcast autumn day. We seem to have a lot of them anymore, don’t we?! God’s holy Will be done. Last Sunday in Milwaukee it was one of those mornings when the clouds were so gray and so thick and low that it seemed even the sun forgot to wake up. It was, as I recollect, a bit rainy at times and the temperature was only in the mid to upper fifties. What I found quite amazing though, is that the jet stream often falls between Milwaukee and somewhere in Illinois. On that Sunday it must have fallen right between Milwaukee and Chicago because the difference in weather was significant! By the time I got to Chicago on my way to a mission in Effingham (Chicago is only an hour and twenty minutes drive from Milwaukee) the sun had decided to come out and it was eighty degrees! God is wonderful in His works, as Scripture tells us.
Fr. McKenna, who is in the northern missions now, said that Autumn must have missed North Dakota. In Powers Lake, where he was saying holy Mass, it was 33° and snowing! To make matters worse, he had a flat tire. We jokingly attributed it to “Little Sis” St. Therese. This playful saint loves her priest-brothers and often, so it seems, likes to play little “pranks” on us. Perhaps she is just sending us opportunities to imitate her by offering little sacrifices to the divine Infant. It’s the little things that count!
Today is Rosary Sunday. This great feast is great reminder that we Catholics need to be faithful to our Rosary—especially the family Rosary. No matter how busy we get there’s always time to do part of it at least! St. Alphonsus, even towards the end of his life
when he was quite ill, was frequently seen praying his beads. Once, an assistant of his said that he would not be obliged to do so many prayers as weak as the saint’s health was. St. Alphonsus’ response was to the point: “My friend, I fear for my salvation if I should miss even one single Rosary.” The saints show us how important and helpful the Rosary is toward our sanctification. Oh! Don’t worry if you get distracted easily. Even St. Therese found the Rosary difficult to say. Despite the hardship, she persevered in this devotion. So should we. A high degree of glory in heaven will be given to those who show true devotion to the Rosary.
Fr. Damien Dutertre is with us today to offer the Solemn High Mass and tell us about his path to the priesthood. I’m sure you’ll find his talk very interesting.
God bless you and Mary keep you,
Fr. McGuire