The Bishop’s Note
The second Sunday of Advent is here already. How is your Advent going thus far? Have you managed to detox from any unnecessary use of cell phones and other devices that usually only help to distract us from what we should be doing and to snuff out holy desires? I wonder how much less sin would be committed, and how much more spiritual progress would be made were it not for these things. Sure, they have their purpose, but they also have a way of taking over our lives. Holy desires! Without them we go nowhere in our pursuit of heaven.
The Cross is heavy at times, but someone always has it worse! When we compare our little crosses that throw us into fits of impatience to those real sufferings that others have, it is a revelation of how petty we can be. Bishop Nkamuke and his priests and Faithful are still in great danger from Boko Haram and other terrorist groups and so they must always be on guard and be cautious in their going about. The latest is that these groups have control of the highways, making it even more difficult to go places. Still, Bishop Nkamuke is very thankful for your prayers, so please continue them. He and I are having our priests pray a special collect against persecutors and evildoers at each Mass until further notice. The collect is outstanding in its simplicity and in what it asks for. “Crush, we beseech Thee, O Lord, the pride of our enemies, and humble their insolence by the power of Thy right hand.” It is not often that bishops have their priests add this sort of prayer, called an Oratio Imperata, to the Mass. These orations are very powerful and we are confident that this will work.
Our other priests are faring well, it seems. Fr. Mardones is saying Mass every day—quite impressive after such a traumatic experience as a leg amputation! Just a few months ago, no one was sure that he would live, but prayers were answered and he is now back to saying Holy Mass. How good God is! Fr. Brueggemann is going out to Seattle for the feast of the Immaculate Conception to see one of our seminarians receive the cassock. Fr. Simpson is on his long trip and will be gone for the entire week. If I’m not mistaken he starts out in Texas going to El Paso, Austin, and Dallas; then he flies to North Dakota to visit Grand Forks and Minot before heading to Milwaukee. Whew! What a journey! Fr. McMahon came down from New York to do a baptism on Saturday and stayed for a short visit…which is always welcome!
Fr. Simpson, the Sisters, some men of the parish and I did a little rearranging in church this past week. We moved the St. John statue near the side chapel to make room for a large statue of St. Clare that we have had since the days when St. Clare Church was in Columbus. She even came with us when the mission had to move to Chillicothe. Since the mission closed a number of years ago she has been kept in our garage, and we have finally found a place for her in church. Pray to her when you go by her statue. She is a powerful saint!
Don’t forget that Monday is a Holy Day of Obligation, the feast of the Immaculate Conception, patroness of the United States. Mothers, don’t forget the CMC meeting this Thursday. The Sodalists will have their meeting on Saturday at 11:00 and are planning to sing at a nursing home close to church.
O Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee!
– Bishop McGuire