From the Deacon’s Desk Last Sunday, July 5th, marked the end of this year’s “Fortnight for Freedom”, the two week period that begins with the memorial of Saints John Fisher and Thomas More. Both were beheaded by order of King Henry VIII when they resisted the king in the matter of his divorce and refused to recognize him as head of the Church in England. Each year, our Bishops ask us to remember these two martyrs and to reflect on the importance of religious freedom to us and to future generations. The struggle between Church and state is as old as the Faith itself. Jesus was a threat to the Jewish leaders, the Sanhedrin and the Roman officials, and Pontius Pilate. Whenever the state perceives a threat to it’s existence, it has the tendency to try to abolish that threat, by whatever means it deems necessary. Pilate and the Sanhedrin chose crucifixion, Henry the VIII chose beheading, Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain chose the Inquisition, while the French Enlightenment chose the guillotine. While today’s secular leaders are less violent and more subtle, they are, none-the-less, just as great a threat to religious freedom and the separation of Church and state. Since it’s inception nearly two thousand years ago, the Church has always sought peaceful means to spread the “Good News” of the Gospel, while the secular world has sought, mainly by violence, to prevent it. In today’s world, we still seek to peacefully proclaim the Gospel, while others seek to prevent us, by using against us those powers available to the secular world; the law, the press, etc. Most people believe that the secular world invented religious freedom, but in reality, it began with the early Church. Conversion to Christianity had to be done freely as an act of the will and could not be forced on anyone. The secular world demanded conformity with the state sponsored religion, and it still does! Just as in the days of St. John Fisher and St. Thomas More, we need to resist the temptation to take the easy path of giving in to the demands of society. We must insist on our right to proclaim the truth, THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST!!! Deacon Jeff
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From the desk of Fr. Barry
Our Gospel from this last weekend in June really helps us see how God wants to be in our lives and what we are to do with that presence. He revealed himself through Christ not because he had to, but out of love for his creation. He gives us that free choice though, to follow him or to look the other way. This allows each of us to look at how we relate to that passage in our daily lives. Our motives behind why we do the things we do. I think many times we do something for the recognition of it, or sometimes because it does something for us. I know when I worked in sales, I often did something that would benefit me, and not the customer. They left happy, but could have they left ecstatic? Could I have done more to help them? Did I push something that benefited me, or did I push something that truly was a benefit to them? Sometimes it was both, but the underlining motivation behind any sale is how much commission the sales person gets. I have to say that money has never been my motivation to do anything, but at times when large bonuses were put on certain things, it did create that desire to win. But did I win? So what is our “bonus” in life? What does that win get us? Is it all about us? Or could it be about what is yet to come? When we really look hard at what this Gospel is teaching us, we see that our human desire is met here on earth but does not follow us after death into eternal life. Our gratification, praise, or even acknowledgment is met, but how does it aid any of us in the afterlife, life eternal? It is only met when it is done out of love. That love that is unconditional and is done not looking for any type of reward. That is what the Father sees and that is where we all will get our true reward As hard as this is to admit, our motives behind things we do sometimes only serve us in the here and now. Our homes, our cars, our personal belongings, none of it goes with us. The plaques on our walls, the trophies on our mantels, the medals on our old military uniforms, they stay too! We work hard for all of these things, but they do not define who are in the end. When we are asked how did you serve my children, how will you reply? My sisters and brothers, we have a faith community here at Christ the King that just amazes me. I have been welcomed in with open arms, and when I was told it would take a year to raise the money to build a new rectory/office, you all pulled together in five months and we met our goal to build. When my plea went out for help with lacking funds during this pandemic just last week, again so many of you have already stepped forward with contributions. Thank you, it is in our struggles that we know God will reward us in times yet to come. Reaching out in times of difficulty is what it is all about. You all do it so well! Update: The new completion date for the rectory/offices is now July 13 . With a few delays in trim, doors and countertops the date has been pushed back a few weeks. But I have to say, Aumann Construction has been wonderful to work with, and completing the project in such a short time has been a true blessing. When we bond together, amazing things start to happen. This is the true spirit of this Gospel and this is the true spirit that makes me proud to serve you. Have a blessed week ahead and don’t forget to mark your calendars for August 9 . Our open house/picnic will be from 11:30-2 at the new offices/rectory, 306 S. LaSalle!! Burgers and hotdogs will be served! More to come on this in future bulletins as we work out all the details. Your brother in Christ, Fr. Barry From the Desk of Fr. Barry With the Easter Season having come to an end, it always leaves me feeling a bit discouraged. Discouraged not by what has happened, but because we are back to the reality of life as we know it, Ordinary time. What the Easter Season did was build us up on all the gifts that Jesus’ short ministry gave and showed us. It allowed us to see and feel (if we allowed it) that we are a part of all that ridiculing, all that suffering, all the deceitfulness of those who condemned Jesus, and yet, he went through his passion whole heartedly for each of us anyway and opened the gates of eternity to us! That pure love of God that shines forth through any tragedy, pandemic, death or life situation. That promise that he will never abandon us and be with us for all times. And that is ever so pronounced as we celebrate The Holy Body and Blood of Christ on this Feast of the Church. A time that allows us to look beyond the Resurrection and Ascension and to see that the nourishment Jesus always talked about is still with us today and every day. The sacrifice of himself does not mean the separation of himself to us. Rather, it is that total giving of himself in ways we can not even understand wholly. As a child I always knew without a doubt that I was receiving the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ at Mass. Then as I grew older, well into my 20’s, I started to doubt that teaching. I started to ask questions on why are we the only Church that sees it this way? Why do we have to receive in a Church when Jesus is all around us? And through much searching, both in other faith denominations and in prayer, the light bulb went on. We are given this precious gift each and every day because we need it. We need that cleansing, that purification of Jesus within us to get through another week. To endure and mend broken relationships. To lift us up when so many things are bringing us down. To ensure we know that it was all done for us, and Christ wants us to share in that joy. With a deep desire to answer my questions, I came across an article describing a miracle. In the city of Lanciano, Italy, then known as Anxanum, some time in the 700s, a Basilian hieromonk was assigned to celebrate Mass at the monastery of St. Longinus. Celebrating in the Roman Rite and using unleavened bread, the monk had doubts about the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation. During the Mass, when he said the Words of Consecration; "This is my body. This is my blood", the priest saw the bread change into living flesh and the wine change into blood which coagulated into five globules, irregular and differing in shape and size. The miracle was contemporaneously investigated and confirmed by the Church. As I read more and more, I found that this has been happening all over the world; Italy, Venezuela, Chile, Germany, France, Mexico, Argentina, even in Salt Lake City in 2015 (which is still under investigation by the Vatican). In total, The Vatican has investigated and approved sixty-five miracles of this nature. Every time the test is done on the Eucharist, it has come back the same. O Negative (the universal donor), heart muscle, under severe distress. This is no coincidence. Our Lord continues to meet us where we are at. Giving us miracles through signs we can understand. My friends, as we start to come back into our Church, we come back with that yearning for the precious Body and Blood of Christ that we have missed so much. Allow it to transform you. Allow it to bring about newness of life, of purpose. Allow it to transform you as Christ himself transforms! A gentle reminder. We have been allowed to receive in the hand for some time now. When we received/receive on the tongue it is just that, receiving. With the addition of being able to “touch” the precious Body, we still “receive” Jesus. This is why we cup our hands together, one under the other, to “receive” and not to “take” Jesus. By doing so we create our own tabernacle, a place worthy for Jesus to be placed. Have a blessed week ahead, and mark your calendars for AUGUST 9 ! From 11:30 - 3 we will have an OPEN HOUSE at the new offices/rectory. All are invited! More details to come. See you at Mass, Your brother in Christ, Fr. Barry Happy Pentecost Sunday and the beginning into Ordinary Time! What a journey this Easter Season has brought us on. We have experienced many emotions along the way. Anger, uneasiness, fear, boredom, frustration, just to mention a few. We have experienced separation from family and friends, an acute awareness of distancing, and even an eagerness to return to some sort of “normal”. But as we end our Easter Season this Pentecost Sunday, we return to some sense of normal in respect that Masses will resume. It is this Sunday, we gather to celebrate Pentecost, a day on which we come together to remember that day long ago when a Jewish festival became something life-changing for those who had chosen to believe in the resurrection, had chosen to put their trust in Jesus, had chosen to fol- low wherever he wanted to lead them. It’s really not possible to overestimate the power of this experience in the life of the Church. Whatever exactly happened that day, however we understand the descriptions used by the authors of the Gospels and Acts, one thing is pretty clear: The community of faith was changed forever by this experience, was changed from being paralyzed by fear to being on fire with the Good News, on fire with the mission of Jesus, on fire to tell the whole world what they witnessed and how they had been transformed in ways they could never have imagined. Who want’s that? Now that might strike you as an odd question. And yet, I believe it’s one we must sincerely ask ourselves. You see, we’re not here this day to only remember the past. We’re also here to give thanks to God for the gift of himself in the person of the Holy Spirit, the gift given long ago and the gift given to each of us, in this time and in this place. And so, what happened TO and FOR them is what God hopes for each of us. He wants to put his very life into us, he wants to pour the grace of his Spirit into our hearts and our minds. He wants to set us on fire, that kind of fire that changes the world. Respectfully, I know that not everyone is ready to return to Mass, and some are even against it. But it is in our differences that God allows us to choose, and it is with a Christian heart that we understand both sides in this situation. We don’t pass judgment, but instead allow the Holy Spirit (renewed in us this Pentecost Sunday) to guide our decision and respect that of others. My friends, amongst all that is going on, put your faith in all the gifts that Jesus has left us; the gift of love, forgiveness, understanding, and yes...the gift of the Holy Spirit to guide us. May each of you have a blessed week and know you are in my prayers, Fr. Barry From the desk of Fr. Barry:
“. . . and he will give you another Advocate to be with you always . . .” My friends, living a life full of love and goodness and generosity is only made possible because of our loving God ... a God who is not at a distance, but is one who dwells with us and in us through his Spirit. It is this living God who can transform us in ways we can’t imagine, transform us into men and women who resist our urges to lash out, to get even, to judge, to ridicule, to get angry at every little thing. It is in our willingness to open ourselves up to this outpour- ing of grace that we get a completely new “default” position, a new attitude, a new way of being. And make no mistake about it, this is not something “extra” added to discipleship, not something we can simply discard if we so choose. Rather, it is as essential to a life of faith as are our beliefs. In fact, it’s the ONLY evidence of faith. So let’s pledge to be, and committed to being; a little kinder, a little more patient, a little more forgiving and gentle and merciful. If we all did that, imagine what the world might look like. God doesn’t have to imagine it. He created it to be this way for all time. As we are over half way through our Easter Season, we are still called to dig deeper into our relationship with Christ. To not go back to our old ways but to come to the realization that it is through Jesus Christ being in our lives that we grow deeper in our faith. Our relationship with the Father. Our relationships with one another. We begin to see the things that separate us from our God, and see that by having the Holy Spirit among us, we are not alone in this world. With the “stay at home” restrictions being ruled unconstitutional, we will see some guidance set forth from Bishop Callahan soon. I will update each of you via email or mail on what the next steps are and what this means for the upcoming Masses. Please ensure that we have the correct address in our system. If you have moved or have an email address that we do not, please call the parish office and update them. UPDATE on the new office/rectory: If you’ve driven by the new location for the offices/rectory, you would have seen A LOT of progress on the build- ing. When things seem so bleak and uncertain for our Church future, God’s glory still shines through. We are blessed that all the building materials have arrived when due and we are pushing forward with the anticipated move in date of July 1st. To date, all the windows and wood beams are up. We passed our first inspection and insulation will be going in next. Then drywall is scheduled for next week! Cabinets go in the first week of June, then flooring and trim! Without your dedication, love, and support of Christ the King, we would not be seeing what we are experiencing with this project. God has a plan, and my promise to each of you is that I am here for you. It was through the same gifts of the Holy Spirit given to us by Christ that I dedicate myself to each of you and your needs. May God Bless each of you in the coming weeks and am excited about seeing you in Church soon! Fr. Barry To celebrate Mother’s Day, Fr. Barry is inviting all mothers to come for a blessing and a flower! The celebration will commence under the carport on Sunday, May 10th from 11am-noon. Happy Good Shepard Sunday! This is a week in which we are reminded just how blessed we are from a God who guides and walks with us. In our second reading from St. Peter, we are told “If you are patient when you suffer for doing what is good, this is a grace before God.” And I know all of us are suffering as we go through this pandemic. We are separated from our loved ones, we are going stir crazy confined to our homes, we are missing being able to attend Masses and receiving the Eucharist. This is also I time that we need to unite as a Church community and support one another. Phone calls, getting groceries or medicine for those most vulnerable, or sending a card to someone who might need their day brightened. Our Gospel passage from John tells us the story of a Shephard protecting his sheep that have been entrusted to him. Being the One who will watch over, guide and shield/defend against harm. “I am the gate. Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture.” Jesus as the “gate” is an interesting image. And it “works” as an image in two obvious ways. First, a gate provides security for those within the enclosure. It keeps them safe. It keeps them together. It keeps them sheltered and protected. And there are times when that is desperately needed, specially times like we are in now with the corona virus. And this wasn’t just for animals, but for us too, the times when our God needs to be our refuge, our place in which to rest and feel secure. But not all the time. Not if there is something we need outside the fence. Not if there is something beautiful and meaningful and life-giving on the other side of the wall. Secondly, in those cases, we need a gate, an opening to green pastures, an opening to a life of true freedom ... a life free from everything that holds us back from the incredible life that God wants for each of us ... the life won for us through the saving acts of Jesus. If you have a fenced-in yard you know that going through the gate isn’t the ONLY way out of the yard. Over the fence, under the fence, up a tree, off the roof ... there ARE other ways one might go from inside to outside, from confinement to freedom, from barren ground to green pastures. And the Church of today no longer speaks in strict or narrow terms about salvation. The Second Vatican Council addressed this situation head-on, articulating the Church’s belief that we can never put any limits on God’s mercy. And so, we would say that the salvation of the world absolutely comes through the saving acts of Jesus, our God who died for all and for all time ... whether we are aware of it or not, whether we believe it or not. And believing in that deep truth is a complete game-changer, a life-changer, an indispensable source of joy and peace and meaning of life to the fullest. What a God we have! And so the gate is there not to LIMIT who comes and goes, but to provide the easiest access, the best path. To provide the best way for us to embrace the new life won for us by Jesus, provide an avenue to life-giving green pastures which begin in this life and continue into eternity. And so, if we see salvation in a very narrow sense, if we see following Jesus as something we “have” to do or are “obligated” to do otherwise we are in serious trouble, we will really never be able to live our lives full of joy and meaning and goodness and beauty. Our faith will become a chore, a burden, something we only do begrudgingly or out of misguided or exaggerated fear. But if we trust that God is not looking for ways to punish us or pounce on us, but rather simply wants to love us, save us, redeem us, lead us to the greenest pastures imaginable, then listening to his voice and walking through the gate is all we will ever want to do. My sisters and brothers in Christ, don’t allow this current situation to get you down. Spend time with your Shepard, allow him to shed his infinite grace upon your life. Allow him to sooth and calm you. Allow him to do what he does best, LOVE you. Have a blessed week and know we are all here if you should need anything. I’ve been lighting a candle each week for all of you! Fr. Barry From the desk of Fr. Barry: It’s been five weeks now of being under the “Stay at Home” order, and there’s still an uncertainty to when it will really end. I have to say, I’m pretty tired of it. I need a haircut, haven’t been able to see my family in Rapids, can’t visit parishioners in the hospital or nursing homes, and most of all, miss seeing each of you at Mass. I’ve struggled with coming up ways to stay more in touch. I’ve doubted my ability of being creative in ways that reach out. I’ve wondered what more can I be doing! Then I read the readings for this weekend. The Responsorial Psalm tells us, “Lord, you will show us the path to life.” And through all of this I see we have to look past what is currently going on, the Lord still has a plan for all of this, he is still showing us that path! In our Gospel passage from Luke, we hear the famous Road to Emmaus Walk, Jesus is walking with two disciples who don’t recognize him. The journey together leads them to discover how their hearts burned with them but only after Jesus departs them, only after they break bread together. But this story is deeper than it might seem on the surface. You see, in many ways, this story teaches us truths about the spiritual life. First, our spiritual life is a kind of journey, an active thing, a moving down a path toward a destination. Secondly, on this journey we are not alone --- we have each other, but most importantly, we have Jesus, our God, who is making the journey with us, whether we are aware of it or not. And thirdly, this Jesus we call our Savior, wants nothing more than to commune with us, be with us, teach us, guide us and help us connect the dots of our own individual stories with his. He wants us to know he is with us and will always be. That my friends is the hope that has pulled me out of the stooper I have been in. The hope that our Lord does in deed walk with us each and every day. In the good, and in the not so good. In time of difficulties and in the joys we celebrate. As we have been livestreaming our daily and weekend Masses, I see that he does indeed walk with us. Before all this happened, our normal daily Mass attendance was between 15 to 30 people. When we finish Mass now, we have 50 to 80 people watching live, and by the time I go to bed we have over 300 that have viewed the Mass. That to me is proof that Christ is among us! On another positive note, construction is full speed ahead. The basement and garage have been poured and by the end of the week, you’ll see frame work going up! God’s hand is in this my friends, everything has gone so smoothly. We didn’t sign a contract until March thinking that we wouldn’t be able to start till after spring, but with cancellations we were moved first in line. That is no coincidence! My friends stay positive, look for Christ in those places you wouldn’t have before. He is there, HE HAS RISEN, and his comforting each of us, is what will get us through this. God Bless, Fr. Barry From the desk of Fr. Barry: I hope this finds everyone well after our Easter Day celebrations. Christ has truly risen! Alleluia!! As we continue to move through this Easter Season (till Pentecost), Sacred Scriptures will show us much zeal for our faith, but will also show doubt as in this weekends Gospel passage from John. Thomas, after hearing Jesus had appeared to the disciples says “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” Seeing is truly believing, and when Thomas is able to see for himself, out comes those famous words, “My Lord and my God”. These are the same words I say at every Mass when I genuflect after holding up the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. Ensuring that this mystery before me is acknowledged for what it truly is. “Seeing is believing”, it seems to hold true for many of us. Yet, so many times throughout our lives we go with our gut feeling or even what society tells us to think. Some may think that abortion is ok if it doesn’t affect me and it’s someone else making the decision. Church is something I believe in but if someone else doesn’t, well that’s ok. Or what about the sacraments? The Eucharist is fundamental to our faith, yet some Catholics only see this as a piece of bread that has no tie to the actual Body of Christ, or confession as being something that can be done in private without participating in the Sacrament of reconciliation. What’s the point of believing if it doesn’t change us on the inside, if it doesn’t actually shape how we live, how we love each other, or how we treat one another? What’s the point of believing if we reduce it to just words, or ideas that simply rattle around in our heads? In other words, the depth of our belief is reflected in the depth of our love. It is in the action’s that we take to bring Christ into this world, to make our Lord visible in the lives we live. I feel that so many of you are doing just that through your support of the new rectory/offices. Helping Christ the King grow into the future. If you have driven by the Church you’ve probably seen that we have broken ground! The basement walls and floor, as well as the garage floor has been poured. This coming week you’ll see the floor joists will be going in and the exterior walls will go up next, then the roof! In this case, seeing is believing, and yes we are growing and making our community stronger! Thank you everyone for all you have done, being that light of Christ to our faith community. God Bless, Fr. Barry From the desk of Fr. Barry: Happy Easter everyone! This is my ultimate favorite time of year, and I have to say this is the most unusual Holy Week any of us have ever celebrated. Our Masses are being brought to us through the television, radio, or the internet. Distance is the focus of our actions. Trying to contain and stop the spread of this vicious virus, Covid 19 is at the forefront of everyone’s mind. With it has brought a time of anxiety for some, a time of doubt, a time of unsureness for others, and a time that some have gotten depressed. But through it all, the message stays the same. CHRIST HAS RISEN! During these last 40 days we have focused on our relationship with Jesus. We have journeyed in private or public settings, developing a closer relationship with a God who loves us so much he sent his only begotten Son to redeem us. Taking on our sin, our unworthiness, or brokenness, our humanity to unite us in a way that we had never been united before. And this was all done out of LOVE! It was through his example that we are able to see what an authentic, faithful life looks like.It was this journey that has allowed us to mirror the life of Jesus Christ. How did we do? Did we spend time contemplating the mysteries of the Cross? Did you attend the Stations and try to unite Christ’s suffering within us? Did we talk to him more? Did we succeed in adding or deleting something from our lives that we didn’t have before these 40 days? If the answer is yes, then the Holy Season served you well! If the answer is somewhat, I tried, or a flat out no; there is still good news! It’s not over! We continue in this Holy Season of Easter for eight more weeks, ending with Pentecost Sunday on May 31st. After all the Easter basket goodies have been eaten up, the new clothes the kids received maybe already have holes in them, or the dyed eggs are all gone... Jesus is still making himself present and we are still being guided by the Holy Spirit. This Sunday, may we see Easter as a time of renewal. May we see it as a time to continue good habits while turning away from those that were bad. May we see that the sacrifice of Our Lord and Savior was for each of us, knowing that we are not perfect but we strive to imitate Christ and be holy people. May we see that the world needs the kindness, compassion, forgiveness and love from our Lord, which ultimately is given to us from him. Now the question remains, do we keep it, hold on to it, and never let it go? Or will we pass it on and make this world the world God wants it to be! Blessings for a joyous and Happy Easter, Fr. Barry |
MASS SCHEDULE
Tuesday - Friday: 8:00 AM Saturday: 4:00 PM Sunday: 8:00 AM & 10:00 AM RECONCILIATION
Saturday: 3:15 - 3:45 PM OFFICE HOURS
Monday - Thursday: 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM Friday: 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM Stay Connected with Our ParishWelcome from Our PastorWelcome to Christ the King Catholic Church! Ever since 1938 this parish has been assisting souls in their quest for deeper union with God. Our mission statement is essentially found in the stained glass window above the main altar: “For Christ our King.” Insofar as God made us and we belong to Him, we have come to... Read More
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