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July/August 2010

PASTOR’S CORNER

"Jesus sent him away, saying, 'Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.' So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him." (LK 8:39) (John 5:19)

In Luke's Gospel he tells of how a town Jesus entered with His disciples in the country of the Gerasenes. Upon entering a town a naked man who lived in a cemetery approached Him. The man suffered from many demons and Jesus freed him. The town folks were very frightened of Jesus and asked him to leave, which He immediately did. The freed man asked to travel with Jesus, but "Jesus sent him away, saying, 'Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.' So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him."

We live in a culture now where we too have asked Jesus to leave. We have asked Him to leave our schools, our public gatherings, our graduation ceremonies and our sporting events. We have allowed our sacred day of Sunday to be turned into just another day of the week. Stores are open and our kids are required to skip church if they want a place on their particular sports team. We now live in a time where there are more people who have never stepped foot in the door of a church than any other time in history. Even those who claim to have a church affiliation only show up when it's convenient for them to do so. It hasn't been that many years ago when this was unheard of.

So what is the answer? I wish I had the magic formula which would turn this all around, but I don't. I do know that those who take their relationship with Jesus seriously find it difficult to share their faith, but look at what Jesus told the healed man,"...declare how much God has done for you". Wow! There isn't a soul who has been touched by the hand of God that can't do at least this.

One of the most common things I hear from people is, "I'm spiritual but not religious." I have come to understand that as the person telling me that they have faith, but don't like organized religion. Well, then, let's at least meet their spiritual needs.

Beginning in September I have secured the fitness room at Global Fitness on Hamilton Street in Leominster on Saturday afternoons from 4:00-5:00 to assist people in their spiritual journey. We will begin with a 12 week journey in spirituality. I am going to use the 12 Step Program which actually came out of a nondenominational Christian movement whose purpose was to lead individuals into a dynamic, life-changing relationship with Jesus. The Oxford Group tenets proclaimed that God was more than just an idea. God was a living spirit able to transform lives through personal contact with Him. Bill W. didn't agree with all of what the Oxford Group taught so he went off on his own and expanded on their tenets and came up with what we now know as the 12 Steps.

I am working off a book titled, Twelve Step Christianity, and putting together, what I hope to be a discussion forum for people to explore more deeply their spirituality. I will talk more about this in the weeks to come and share with you some of the lessons. In the meantime, PLEASE PRAY for this new ministry. We believe God is directing us in to this ministry and our call is to be obedient to God's will. Actually, all we are really doing is, declaring how much God has done for us.

In Jesus' love,

Fr. Jim +