Join us Sunday, July 13, following the 11:00am Mass at St. Pius V, for cold, delicious ice cream sundaes!
From the Desk of Father John
The fourth of July is a day of parades, political speeches, fireworks and back yard barbecues but more important, provide us with an opportunity to thank God for the abundant blessings that he has bestowed upon us, and on our country—United States of America. If you look around the world, it’s easy to pick out nations where instead of peace, freedom, and prosperity, they experience war, oppression, hunger, persecution, sickness, and suffering. And so we find ourselves being thankful for the blessings we have as Americans. Despite the struggles our nation finds itself in at this time, we’re thankful for what we have.
On the 4th of July we celebrate our Independence Day. This is an appropriate time to reflect on the gift of freedom and the responsibility that comes along with it. We are so blessed to enjoy the freedoms outlined in our United States Constitution and Bill of Rights. The expectation of transparency and mutual respect that accompanies them helps to create a social fabric of expansive rights and of liberty for all of us. We do well to remember the cost of preserving these freedoms, especially for our military personnel and their families. They in particular are bearing the cost of our freedoms in a heroic way. We need to keep them always in our prayer. In as much as our nation recognizes its dependence on God’s grace, we will always thrive and flourish. Failing to recognize our dependence on God’s grace, puts us on a dark, perilous path. In the Declaration of Independence, one can read these words: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." The church would say Amen! Our human rights are derived from truth grounded in our Creator God. Each human being, every person is loved into existence and destined for eternal life. All are equally desired and created by God. Our human rights are rooted in the way God made us in His image and likeness.
In the midst of the festivities, let us pause to reflect on the immense value of safeguarding these God-given rights, particularly the freedom to openly practice our faith and worship without fear or restraint. Our Catholic heritage is steeped in a legacy of championing social justice and the common good, values that resonate profoundly with the very spirit of America. Our Founding Fathers may have opted for a separation of Church and state but not for a separation of God and state. What the Constitution guarantees is not freedom FROM religion but freedom OF religion, freedom to practice religion. When Jesus is present, in our individual souls, in our families, in our parish, in our community, in our nation, Satan has no power. He can do nothing. But when a people and a nation turn away from Jesus Christ, when a people decides that the presence of God is an embarrassment, that the name of God is an insult to their intelligence and freedom…then they create a vacuum that Satan is only too ready to fill. For most of its history our nation turned openly and willingly to God for help and guidance. “In God we trust” is still embossed on our currency. And we still pledge ourselves as “one nation, under God.” But sadly, although religious freedom is a fundamental human right, one that comes not from man but from God, much of recorded history is the story of men trying to deny it, to take it away. Throughout the history of our own country many have sacrificed their lives so you and I can reap the benefits of religious freedom and the other rights enumerated in our Constitution.
Like those who came before us and sacrificed so much to guarantee the freedom that you and I take for granted, we too are called to defend these rights. As the prophet Amos told the people of Israel: “Seek good and not evil, that you may live… let justice prevail.” God expects us to act, brothers and sisters, so justice will prevail! “We ask Lord to bless us in our vigilance for the gift of religious liberty. Give us the strength of mind and heart to readily defend our freedoms when they are threatened; give us courage in making our voices heard on behalf of the rights of your Church and the freedom of conscience of all people of faith.” You and I may think we’re not important enough for our voices to be heard, but that’s simply not true. Just consider how God has called on the weak and the obscure to be His messengers.
This Independence Day (July Fourth), as we celebrate with barbeques and beer, fireworks and floats, lift up a prayer of petition for those whose religious freedom is denied, and lift up a prayer of gratitude that we do have the liberty to live as “one nation, under God. May God continue to bless us with a true and beautiful understanding of our Independence. May he call us to those noble virtues that made this country what it is for us and for future generations of Americans. May God bless us with peace, prosperity, and the common good. And may God bless America. Happy Independence Day and Enjoy! Fr. John