To the Great People of St. Matthias and Transfiguration,
My heart is filled with gratitude for the beautiful celebration of the Eucharist that I was able to share with the Spanish speaking community of Transfiguration last Sunday. Your many words of thanks and best wishes for me in the future are truly gifts from God. The opportunity to pray in a language that is not my own and yet one that I have studied for many years has been a constant source of God’s grace for me. I must concentrate and practice in preparation for the Spanish Mass each month in a way that I do not in English. English is my first language and reading prayers and pronouncing words is something that I tend to take for granted in English because it comes so naturally to me. When I prepare for the Spanish Mass I am often delighted at the simplest words that convay something about God and the unique pronunciation of them in Spanish often opens me up to some of God’s richer blessings.
I want to again express my gratitude to the Spanish speaking community of Transfiguration and the many ways that you have shown me God’s love. As I said at Mass—you have shown me a beautiful Latin face, which has been God’s face for me. I have seen God’s face in your face and I will always hold that in my heart. I also wish to thank Ray and Esperanza Canas, Lorena Morales and others who coordinated the reception after Mass and to Maria and Lacides Caparroso for the beautiful song that you sang to me during Mass. Muchas, Muchas Gracias.
Speaking of Gratitude-there are many to thank for your efforts in beautifying the St. Matthias Rectory Garden. If you haven’t had a chance to look at the new landscaping, flowers, benches and other additions, please stop by and take a look. Ann MacIntee, Jean Brown, The Hussar Family, Alija Vilic, The Boy and Girl Scouts and others have assisted Terry Tuohy, Grayce O’Toole and Fr. John Sanaghan in truly making the yard look inviting and beautiful. Their efforts will be a lasting statement of the color of God’s creation. Many of you have donated flowers plants and money for the project. Thanks to all of you.
I also want to thank Mellissa Flynn, Monique Sandburg and the Lincoln Square Chamber of Commerce for a warm farewell gathering at the Huettenbar last week. Working with such dedicated and creative businessmen and women these past 14 years in Lincoln Square has been one of my richest blessings. They have supported St. Matthias and Transfiguration in a strong way with many of our fundraisers and endeavors. We are fortunate to have them here in our neighborhood. Thanks also to Irma Froelich at the Huttenbar at 4721 N. Lincoln for her hospitality.
Thanks also to the group of School Parents headed by Mike McGovern, Doug Brown, John Tuttle and Lisa Rychbosh for coordinating the Kareoke or as we have come to call it Terryoke farewell at Atlantic 5062 N. Lincoln last week. It was fun to sing and Laugh together. To Matt Bukovy—Nice job on Mandy by Looking Glass! Thanks also to Cahall Lynch for his hospitality at Atlantic.
Our Liturgical schedule finds us returning to Ordinary Time as we mark the 12th Week of the year this weekend. Ordinary Time may sound like a rather bland title for a season of the Church Year but it helps us to embrace the ongoing story of a different Gospel each year. This year we hear from Mark who gives us a rather succinct version of the story of Jesus. Mark’s Gospel is the shortest of the four but in an interesting way it packs more action into fewer words than any of the other three. Because the Gospel according to Mark is the shortest we will hear a portion of the Gospel of John during August that we call the Bread of Life Discourse. This section of John’s Gospel helps us to clarify our belief in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Look for the stark and succinct action of Mark and this beautiful discourse from John as the Summer moves into Fall.
