Bulletin Reflection - 27th Sunday of Ordinary time - 6 October 2019

I mentioned last Sunday in the Bulletin column that this month has been declared Extraordinary Mission Month by Pope Francis.   This special month is in honor of the 100th anniversary of the encyclical Maximum Illud by Pope Benedict XV, which called on the Catholic faithful to bring Christ’s Gospel of to the people of the world.  Pope Francis has named four different themes for this special month: promoting a personal encounter with Christ living in his Church; listening to the witness of the missionary saints and martyrs: engaging in Biblical, catechetical, spiritual, and theological formation for mission; and promoting a spirit of missionary charity as a commitment to support our Church’s missionary activities. 

       I just returned from the Diocesan Fiscal Management Conference in Chicago.  It was a wonderful experience to be with people from all over the country and the world who work in the fiscal management of our Dioceses.  We spoke about very challenging topics that reflect the times that the Church and the world are going through today.  As I connected with different men and women from places like California, Nova Scotia Canada and Texas, it was wonderful to share ideas and to hear personal stories of our experiences serving the Church and God’s mission.  This conference illustrated to me how all of us have our part in God’s mission and God’s kingdom, no matter what our personal role is in the Church. 

          I want to challenge all of us to look into our hearts to see where we can be of service in our community.  Come, participate in our adult faith formation programs at St Jude.  Volunteer at our various ministries, such as our First Friday luncheon, the food pantry, the crochet group, the Knights of Columbus, the prison ministry, ministry to the youth, our Millsaps College ministry, or our weekly mass at Whitfield.  Perhaps you want to help beautifying our campus gardens.  All of us are called to have a missionary heart.  All of us are called to be a part of our parish’s mission.