. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .			Fr. Charles Puthota
	From the Pastor's Desktop
	A Message from Father Charles Puthota
	May 26, 2024

The Spirituality of Ordinary Time: On the liturgical calendar, Ordinary Time starts the day after Pentecost. Did you notice the change of colors in our liturgy? In Lent, we used violet. Throughout the Easter season, we used white. Now in Ordinary Time of the Liturgical Year, we use green. Ordinary Time will last this year until November 30. On December 01, we'll begin the Advent Season with the First Sunday of Advent. This time now is called Ordinary Time because it's outside the usual big seasons of Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter. But during Ordinary Time, we continue to journey with Christ, meditating on his life, teachings, healings, miracles, and his expelling of the demons. What are the values of Jesus? What is his vision? What did Jesus go about doing during his public ministry? What is the mind and heart of Jesus? Paraphrasing St. Paul, the followers of Jesus are called to have the mind and heart of Jesus. Throughout Ordinary Time, at Masses and for our private meditations and reflections, we shall be reflecting on the life of Jesus as it unfolds during his ministry. This Ordinary Time is by no means ordinary. It's extraordinary because God's grace accompanies us every moment, every day. Like Mary, we too need to say yes to God's grace on a daily basis and find each day a sacred, filled with God's presence and blessings.

Holy Trinity Sunday: The mystery of the Triune God is absolutely unfathomable and beyond the rational categories, and yet we have glimpses into this mystery from what has been revealed to us in the scriptures. One God, Three Persons. This is the mystery we celebrate this Sunday. That God has revealed himself as a Trinity is what we rejoice about. God the Father creates and sustains everything. God the Son redeems and graces us. God the Holy Spirit sanctifies and empowers. In the life of Jesus, for example at his baptism, there is the unmistakable revelation of the Trinity. The Father speaks in affirmation of Jesus and the Spirit descends on Jesus, empowering and anointing him. Isn't it a consoling conviction for us that God lives not in isolation but in community? There is constant and continuous love flowing from one divine person to another and eternal giving and sharing. Our ultimate experience of God is Trinitarian. Let's strive to model our families, communities, the Church, the nations, and the whole world on the love and sharing of the Trinity.

Quotes on the Trinity: "The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of the Christian faith and of Christian life. God alone can make it known to us by revealing himself as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The Incarnation of God's Son reveals that God is the eternal Father and that the Son is consubstantial with the Father, which means that, in the Father and with the Father the Son is one and the same God. The mission of the Holy Spirit, sent by the Father in the name of the Son (Jn 14:26) and by the Son 'from the Father' (Jn 15:26), reveals that, with them, the Spirit is one and the same God." --- Catechism of the Catholic Church. "In Christ, for the first time, we see that in God himself there exists --- within his inseparable unity --- the distinction between the Father who gives and the Gift which is given (the Son), but only in the unity of the Holy Spirit." --- Hans Urs von Balthasar.

Memorial Day: It's a solemn American holiday observed on the last Monday of May, a day to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice while serving and defending our nation. Originally it was called the Decoration Day, from the tradition of decorating graves with flowers, wreaths and flags. "Lord, keep all those who died serving our nation in your heart and give them their eternal reward. Give us the grace to serve one another and our nation with your gifts of love, truth, peace, and justice. Amen. "

Prayer to Honor the BVM in May: Salve Regina: Hail, holy Queen, Mother of mercy, our life, our sweetness and our hope. To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve. To thee to we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this valley of tears. Turn, then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy toward us, and after this, our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. Amen

Concluding Mass of Faith Formation and May Crowning: Last Sunday May 19, at the 10:30a.m. Mass, we had the Faith Formation families gathered together. Toward the end of the Mass, the children brought flowers to statue of Mary and crowned her. Some parishioners brought flowers too. I gave out the First Communion and Confirmation certificates and the children were promoted to next class at the end of the Mass for the next Faith Formation school year. Thank you, children, parents, teachers, coordinators, for all your participation and collaboration.

Humor: 1. Doctors Office: A guy walks into the doctor's office. A banana stuck in one of his ears, a cucumber in the other ear, and a strawberry stuck in one nostril. The man says, "Doc, this is terrible. What's wrong with me?" The doctor says, "Well, first of all, you need to eat more sensibly." 2. Good First Impression: A young doctor was just setting up his first office when his receptionist told him there was a man to see him. The doctor wanted to make a good first impression by having the man think he was successful and very busy. He told his receptionist to show the man in. At that moment, the doctor picked up the telephone and pretended to be having a conversation with a patient. The man waited until the "conversation" was over. Then, the doctor put the telephone down and asked, "Can I help you?" To which the man replied, "No, I'm just here to connect your telephone."

Your Friend and Pastor,

Father Charles Puthota.