Tomorrow, we celebrate Labor Day, the last holiday of summer. This is a good opportunity to ask God to bless the work of our hands and give thanks to Him for the gift of work through which we make our living, provide for our families, and share our gifts with our community for the good of all. We also pray for those who cannot find work and may be discouraged, that God will help them through our willingness to reach out and comfort and encourage them.
Labor Day, like all of our holidays, should be much more than a day off of work or school, but a day for us to focus on a certain aspect of our relationship with God. On Labor Day, we can focus on all the many ways that God has blessed us by giving us all different gifts and talents so that we can share them with one another and so give Glory to God and build up His kingdom here on earth. I hope that your day is a time for recreation and for getting together with family and friends. Of course, a good way to begin the day is with God by participating in the 9AM Mass tomorrow morning.
Even though the November election is still two months away we all need to be very proactive concerning the attempt to change the Constitution of the State of Ohio to make abortion totally legal through all nine months of pregnancy. This in itself is a great evil which will cost the lives of thousands upon thousands of innocent unborn children. This is a direct opposition to the will of God who creates all life for a reason. No one has the right to take the life of an unborn child in an act of abortion. As followers of Jesus Christ and the Gospel of Life we must do all in our power to defeat this proposed amendment to our state constitution. We must pray, fast, speak out to let others know the great evil that can be enshrined in our state constitution. There is too much at stake here for us to sit by idly while this evil is visited upon our state. We must not let ourselves or our neighbors be fooled into thinking this is for the health of women. Last year the people of Michigan were confronted with the same problem and the attempt to enshrine abortion into the Michigan State Constitution was successful.
Please be warned that there will be a lot of out-of-state money coming in to support this amendment. Do not be fooled by the ads and all the publicity favoring this proposed amendment. As the Gospel teaches us, we must be as gentle as doves and as clever as wolves when standing up for the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I will tell you right now that I will be saying and writing as much as I can concerning this amendment and the other implications that will come with it concerning parental rights in regard to abortion and gender transitioning issues for minors. Soon there will be yard signs available urging people to vote NO on this proposed amendment. Please pray that we may all have the courage to stand up and defend the right to life for all, especially the unborn.
A big thank you to several of our school families who recently volunteered their time and talent in working on the landscaping around the school under the direction of Mr. C. The school grounds look very beautiful as do the grounds around the church thanks to the time and effort of Tom Hegarty and his group of volunteers. So, thank you again to all who help out in our landscaping efforts. Thanks also to Rob and Cathy Anderson who take care of all the mowing and trimming around the parish grounds. God bless everyone for their generosity.
Please be advised: There will not be a 5:00 pm Mass on Sunday, September 10. All are invited to an outdoor diocesan-wide Mass held at Brookside Park in Ashland, with Bishop Gries, OSB, presiding. Mass on September 10 will be at 5:00pm, at the concert shell. There are benches for seating. In case of inclement weather, the Mass will be held at St. Edward Parish.
The Parish office will be closed on Monday, September 4, in observance of Labor Day. Have a blessed day!
