PLEASE MARK YOUR CALENDARS! On October 17, 18, and 19 we will hold our annual Solemn Eucharistic Devotions which will begin on Friday, October 17, with a special school Mass at 9:30 AM. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament will continue on the main altar throughout the weekend, and we will have our Solemn Closing with Mass and a procession with the Blessed Sacrament on Sunday, October 19, beginning at 5 PM. Our guest homilist for the closing Mass will be Fr. Jon Hawkins, Parochial Vicar at Holy Family Parish in Stow and a son of our parish here at Sacred Heart. Fr. Jon was ordained to the priesthood this past May.
Those preparing to receive their First Holy Communion and Confirmation will also join in our procession to honor the Eucharistic presence of our Lord. Please make every effort to be a part of this special weekend of praise and prayer as we give thanks to God for the gift of Himself in the Holy Eucharist.
As we all know, October is the month of the Holy Rosary. I have said many times it is very important for us to include the Rosary in our prayer lives both as individuals and families. The Rosary is a most powerful weapon against evil in the world, and we surely need a lot of help fighting against evil in the world today. Mary, our Mother, has asked us many times over to pray the Rosary every day for the conversion of sinners which would in turn bring peace into the world on all levels. I encourage everyone to listen to Our Mother and do as she tells us to do. Praying the Rosary has done so much good in the world in the fight against evil; to mention just one, the fall of communism in Europe and in other parts of the world.
One of the greatest evils that confronts the world today is abortion, the killing of an innocent child in the mother’s womb before it even has a chance to live the gift of life that God has given it. We must continue this fight against abortion at every level possible from our prayer life and the Rosary to our churches in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. We carry on this battle in the voting booth to the Congress and the courts whenever and wherever we can help to proclaim the sanctity of Human Life from the moment of conception to natural death.
We must be resolved to stand up for the life of the unborn with courage, wisdom, and charity. We must never resort to any kind of violence or animosity toward any of our brothers and sisters in Christ. We cannot fall back on the often-quoted mantra of free choice. No one has the right to make a choice to kill another human being except God who is the Creator of human life. Unfortunately, I do not see this issue being resolved in the near future, but people said the same thing about communism and the Berlin Wall 40 years ago, so we must persevere in standing up for the sanctity of all human life.
The Rosary can help us become a people of peace. When we can live a life of peace and prayerfulness, we will see that gift of peace more clearly in our lives and allow our thoughts, words, and actions to be instruments of God’s peace starting with ourselves, our families, and our communities. Please Pray the Rosary!
Last Sunday was the 38th Annual Life Chain, which is held all over the country. It is a good time for us to show our support for the unborn children and to pray for the end of the evil that is abortion in our state, our country, and our world. Did you know that abortion is the leading cause of death in the world. There have been over 60 million children killed through abortion in our country since 1973 when abortion became legal under Roe vs Wade. Thank God t Roe vs Wade has been overturned by the Supreme Court and now abortion is controlled by each individual state. I believe it is now illegal in about 15 states, but not in Ohio. So, we must continue to pray that this great evil will be outlawed in our beautiful state.
We had about thirty-seven people participate in this year’s Life Chain, which is good, but it should have been a lot more. The Life Chain will be held again next year on the first Sunday of October. Please, make plans to attend. A word of thanks to Alan & Patty Beery, Kathy Potter, and the Knights of Columbus for their help.
