Bob Jensen

I find the words of our gospel reading from John today (Sixth Sunday of Easter) quite consoling for this unsettling time. Jesus basically tells his disciples that he will not abandon them but will send them another Advocate to be with them always. This one who is promised is the Holy Spirit who will guide them on their journey of life. I have found it difficult to live with out human touch. I have grown to appreciate a hug, a pat on the shoulder. I have to remind myself that the time will come for embraces again. In the meantime I take comfort in the knowledge that Jesus embraces me through his Spirit. May we show our love for one another through prayer and good wishes. Thank you for your emails and phone calls. May the Lord bless you in every way.

 

This is that time of the year when we make our presentation for the Annual Catholic Appeal which supports some sixty ministries of the Archdiocese of Seattle. During this time of Covid-19 it takes on a different shape We will have a recorded presentation by Scott

Bader who is the director of Parish Financial Services. This will be shown during this weekend’s recorded mass (Fifth Sunday of Easter) and on our parish website. Scott will share about ministries that have helped us here at St. John’s. You may send your pledge directly to the Archdiocese (please include your parish’s name) or send it to the parish office. Perhaps you can pledge a dollar a day for a y ear $366 (this is a leap year). You will be benefitting many people in need at this time thank you for your generosity.

 

I am currently reading The Shepherd’s Life by James Rebanks. He speaks of the joy of herding and caring for sheep, a job that has been in his family for several hundred years. His farm is located in the northwest part of England, known as the Lake District. The great attachment that the shepherd has for his sheep epitomizes the description that we have in John’s gospel as we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday this weekend. Jesus is one with his sheep. He knows each by name. He is familiar with each one’s foibles. The sheep in turn respond only to their shepherd’s voice and none other. What a beautiful reminder of how Christ loves each of us in a unique way! May we be attuned to his voice especially in this unsettling time. May he calm our fears and lead us to peace of mind and heart.

Just a reminder that I am hearing confessions in the church on Saturdays from 4 to 5 pm

 

With the library closed I have been forced to read from my own bookshelves. As I write this I am halfway through Paradise Lost by John Milton-not the easiest four hundred page poem to read. Other books on my spring reading list are Dracula and Frankenstein for my comfort (ha, ha), Eager to Love By Fr. Richard Rohr, The Shepherd’s Life by James Rebanks, the eighth book of The Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan, The Awakening by Kate Chopin, Pattern Recognition by William Gibson, and the 2014 Best American Travel Writing edited by Paul Theroux. I hope to fit working on a jigsaw puzzle in there as well, something I haven’t done in years. Keep the faith, my friends.

 

Our gospel reading today focuses on doubting Thomas. I would like to concentrate on believing Jerry. Our longtime parishioner Jerry Spring died on Wednesday evening, April 8th, from complications due to the coronavirus. His gentle smile belied a fierce commitment to the poor and needy in our area and beyond. On returning from a 2007 trip to Guatemala, which I also was on, he was determined that our parish provide smokeless stoves for the villages in our sister parish Union de las Aldeas Corpus Cristi. And so it was that 125 stoves were provided. He lived and breathed Matthew 25 - “as long as you have done it for the least of my brothers and sisters, you have done it for me.” Our prayers go out to his wife Joan and the family. May he rest in peace of God’s kingdom. His funeral will be held on a future date.

 

Halleluiah! He is risen even as he said. Although these words may not give us the warm comfort of previous years, I do hope that this Easter allows us some hope. My prayer is that through these weeks of confinement we may have grown in our love for our family, for our work colleagues, for our classmates, indeed for everyone. The norm has shifted and has forced us to take a new outlook on life. Hopefully the ideologies that have divided us may heal and that we look at each other as fellow beloved daughters and sons of a God who brings new life out of chaos. Yet, it is Easter! We may not be celebrating as we want or like to. As of this writing I don’t know if I will be with family or alone on Easter day. But I do know that I have grown through all this and that Christ is my Redeemer. And that makes all the difference.