Easter in Ordinary

Friends, I am gathering information on how particular parishes and local communities are responding to Black Lives Matter. Your input and your sharing this with others would be very valuable to me. I'd like to get a picture of what is happening on the ground in the area of preaching and what the congregation desires in preaching. I'd be grateful if you would give me a few minutes of your time, and, then, please, ask your friends for some of their input, too. Loading...

There are a few phrases that I find really heartening to describe our work. One begins an article: “It is a beautiful thing to see a good pastor at work.” Chew on it, and the phrase bears tremendous respect for the art of being pastor. Another phrase that helps me comes from a priest describing a ministry resembling my own: “One must be a contemplative to work in the inner-city.” Jesus was sent into the world. Jesus was sent by the Father not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved by him. We, too, are sent into the world. Into its very heart. We parish priests live close to the people. It is a privileged view. Without earning it, without deserving it, we are with folks, invited in, at the most intimate of moments in their lives. Moments of joy-- births, baptisms, marriages. Moments of sorrow-- in the confessional, hospital visits, deaths, funerals. Ours is a privileged view. Some days, I am really tired. I feel like I have seen about all the garbage...