Fourth Sunday of Easter
May 3, 2020 – Message from the Pastor
Jesus said, “…I am the gate for the sheep…Whoever enters through me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they may have life and have it more abundantly.” (John 10)
Jesus is the gate for the sheep. But in order to become the gate, he had to go through the gate first. He did that through his passion, death and Resurrection. In this way, he became the gate for us. Without him, our death would be final, without hope. With him, we have the hope of passing through the gate of death into eternal life.
And that’s not all: we have already entered the gate, through our baptism, which is a dying: a dying to sin and selfishness, and entering into the life of God. We already share in that life, through the Holy Spirit that Jesus has given us, even while we also experience suffering and difficulties in this life. Without the Holy Spirit, we can only expect disappointment, despair, discouragement when face with life’s uncertainties, especially at this time when the Coronavirus is wreaking havoc throughout the world.
But because Jesus has passed through the gate and become the gate, he gives us hope, meaning, peace and strength. Through his shepherds, he continues to offer his life, “the new normal” to us. Each time we celebrate the Eucharist (even if remotely, for now) and the other sacraments, the gate of God’s grace, mercy, love, strength, and peace is opened for us, because the sacraments truly link us to Jesus the chief shepherd, through his priests, the shepherds who administer those sacraments.
Being an active member of our parish keeps you close to Jesus by keeping you close to his shepherds, the priests, and the flock. You can sign up for Flocknotes, a social medium by which we send you periodic messages by email (or by text, but text only allows a very short message, so email is better.) Go to www.flocknote.com and enter our church name or our zip code – 92111, select our church when listed. Then enter your name, mobile phone number, and email. You can also text “StCath” to 84576 to automatically sign up for Flocknotes.
Sunday Mass will be live-streamed from St. Catherine Labouré at 9:30 AM in English and 1:00 PM in Spanish, every Sunday until the Pandemic subsides.
You can join us on Facebook Live. www.facebook.com/saintcatherinelaboure/. Please be sure to click “like” on the page.
Daily Mass on Facebook.live: I will be celebrating the Mass Monday – Friday 8:00 AM and posting it on facebook .live. Join us!
We are still taking requests for Mass Intentions. Though not offering public Masses, we are covering the Mass intentions privately. Contact the office for more information.
Confessions (Sacrament of Reconciliation) is available on Saturdays at 4:00 PM (in the main church, by Cry Room) or by appointment.
The rosary will be livestreamed on facebook.live Tuesdays at 7:00 PM.
Don’t forget your financial donation to support the parish, as our expenses continue. Consider an online donation at our website: stcatherinelaboure.net – click on the online giving link. You can also mail in your donation; or put it in the office mail slot. Thank-you for your support.
See News Postings on the website for ongoing periodic updates.
Catholic Charities offers help:
· Covered California for those clients who have lost their health insurance coverage as a result of the pandemic.
· Cal Fresh: applications for CalFresh also known as the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). CalFresh is a program for low-income families and individuals that meet certain income guidelines. CalFresh benefits help supplement your food budget and allow families and individuals to buy nutritious food.
· Please call Catholic Charities at 619-287-9454 of contact pheras. Servicios en Español.
· Also: St. Brigid Food Bank is available to those in our area who need emergency food. Register through Catholic Charities. Catholic Charities created the Emergency Food Distribution Network to distribute food to those in need in a safe, effective, and reliable manner that complies with COVID-19 social distancing requirements. Individuals and families who need food assistance can request for food assistance online at https://ccdsd.org/food-pick-up/ or call 619.323.2841 option 2 to request food.
For now, we remain united in faith, hope, and love – from a distance!
