Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic Church
Hot Springs Village, Arkansas
Last weekend I spoke before Mass about those who are sick, especially with fever, not feeling obligated to come to Mass on Saturday night or Sunday.  It is definitely not a sin to miss Mass due to serious sickness, whether that sickness is the flu or some other upper respiratory problem or anything that could be passed on to someone else.  If you are sick and come to Mass, there's always the possibility of something happening during Mass where you would need help.  Fortunately our ushers are trained in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and at many Masses there is a nurse who's ready to step in when needed.

Since I'm talking about sickness, I would remind you that if you have to miss Mass for more than a few Sundays due to illness or recovery from an illness, we have people who are trained and ready to bring you Communion at your home.  We all need to stay connected to Jesus in this most intimate of ways and either I, one of the deacons, or one of our Extraordinary Ministers of Communion, want to help you remain connected to Jesus and our faith community-even if you are unable to come back to Mass due to sickness or weakness due to age.  Call Marge Stehling at 922-3837 to arrange for someone to come to see you at  home or at one of our rehabilitation centers.  Finally, please let me know if you are going into the hospital and/or if you are going to have a serious surgery so I can offer the Anointing of the Sick, and come to see you if you are in the hospital.  Father George lets me know some days who of our parishioners are in St. Vincent's hospital in Hot Springs, but sometimes he doesn't get a complete list of Catholics; and, there is no one at National Park Hospital to inform me when we have parishioners there.  My cell phone number (which is always on the front of the bulletin) is 501-209-2502.  Thanks for helping us in the important ministers of reaching out in the name of Jesus to those who are sick and/or infirmed.
The saying, "It's not like it used to be" can be uttered with a positive or negative tone, depending on the subject matter and one's perspective.  Having gone to the March for many years, I witnessed a few negatives about the recently-held March for Life in Little Rock, but they are far outweighed by the positives.

The Walk is not as long, which has its positives and negatives.  The number of peple gathering for the Walk seems to be down which, though not good, has a good side to it.  Perhaps those who have gone in the past realize that great strides have been made in the Pro-Life movement, and they don't sense the same urgency to attend.  After seeing all of the elected officials present, from our new governor to our senators and representatives who were there, it is clear that we have reached a point where MANY elected officials are attending the March, and most are working hard to present and promote Pro-Life legislation; which, on the state level, the governor says he will sign.  We have, indeed, come a long way from the early days of the March to the state capitol when religious leaders, like our bishop, were always present, but elected officials and those running for office, were not.  Hearts have changed in these people and in many within the electorate who have elected Pro-Life (or at least you can say, anti-abortion) candidates.  More laws need to change and still many hearts need to change that will lead to truly Pro-Life people who respect and promote life from conception until natural death.

I applaud all those from our parish who gave up most of their Sunday to "stand for" life.  Let's thank the Lord for the progress that's been made, and pray for more strides ahead in the future.  God's way will always and ultimately prevail!
By the time you read this column, you will have either gone to the annual March for Life in Little Rock or not.  Certainly, a gathering of thousands of people who believe that human life is precious from the first moment of conception until death, and that it needs to be protected, is a powerful witness and is one way to change hearts and hopefuly, laws as well.  The March, however, is one activity on one day of the year.  It is even more important that, in daily prayer and in continual action, we speak loudly of our concern and care for human life, especially the life of the Unborn and their mothers.

I thank God for the many who participated in the Knights of Columbus Baby Bottle Campaign in October that brought in around $7,000 for Pro-Life ministries and activities in our area and in our state.  It was also good to see all the baby items that were recently donated for our baby shower.

Finally, the Arkansas Legislature has begun and hopefully, Pro-Life legislation will be promoted and passed with the prayers and encouragement of many of us "Pro-Lifers."  We will let you know if and when it is helpful for us to contact our legislators and ask them to pass Pro-Life legislation.  Efforts that are ongoing and sincere will indeed have the greatest impact and lead to the best results for many for years to come.