Most of us have had the experience of someone coming to our home and asking to come in to speak to us about God and the beliefs of his (or her) faith tradition.  This is one way to literally "bring" the Good News of Jesus Christ to others. There are, of course, other ways to do this.  We can invite people to our home in the hopes that they will respond to our invitation.

On Sunday, October 9, we hope that people whom you have invited and encouraged, will come to our home, Sacred Heart of Jesus Church, to see and hear what the Catholic Church is all about and perhaps find a new faith home with us.  This happens from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. and will include representatives from parish organizations and ministries. Refreshments will also be served.  This is one way that we all can reach out with the good news of The Lord and His church to others.  This open house is for anyone and includes those who may have left the practice of the Catholic faith.

In my homily last Sunday I spoke about the "call of God" to do His work coming throughout our lives, even in our retirement years.  That call for some of us, may be to serve in the liturgical ministry, especially at Mass.  For some, it may be to serve as a "Helping Hand" to someone in need (call Cathy Wedwick at 915-8456 or Pat Widlowski at 922-1395) or pick-up an application on the table in the hallway of the Education building.  And for some, it may be to participate in our prayer chain which means accepting requests for prayer for people who need the help of The Lord because of sickness or other serious needs.  Call Kathy Oesterle at 922-3552 or Suzy Gieringer at 915-9777 if you would like to serve in this ministry.  Finally, the call to help the hungry in our area (which seems to grow louder these days) will hopefully lead you to begin (or continue) to bring non-perishable food items to church on the weekends to support the efforts of Jackson House and perhaps (if there's plenty of food) the Food Pantry at Harvey's Chapel Baptist Church in Mountain Pine.  The call from God is ringing out at all times and in many ways.  Won't you answer "yes" to one, or some, of these calls?  The results will be very rewarding.

It was a very upbeat and determined group of people who gathered early on a Saturday morning at the Cortez Pavilion. Over 115 Sacred Heart Parishioners signed up for the Village Cancer Walk, and many of them were there with me (and so many others) to walk in memory of, or in honor of, someone who had or has cancer.  I am so happy that so many of our parishioners responded in such a loving, sincere, and generous way.  They announced at the walk that over $30,000 had been collected for cancer research.  I pray that next year we will see even greater participation from members of this wonderful parish and that someday we will not have a need for such a walk because the scourge of cancer will no longer affect the human race.  We are a people of hope.  Alleluia.