October 14, 2018 – Scripture Sunday – Pastor’s Corner

I.  Scripture Sunday! Every Sunday is truly Scripture Sunday because a good part of our liturgy is taken from Scripture, the Word of God! Ideally, every day is a Scripture day, because every day should include the reading, reflecting, and  integrating God’s word into our hearts and lives.

        This year, our focus is on the Psalms. The main types of Psalms can be identified as: prayers of the individual, praise from the individual for God’s saving help, prayers of the community, praise from the community for God’s saving help, confessions of confidence in the Lord, hymns and praise of God’s majesty and virtues, hymns celebrating God’s universal reign, songs of Zion—the city of God, royal Psalms—the king as God’s anointed, pilgrimage songs, liturgical songs, and didactic (instructtional) songs. 

        Indeed, psalms are timeless because they express all the emotions and struggles of someone in a community making their way through life.

II.  Mission Accomplished!  We welcome back to Owensboro those who were part of our Mission Trip to our sister Diocese in Mandeville, Jamaica:  Mark Heinz, Mary Beth & Phil Hurley, Al Thompson, Tanja Wells-Walker, Taran Wells, and Kathryn Wimsatt. We can’t wait to hear about your experience!

III.  A Connection: Oscar Romero and Paul VI canonized saints October 14 (today)! Pope Paul VI appointed Oscar Romero a Bishop and Archbishop. When Romero (assassinated while he was celebrating Mass because of his advocacy for the poor) was under terrible pressure in the first two years of his ministry, Paul VI gave Romero unconditional and uncritical support. That meant the world to Romero, who had a great affection for Paul VI, whom some would say is responsible for implementing Vatican II. 

IV.  Fed to the Lions: Saint Ignatius of Antioch (c. 37-107), an apostolic father and possible disciple of John the Evangelist, served the community of Antioch as bishop. Living during the anti-Christian reign of Roman emperor Trajan, he was sentenced to be fed to the animals in the Roman Colosseum because he would not engage in idol worship. His journey to Rome was marked by extensive writing in which he composed seven letters. These letters, directed to various churches, emphasized the humanity and divinity of Christ, the centrality of Eucharist, and the importance of Church unity. We celebrate his feast on Wednesday, October 17. 

V.  Patron of Artists and Physicians: Saint Luke the Evangelist (first century) is traditionally known as the author of the Gospel that bears his name as well as the Acts of the Apostles. Luke was a gentile from Antioch in Syria, and his roots show both in his writing style and in his sympathetic treatment of gentiles in the gospel that bears his name. Luke accompanied Paul on some of his evangelizing journeys, and he stays with Paul while he is in prison in Rome. Some sources claim he was martyred, but it is thought that he died an old man of natural causes. A tradition states that he was the first icon painter, and a black Madonna of Częstochowa is attributed to him. His symbol is an ox or bull because the Lukan Gospel begins with Zachariah, the father of John the Baptist, offering a sacrifice in the temple. His feast day is Thursday, October 18.