Monday Message, November 13, 2023
KNOW
There is a parish leader check in tomorrow at 11. Join us to pray together and talk about those who don’t attend. I am joking, of course – it’s a great time to learn what is coming down the proverbial pike. Click here for link.
You may have received a notification that the deanery meetings have been removed from LEAD. This is so the bishop’s office can send the invitations. In the spirit of generous hospitality, no RSVP is required. Letters will be sent directly to parish leaders from the bishop’s office a few weeks prior to each meeting. For a complete list of meetings, see this page.
The National Black Catholic Clergy Caucus (NBCCC) of the United States voted on Tuesday, July 24, 1990, while meeting in convention at Fordham University in New York, to establish November as Black Catholic History Month. The reason behind the selection of the month of November was the number of important dates to Catholics of African descent that fell within this month. We have collected many resources here to help you.
Please pray for all bishops of the US attending their annual fall meeting in Baltimore. Please also pray for the delegation of youth and adults leaving Thursday for the National Catholic Youth Conference.
Our quarterly in-person meeting is coming up on November 30th. Details are here. You will recognize our speaker – back by popular demand.
If you are an Ambassador, Bishop Caggiano is inviting you to a meeting on November 14 at 7 pm. This meeting will take place via Zoom and will include all commissioned Ambassadors. The Bishop wishes to thank you for your service and to let you know of some exciting opportunities open to Ambassadors. Registration is required. Please use this link to sign up.
REFLECT
This is a big week in our household. Mom is away so it’s dinner out every night and a suspension of all the rules.
I am kidding, of course. Really, it’s four against one. Child number three turns 16 this week and Thursday is the anniversary of my brother’s death. Child number two goes to NCYC on Thursday and another one has a concert this weekend, an event that comes with last minute shopping for a black tie and dress rehearsals at dinner time. The dogs and I will spend quality time together and I assume they will engage in a cage match only while I am on Zoom.
I drove nearly 500 miles over the weekend and never left Fairfield County. Between practices, rehearsals, college tours, and a trip to JFK, I spent quality time behind the wheel. It gave me a chance to catch up with individual children and Maureen and I braved the traffic last night so she could arrive in Indianapolis long before the conference participants.
As I do most Sundays, I got the chance to go through the next week’s readings. I like looking ahead. I hate surprises. Tomorrow, the psalm is a favorite – number 34. Do you know it without looking it up?
I will bless the Lord at all times.
At. All. Times.
In traffic. In crowds. When the idiot in front of me turns left as soon as the light turns green. In the supermarket when the people in front of me clearly had no training on self checkout. When the child waits until the last minute to announce a need for some obscure item and Amazon will not deliver on time. When another child announces they’ve been waiting for you to get home to decide what to eat for dinner. When no one has fed the dogs or emptied the dishwasher or taken out the trash.
At. All. Times.
It’s a Psalm worth remembering, even if you have to mutter it to yourselves as you fly down I-95.
Have a good week.
LAUGH
