From the Desk of Father Tharp

 National Association of African Catholics in the United States

The St. Ann/Sacred Heart Pastoral Region was honored to host a regional Mass and gathering of NAACUS at Sacred Heart on July 1, 2018.  A few of our parishioner families are members of NAACUS.  This is an organization under the guidance of the USCCB., and one of the purposes is to allow Catholics whose roots are in the rich Catholic liturgical traditions of the many regions on the African continent to come together and provide an opportunity for the participants to have a worship and social experience of home.  In addition, it provides an opportunity for other Catholics of American, European, Asian, or other backgrounds to experience and share in the rich traditions of the Catholic faithful in the many regions of Africa. 

I am sure I speak for the few non-African parishioners from our pastoral region who joined us for the Mass when I say, “You don’t know what you missed.”  This was a wonderful experience of the many cultural expressions of faith in Jesus Christ which come together to make up the one Church we call “Catholic” (universal). 

Festival

Please consider volunteering for our Parish Festival.  It takes a lot of volunteers to make it all happen.  The festival results are so vital to the parish/school operation.  Please volunteer your time in any way you can.

REP Registration

St. Ann and Sacred Heart operate a combined Religious Education Program for students grades 1-8 not enrolled in and receiving religious training from a Catholic School (used to be called CCD).   Registration for this program is open.  Schedules and registration forms are available at the doors of church or from the parish office.

Reflection on Scripture

True evangelization requires no ornamentation.  Jesus sends his preachers out without equipment or accessories.  In today’s society, this would be unthinkable.  Today you have special protective padding for each sport; special apparel for every endeavor; and special shoes for the specific game as well as the condition of the turf or competitive surface on which the game will be played.  Jesus tells his disciples they don’t need anything like that.  They don’t need an expense account, hotel accommodations, or a GPS to guide their way.  All they need is faith in Jesus Christ and a willingness to give up everything else to proclaim him.  Committed faith is essential.  Everything else is peripheral. 

If we live our faithfulness to Jesus, we don’t need a lot of “stuff” to be true evangelists.  If we live our faith while building houses, repairing equipment, digging a ditch, analyzing sales reports, preparing a legal brief, or providing security for persons or places; in all these circumstances and a thousand more we can be examples of faith.  We can preach prophetically by our actions and how we treat one another. 

This is why Jesus suggests the minimalist approach of denying the unimportant and focusing on the essential.  Don’t fret or long for things you don’t need.  They just weigh you down.  Let your desire be the efficiency of faith.  As the commercial says, “Don’t leave home without it.”

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jer 23:1-6

Eph 2:13-18

Mk 6:30-34

Theme: Preaching the gospel takes precedence!