Peter addressed the people in these words;

 

“You know what has happened all over Judea,

beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached,

how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth

with the Holy Spirit and power.

He went about doing good

And healing all those oppressed by the devil,

For God was with him.

 

We are witnesses of all that he did

Both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem.

They put him to death by hanging him on a tree.

This man God raised on the third day and granted

That he be visible,

Not to all the people, but to us,

The witnesses chosen by God in advance,

Who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.

 

He commissioned us to preach to the people

And testify that he is the one appointed by God

As judge of the living and the dead.

To him all the prophets bear witness,

That everyone who believe in him

Will receive forgiveness of sins through his name.”

 

The First Reading on Easter Sunday

Acts of the Apostles

 

Dear Community of Saint Joseph’s;

 

It really does not matter when we gather as Catholic Christians.  It could be any Sunday or weekday. We could be gathering on Christmas or the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.   It does not matter exactly what reading is proclaimed because the story is always the same:  the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  The truth and beauty we consistently celebrate is the fact that God so loved the world that he sent his son Jesus Christ to teach us, to die for us and show us the way to everlasting life.  We sometimes focus on other aspects of the Christian life, but everything we do revolves around this mystery.

 

Throughout history God has called us to lives of holiness.  That eternal challenge continues today.  We can either choose to listen to God’s voice calling us or ignore it.  That is our choice – to listen and respond to God – or to carry on, oblivious to the potential grace that comes to those who select to follow the will of God in their everyday lives.  I hope that through this Lent you have heard the voice of God in the proclamation of the words of Sacred Scriptures, in the singing of our music, our homiletic interpretations, our Lenten concert and our parish mission.  I pray that in this community of faithful people we call Saint Joseph’s you feel strengthened spiritually to face the outside world.  I know that the story of Christ and his resurrection is a story that can change your life.  May you and your families be blessed this Easter season with life, hope and love.

 

My gratitude to everyone who has made this a truly holy time for all of us at Saint Joseph’s.  My welcome to those new members of our parish family brought to us through the process of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and Children.  To our guests this Easter – my invitation to join us every day on our journey through the cross to the resurrection.

 

 

 

 

Father Matt Pennington

Pastor